Barren 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 south-central portion of 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 44,485. 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 ...

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

. The county was founded on December 20, 1798, from parts of Warren and

Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...

Counties. It was named for the Barrens, meadowlands that cover the northern third, though actually the soil is fertile. Barren County is part of the Glasgow, KY Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the

Bowling Green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep ...

-Glasgow, KY Combined Statistical Area. In 2007 Barren County was named the "Best Place to Live in Rural America" by '' Progressive Farmer'' Magazine.

History

Barren County was established in 1798 from land taken from Green County and Warren County. Six courthouses have served the county throughout its history, the first built of logs. Barren County, like most of south-central Kentucky, was settled by the Scots-Irish, and still bears many cultural aspects that trace back to that heritage. The Scottish heritage is the most evident, as indicated, by the name of the county seat, which is named for

Glasgow, Scotland Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, and is celebrated annually with the Glasgow Highland Games, one of three highland games held each year in Kentucky. Barren was a prohibition or

dry county In the United States, a dry county is a county whose local government forbids the sale of any kind of alcoholic beverages. Some prohibit off-premises sale, some prohibit on-premises sale, and some prohibit both. The vast majority of counties n ...

, until voters overturned that in September 2016. Prior to that, there were two exceptions: * Cave City, which voted in 2005 to become "moist" (selling only

alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...

by the drink in restaurants of a certain minimum size (100 in this case) and which derive 70% or more of their revenue from food), and later voted in 2014 to approve full package sales. * Glasgow, which approved liquor by the drink under the same restrictions on November 6, 2007, after three previous elections to allow full alcohol sales in the city were soundly defeated.

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 (2.5%) is water. Barren River Lake is located in the southern part of the county, forming part of its boundary with Allen County. Barren River Lake State Resort Park is located primarily within Barren County, along the lake's shoreline.

Adjacent counties

* Hart County (north) * Metcalfe County (east) * Monroe County (southeast) * Allen County (southwest) * Warren County (west) * Edmonson County (northwest)

National protected area

Mammoth Cave National Park Mammoth Cave National Park is a national park of the United States in south-central Kentucky. It encompasses portions of Mammoth Cave, the longest known cave system in the world. The park's are located primarily in Edmonson County, with sma ...

(part)

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 38,033 people, 15,346 households, and 10,941 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 17,095 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 94.30%

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 ...

, 4.09% Black or African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.41% Asian, 0.03%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.38% from other races, and 0.65% from two or more races. 0.93% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 15,346 households, out of which 31.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.30% 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, 9.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.70% were non-families. 25.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.91. The age distribution was 24.20% under the age of 18, 8.20% from 18 to 24, 28.80% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $31,240, and the median income for a family was $37,231. Males had a median income of $29,860 versus $21,208 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 $16,816. About 11.80% of families and 15.60% 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 20.30% of those under age 18 and 19.10% of those age 65 or over.

Religion

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

is the predominant religion in the county. The

Southern Baptist Convention The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), alternatively the Great Commission Baptists (GCB), is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist organization, the largest Protestant, and the second-largest Chr ...

is the leading

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

denomination in terms of adherents, with Glasgow Baptist Church being the largest congregation in the county. Missionary Baptist, United Methodist, Free Methodist,

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

(including Cumberland Presbyterian),

Episcopalian Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protes ...

Disciples of Christ The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. The denomination started with the Restoration Movement during the Second Great Awakening, first existing during the 19th ...

Churches of Christ The Churches of Christ, also commonly known as the Church of Christ, is a loose association of autonomous Christian congregations located around the world. Typically, their distinguishing beliefs are that of the necessity of baptism for salvation ...

including non-institutional,

Assemblies of God The World Assemblies of God Fellowship (WAGF), commonly known as the Assemblies of God (AG), is a global cooperative body or communion of over 170 Pentecostal denominations that was established on August 15, 1989. The WAGF was created to provi ...

, and numerous independent churches are located in the county, as well as two

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

parishes, an LDS

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

, and a sizable

Amish The Amish (, also or ; ; ), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, church fellowships with Swiss people, Swiss and Alsace, Alsatian origins. As they ...

community.

Economy

Barren County is primarily rural in nature, with agriculture as the primary industry.

, the county seat, has numerous manufacturing facilities, and is also a medical and retail hub for the area. Cave City is also a popular lodging area for tourists visiting nearby

Politics

The Republican Party has the most registered voters. The county hasn't voted for the Democratic presidential candidate since 1992. 51% of the voters are registered to the Republican Party, and 40% are registered Democrats.

Elected officials

Voter registration

Statewide elections

Education

The county is home to all or part of three school districts: * Most of the county is served by the Barren County Schools, which includes Barren County High School and Middle School in Glasgow, and seven elementary schools throughout the county, many of which were formerly also high schools before they were consolidated into Barren County High in the early 1970s. * Th
Glasgow Independent Schools
serve the city of Glasgow proper, with small areas of overlap outside the city limits. The district includes Glasgow High School, Glasgow Middle School, and two elementary schools. In addition, the Glasgow and Caverna (see below) districts jointly operate an alternative school located in the Glasgow district for "at-risk" children in middle and high school. Barren County High and Middle Schools, although operated by the county district, are actually located within the boundaries of the Glasgow district. * The Caverna Independent Schools take in Cave City and surrounding northwest Barren County, as well as Horse Cave and the southwest corner of neighboring Hart County. It is served by Caverna High School, Caverna Middle School, and Caverna Elementary School, all located between Cave City and Horse Cave. The high school is on the Hart County side of the line, while the elementary and middle schools share a campus on the Barren County side. The district is one of only a handful in the United States which is located in more than one county. Three other districts with this distinction are in Kentucky, most notably the Corbin Independent School District, serving a single city split by a county line.

Transportation

Barren County is served by

Interstate 65 Interstate 65 (I-65) is a major north–south Interstate Highway System, interstate highway in the central United States. As with most primary interstates ending in 5, it is a major crosscountry, north–south route, connecting between th ...

, which goes through the northwest part of the county, and the Cumberland Expressway, a former

toll road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee (or ''Toll (fee), toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and ...

that was designated to be part of the future

Interstate 66 Interstate 66 (I-66) is a 76.32 mile east–west Interstate Highway in the East Coast of the United States, eastern United States. The highway runs from an interchange with Interstate 81 in Virginia, I-81 near Middletown, Virginia, on its w ...

corridor before that project was scrapped. U.S. Routes 31E, 31W, and 68 also pass through the county.

Railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

service is provided by

CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of track, it is the lead ...

, whose former

Louisville and Nashville Railroad The Louisville and Nashville Railroad , commonly called the L&N, was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1850, the road grew into one of ...

main line passes through Cave City and Park City. The Glasgow Railway Company is a short line which owns a branch from Park City (which was formerly called Glasgow Junction) to Glasgow; the line is serviced via an operating lease by CSX. Glasgow Transit operates deviated fixed-route bus service within Glasgow on weekdays.

Communities

Cities

* Cave City *

(county seat) * Park City

Census-designated place

* Hiseville

Other unincorporated communities

* Apple Grove *

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

* Bear Wallow *

Beckton Beckton is a suburb in east London, England, located east of Charing Cross and part of the London Borough of Newham. Adjacent to the River Thames, the area consisted of unpopulated marshland known as the East Ham Levels in the parishes of Bark ...

* Bon Ayr * Bristletown * Carden * Cooktown * Coral Hill * Dry Fork * Eighty Eight * Etoile * Finney * Goodnight * Griderville * Haywood * Highland Springs * Kino * Lecta *

Lucas Lucas or LUCAS may refer to: People * Lucas (surname) * Lucas (given name) Arts and entertainment * Luca Family Singers, or the Lucas, a 19th-century African-American singing group * Lucas, a 1960s Swedish pop group formed by Janne Lucas Perss ...

* Merry Oaks * Nobob * Oil City *

Park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

* Peter Creek * Pritchardsville * Railton *

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

* Rocky Hill * Roseville * Slick Rock * Stovall * Temple Hill * Tracy

Ghost town

* Chaumont (mostly in Edmonson County)

Media

* WLYE-FM "Willie 94.1" - ''Real Country'' Glasgow * WCLU-AM 1490

* WLLI "Willie 94.1" Glasgow (licensed to Munfordville) * WCDS-AM 1230 "SportsRadio 123" - Newberry Broadcasting, Inc. * W239BV (FM 95.7) - "96 Hits" - an analog radio repeater of WOVO-HD2/ Horse Cave * '' Glasgow Daily Times'' - local newspaper published Tuesday through Saturday * '' Barren County Progress'' - county-oriented weekly newspaper published Thursdays

Economy

Barren County's industry includes these companies: *

Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...

operates a full-service super center at the intersection of

Kentucky Route 90 Kentucky Route 90 (KY 90) is a major east–west state highway in southern Kentucky. The route is long, and it traverses Barren County, Kentucky, Barren, Metcalfe County, Kentucky, Metcalfe, Cumberland County, Kentucky, Cumberland, Clinton Cou ...

(Happy Valley Road) and Veterans Outer Loop on the northwest outskirts of the city. * Mid-State Recycling - the area's main recycling facility. *

Western Kentucky University Western Kentucky University (WKU) is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky, United States. It was founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a few decades earlier. It operates regional campuses in Glas ...

's satellite campus in

Glasgow, Kentucky Glasgow is a home rule-class city in Barren County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. Glasgow is the principal city of the Glasgow micropolitan area, which comprises Barren and Metcalfe counties. The population was 15,01 ...

* Glasgow Electric Plant Board - Electric,

cable television Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with bro ...

, and internet service in the City of Glasgow. * Farmers Rural Electric Cooperative - Electric service for the county. * South Central Rural Telephone Cooperative - telephone, cable television and internet service. * T.J. Samson Community Hospital * Southern States Feed Mill in Park City * Dakota Elmore Realty and Auction Co. Cave City's main industry in Barren County's economy is tourism, thanks to its proximity to

, which is one of the top ten most visited attractions in Kentucky. A number of motels and restaurants are located at the interchange of

and state routes 70 and 90, which cater to tourists visiting the area or just passing through, thereby making Cave City, and much of northwest Barren County, a tourism hot-spot. The city operates a small convention center that is popular with church groups and other family-related organizations, mainly because of the area's lack of crime and abundance of tourist attractions. Cave City has long been a gateway to Mammoth Cave; in the era of passenger rail travel, trains of the

would discharge tourists there, who would then be shuttled to the cave. The agricultural industry is also a big factor in the area's economy. For more information, see the Barren County Economic Authority's website (www.BarrenCoEa.com).

Sites and events of interest

* Fort Williams, Glasgow. * Barren River Lake State Resort Park, Lucas at the junction of US 31E and KY 87 in southern Barren County. * Barren River Lake, a lake along the Barren- Allen County line that is operated by the

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wor ...

.
Kentucky Action Park/Jesse James Riding Stables
Cave City, Kentucky
Guntown Mountain Old West town and Haunted Hotel
Cave City
Diamond Caverns
Park City, along the Edmonson-Barren County line on the southeastern fringe of Mammoth Cave National Park.
Onyx Cave and Rock Shop
Cave City * Thomerson Park, Dry Fork Events include, but are not limited to, the following: * The 400-mile yard sale along US 68 throughout the route's course in Kentucky (except Metro Lexington and the LBL) - first Thursday-Sunday in June, annually. * Glasgow Highland Games at Barren River Lake State Resort Park - early June. * Annual Roller Coaster Yard Sale along State Highway 63 - early October. * Annual Fireworks Extravaganza at Barren River Lake, July 4 of each year.

Notable people

* Walter Arnold Baker (1937–2010) : Associate Justice, Kentucky Supreme Court, Assistant General Counsel for International Affairs in the Department of Defense, Member of Kentucky Senate and House of Representatives, Lieutenant Colonel, Kentucky Air National Guard. * Ira F. M. Butler (1812–1909), Oregon pioneer and state legislator * Floyd Collins (1887–1925), cave explorer and cave accident victim *

Kelly Craft Kelly Dawn Craft (; born February 24, 1962) is an American businesswoman, politician, and former diplomat who served as the 30th List of ambassadors of the United States to the United Nations, United States Ambassador to the United Nations from ...

(née Guilfoil) (born 1962), US Ambassador to the United Nations and US Ambassador to Canada * Nancy Kelsey (1823–1896), the "Betsy Ross of California * Louie B. Nunn (1924–2004), former

governor of Kentucky The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; sinc ...

* Marion McCarrell Scott (1843–1922), educator and government advisor in Meiji period Japan * Henry Skaggs (1724–1810), longhunter, explorer, and pioneer, lived in Hiseville * Luska Twyman (1913–1988), first African American mayor of Glasgow, Kentucky * William Burton Walbert (1886–1959), Southern gospel songwriter, singer, composer, and editor

References

External links

Mammoth Fun - Kentucky's Cave Country (Caveland Marketing Association)
{{authority control 1798 establishments in Kentucky Kentucky counties Glasgow, Kentucky, micropolitan area Populated places established in 1798

History

Geography

Adjacent counties

National protected area

Demographics

Religion

Economy

Politics

Elected officials

Voter registration

Statewide elections

Education

Transportation

Communities

Cities

Census-designated place

Other unincorporated communities

Ghost town

Media

Economy

Sites and events of interest

Notable people

See also

References

External links