Keene is a home rule-class city located in Jessamine County,

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 ...

, in the United States. It is home to the Keene Springs Hotel. The

U.S. 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 ...

does not record Keene as a city and does not publish a population figure for the community.

History

The community grew up around a stone mill erected in 1794 and was originally laid out as North Liberty in 1813. In 1830, however, the first postmaster, Ephraim Carter, named his new post office after

Keene, New Hampshire Keene is a city in, and the seat of Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 23,047 at the 2020 census, down from 23,409 at the 2010 census. Keene is home to Keene State College and Antioch University New England. I ...

, the hometown he shared with local store owner Harvey Huggins.Rennick, Robert. ''Kentucky Place Names''
p. 158
University Press of Kentucky (Lexington), 1987. Accessed 1 August 2013. The city was formally incorporated by the state assembly in 1844.Commonwealth of Kentucky. Office of the Secretary of State. Land Office. "Keene, Kentucky". Accessed 1 August 2013. It was also known as "Hard Scrabble". Keene was home to the Keene Industrial Institute, an industrial school for African Americans for a couple of years at the beginning of the 20th century.

Geography

Keene is in northwestern Jessamine County along Keene Troy Pike, southwest of Lexington and northwest of Nicholasville, the Jessamine County seat. It sits on the north side of the valley of a tributary of Cave Spring Creek, flowing west to Clear Creek, a tributary of the

Kentucky River The Kentucky River is a tributary of the Ohio River, long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed June 13, 2011 in the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky. The river and its tri ...

Demographics

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Keene has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

In popular culture

"Keene City", Kentucky is mentioned in the 2007 Hollywood-movie ''

Shooter Shooting is the act or process of discharging a projectile from a ranged weapon (such as a gun, bow, crossbow, slingshot, or blowpipe). Even the acts of launching flame, artillery, darts, harpoons, grenades, rockets, and guided missiles can ...

'', starring

Mark Wahlberg Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg (born June 5, 1971), former stage name Marky Mark, is an American actor, businessman, and former rapper. He has received multiple accolades, including a BAFTA Award, and nominations for two Academy Awards, three ...

, as a place of refuge, where the main character of

Bob Lee Swagger Bob Lee "the Nailer" Swagger is a fictional character created by Stephen Hunter. He is the protagonist of a series of 12 novels (as of 2022) that relate his life during and after the Vietnam War—starting with '' Point of Impact'' (1993) up to ...

hides from the pursuit of the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

and other governmental agencies, after a hunt for a suspected presidential assassin.

Notable people

* Jimmy Blythe, composer, pianist

References

{{authority control Cities in Jessamine County, Kentucky Cities in Kentucky