County in Kentucky, United States
County in Kentucky
Morgan County
is a
county
located in the
U.S. state
of
Kentucky
. As of the
2020 census
, the population was 13,726.
[1]
Its
county seat
is
West Liberty
.
[2]
The county is among the
dry counties
, which means that the sale of alcohol is restricted or prohibited.
History
[
edit
]
Morgan County was formed on December 7, 1822, from portions of Bath County and Floyd County.
[3]
It was named for
Daniel Morgan
, a distinguished general in the
American Revolutionary War
.
[4]
The first white settler in the county was Daniel Williams, a traveling preacher from Virginia who built the first permanent home in the vicinity several miles south of present-day West Liberty.
During the Civil War, Morgan County was firmly pro-confederate in sentiment, donating hundreds of men to the 5th KY Infantry (CSA).
Morgan County was hit by an EF3 tornado on
March 2, 2012
, which cost the lives of six people and injured many others. Following the tornado, Morgan County's population decreased, but the county seat still has a strong population for a small town.
Morgan County had begun building a new court house in 2011, but the tornado delayed its construction to late 2013.
Geography
[
edit
]
According to the
United States Census Bureau
, the county has a total area of 384 square miles (990 km
2
), of which 300 square miles (780 km
2
) is land and 2.7 square miles (7.0 km
2
) (0.7%) is water.
[5]
Adjacent counties
[
edit
]
National protected area
[
edit
]
Demographics
[
edit
]
Historical population
Census
| Pop.
| Note
| %±
|
1830
| 2,857
| | ?
|
---|
1840
| 4,603
| | 61.1%
|
---|
1850
| 7,620
| | 65.5%
|
---|
1860
| 9,237
| | 21.2%
|
---|
1870
| 5,975
| | ?35.3%
|
---|
1880
| 8,455
| | 41.5%
|
---|
1890
| 11,249
| | 33.0%
|
---|
1900
| 12,792
| | 13.7%
|
---|
1910
| 16,259
| | 27.1%
|
---|
1920
| 16,518
| | 1.6%
|
---|
1930
| 15,130
| | ?8.4%
|
---|
1940
| 16,827
| | 11.2%
|
---|
1950
| 13,624
| | ?19.0%
|
---|
1960
| 11,056
| | ?18.8%
|
---|
1970
| 10,019
| | ?9.4%
|
---|
1980
| 12,103
| | 20.8%
|
---|
1990
| 11,648
| | ?3.8%
|
---|
2000
| 13,948
| | 19.7%
|
---|
2010
| 13,923
| | ?0.2%
|
---|
2020
| 13,726
| | ?1.4%
|
---|
2023 (est.)
| 14,283
| [6]
| 4.1%
|
---|
As of the
census
of 2000, there were 13,948 people, 4,752 households, and 3,568 families residing in the county. The
population density
was 37 per square mile (14/km
2
). There were 5,487 housing units at an average density of 14 per square mile (5.4/km
2
). The racial makeup of the county was 94.59%
White
, 4.38%
Black
or
African American
, 0.15%
Native American
, 0.16%
Asian
, 0.01%
Pacific Islander
, 0.06% from
other races
, and 0.65% from two or more races. 0.61% of the population were
Hispanic
or
Latino
of any race.
There were 4,752 households, out of which 34.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.40% were
married couples
living together, 9.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.90% were non-families. 22.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.40% under the age of 18, 10.60% from 18 to 24, 32.90% from 25 to 44, 22.30% from 45 to 64, and 11.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 123.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 128.40 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $21,869, and the median income for a family was $26,135. Males had a median income of $23,966 versus $18,463 for females. The
per capita income
for the county was $12,657. 27.20% of the population and 23.50% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 33.90% are under the age of 18 and 28.50% are 65 or older.
Politics
[
edit
]
Morgan County was a strongly Democratic county throughout the 20th century, with the party's candidate winning in every presidential election from 1912 until 2000, when
Al Gore
became the first Democrat to lose the county since
Woodrow Wilson
in 1912. In the 21st century, however, like almost all of Kentucky, the county has flipped to the Republicans in US presidential elections.
United States presidential election results for Morgan County, Kentucky
[11]
Year
|
Republican
|
Democratic
|
Third party
|
No.
|
%
|
No.
|
%
|
No.
|
%
|
2020
|
4,301
|
77.58%
|
1,175
|
21.19%
|
68
|
1.23%
|
2016
|
3,628
|
75.98%
|
1,006
|
21.07%
|
141
|
2.95%
|
2012
|
3,021
|
67.55%
|
1,369
|
30.61%
|
82
|
1.83%
|
2008
|
2,396
|
54.72%
|
1,879
|
42.91%
|
104
|
2.37%
|
2004
|
2,682
|
50.87%
|
2,532
|
48.03%
|
58
|
1.10%
|
2000
|
2,295
|
54.13%
|
1,875
|
44.22%
|
70
|
1.65%
|
1996
|
1,439
|
38.94%
|
1,843
|
49.88%
|
413
|
11.18%
|
1992
|
1,239
|
28.09%
|
2,655
|
60.19%
|
517
|
11.72%
|
1988
|
1,452
|
38.04%
|
2,329
|
61.02%
|
36
|
0.94%
|
1984
|
1,834
|
42.36%
|
2,481
|
57.30%
|
15
|
0.35%
|
1980
|
1,450
|
34.53%
|
2,698
|
64.25%
|
51
|
1.21%
|
1976
|
973
|
24.97%
|
2,897
|
74.34%
|
27
|
0.69%
|
1972
|
1,535
|
45.56%
|
1,815
|
53.87%
|
19
|
0.56%
|
1968
|
1,341
|
33.86%
|
2,222
|
56.10%
|
398
|
10.05%
|
1964
|
546
|
14.05%
|
3,293
|
84.72%
|
48
|
1.23%
|
1960
|
1,718
|
37.12%
|
2,910
|
62.88%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1956
|
1,878
|
37.20%
|
3,164
|
62.68%
|
6
|
0.12%
|
1952
|
1,311
|
29.29%
|
3,161
|
70.62%
|
4
|
0.09%
|
1948
|
987
|
21.94%
|
3,488
|
77.53%
|
24
|
0.53%
|
1944
|
1,217
|
27.26%
|
3,242
|
72.63%
|
5
|
0.11%
|
1940
|
1,509
|
26.67%
|
4,148
|
73.33%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1936
|
1,269
|
28.01%
|
3,256
|
71.86%
|
6
|
0.13%
|
1932
|
1,435
|
25.70%
|
4,137
|
74.09%
|
12
|
0.21%
|
1928
|
2,025
|
44.02%
|
2,575
|
55.98%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1924
|
1,805
|
35.09%
|
3,311
|
64.37%
|
28
|
0.54%
|
1920
|
1,802
|
34.88%
|
3,347
|
64.79%
|
17
|
0.33%
|
1916
|
1,123
|
32.43%
|
2,319
|
66.97%
|
21
|
0.61%
|
1912
|
876
|
29.94%
|
1,800
|
61.52%
|
250
|
8.54%
|
Communities
[
edit
]
City
[
edit
]
Census-designated place
[
edit
]
Other unincorporated places
[
edit
]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
"State & County QuickFacts"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
February 26,
2023
.
- ^
"Find a County"
. National Association of Counties
. Retrieved
June 7,
2011
.
- ^
"Morgan County"
. The Kentucky Encyclopedia. 2000
. Retrieved
August 23,
2014
.
- ^
The Register of the Kentucky State Historical Society, Volume 1
. Kentucky State Historical Society. 1903. pp.
36
.
- ^
"2010 Census Gazetteer Files"
. United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from
the original
on August 12, 2014
. Retrieved
August 18,
2014
.
- ^
"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 18,
2014
.
- ^
"Historical Census Browser"
. University of Virginia Library
. Retrieved
August 18,
2014
.
- ^
"Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
August 18,
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 18,
2014
.
- ^
Leip, David.
"Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections"
.
uselectionatlas.org
. Retrieved
July 5,
2018
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
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Counties
| |
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Cities and towns
Over 10k
| |
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Cities and towns
5k-10k
| |
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Cities and towns
1k-5k
| |
---|
Cities and towns
under 1k
| |
---|
Statistical areas
| |
---|
See also
| |
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37°55′N
83°16′W
/
37.92°N 83.26°W
/
37.92; -83.26
|
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International
| |
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National
| |
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Geographic
| |
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