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Green County, Kentucky

Coordinates: 37°16′N 85°33′W / 37.26°N 85.55°W / 37.26; -85.55
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Green County
County
Green County Justice Center in Greensburg, Kentucky.
Green County Justice Center in Greensburg, Kentucky.
Map of Kentucky highlighting Green County
Location within the U.S. state of Kentucky
Map of the United States highlighting Kentucky
Kentucky's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 37°16′N 85°33′W / 37.26°N 85.55°W / 37.26; -85.55
Country United States
State Kentucky
FoundedDecember 20, 1792
Named forNathanael Greene
SeatGreensburg
Largest cityGreensburg
Area
 • Total
289 sq mi (750 km2)
 • Land286 sq mi (740 km2)
 • Water2.8 sq mi (7 km2)  1.0%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
11,107
 • Estimate 
(2023)
11,468 Increase
 • Density38/sq mi (15/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district2nd
Websitewww.greencounty.ky.gov

Green County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Its county seat and only municipality is Greensburg.[1] Green was a prohibition or dry county until 2015.

History

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Green County was formed in 1792 from portions of Lincoln and Nelson Counties.[2] Green was the 16th Kentucky county in order of formation.[3] The county is named for Revolutionary War hero General Nathanael Greene, but the reason why the final E is missing is unknown.[4][5]

Three courthouses have served Green County. In 1804, a brick building replaced an earlier log structure, and while no longer operational, it stands in the Downtown Greensburg Historic District as the oldest courthouse building in the commonwealth. The present courthouse dates from 1931.[6]

The Cumberland Trace runs through Green County. This early road started in Lincoln County, Kentucky, and went to Nashville. (1)

Three counties (Cumberland, Adair, Taylor) were formed entirely from Green County, along with a portion of four more (Pulaski, Barren, Hart, and Metcalfe). (1)

Green River flows east to west through Green County. The Paddle Trail provides canoe rentals. In the early history of the county, flatboats would take tobacco from Green County, to New Orleans. There, farmers would sell their tobacco, sell their boat (for wood), and walk back to Green County. (1)

Green County was without a sheriff from 1879 until 1918, due to a dispute over railroad taxes. Individuals were elected sheriff, but were unable to post enough bond to cover not collecting railroad property taxes, and the office was declared vacant. From 1896 until 1915, a total of 34 murders were committed in the county. (1)

An oil boom from 1958 until the early 1960s gave the county an economic lift. Temporary air strips were built in the communities of Summersville, and Pierce. (1)

An adobe brick house was uncovered in Greensburg during 2007. The structure is thought to be the only "mud brick house" in Kentucky. (1)

The Goose Creek Footbridge connects the town square to what was once the train depot. Built in the late 1920s, the structure is 445 feet long, 40 feet high at its highest point, and has a plank walkway which is five feet wide. (1)

The community of Summersville is home to weekend music at Green River Live, and to the Skyline Drive-In Theater. (1)

A public hanging in Greensburg on September 21, 1841, attracted a crowd recorded at 10,000 people. Two other men who were convicted of the same crime - robbery and murder - died in their jail cell. (1)

The country's first known serial killers, Big Harpe and Little Harpe, murdered a twelve-year-old Green County boy in 1799. (1)

(1) "History of Green County, Kentucky," by Lanny Tucker.

The Cow Days Festival is held in Greensburg the 3rd weekend of September. The event originated during the late 1930s, when Greensburg merchants would give away a cow to entice people to come to town.

Geography

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According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 289 square miles (750 km2), of which 286 square miles (740 km2) is land and 2.8 square miles (7.3 km2) (1.0%) is water.[7]

Green County is in the central time zone.

Adjacent counties

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Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18006,096—
18106,73510.5%
182011,94377.3%
183013,13810.0%
184014,2128.2%
18509,060−36.3%
18608,806−2.8%
18709,3796.5%
188011,87126.6%
189011,463−3.4%
190012,2556.9%
191011,871−3.1%
192011,391−4.0%
193011,4010.1%
194012,3218.1%
195011,261−8.6%
196011,249−0.1%
197010,350−8.0%
198011,0436.7%
199010,371−6.1%
200011,51811.1%
201011,258−2.3%
202011,107−1.3%
2023 (est.)11,468[8]3.3%
U.S. Decennial Census[9]
1790-1960[10] 1900-1990[11]
1990-2000[12] 2010-2021[13]

As of the census[14] of 2000, there were 11,518 people, 4,706 households, and 3,378 families residing in the county. The population density was 40 per square mile (15/km2). There were 5,420 housing units at an average density of 19 per square mile (7.3/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 96.19% White, 2.61% Black or African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.31% from other races, and 0.65% from two or more races. 0.95% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,706 households, out of which 29.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.70% were married couples living together, 8.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.20% were non-families. 25.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.70% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 26.80% from 25 to 44, 25.40% from 45 to 64, and 16.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 96.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $25,463, and the median income for a family was $31,852. Males had a median income of $25,764 versus $17,510 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,107. About 15.20% of families and 18.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.10% of those under age 18 and 18.50% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

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City

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Census-designated place

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Other unincorporated places

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Notable people

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  • Junius George Groves, born a slave in Green County, he moved to Kansas in the 1870s and became known as the "Kansas Potato King," one year producing 72,150 bushels of potatoes on 295 acres. At his death, Groves owned a 22-room brick house.
  • Henry Skaggs (January 8, 1724 – December 4, 1810), an American longhunter, explorer and pioneer

Politics

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United States presidential election results for Green County, Kentucky[15]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 5,033 85.93% 782 13.35% 42 0.72%
2020 4,838 83.24% 920 15.83% 54 0.93%
2016 4,372 81.98% 832 15.60% 129 2.42%
2012 3,634 74.84% 1,165 23.99% 57 1.17%
2008 3,785 74.52% 1,204 23.71% 90 1.77%
2004 3,866 74.26% 1,312 25.20% 28 0.54%
2000 3,615 76.01% 1,085 22.81% 56 1.18%
1996 2,763 60.86% 1,285 28.30% 492 10.84%
1992 2,709 54.33% 1,760 35.30% 517 10.37%
1988 3,139 66.07% 1,595 33.57% 17 0.36%
1984 3,210 66.35% 1,611 33.30% 17 0.35%
1980 2,775 60.50% 1,758 38.33% 54 1.18%
1976 2,397 53.04% 2,085 46.14% 37 0.82%
1972 2,755 68.82% 1,209 30.20% 39 0.97%
1968 2,448 58.71% 1,003 24.05% 719 17.24%
1964 2,110 49.23% 2,160 50.40% 16 0.37%
1960 3,606 69.53% 1,580 30.47% 0 0.00%
1956 2,951 62.93% 1,726 36.81% 12 0.26%
1952 2,773 59.75% 1,857 40.01% 11 0.24%
1948 2,186 55.97% 1,628 41.68% 92 2.36%
1944 2,379 56.39% 1,809 42.88% 31 0.73%
1940 2,497 55.39% 1,993 44.21% 18 0.40%
1936 2,336 54.17% 1,970 45.69% 6 0.14%
1932 2,281 49.77% 2,277 49.68% 25 0.55%
1928 2,824 68.84% 1,272 31.01% 6 0.15%
1924 1,920 55.16% 1,548 44.47% 13 0.37%
1920 2,310 57.04% 1,723 42.54% 17 0.42%
1916 1,412 52.88% 1,239 46.40% 19 0.71%
1912 687 27.67% 1,117 44.99% 679 27.35%

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  2. ^ "Green County". The Kentucky Encyclopedia. 2000. Archived from the original on July 17, 2019. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
  3. ^ Collins, Lewis (1882). Collins' Historical Sketches of Kentucky: History of Kentucky, Volume 2. Collins & Company. p. 26.
  4. ^ Rennick, Robert M. (1987). Kentucky Place Names. University Press of Kentucky. p. 125. ISBN 0813126312. Retrieved April 28, 2013.
  5. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. p. 143.
  6. ^ Hogan, Roseann Reinemuth (1992). Kentucky Ancestry: A Guide to Genealogical and Historical Research. Ancestry Publishing. p. 241. ISBN 9780916489496. Retrieved July 26, 2013.
  7. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
  8. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  9. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
  10. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
  11. ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
  12. ^ "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 14, 2014.
  13. ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved March 6, 2014.
  14. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  15. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
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37°16′N 85°33′W / 37.26°N 85.55°W / 37.26; -85.55

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