It is believed that Rowan County was first explored by those of European descent in 1773 by a party of surveyors from Pennsylvania. The first settlement was established in Farmers, a town 10 miles west of Morehead. Its population rapidly increased due its fertile farming land and proximity to water sources. Additional settlers came to Rowan County from Virginia in the late 18th century after being awarded land grants at the end of the American Revolutionary War. Clearfield was the second settlement established in the county, being colonized by a Virginia aristocrat named Dixon Clack in the early 1800s. It accommodated the first sawmill in the county.[5]
In 1854, Morehead became the third community to be settled in the area.[6] Colonel John Hargis founded the city after purchasing land in the county, naming it after governor James Morehead.[7] Rowan County came into existence in May 1856, seceding from Morgan County and Fleming County. It was divided into four districts with Morehead being declared the county seat.[8] In 1896, a tax was levied on Morehead, sourcing it with the revenue needed to construct hard surface roads. The road system was extended to Farmers by 1920.[5]
In summer 2015, Rowan County attracted national attention when County Clerk Kim Davis refused, on grounds of religion, to follow a court order requiring her to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.[9]
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 286 square miles (740 km2), of which 280 square miles (730 km2) is land and 6.5 square miles (17 km2) (2.3%) is water.[10] Its highest point is "Limestone Knob" at about 1,409 feet (429 m) above mean sea level.
U.S. Decennial Census[12] 1790–1960[13] 1900–1990[14] 1990–2000[15] 2010–2020[1]
As of the census of 2010, there were 23,333 people and 7,956 households residing in the county. The population density was 83.4 per square mile (32.2/km2). There were 10,102 housing units at an average density of 34 per square mile (13/km2). The racial make-up was 96.1% White, 1.5% Black or African American, 0.1% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0% Pacific Islander, and 1.0% from two or more races. 1.3% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 7,956 households, of which 19.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.40% were married couples living together, 10.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.20% were non-families. 27.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.91.
The age distribution was 20.30% under the age of 18, 23.50% from 18 to 24, 25.90% from 25 to 44, 20.00% from 45 to 64, and 10.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. Both the unusually large portion of the population in the 18-to-24 range and the relatively low median age are mainly because of the presence of Morehead State University. For every 100 females there were 94.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.10 males.
The median household income was $33,081. Males had a median income of $26,777 and females $20,104. The per capita income was $13,888. About 15.90% of families and 21.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.80% of those under age 18 and 16.20% of those age 65 or over.
In 2014, the county had 14,263 registered voters.[16] Of these, 9,394 were Democrats, 3,929 were Republicans, and 626 listed themselves as members of other parties.[16]
Politics
Rowan County is known as a swing county. It voted Republican in 2000, 2012, 2016, and 2020 and Democratic in 2004 and 2008, but in most of those elections the winning candidate won by small margins. This changed in 2016 when Republican Donald Trump won the county with nearly 59% of the vote to Democrat Hillary Clinton's 37%, the largest margin of victory since Jimmy Carter won the county in 1976. Rowan County was one of four counties in Eastern Kentucky to vote for Barack Obama in 2008. It is the only county in the eastern coalfields where the Republican nominee Donald Trump never won over 60% of the vote.
United States presidential election results for Rowan County, Kentucky[17]
In June and July 2015, the Rowan county clerk, Kim Davis, refused several residents their right to marry, a right guaranteed by the ruling of the Supreme Court on June 26, 2015, that same-sex marriages are legal across the entirety of the United States. Privately held religious belief was given as the reason for non-compliance with the Court's ruling and with the state governor's executive order of June 26 instructing all state agencies and clerks to comply with it.[18]
Kim Davis – Rowan County Clerk who was jailed for refusing to comply with a federal court order directing her to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples following the United States Supreme Court decision in Obergefell vs. Hodges.
Cora Wilson Stewart (1875–1958) - First woman to be elected to the position of the president of the Kentucky Education Association. Opened Moonlight School, first in Rowan County, Kentucky, and then across the United States, to educate illiterate adults at night in the schools where children studied during the day.
^ ab"State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
^"Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
^The Register of the Kentucky State Historical Society, Volume 1. Kentucky State Historical Society. 1903. pp. 36.
^(PDF). Kentucky Office of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 15, 2007. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
^ ab. The Morehead News. February 2, 1977. Archived from the original on February 27, 2015. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
^Thompson, George E. (2009). You Live Where?: Interesting and unusual facts about where we live. iUniverse. p. 236. ISBN978-1440134210.
^Pearce, John Ed (2010). Days of Darkness: The Feuds of Eastern Kentucky. The University Press of Kentucky. ISBN978-0813126579.
^. The Rowan County News. April 30, 1936. Archived from the original on February 27, 2015. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
^"Kentucky Clerk Denies Same-Sex Marriage Licenses, Defying Court". New York Times. September 1, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
^. United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
^"Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2021". Retrieved August 28, 2022.
^"U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
^"Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
^"Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
^"Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
^ ab"Voter turnout expected to be high". Morehead News. Morehead, Kentucky. October 31, 2014.
^Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved July 5, 2018.
^"ACLU sues Rowan clerk over marriage licenses". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
rowan, county, kentucky, rowan, county, county, located, northeastern, part, state, kentucky, eastern, kentucky, coalfield, region, 2020, census, population, county, seat, morehead, county, created, 1856, from, parts, fleming, morgan, counties, named, after, j. Rowan County ˈ r oʊ ɪ n r aʊ n is a county located in the northeastern part of the U S state of Kentucky in the Eastern Kentucky Coalfield region As of the 2020 census the population was 24 662 1 Its county seat is Morehead 2 The county was created in 1856 from parts of Fleming and Morgan counties and named after John Rowan who represented Kentucky in the House of Representatives and the Senate 3 With regard to the sale of alcohol it is classified as a moist county in which alcohol sales are prohibited but unlike a dry county it contains a wet city Morehead where packaged alcohol sales are allowed 4 Rowan CountyU S countyRowan County Arts Center formerly Rowan County Courthouse in MoreheadLocation within the U S state of KentuckyKentucky s location within the U S Coordinates 38 11 N 83 25 W 38 19 N 83 42 W 38 19 83 42Country United StatesState KentuckyFounded1856Named forJohn RowanSeatMoreheadLargest cityMoreheadArea Total286 sq mi 740 km2 Land280 sq mi 700 km2 Water6 5 sq mi 17 km2 2 3 Population 2020 Total24 662 Estimate 2021 24 861 Density86 sq mi 33 km2 Time zoneUTC 5 Eastern Summer DST UTC 4 EDT Congressional district5thWebsitewww moreheadrowan org rowancounty Contents 1 History 2 Geography 2 1 Adjacent counties 2 2 National protected area 3 Demographics 4 Politics 5 Legal compliance 6 Media 7 Communities 7 1 Cities 7 2 Census designated place 7 3 Other unincorporated communities 8 Notable people 9 See also 10 References 11 External linksHistory Edit The town of Morehead in 1890 It is believed that Rowan County was first explored by those of European descent in 1773 by a party of surveyors from Pennsylvania The first settlement was established in Farmers a town 10 miles west of Morehead Its population rapidly increased due its fertile farming land and proximity to water sources Additional settlers came to Rowan County from Virginia in the late 18th century after being awarded land grants at the end of the American Revolutionary War Clearfield was the second settlement established in the county being colonized by a Virginia aristocrat named Dixon Clack in the early 1800s It accommodated the first sawmill in the county 5 In 1854 Morehead became the third community to be settled in the area 6 Colonel John Hargis founded the city after purchasing land in the county naming it after governor James Morehead 7 Rowan County came into existence in May 1856 seceding from Morgan County and Fleming County It was divided into four districts with Morehead being declared the county seat 8 In 1896 a tax was levied on Morehead sourcing it with the revenue needed to construct hard surface roads The road system was extended to Farmers by 1920 5 In summer 2015 Rowan County attracted national attention when County Clerk Kim Davis refused on grounds of religion to follow a court order requiring her to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples 9 Geography EditAccording to the United States Census Bureau the county has a total area of 286 square miles 740 km2 of which 280 square miles 730 km2 is land and 6 5 square miles 17 km2 2 3 is water 10 Its highest point is Limestone Knob at about 1 409 feet 429 m above mean sea level Adjacent counties Edit Lewis County north Carter County northeast Elliott County east Morgan County south Menifee County southwest Bath County west Fleming County northwest National protected area Edit Daniel Boone National Forest part Demographics EditHistorical populationCensus Pop 18602 282 18702 99131 1 18804 42047 8 18906 12938 7 19008 27735 0 19109 43814 0 19209 4670 3 193010 89315 1 194012 73416 9 195012 708 0 2 196012 8080 8 197017 01032 8 198019 04912 0 199020 3536 8 200022 0948 6 201023 3335 6 202024 6625 7 2021 est 24 861 11 0 8 U S Decennial Census 12 1790 1960 13 1900 1990 14 1990 2000 15 2010 2020 1 As of the census of 2010 there were 23 333 people and 7 956 households residing in the county The population density was 83 4 per square mile 32 2 km2 There were 10 102 housing units at an average density of 34 per square mile 13 km2 The racial make up was 96 1 White 1 5 Black or African American 0 1 Native American 0 8 Asian 0 Pacific Islander and 1 0 from two or more races 1 3 of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race There were 7 956 households of which 19 6 had children under the age of 18 living with them 52 40 were married couples living together 10 20 had a female householder with no husband present and 34 20 were non families 27 00 of all households were made up of individuals and 9 20 had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older The average household size was 2 39 and the average family size was 2 91 The age distribution was 20 30 under the age of 18 23 50 from 18 to 24 25 90 from 25 to 44 20 00 from 45 to 64 and 10 40 who were 65 years of age or older The median age was 30 years Both the unusually large portion of the population in the 18 to 24 range and the relatively low median age are mainly because of the presence of Morehead State University For every 100 females there were 94 60 males For every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93 10 males The median household income was 33 081 Males had a median income of 26 777 and females 20 104 The per capita income was 13 888 About 15 90 of families and 21 30 of the population were below the poverty line including 20 80 of those under age 18 and 16 20 of those age 65 or over In 2014 the county had 14 263 registered voters 16 Of these 9 394 were Democrats 3 929 were Republicans and 626 listed themselves as members of other parties 16 Politics EditRowan County is known as a swing county It voted Republican in 2000 2012 2016 and 2020 and Democratic in 2004 and 2008 but in most of those elections the winning candidate won by small margins This changed in 2016 when Republican Donald Trump won the county with nearly 59 of the vote to Democrat Hillary Clinton s 37 the largest margin of victory since Jimmy Carter won the county in 1976 Rowan County was one of four counties in Eastern Kentucky to vote for Barack Obama in 2008 It is the only county in the eastern coalfields where the Republican nominee Donald Trump never won over 60 of the vote United States presidential election results for Rowan County Kentucky 17 Year Republican Democratic Third partyNo No No 2020 5 994 59 55 3 880 38 55 191 1 90 2016 5 174 58 48 3 295 37 24 379 4 28 2012 4 035 52 64 3 438 44 85 192 2 50 2008 3 907 47 92 4 074 49 96 173 2 12 2004 4 063 46 67 4 556 52 33 87 1 00 2000 3 546 49 07 3 505 48 51 175 2 42 1996 2 309 36 63 3 215 51 00 780 12 37 1992 2 469 33 94 3 558 48 91 1 247 17 14 1988 3 093 50 90 2 968 48 84 16 0 26 1984 3 698 57 16 2 748 42 47 24 0 37 1980 2 758 46 07 2 975 49 69 254 4 24 1976 2 244 38 24 3 541 60 34 83 1 41 1972 3 245 59 45 2 169 39 74 44 0 81 1968 2 017 45 23 1 898 42 57 544 12 20 1964 1 554 35 35 2 824 64 24 18 0 41 1960 2 558 51 47 2 412 48 53 0 0 00 1956 2 470 50 85 2 380 49 00 7 0 14 1952 1 985 47 08 2 220 52 66 11 0 26 1948 1 502 41 21 2 097 57 53 46 1 26 1944 1 815 48 09 1 944 51 51 15 0 40 1940 1 944 45 85 2 294 54 10 2 0 05 1936 1 687 45 79 1 989 53 99 8 0 22 1932 1 622 36 12 2 844 63 34 24 0 53 1928 1 857 61 25 1 170 38 59 5 0 16 1924 1 326 53 60 1 092 44 14 56 2 26 1920 1 564 54 94 1 264 44 40 19 0 67 1916 941 51 17 881 47 91 17 0 92 1912 417 25 23 737 44 59 499 30 19 Legal compliance EditIn June and July 2015 the Rowan county clerk Kim Davis refused several residents their right to marry a right guaranteed by the ruling of the Supreme Court on June 26 2015 that same sex marriages are legal across the entirety of the United States Privately held religious belief was given as the reason for non compliance with the Court s ruling and with the state governor s executive order of June 26 instructing all state agencies and clerks to comply with it 18 Media EditThe Morehead News local paper WMKY Morehead State University radio W10BM TV Rowan Review local online news The Trail Blazer Morehead State University newspaper News Center Morehead State University TelevisionCommunities EditCities Edit Lakeview Heights Morehead county seat Census designated place Edit FarmersOther unincorporated communities Edit Clearfield Cranston Elliottville Gates Haldeman Hayes Crossing Hilda Paragon Pelfrey Rodburn Sharkey Smile Triplett Wagner CornerNotable people EditKim Davis Rowan County Clerk who was jailed for refusing to comply with a federal court order directing her to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples following the United States Supreme Court decision in Obergefell vs Hodges Cora Wilson Stewart 1875 1958 First woman to be elected to the position of the president of the Kentucky Education Association Opened Moonlight School first in Rowan County Kentucky and then across the United States to educate illiterate adults at night in the schools where children studied during the day See also EditNational Register of Historic Places listings in Rowan County Kentucky United States portalReferences EditSpecific a b State amp County QuickFacts United States Census Bureau Retrieved August 28 2022 Find a County National Association of Counties Retrieved June 7 2011 The Register of the Kentucky State Historical Society Volume 1 Kentucky State Historical Society 1903 pp 36 Wet amp Dry Counties in Kentucky PDF Kentucky Office of Alcoholic Beverage Control Archived from the original PDF on March 15 2007 Retrieved March 21 2007 a b Farmers Once Industrial Center of Rowan County The Morehead News February 2 1977 Archived from the original on February 27 2015 Retrieved February 26 2015 Thompson George E 2009 You Live Where Interesting and unusual facts about where we live iUniverse p 236 ISBN 978 1440134210 Pearce John Ed 2010 Days of Darkness The Feuds of Eastern Kentucky The University Press of Kentucky ISBN 978 0813126579 Early history of Rowan County as taken from the records of the first established womens club here The Rowan County News April 30 1936 Archived from the original on February 27 2015 Retrieved February 26 2015 Kentucky Clerk Denies Same Sex Marriage Licenses Defying Court New York Times September 1 2015 Retrieved September 1 2015 2010 Census Gazetteer Files United States Census Bureau August 22 2012 Archived from the original on August 12 2014 Retrieved August 19 2014 Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties April 1 2020 to July 1 2021 Retrieved August 28 2022 U S Decennial Census United States Census Bureau Retrieved August 19 2014 Historical Census Browser University of Virginia Library Retrieved August 19 2014 Population of Counties by Decennial Census 1900 to 1990 United States Census Bureau Retrieved August 19 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 19 2014 a b Voter turnout expected to be high Morehead News Morehead Kentucky October 31 2014 Leip David Dave Leip s Atlas of U S Presidential Elections uselectionatlas org Retrieved July 5 2018 ACLU sues Rowan clerk over marriage licenses The Courier Journal Retrieved July 8 2015 GeneralWet Dry mapExternal links EditThe Kentucky Highlands Project Rowan County Sheriff s Department Coordinates 38 11 N 83 25 W 38 19 N 83 42 W 38 19 83 42 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Rowan County Kentucky amp oldid 1124518192, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
