Harrodsburg is a
home rule-class city in
Mercer County, Kentucky
Mercer County is a county located in the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 23,772. Its county seat is Harrodsburg. The county was formed from Lincoln County, Virginia in 1785 and is named for Revoluti ...
, United States. It is the
seat
A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense.
Types of seat
The following are examples of different kinds of seat:
* Armchair (furniture), ...
of its county.
The population was 9,064 at the
2020 census.
Although Harrodsburg was formally established by the
House of Burgesses
The House of Burgesses was the elected representative element of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative body of the Colony of Virginia. With the creation of the House of Burgesses in 1642, the General Assembly, which had been established ...
after
Boonesborough and was not incorporated by the
Kentucky legislature
The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It comprises the Kentucky Senate and the Kentucky House of Representatives.
The General Assembly meets annually in t ...
until 1836,
[Commonwealth of Kentucky. Office of the Secretary of State. Land Office. "Harrodsburg, Kentucky". Accessed 30 July 2013.] it is usually considered the oldest city in Kentucky and has been honored as the oldest permanent American settlement west of the
Appalachians
The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...
.
History
Harrodstown (sometimes Harrod's Town) was laid out and founded by
James Harrod
James Harrod () was a pioneer, soldier, and hunter who helped explore and settle the area west of the Allegheny Mountains. Little is known about Harrod's early life, including the exact date of his birth. He was possibly underage when he served i ...
on June 16, 1774.
Harrod led a company of adventurers totaling 31 men, beginning May 25 at
Fort Redstone in Pennsylvania down the
Monongahela and
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
Rivers in canoes and through a series of other rivers and creeks to the town's present-day location.
Later that same year, amid
Dunmore's War
Lord Dunmore's War—or Dunmore's War—was a 1774 conflict between the Colony of Virginia and the Shawnee and Mingo American Indian nations.
The Governor of Virginia during the conflict was John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore—Lord Dunmore. H ...
,
Lord Dunmore
Earl of Dunmore is a title in the Peerage of Scotland.
History
The title was created in 1686 for Lord Charles Murray, second son of John Murray, 1st Marquess of Atholl. He was made Lord Murray of Blair, Moulin and Tillimet (or Tullimet) and V ...
sent two men to warn the surveyors of imminent
Shawnee
The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...
attacks,
Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone (September 26, 1820) was an American pioneer and frontiersman whose exploits made him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. He became famous for his exploration and settlement of Kentucky, which was then beyond the we ...
an
Michael Stoner who are said to have completed the round trip of 800 miles in 64 days. Regardless, the pioneers remained for a few weeks until a man was killed by the natives, when the settlement was abandoned and resettled the following year by March. It was one of three settlements in present-day Kentucky at the time the
Thirteen Colonies
The Thirteen Colonies, also known as the Thirteen British Colonies, the Thirteen American Colonies, or later as the United Colonies, were a group of Kingdom of Great Britain, British Colony, colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America. Fo ...
declared independence in 1776, along with
Logan's Fort
Stanford is a home rule-class city in Lincoln County, Kentucky, United States. It is one of the oldest settlements in Kentucky, having been founded in 1775. Its population was 3,487 at the 2010 census and an estimated 3,686 in 2018. It is the c ...
and
Boonesborough. Also known as Oldtown, Harrodstown was the first seat of Virginia's
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 Virginia to ...
(1776),
Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincol ...
(1780), and
Mercer
Mercer may refer to:
Business
* Mercer (car), a defunct American automobile manufacturer (1909–1925)
* Mercer (consulting firm), a large human resources consulting firm headquartered in New York City
* Mercer (occupation), a merchant or trader, ...
(1785) Counties upon their formations.
It remains the seat of
Mercer County in Kentucky.
A census taken between Dec. 16, 1777, and Oct. 16, 1778,
lists 52 residents, several of whom were well-known pioneers and frontiersmen, including Daniel Boone's younger brother,
Squire Boone
In the Middle Ages, a squire was the shield- or armour-bearer of a knight.
Use of the term evolved over time. Initially, a squire served as a knight's apprentice. Later, a village leader or a lord of the manor might come to be known as a " ...
,
Silas Harlan
Silas Harlan (March 17, 1753 – August 19, 1782) was one of the early settlers of Kentucky, having arrived with James Harrod in 1774 to found Harrodstown - the oldest permanent white settlement in the territory (now Harrodsburg). Silas spent t ...
, the
Kentucky county
Kentucky County (then alternately spelled Kentucke County) was formed by the Commonwealth of Virginia from the western portion (beyond the Cumberland Mountains) of Fincastle County effective December 31, 1776. The name of the county was taken ...
's namesake, James Harrod,
Hugh McGary Hugh McGary (1744 – 1806) was an Irish-born American military officer and landowner who was the founder of McGary Station in present-day Oregon, Kentucky.
Early life
Hugh McGary was born in 1744 to John McGary and his wife Sarah in Ireland. The ...
, Isaac Hite and his cousins,
Isaac
Isaac; grc, Ἰσαάκ, Isaák; ar, إسحٰق/إسحاق, Isḥāq; am, ይስሐቅ is one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. He was the ...
and
John Bowman,
and
David Glenn, who later travelled further west and settled in
Yellow Banks (present
Daviess County). David Glenn, along with his brother
Thomas
Thomas may refer to:
People
* List of people with given name Thomas
* Thomas (name)
* Thomas (surname)
* Saint Thomas (disambiguation)
* Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church
* Thomas the Ap ...
, and Silas Harlan, with his brother James, had accompanied Harrod on his initial expedition in 1774.
The settlement was formally established by the
Virginia General Assembly
The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 161 ...
in 1785 as Harrodsburg.
[ Four years later, it was named the location for the newly created ]United States District Court for the District of Kentucky
The following are former United States district courts, which ceased to exist because they were subdivided into smaller units. With the exception of California, each of these courts initially covered an entire U.S. state, and was subdivided as the ...
by the Judiciary Act of 1789
The Judiciary Act of 1789 (ch. 20, ) was a United States federal statute enacted on September 24, 1789, during the first session of the First United States Congress. It established the federal judiciary of the United States. Article III, Secti ...
. The Kentucky General Assembly
The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It comprises the Kentucky Senate and the Kentucky House of Representatives.
The General Assembly meets annually in the ...
incorporated Harrodsburg in 1836.[
During the ]Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, the town was pro-Confederate
Confederacy or confederate may refer to:
States or communities
* Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities
* Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...
, but Union
Union commonly refers to:
* Trade union, an organization of workers
* Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets
Union may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
Music
* Union (band), an American rock group
** ''Un ...
control permitted the organization two Union regiments, the 19th Regiment Kentucky Volunteer Infantry and the 11th Regiment Kentucky Volunteer Cavalry. The 19th Infantry as organized at nearby Camp Harwood for a three-year enlistment commencing January 2, 1862, under the command of Colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military 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 colonel was typically in charge of ...
William J. Landram. Companies A, C, D, and F of the 11th Kentucky Cavalry were organized at Harrodsburg, Kentucky, in July 1862. The remainder of the regiment was organized in Louisville, Kentucky, and mustered in on September 26, 1862, and mustered in for three years under the command of Colonel Alexander W. Holeman. Following the Battle of Perryville
The Battle of Perryville, also known as the Battle of Chaplin Hills, was fought on October 8, 1862, in the Chaplin Hills west of Perryville, Kentucky, as the culmination of the Confederate Heartland Offensive (Kentucky Campaign) during the A ...
, much of the city was converted into makeshift hospitals; 1600 sick and wounded Confederate soldiers were captured during a raid by the 9th Kentucky Cavalry under Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
John Boyle on October 10, 1862. The city then remained under martial law for the remainder of the war.
The Louisville Southern Railroad
The Louisville Southern Railroad (abbreviated: LS) was a 19th-century railway company in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It operated from until , when it was incorporated into the Southern Railway in Kentucky.
Originally incorporated as the Louisv ...
network reached the city in 1888. Its construction commenced in 1884 and ran from Louisville through Shelbyville and Lawrenceburg to Harrodsburg, which was reached in 1888. A spur was constructed to Burgin, where the Louisville Southern joined the Cincinnati Southern's Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific Railway
The Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific Railway (abbreviated: CNO&TP; ) is a railroad that leases the Cincinnati Southern Railway from Cincinnati, Ohio, south to Chattanooga, Tennessee, and sub leases it to the Norfolk Southern Railway sys ...
CNO&TP mainline. Now all run and are operated by Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31 ...
.
Pioneer Memorial Park (now Old Fort Harrod State Park) was opened on June 16, 1927. In 1936, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
honored the city with a monument honoring the "first permanent settlement west of the Appalachians".
Company D of the 192nd Tank Battalion
The 192nd Tank Battalion of the United States Army was a federalized Army National Guard unit activated in November 1940. Deployed to the Philippines, the battalion was engaged in combat during the Philippines campaign (1941–1942), Japanese invas ...
in the Battle of Bataan
The Battle of Bataan ( tl, Labanan sa Bataan; January 7 – April 9, 1942) was fought by the United States and the Philippine Commonwealth against Japan during World War II. The battle represented the most intense phase of the Japanese inva ...
was from Harrodsburg.
Geography
Harrodsburg is located at (37.764019, -84.845974). 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. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the city has a total area of , all land.
Transportation
U.S. 127 runs north–south through Harrodsburg. U.S. 127 Bypass goes around Harrodsburg. U.S. 68 runs east–west through the city, but U.S. 68 turns onto U.S. 127 some of the time in Harrodsburg. KY 152 also runs east–west through the area.
Climate
Harrodsburg is in the humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
zone, although verging on a humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...
. Summers are hot and humid, and winters are cool with mild periods.
Average high is 87 °F in July and August, the warmest months, with the average lows of 26 °F in January, the coolest month. The highest recorded temperature was 105 °F in September 1954. The lowest recorded temperature was −18 °F in January 1985. Average annual precipitation is , with the wettest month being May, averaging .
Demographics
As of the 2020 United States Census
The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, 9,064 people and 3,911 households were residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 87.0% White
White is the 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 reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 6.5% African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.6% Native American, 1.6% 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 ...
, and 4.2% of two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos were 3.7% of the population.
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 incl ...
of 2000, 8,014 people, 3,449 households, and 2,234 families were residing in the city. The population density
Population density (in agriculture: 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 term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
was . The 3,709 housing units had an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 88.92% White
White is the 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 reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 7.52% African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.14% Native American, 0.76% 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 ...
, 1.16% 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 1.50% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 2.15% of the population.
Of the 3,449 households, 31.3% had children under 18 living with them, 45.4% were married couples living together, 15.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.2% were not families. About 32.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.6% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.32, and the average family size was 2.91.
The city's age distribution was 25.1% under 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.8% who were 65 or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was US $
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
27,500, and for a family was $34,503. Males had a median income of $31,214 versus $21,216 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 $15,327. About 14.2% of families and 17.1% 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 t ...
, including 21.1% of those under age 18 and 13.2% of those age 65 or over.
Education
Public education is provided by the Mercer County School District. These schools located are within the district:
Harrodsburg Area Technology Center
* Mercer County Senior High School
Kenneth D. King Middle School
Mercer County Intermediate School
Mercer County Elementary School
Conover Education Center (Campbellsville University Branch) of Harrodsburg
The Harrodsburg Independent Schools
Harrodsburg Independent Schools was a school district headquartered in Harrodsburg, Kentucky.
It operated Evan Harlow Elementary School, Harrodsburg Middle School, and Harrodsburg High School
Harrodsburg is a home rule-class city in Mercer Co ...
, which operated Harrodsburg High School
Harrodsburg is a home rule-class city in Mercer County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 9,064 at the 2020 census.
Although Harrodsburg was formally established by the House of Burgesses after Boonesb ...
, merged into the Mercer County Schools in 2006.
Harrodsburg has a lending library
A lending library is a library from which books and other media are lent out. The major classifications are endowed libraries, institutional libraries (the most diverse), public libraries, and subscription libraries. It may also refer to a librar ...
, the Mercer County Public Library.
Harrodsburg's Beaumont Inn (1917–present) was known as the Christian Baptist School (1830–1833), Greeneville Institute (1841–1856), Daughters' College (1856–1893),[ Young Ladies College (1893–1894), Beaumont College (1895–1915), and Daughters' College (1916), prior to becoming Beaumont Inn.
]
Economy
*Hitachi
() is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the parent company of the Hitachi Group (''Hitachi Gurūpu'') and had formed part of the Ni ...
Astemo is based in Harrodsburg.
*Corning Incorporated
Corning Incorporated is an American multinational technology company that specializes in specialty glass, ceramics, and related materials and technologies including advanced optics, primarily for industrial and scientific applications. The co ...
has a plant located in Harrodsburg that makes Gorilla Glass
Gorilla Glass is a brand of chemically strengthened glass developed and manufactured by Corning, now in its seventh generation. Designed to be thin, light and damage-resistant, the glass gains its surface strength, ability to contain flaws, and c ...
.
Sister city
*Unnao
Unnao is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of Unnao district and a part of Lucknow division, between Kanpur and Lucknow. Unnao is a large industrial city with three industrial suburbs around it. ...
, India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
Notable people
* Ralph G. Anderson, founder Belcan Corporation, philanthropist
* Jane T. H. Cross
Jane T. H. Cross (, Chinn; after first marriage, Hardin; after second marriage, Cross; 1817 – October 1870) was an American author. She was, for some years, an occasional contributor of prose and poetry to the religious journals of the South. ...
(1817–1870), author
* Maria T. Daviess
Maria T. Daviess (, Thompson; also known as, Mrs. Maria Thompson Daviess; misspelled, Daveiss; pen names, unspecified; October 31, 1814 – December 19, 1896) was a 19th-century American author of Kentucky. Among her publications were ''Roger S ...
(1814–1896), author; grandmother of Maria Thompson Daviess
Maria Thompson Daviess (November 28, 1872 – September 3, 1924) was an American artist and feminist author. She is best known for her popular novels written in the early 20th century, with a " Pollyanna" outlook, as well as several short sto ...
* Maria Thompson Daviess
Maria Thompson Daviess (November 28, 1872 – September 3, 1924) was an American artist and feminist author. She is best known for her popular novels written in the early 20th century, with a " Pollyanna" outlook, as well as several short sto ...
(1872–1924), author
* Jason Dunn, National Football League player
* David Winfield Huddleston, Christian author and minister
* Rachel Jackson
Rachel Jackson ( ''née'' Donelson; June 15, 1767 – December 22, 1828) was the wife of Andrew Jackson, the 7th president of the United States. , wife of President Andrew Jackson
* Frances Wisebart Jacobs
Frances Wisebart Jacobs (March 29, 1843 – November 3, 1892) was born in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, to Jewish Bavarian immigrants and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. She married Abraham Jacobs, the partner of her brother Jacob, and came west with him t ...
, philanthropist
* Dennis Johnson
Dennis Wayne Johnson (September 18, 1954 – February 22, 2007), nicknamed "DJ", was an American professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's (NBA) Seattle SuperSonics, Phoenix Suns, and Boston Celtics. He was a c ...
, National Football League player
* William Logan, politician
* Beriah Magoffin
Beriah Magoffin (April 18, 1815 – February 28, 1885) was the 21st Governor of Kentucky, serving during the early part of the Civil War. Personally, Magoffin adhered to a states' rights position, including the right of a state to secede from t ...
, Governor of Kentucky
The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-el ...
(1859 − 1862) and namesake of Magoffin County, Kentucky
Magoffin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2010 census, the population was 13,333. Its county seat is Salyersville. The county was formed in 1860 from adjacent portions of Floyd, Johnson, and Morgan Counties ...
* William Sullivan, politician and lawyer
* John Burton Thompson
John Burton Thompson (December 14, 1810 – January 7, 1874) was a United States Representative and Senator from Kentucky.
Early life
Born near Harrodsburg, Kentucky, Thompson completed preparatory studies and studied law. He was admitted to t ...
, politician
* Al Wilson
Aldra Kauwa Wilson (born June 21, 1977) is a former American college and professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons. He played college football for the University of Tennessee, and ...
, actor and stunt pilot
* Craig Yeast
Craig Nelson Yeast (born November 20, 1976) is an American gridiron football coach and former player. He is the head football coach at Kentucky Wesleyan College, a position he has held since December 2018.He now is the head coach of the Mercer Cou ...
, National Football League player
See also
*Low Dutch Station
Low Dutch Station was established in 1780 on the middle fork of Beargrass Creek in Kentucky. This station was settled by Dutch pioneers from Pennsylvania and was also known as New Holland Station. The
station was one of a group of seven forts e ...
* Rocky Point Manor
References
External links
City of Harrodsburg
Mercer County Chamber of Commerce
Harrodsburg / Mercer County Tourist Commission
{{authority control
*
Cities in Kentucky
Cities in Mercer County, Kentucky
County seats in Kentucky
Populated places established in 1774
Former county seats in Virginia