Fulton is a home rule-class city in

Fulton County Fulton County is the name of eight counties in the United States of America. Most are named for Robert Fulton, inventor of the first practical steamboat: *Fulton County, Arkansas, named after Governor William Savin Fulton *Fulton County, Georgia *F ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virgini ...

, United States. The population was 2,357 at the 2020 census, down from 2,445 at the 2010 census. It was once known as the "Banana Capital of the World", because 70% of imported bananas to the U.S. used to be shipped through the city. Fulton is part of the Union City-

Hickman Hickman or Hickmann may refer to: People * Hickman (surname), notable people with the surname Hickman or Hickmann * Hickman Ewing, American attorney * Hickman Price (1911–1989), assistant secretary in the United States Department of Commerce ...

, TN– KY Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

A post office was established in the community, then known as "Pontotoc", in 1847. The post office was renamed "Fulton" in 1861. It was formally incorporated by the

state assembly State Assembly is the name given to various legislatures, especially lower houses or full legislatures in states in federal systems of government. Channel Islands States Assembly is the name of the legislature of the Bailiwick of Jersey. The Baili ...

in 1872. Fulton Station was located on the Paducah and Gulf Railroad, which stimulated growth in the county. In the late 19th century,

Ben M. Bogard Benjamin Marcus "Ben" Bogard (March 9, 1868 – May 29, 1951) was an American Baptist clergyman, author, editor, educator, radio broadcaster, and champion debater in primarily the U.S. state of Arkansas. In 1924, Bogard founded the American Bapt ...

, later the founder of the

American Baptist Association The American Baptist Association (ABA) is an Independent Baptist Christian denomination in United States. The headquarters is in Texarkana, Texas. The principal founder was Ben M. Bogard, a pastor of Antioch Missionary Baptist Church in Littl ...

Texarkana, Texas Texarkana is a city in Bowie County, Texas, United States, in the Ark-La-Tex region. Located approximately from Dallas, Texarkana is a twin city with neighboring Texarkana, Arkansas. The Texas city's population was 36,193 at the 2020 census ...

, and long-time pastor of Antioch Missionary Baptist Church in

Little Rock, Arkansas ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

, served as a pastor in Fulton, where he was part of the Landmark Baptist movement. In the first decade of the 20th century, the

Southern Baptist The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wo ...

clergyman

Monroe E. Dodd Monroe or Monroes may refer to: People and fictional characters * Monroe (surname) * Monroe (given name) * James Monroe, 5th President of the United States Places United States * Monroe, Arkansas, an unincorporated community and census-designate ...

began his long ministry at a church in Fulton. For many years afterward, he was the pastor of First Baptist Church of Shreveport, Louisiana.

Banana Capital of the World

The United Fruit Co., now

Chiquita Chiquita Brands International Sàrl (), formerly known as Chiquita Brands International Inc. and United Fruit Co., is a Swiss-domiciled American producer and distributor of bananas and other produce. The company operates under a number of su ...

, began shipping

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry (botany), berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa (genus), Musa''. In some countries, Cooking banana, bananas used for ...

s from South America by steamship to

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

ice house on the route north to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

. The bananas were re-iced with blocks from the Fulton Ice Plant, now closed. Empty railcars were pulled up to the side of the ice house, and the large blocks of ice were loaded end up, covering the entire box car. The bananas were laid on top of the ice to continue their journey. At one point, more than 70% of the bananas that were consumed in the US passed through Fulton. From 1962 through 1992, Fulton held the annual International Banana Festival. The largest

banana pudding Banana pudding (sometimes banana cream pudding) is a pudding generally consisting of layers of sweet vanilla flavored custard, vanilla wafers and/or ladyfingers and sliced fresh bananas placed in a dish and served, topped with whipped cream or me ...

in the world at was part of the banana parade. Since the early 21st century, the festival has been revived, including a contest for the largest banana pudding.

Geography

Fulton is located in the southeast corner of Fulton County at (36.509156, -88.878768). Its southern border is the state line, across which is the city of

South Fulton, Tennessee South Fulton is a city in Obion County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 2,245 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Union City, TN– KY Micropolitan Statistical Area. Geography South Fulton is located at (36.496716, -88.8791 ...

. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy An economy is an area of th ...

, Fulton has a total area of , of which is land and , or 2.95%, is water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 2,357 people, 1,004 households, and 646 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2000, there were 2,775 people, 1,225 households, and 753 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical ...

was 983.0 people per square mile (379.9/km). There were 1,388 housing units at an average density of 491.7 per square mile (190.0/km). The racial makeup of the city was 67.35%

White White is the lightness, lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

, 29.41%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

, 0.25%

Native American Native Americans or Native American may refer to: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North and South America and their descendants * Native Americans in the United States * Indigenous peoples in Cana ...

, 0.68%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.86% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.44% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 1.44% of the population. There were 1,225 households, out of which 29.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 21.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.5% were non-families. 36.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.87. In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.2% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 22.4% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 22.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 75.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 68.6 males. The median income for a household in the city was $23,345, and the median income for a family was $27,625. Males had a median income of $26,029 versus $21,696 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $16,260. About 22.4% of families and 24.6% 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 37.2% of those under age 18 and 17.3% of those age 65 or over.

Government

The city of Fulton uses the Commission Plan form of government, which is composed of a mayor elected to a four-year term and four commissioners elected to two-year terms. The executive and legislative authority of the city are exercised by the city commission, and administrative responsibilities are the province of the city manager.

Transportation

Rail

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...

, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Fulton. Fulton is one of only four cities in

with passenger rail service by Amtrak. The station is unmonitored and served by the ''

City of New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

minor league baseball. The

Fulton Railroaders Fulton may refer to: People * Robert Fulton (1765–1815), American engineer and inventor who developed the first commercially successful steam-powered ship * Fulton (surname) Given name * Fulton Allem (born 1957), South African golfer * Fult ...

, played as members of the Kentucky-Illinois-Tennessee League, between 1911 and 1955. In 2005, the "Fulton Railroaders" nickname returned, as today Fulton hosts the

summer collegiate baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

team, currently playing as members of the Ohio Valley League. The current Railroaders play their home games at Lohaus Field.

Education

Fulton has a

public library A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil service, civil servants. There are ...

, a branch of the Fulton County Public Library.

References

External links

City of Fulton official website
{{authority control Cities in Kentucky Cities in Fulton County, Kentucky Union City, Tennessee micropolitan area