Prior to 1952, Sangwŏn was merely a township of Chunghwa County.

[citation needed] In 2010, it was administratively reassigned from P'yŏngyang to North Hwanghae; foreign media attributed the change as an attempt to relieve shortages in P'yŏngyang's food distribution system.

[2] Sangwon county has a trolleybus system with a single track of bidirectional overhead wire and a length of just over 4 kilometers, running from Myongdang-rodongjagu to Sangwon Cement Complex, ending a few kilometers to the east in another residential zone.

The depot is located on the eastern terminus and features a covered building.

[3] The county is divided into one town (ŭp), one worker's district (rodongjagu) and 20 'ri' (villages).