Shirakawa has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by mild summers and cold winters.

In the Heian period, the Buddhist monk and waka poet Nōin composed the following poem about the region: 都をば霞とともに立ちしかど秋風ぞ吹く白河の関 Miyako wo ba kasumi to tomo ni tachishikado akikaze zo fuku Shirakawa no seki.

)In the Edo period the area prospered as a castle town Shirakawa Domain, and was the site of a major battle in the Boshin War during the Meiji restoration.

Subsequent mergers occurred in 1954 and 1955 with the inclusion of the villages of Shirasaka, Odagawa, Goka and a portion of Omotegō into the territory of Shirakawa.

In terms of national politics, the city is part of Fukushima 3rd district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.