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Estill County, Kentucky

Coordinates: 37°41′N 83°58′W / 37.69°N 83.96°W / 37.69; -83.96
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Estill County
County
Estill County courthouse in Irvine
Estill County courthouse in Irvine
Map of Kentucky highlighting Estill 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°41′N 83°58′W / 37.69°N 83.96°W / 37.69; -83.96
Country United States
State Kentucky
Founded1808
Named forJames Estill
SeatIrvine
Largest cityIrvine
Area
 • Total256 sq mi (660 km2)
 • Land253 sq mi (660 km2)
 • Water2.5 sq mi (6 km2)  1.0%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total14,163
 • Estimate 
(2023)
13,936 Decrease
 • Density55/sq mi (21/km2)
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district6th
Websitewww.estillky.com
Morel Mushrooms are commonly found in Estill County in the spring, with Irvine's Mountain Mushroom being dedicated to them.
Morel Mushrooms are commonly found in Estill County in the spring, with Irvine's Mountain Mushroom Festival being dedicated to them.[1]

Estill County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,163.[2] Its county seat is Irvine.[3] The county was formed in 1808 and named for Captain James Estill, a Kentucky militia officer who was killed in the Battle of Little Mountain during the American Revolutionary War.[4] Estill County is a moist county meaning that the county seat, the city of Irvine, allows the sale of alcohol after the October 9, 2013, vote, but not the rest of Estill County outside the Irvine city limits.[5] Estill County has two adjacent towns, known as the twin cities, Irvine and Ravenna. Both cities sit along the Kentucky River in the central part of the county. Ravenna is home to a former CSX Transportation facility, now owned by Kentucky Steam Heritage Corporation for the restoration of Chesapeake and Ohio 2716.[6] It conducts the Ravenna Railroad Festival annually in late summer, and the historic Fitchburg & Cottage Furnaces are located here. Irvine hosts the annual Mountain Mushroom Festival over the last weekend of April, which celebrates the abundant Morel Mushrooms found in the region.[7]

History

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Estill County was formed in 1808 from land given by Clark and Madison counties, it was Kentucky's 50th county.[8] Originally settled by European settlers entering Kentucky via old buffalo and Indian trails and traveling through Boonesborough in what is today Madison County.[9]

Estill County was one of the first areas in the United States to experience early industrialization, with iron mining and smelting beginning in 1810. The iron industry would go on to thrive in Estill County for decades, with the ruins of the Estill furnace, the Cottage furnace, and the Fitchburg Furnace still being visible today.[9] The Fitchburg furnace was a particularly impressive engineering feat. Standing 81 feet tall, the furnace is the largest charcoal furnace in the world, and one of the largest 25 dry-stone masonry structures in the world.[10] The iron industry declined after the Civil War when iron deposits and timber to fire the furnaces were depleted, and innovation made charcoal furnaces obsolete.[9] During the Civil War Estill County was strongly pro-union, similar to surrounding counties, especially to the southeast.

Additionally, the county was historically known for the Estill Springs summer resort, situated near mineral springs in Irvine. This resort was a popular vacation site for many prominent Kentuckians in the 19th century, with men including Henry Clay, John Crittenden, and John C. Breckinridge vacationing there.[9] The current courthouse, built in 1941, replaced a structure dating from the 1860s.[11]

Geography

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According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 256 square miles (660 km2), of which 253 square miles (660 km2) is land and 2.5 square miles (6.5 km2) (1.0%) is water.[12] Estill County is located at the contact of two Kentucky regions: the Bluegrass and the Cumberland plateau, because of this the county is known as the location where the "Bluegrass kisses the Mountains."[13]

Fitchburg Furnace located in Estill County. Legacy of 19th century iron industry. Largest charcoal furnace in the world.
Knobs viewed from the Lilly Mountain Nature Preserve in southwestern Estill County

Estill County contains two important rivers. With the Red River, famous for its gorge in neighboring Powell County, forming the northern border. And the Kentucky River bisecting the county. Much of Estill County's development, including the towns of Irvine and Ravenna, is located in the fertile bottomlands of the Kentucky River. Additionally, due to the Kentucky River's deep valley and Estill County's location at the edge of the Cumberland plateau the county's topography is striking. The Pottsville Escarpment is prominent in the county, marking the divide between the Bluegrass and the mountains. Because of this topography total relief is nearly 1000 feet in the county, with the highest point being Zion Mountain, located about 6+1⁄2 miles southwest of Irvine at 1,511 feet, and the lowest point being the confluence of the Kentucky River and the Red River at 566 feet.[14] Other high points include Happy Top Mountain, 1,500 feet; Preacher Estes Mountain, 1,475 feet; Peter Mountain, 1,454 feet; Low Knob, 1,450 feet; and Big Round Mountain, Buzzard Roost, and McKinney Mountain, each at 1,420 feet.[15]

Rivers and streams

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Adjacent counties

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Protected areas

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Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18102,082—
18203,50768.4%
18304,61831.7%
18405,53519.9%
18505,9858.1%
18606,88615.1%
18709,19833.6%
18809,8607.2%
189010,8369.9%
190011,6697.7%
191012,2735.2%
192015,56926.9%
193017,0799.7%
194017,9785.3%
195014,677−18.4%
196012,466−15.1%
197012,7522.3%
198014,49513.7%
199014,6140.8%
200015,3074.7%
201014,672−4.1%
202014,163−3.5%
2023 (est.)13,936[18]−1.6%
U.S. Decennial Census[19]
1790-1960[20] 1900-1990[21]
1990-2000[22] 2010-2020[2]

As of the census of 2000, there were 15,307 people, 6,108 households, and 4,434 families residing in the county. The population density was 60 per square mile (23/km2). There were 6,824 housing units at an average density of 27 per square mile (10/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 99.07% White, 0.11% Black or African American, 0.24% Native American, 0.03% Asian, 0.06% from other races, and 0.49% from two or more races. 0.53% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 6,108 households, out of which 32.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.40% were married couples living together, 12.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.40% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.20% under the age of 18, 9.10% from 18 to 24, 29.20% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 13.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 93.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $23,318, and the median income for a family was $27,284. Males had a median income of $29,254 versus $18,849 for females. The per capita income for the county was $12,285. About 22.50% of families and 26.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.30% of those under age 18 and 21.50% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

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Although it lies in the Bluegrass and Knobs regions, Estill County was more akin to the eastern Pennyroyal Plateau to its southwest in being strongly pro-Union during the Civil War. Indeed, a larger proportion of Estill County's population volunteered for the Union Army than the population of any free state,[23] or of any Kentucky county except the famous Republican bastion of Owsley County.[24] Consequently, Estill County has been strongly Republican ever since the end of Reconstruction – since 1888 the county has voted Democratic only for Woodrow Wilson in 1912, Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 and Lyndon Johnson in 1964, with the biggest of these three victories in 1932 being FDR's by a mere one hundred and eighty-seven votes out of over six thousand one hundred.

United States presidential election results for Estill County, Kentucky[25]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 5,100 77.98% 1,355 20.72% 85 1.30%
2016 4,236 76.39% 1,108 19.98% 201 3.62%
2012 3,749 72.32% 1,356 26.16% 79 1.52%
2008 3,685 69.35% 1,555 29.26% 74 1.39%
2004 3,633 65.17% 1,907 34.21% 35 0.63%
2000 3,033 64.39% 1,591 33.78% 86 1.83%
1996 2,220 49.89% 1,724 38.74% 506 11.37%
1992 2,453 48.68% 1,837 36.46% 749 14.86%
1988 3,077 64.18% 1,692 35.29% 25 0.52%
1984 3,512 68.57% 1,593 31.10% 17 0.33%
1980 2,818 57.97% 1,965 40.42% 78 1.60%
1976 2,250 52.16% 2,034 47.15% 30 0.70%
1972 3,054 69.42% 1,322 30.05% 23 0.52%
1968 2,236 53.57% 1,261 30.21% 677 16.22%
1964 1,996 48.66% 2,105 51.32% 1 0.02%
1960 3,238 64.85% 1,755 35.15% 0 0.00%
1956 2,946 60.52% 1,912 39.28% 10 0.21%
1952 2,630 57.80% 1,900 41.76% 20 0.44%
1948 2,056 50.18% 1,937 47.28% 104 2.54%
1944 2,493 55.19% 2,000 44.28% 24 0.53%
1940 2,889 52.66% 2,587 47.16% 10 0.18%
1936 2,931 52.43% 2,646 47.33% 13 0.23%
1932 2,963 48.29% 3,150 51.34% 23 0.37%
1928 3,641 65.82% 1,886 34.09% 5 0.09%
1924 2,152 48.64% 2,052 46.38% 220 4.97%
1920 2,552 58.17% 1,823 41.55% 12 0.27%
1916 1,524 55.93% 1,180 43.30% 21 0.77%
1912 869 41.09% 875 41.37% 371 17.54%

Communities

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Cities

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Other Communities

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  • Barnes Mountain
  • Cobhill
  • Cressy
  • Crystal
  • Drip Rock
  • Fox
  • Furnace
  • Hargett
  • Leighton
  • Palmer
  • Patsey
  • Pryse
  • Red Lick
  • South Irvine
  • Spout Springs
  • Tipton Ridge
  • Wisemantown
  • Winston

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "about". www.mountainmushroomfestival.org. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
  2. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  4. ^ Rennick, Robert M. (1987). Kentucky Place Names. University Press of Kentucky. p. 95. ISBN 0813126312. Retrieved April 28, 2013.
  5. ^ "Irvine votes 'wet' in special election". www.cvt-news.com. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
  6. ^ "Rail Heritage Center | Kentucky Steam". www.kentuckysteam.org. Archived from the original on August 12, 2020.
  7. ^ "body". mountainmushroomfestival.org. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
  8. ^ Collins, Lewis (1877). History of Kentucky. Library Reprints, Incorporated. p. 166. ISBN 9780722249208.
  9. ^ a b c d "History". Estill Development Alliance. Archived from the original on September 5, 2018. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
  10. ^ "Fitchburg Furnace Interpretive Site". Daniel Boone National Forest.
  11. ^ Hogan, Roseann Reinemuth (1992). Kentucky Ancestry: A Guide to Genealogical and Historical Research. Ancestry Publishing. p. 226. ISBN 9780916489496. Retrieved July 26, 2013.
  12. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
  13. ^ "History". Estill Development Alliance. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  14. ^ "Groundwater Resources of Estill County, Kentucky". www.uky.edu. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
  15. ^ "Groundwater Resources of Estill County, Kentucky".
  16. ^ "Drowning Creek". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
  17. ^ "Lily Mountain Nature Preserve". Estill Development Alliance. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
  18. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  19. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
  20. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
  21. ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
  22. ^ "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.
  23. ^ Marshall, Anne E.; Creating a Confederate Kentucky: The Lost Cause and Civil War Memory in a Border State, pp. 114-115 ISBN 1469609835
  24. ^ Copeland, James E.; ‘Where Were the Kentucky Unionists and Secessionists’; The Register of the Kentucky Historical Society, volume 71, no. 4 (October 1973), pp. 344-363
  25. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
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37°41′N 83°58′W / 37.69°N 83.96°W / 37.69; -83.96

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