Clark County, Kentucky
Clark County | |
---|---|
UTC−4 (EDT) | |
Congressional district | 6th |
Website | www |
Clark County is a
History
White European settlement is known in this area as early as 1753. Many pioneers traveled through nearby Fort Boonesborough (alternatively known as Fort Boonesboro) in Madison County, Kentucky, before establishing permanent settlements in Clark County. At least nineteen pioneer stations (settlements) are believed to have been established in the area during the American Revolution. These included Strode's Station (1779), near Winchester; McGee's Station (ca. 1780), near Becknerville; Holder's Station (1781), on Lower Howard's Creek; and Boyle's Station (ca. 1785), one mile South of Strode's Station. Among the early settlers was a group of forty Baptist families led by Capt. William Bush, who settled on Lower Howard's Creek in 1775. In 1793 they erected the Old Stone Meeting House. Another early group founded the Tracy settlement, erecting a church building in the 1790s that survived into the early 20th century.
When the Indian threat ended, commercial and agricultural enterprises began. Wharfs for loading
Clark County began in 1785 as Bourbon County, Virginia, when it was created from Fayette County, Kentucky (also then in Virginia). It was much larger area than present-day Bourbon County, as its original territory is now divided among Bracken, Boone, Campbell, Clark, Estill, Fleming, Floyd, Greenup, Harrison, Kenton, Mason, Montgomery, Lewis, Nicholas, Pendleton, Powell, and Robertson. Bourbon County is from which Bourbon whiskey evolved its name.
Notable residents of early Clark County were Gov. Charles Scott (1808–12), Gov. James Clark (1836–39), Jane Lampton, the mother of Mark Twain, and sculptor Joel T. Hart.
The Civil War divided the county, and about 1,000 of its men joined either the Confederate or Union forces. Confederate General John Hunt Morgan led his Confederate cavalry through the county on raids in both 1862 and 1864.
The Elizabethtown, Lexington & Big Sandy
A number of agricultural changes occurred in the postbellum years through World War II. When Clark County shorthorn cattle were not able to compete with the vast numbers of western cattle being hauled to market by the railroads, several county fortunes were lost and many farmers turned towards burley tobacco as a substitute. Hemp, which was grown to make rope, suffered from foreign competition and vanished as a cash crop around World War I. The crop was brought back during World War II and a processing plant was built in the county. When the war ended, so did the revival of hemp.
In the 1950s and 1960s, industry began moving to the county, mostly around Winchester, aided by the completion of I-64 and the Mountain Parkway, which by the mid-1960s formed a junction near Winchester. By 1986 manufacturing positions accounted for 25 percent of the employed labor force while another 25 percent was employed in other counties, many in nearby Fayette. The county remains a rich agricultural area, with farms occupying 95 percent of the land.
Clark County is the birthplace[5] of Beer Cheese, a regional delicacy that is growing in popularity across the country. Winchester hosts the annual Beer Cheese Festival in celebration of this Kentucky original treat.
Geography
According to the
Adjacent counties
- Bourbon County (north)
- Montgomery County (northeast)
- Powell County (southeast)
- Estill County (southeast)
- Madison County (southwest)
- Fayette County (northwest)
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1800 | 7,653 | — | |
1810 | 11,519 | 50.5% | |
1820 | 11,449 | −0.6% | |
1830 | 13,051 | 14.0% | |
1840 | 10,802 | −17.2% | |
1850 | 12,683 | 17.4% | |
1860 | 11,484 | −9.5% | |
1870 | 10,882 | −5.2% | |
1880 | 12,115 | 11.3% | |
1890 | 15,434 | 27.4% | |
1900 | 16,694 | 8.2% | |
1910 | 17,987 | 7.7% | |
1920 | 17,901 | −0.5% | |
1930 | 17,640 | −1.5% | |
1940 | 17,988 | 2.0% | |
1950 | 18,898 | 5.1% | |
1960 | 21,075 | 11.5% | |
1970 | 24,090 | 14.3% | |
1980 | 28,322 | 17.6% | |
1990 | 29,496 | 4.1% | |
2000 | 33,144 | 12.4% | |
2010 | 35,613 | 7.4% | |
2020 | 36,972 | 3.8% | |
2023 (est.) | 37,304 | [8] | 0.9% |
U.S. Decennial Census[9] 1790-1960[10] 1900-1990[11] 1990-2000[12] 2010-2020[1] |
As of the
There were 13,015 households, out of which 33.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.90% were married couples living together, 12.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.60% were non-families. 22.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.95.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.80% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 30.30% from 25 to 44, 24.30% from 45 to 64, and 12.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.80 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $39,946, and the median income for a family was $45,647. Males had a median income of $35,774 versus $24,298 for females. The
Government
The Clark County courthouse is located at 34 South Main Street in Winchester.
County Judge-Executive: Les Yates County Clerk: Michelle Turner Sheriff: Berl Perdue Jr. Coroner: Neal Oliver Jailer: Frank Squatty Doyle County Attorney: William Elkins Circuit Clerk: Martha Miller County Property Valuation Administrator (PVA): Jada Brady County Surveyor: Vacant
Politics
Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
2020 | 11,811 | 65.11% | 6,004 | 33.10% | 324 | 1.79% |
2016 | 10,710 | 66.09% | 4,706 | 29.04% | 789 | 4.87% |
2012 | 9,931 | 64.42% | 5,228 | 33.91% | 257 | 1.67% |
2008 | 9,664 | 61.84% | 5,749 | 36.79% | 215 | 1.38% |
2004 | 9,540 | 62.28% | 5,661 | 36.96% | 116 | 0.76% |
2000 | 7,297 | 58.50% | 4,918 | 39.43% | 258 | 2.07% |
1996 | 4,739 | 43.49% | 4,987 | 45.77% | 1,170 | 10.74% |
1992 | 4,625 | 40.16% | 4,892 | 42.48% | 2,000 | 17.37% |
1988 | 5,329 | 55.38% | 4,252 | 44.19% | 41 | 0.43% |
1984 | 6,130 | 62.82% | 3,595 | 36.84% | 33 | 0.34% |
1980 | 4,302 | 44.42% | 5,071 | 52.36% | 312 | 3.22% |
1976 | 3,114 | 40.09% | 4,575 | 58.90% | 79 | 1.02% |
1972 | 4,506 | 68.43% | 2,020 | 30.68% | 59 | 0.90% |
1968 | 2,698 | 39.63% | 2,385 | 35.03% | 1,725 | 25.34% |
1964 | 2,019 | 32.37% | 4,205 | 67.42% | 13 | 0.21% |
1960 | 3,317 | 52.31% | 3,024 | 47.69% | 0 | 0.00% |
1956 | 3,030 | 45.48% | 3,609 | 54.16% | 24 | 0.36% |
1952 | 2,592 | 41.73% | 3,620 | 58.27% | 0 | 0.00% |
1948 | 1,508 | 30.06% | 3,292 | 65.63% | 216 | 4.31% |
1944 | 1,929 | 34.67% | 3,608 | 64.85% | 27 | 0.49% |
1940 | 2,136 | 34.87% | 3,970 | 64.82% | 19 | 0.31% |
1936 | 2,246 | 33.73% | 4,396 | 66.02% | 17 | 0.26% |
1932 | 1,981 | 28.56% | 4,920 | 70.93% | 35 | 0.50% |
1928 | 3,495 | 50.25% | 3,460 | 49.75% | 0 | 0.00% |
1924 | 2,703 | 40.78% | 3,857 | 58.18% | 69 | 1.04% |
1920 | 3,105 | 38.88% | 4,846 | 60.67% | 36 | 0.45% |
1916 | 1,731 | 39.45% | 2,620 | 59.71% | 37 | 0.84% |
1912 | 1,056 | 26.07% | 2,321 | 57.31% | 673 | 16.62% |
Communities
Cities
- Winchester (county seat)
Unincorporated communities
See also
References
- ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ The Register of the Kentucky State Historical Society, Volume 1. Kentucky State Historical Society. 1903. pp. 34.
- ^ "Clark County". The Kentucky Encyclopedia. 2000. Archived from the original on August 22, 2014. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
- ^ "13RS SB158". www.lrc.ky.gov. Archived from the original on June 6, 2015. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
- ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
- ISBN 0-938530-02-X.
- ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
- ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Archived from the original on August 11, 2012. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
- ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
- ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved April 11, 2018.