Carter County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 26,627. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Grayson. Carter County is in the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is home to

Carter Caves State Resort Park Carter Caves State Resort Park is located in Carter County, Kentucky, Carter County, Kentucky, United States, along Tygarts Creek. It is formed by Carter Caves, and nearby Cascade Caves, which were added to the park in 1959. On December 16, 1981 ...

History

Carter County was formed on February 9, 1838, from portions of Greenup County and Lawrence County. It was named after

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

William Grayson Carter, a Kentucky state Senator. The county seat is named for his uncle, Robert Grayson. The original courthouse was rebuilt in 1907.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.6%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Greenup County (northeast) * Boyd County (east) * Lawrence County (southeast) * Elliott County (south) * Rowan County (southwest) * Lewis County (northwest)

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 26,889 people, 10,342 households, and 7,746 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 11,534 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 99.02%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.13%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.25% Native American, 0.11% Asian, 0.08% from other races, and 0.41% from two or more races. 0.59% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 10,342 households, out of which 33.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.50% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.10% were non-families. 22.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 2.95. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.50% under the age of 18, 10.80% from 18 to 24, 28.40% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 12.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 95.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $26,427, and the median income for a family was $31,278. Males had a median income of $28,690 versus $20,554 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $13,442. About 19.20% of families and 22.30% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 28.90% of those under age 18 and 21.30% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Carter County leaned increasingly Republican during the 2010s, with

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

dramatically shifting it to the right in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

. In 8 out of 28 presidential elections since 1912 has the Democratic candidate carried this county, even though they carried it three times in a row from 1988 to 1996.

Mitch McConnell Addison Mitchell McConnell III (; born February 20, 1942) is an American politician and attorney serving as the senior United States senator from Kentucky, a seat he has held since 1985. McConnell is in his seventh Senate term and is the long ...

and

Rand Paul Randal Howard Paul (born January 7, 1963) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States senator from Kentucky since 2011. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

are the senators currently representing the state of Kentucky. In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

Elected officials

Education

* Carter County School District * Kentucky Christian University, located in Grayson. In 2022, they awarded 133 degrees. The student population was 629 - 388 male students and 241 female students. Demographics were White (93 and 73.8%), followed by Black or African American (16 and 12.7%), Unknown (8 and 6.35%), and Hispanic or Latino (7 and 5.56%).

Alcohol sales

Carter County is a moist county, meaning that sale of alcohol in the county is prohibited except in certain areas as voted on by the residents of the area, with at least one area approving full retail alcohol sales. In the case of Carter County, alcohol sales are only permitted as follows: * At a single approved

winery A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the cultivation and production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feat ...

in the Iron Hill precinct, near the unincorporated community of Carter City. * Within the city of Grayson after a vote on June 11, 2013, approved full retail alcohol sales within the city limits by a vote of 511 in favor of alcohol sales to 393 against. * Within the city of Olive Hill after a vote on March 10, 2014, approved full retail alcohol sales within the city limits by a vote of 257 in favor of alcohol sales to 206 against.

Communities

Cities

* Grayson (county seat) * Olive Hill

Unincorporated communities

Access Access may refer to: Companies and organizations * ACCESS (Australia), an Australian youth network * Access (credit card), a former credit card in the United Kingdom * Access Co., a Japanese software company * Access International Advisors, a hed ...

* Beech Grove *

Beetle Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Holometabola. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 40 ...

* Boone Furnace * Carter * Davy Run * Denton * Grahn * Hitchins * Mount Savage * Norton Branch * Rooney * Rush (part) * Smiths Creek *

Soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a Conscription, conscripted or volunteer Enlisted rank, enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an Officer (armed forces), officer. Etymology The wo ...

* Straight Creek * Willard

Transportation

Carter County is accessible by U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 64. Until 2010, the city of Olive Hill owned an airport.

References

External links

The Kentucky Highlands Project
{{authority control 1838 establishments in Kentucky Populated places established in 1838