LaRue County, Kentucky
| LaRue County, Kentucky | |
 LaRue County courthouse in Hodgenville, Kentucky
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| Map of Kentucky highlighting LaRue County Location in the state of Kentucky |
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 Kentucky's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | 1843 |
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| Named for | John Larue (1746–1792), early settler of Kentucky. |
| Seat | Hodgenville |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
263.72 sq mi (683 km²) 263.20 sq mi (682 km²) 0.53 sq mi (1 km²), 0.20% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
13,373 51/sq mi (20/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern: UTC-5/-4 |
| Website | www.laruecounty.org |
LaRue County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is included in the Elizabethtown, Kentucky, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2000, the population was 13,373. Its county seat is Hodgenville. LaRue is a prohibition or dry county.[1].
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[edit] Geography
According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 263.72 square miles (683.0 km2), of which 263.20 square miles (681.7 km2) (or 99.80%) is land and 0.53 square miles (1.4 km2) (or 0.20%) is water.[2]
[edit] Adjacent counties
- Nelson County (northeast)
- Marion County (east)
- Taylor County (southeast)
- Green County (south)
- Hart County (southwest)
- Hardin County (northwest)
[edit] National protected area
[edit] History
LaRue County was formed on March 4, 1843 from portions of Hardin County. It was named after John LaRue, an early settler in this area. It contains the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln.
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1850 | 5,859 |
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| 1860 | 6,891 | 17.6% | |
| 1870 | 8,235 | 19.5% | |
| 1880 | 9,793 | 18.9% | |
| 1890 | 9,433 | −3.7% | |
| 1900 | 10,764 | 14.1% | |
| 1910 | 10,701 | −0.6% | |
| 1920 | 10,004 | −6.5% | |
| 1930 | 9,093 | −9.1% | |
| 1940 | 9,622 | 5.8% | |
| 1950 | 9,956 | 3.5% | |
| 1960 | 10,346 | 3.9% | |
| 1970 | 10,672 | 3.2% | |
| 1980 | 11,922 | 11.7% | |
| 1990 | 11,679 | −2.0% | |
| 2000 | 13,373 | 14.5% | |
| Est. 2006 | 13,791 | 3.1% | |
| http://ukcc.uky.edu/~census/21123.txt | |||
As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 13,373 people, 5,275 households, and 3,866 families residing in the county. The population density was 51 people per square mile (20/km²). There were 5,860 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile (9/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 94.65% White, 3.54% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.34% from other races, and 1.10% from two or more races. 1.05% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 5,275 households out of which 32.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.20% were married couples living together, 10.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.70% were non-families. 23.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.94.
In the county the population was spread out with 25.00% under the age of 18, 7.70% from 18 to 24, 28.20% from 25 to 44, 24.00% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $32,056, and the median income for a family was $37,786. Males had a median income of $30,907 versus $20,091 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,865. 15.40% of the population and 12.60% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 18.90% are under the age of 18 and 16.40% are 65 or older.
[edit] Cities and towns
- Athertonville
- Buffalo
- Hodgenville
- Lyons
- Magnolia
- Mount Sherman
- Tonieville
- Upton - (Partly in Hardin County)
[edit] Churches
- LaRue Baptist Church, an Independent Baptist church
- Victory Baptist Church
- First Baptist Church of Hodgenville (mostly white congregation relocated from Downtown Hodgenville to near Lincoln Parkway on the edge of the city limits.)
- First Baptist Church on Lincoln Blvd (mostly black congregation)
- Buffalo Baptist Church
- Mt. Tabor Baptist Church
- Union Christian Church
- Magnolia Baptist Church
- Roanoake House of Prayer
- Lane Lincoln Baptist Church
- Athertonville Baptist Church
- Oakhill Baptist Church
[edit] Lincoln Days
LaRue County is home to the annual Lincoln Days celebration, which takes place on the first full weekend of each October. The festival is Friday through Sunday. Highlights include the Lincoln Look-A-Like contests, rail-splitting competitions, a parade at noon on Saturday, shopping booths and concerts by local talent (mostly country, bluegrass and Southern gospel).
[edit] See also
- Dry county
- Louisville-Elizabethtown-Scottsburg, KY-IN Combined Statistical Area
- National Register of Historic Places listings in LaRue County, Kentucky
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[edit] References
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
- ^ "Census 2000 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Counties". United States Census. http://www.census.gov/tiger/tms/gazetteer/county2k.txt. Retrieved 2011-02-13.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
Coordinates: 37°34′36″N 85°41′12″W / 37.57667°N 85.68667°W
