Bowling Green is a city in

Warren County, Kentucky Warren County is a county located in the south central portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 134,554, making it the fifth-most populous county in Kentucky. The county seat is Bowling Green. Warren ...

, United States, and 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 ...

. Its population was 72,294 as of the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in the state, after

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

and Lexington. The Bowling Green metropolitan area is the fourth-largest in the state and had a population of 179,639 in 2020. Founded by pioneers in 1798, Bowling Green was the provisional capital of Confederate Kentucky during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. In the 21st century, it is the location of numerous manufacturers, including

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

, Spalding, and

Fruit of the Loom Fruit of the Loom is an American company that manufactures clothing, particularly casual wear and undergarment, underwear. The company's world headquarters are located in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Since 2002, it has been a wholly owned subsidiary ...

. The Bowling Green Assembly Plant has been the source of all

Chevrolet Corvette The Chevrolet Corvette is a line of American two-door, two-seater sports cars manufactured and marketed by General Motors under the Chevrolet marque since 1953. Throughout eight generations, indicated sequentially as C1 to C8, the Corvette is not ...

s built since 1981. Bowling Green is also home to

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 ...

(or WKU for short), and the

National Corvette Museum The National Corvette Museum showcases the Chevrolet Corvette, an United States, American sports car that has been in production since 1953. It is located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, off Interstate 65's Exit 28 and near General Motors' Bowling G ...

History

Settlement and incorporation

The first Europeans known to have reached the area carved their names on beech trees near the river . By 1778, settlers established McFadden's Station on the north bank of the Barren River.City of Bowling Green.
Early History of Bowling Green
. Accessed July 22, 2013. Present-day Bowling Green developed from homesteads erected by Robert and George Moore and General Elijah Covington, not the namesake of the town near Cincinnati. Some controversy exists over the source of the town's name. The city refers to the first county commissioners' meeting (1798), which named the town "Bolin Green" after 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 ...

in New York City, where patriots had pulled down a statue of

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...

and used the lead to make bullets during the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

. According to the ''Encyclopedia of Kentucky'', the name was derived from Bowling Green, Virginia, whence early migrants had come, or the personal "ball alley game" of founder Robert Moore.

19th century

By 1810, Bowling Green had 154 residents. Growth in

steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. The term ''steamboat'' is used to refer to small steam-powered vessels worki ...

commerce and the proximity of the Barren River increased Bowling Green's prominence. In 1821, 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 the ...

built a toll road between the town and Cloverport on the

Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...

Canal lock A lock is a device used for raising and lowering boats, ships and other watercraft between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a chamber in a permanently fixed position i ...

s and dams on the Barren River made it much more navigable. In 1832, the first portage railway connected the river to the location of the current county

courthouse A courthouse or court house is a structure which houses judicial functions for a governmental entity such as a state, region, province, county, prefecture, regency, or similar governmental unit. A courthouse is home to one or more courtrooms, ...

. Mules pulled freight and passengers to and from the city on the tracks. Despite rapid urbanization of the Bowling Green area in the 1830s, agriculture remained an important part of local life. A visitor to Bowling Green noted the boasting of a tavern proprietor named Benjamin Vance: In 1859, the

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 ...

(currently

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 ...

) laid railroad through Bowling Green that connected the city with northern and southern markets. Bowling Green declared itself neutral in an attempt to escape the Civil War. Because of its prime location and resources, however, both the Union and Confederacy sought control of the city. The majority of its residents rejected both the Confederacy and the Lincoln administration. On September 18, 1861, around 1,300 Confederate soldiers arrived from Tennessee to occupy the city, placed under command of Kentucky native General Simon Bolivar Buckner. The city's pro-Union feelings surprised the Confederate occupiers. The Confederates fortified surrounding hills to secure possible military approaches to the valuable river and railroad assets. In November 1861, the provisional

Confederate government of Kentucky The Confederate government of Kentucky was a government-in-exile, shadow government established for the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Kentucky by a self-constituted group of Confederate States of America, Confederate sympathizer ...

chose Bowling Green as its capital. On February 14, 1862, after receiving reports that Fort Henry on the

Tennessee River The Tennessee River is a long river located in the Southern United States, southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. Flowing through the states of Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, it begins at the confluence of Fren ...

and Fort Donelson on the

Cumberland River The Cumberland River is a major waterway of the Southern United States. The U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 8, 2011 river drains almost of southern Kentucky and ...

had both been captured by Union forces under

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...

, the Confederates began to withdraw from Bowling Green. They destroyed bridges across the Barren River, the railroad depot, and other important buildings that could be used by the enemy. The city was subject to disruptions and raids throughout the remainder of the war. During the summer of 1864, Union General Stephen G. Burbridge arrested 22 civilians in and around Bowling Green on a charge of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state (polity), state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to Coup d'état, overthrow its government, spy ...

. This incident and other harsh treatment by federal authorities led to bitterness toward the Union among Bowling Green residents and increased sympathies with the Confederacy. After the Civil War, Bowling Green's business district grew considerably. Previously, agriculture had dominated the city's economy. During the 1870s, many of the historic business structures seen today were erected. One of the most important businesses in Bowling Green of this era was Carie Burnam Taylor's dress-making company. By 1906, Taylor employed more than 200 women. In 1868, the city constructed its first waterworks system. The fourth county courthouse was completed in 1868. The first three were completed in 1798, 1805, and 1813. In 1889, the first

mule The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey, and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two ...

-drawn streetcars appeared in the city. The first electric streetcars began to replace them by 1895. The Sisters of Charity of Nazareth founded St. Columbia's Academy in 1862, succeeded by St. Joseph's School in 1911. In 1884, the Southern Normal School, which had been founded in 1875, moved to Bowling Green from the town of

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 ...

. Pleasant J. Potter founded a women's college in Bowling Green in 1889. It closed in 1909 and its property was sold to the Western Kentucky State Normal School (see below, now known as

). Other important schools in this era were Methodist Warren College, Ogden College (which also became a part of Western Kentucky University), and Green River Female College, a boarding school.

20th century

In 1906, Henry Hardin Cherry, the president and owner of Southern Normal School, donated the school to the state as the basis of the Western State Normal School. The school trained teachers for the expanding educational needs of the state. This institution is now known as

and is the second-largest public university in the state, having recently surpassed the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...

. In 1906, Doctors Lillian H. South, J. N. McCormack, and A.T. McCormack opened St. Joseph Hospital to provide medical and nursing care to the residents and students in the area.''Kentucky State Medical Association''. (1913). Kentucky Medical Journal. Louisville, Ky: The Kentucky State Medical Association. page 160
Accessed on 31 March 2010
In 1925, the third and last Louisville and Nashville Railroad Station was opened. About 27 trains arrived daily at the depot. Intercity bus lines were also a popular form of travel. By the 1960s, railroad travel had dramatically declined in the face of competition from airlines and automobiles. The station has been adapted for use as a museum. In 1940, a Union Underwear factory built in Bowling Green bolstered the city's economy significantly. During the 1960s, the city's population began to surpass that of Ashland, Paducah, and Newport. Downtown streets became a bottleneck for traffic. In 1949, the U.S. Route 31W Bypass was opened to alleviate traffic problems, but it also drew off business from downtown. The bypass grew to become a business hotspot in Bowling Green. A 1954 advertisement exclaimed, "Your business can grow in the direction Bowling Green is growing – to the 31-W By-Pass". By the 1960s, the face of shopping was changing completely from the downtown retail square to suburban shopping centers. Between May and November 1967, stores in Bowling Green Mall opened for business. Another advertisement said, "One-stop shopping. Just park ree step out and shop. You'll find everything close at hand." Between September 1979 and September 1980, stores in the larger Greenwood Mall came online. The city's limits began to stretch toward

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 ...

. By the late 1960s, Interstate 65, which runs just to the east of Bowling Green, was completed. The Green River Parkway (now called the William H. Natcher Parkway and renamed I-165 in April 2019), was completed in the 1970s to connect Bowling Green and Owensboro. These vital transportation arteries attracted many industries to Bowling Green. In 1981,

moved its

assembly plant from

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

, to Bowling Green. In the same year, the National Corvette Homecoming event was created: it is a large, annual gathering of Corvette owners, car parades, and related activities in Bowling Green. In 1994, the

was constructed near the assembly plant. In 1997, Bowling Green was designated a Tree City USA by the

National Arbor Day Foundation The Arbor Day Foundation is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees. The Arbor Day Foundation has more than one million members and has planted more than 500 million trees in neighborhoods, communitie ...

21st century

In 2012, the city undertook a feasibility study on ways to revitalize the downtown Bowling Green area. The Downtown Redevelopment Authority was formed to plan redevelopment. Plans for the project incorporated Bowling Green's waterfront assets, as well as its historic center and streetscape around Fountain Square. It also proposed a new building for the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce, construction of a Riverwalk Park where downtown borders the Barren River, creation of a new public park called Circus Square, and installation of a new retail area, the Fountain Square Market. As of spring 2009, the new Chamber of Commerce, Riverwalk Park, and Circus Square have been completed. The Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center, a facility for arts and education, broke ground in October 2009 and celebrated its opening night on March 10, 2012, with a concert by

Vince Gill Vincent Grant Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He played in a number of local bluegrass music, bluegrass bands in the 1970s, and from 1978 to 1982, he achieved his first mainstream attention after ta ...

. Ground was broken for the Fountain Square Market in 2012. In 2005, an effort was made to incorporate a Whitewater Park into the downtown Bowling Green riverfront at Weldon Peete Park. Due to the recession, the project was not funded. In 2011, the Bowling Green Riverfront Foundation expanded its efforts to develop land on the opposite side of Barren River from

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 ...

Park (which is located alongside the U.S. 31-W Bypass and the riverbank, between Louisville Road and Old Louisville Road), upriver to Peete Park. The new plans include use of the adjacent river for white-water sports—the stretch of river includes rapids rated on the International Scale of River Difficulty between Class II and Class IV—as well as a

mountain biking Mountain biking (MTB) is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability ...

trail, a bicycle

pump track A pump track is a purpose-built Track cycling, track for cycling. It has a circuit of rollers, banked turns and features designed to be ridden completely by riders "pumping"—generating momentum by up and down body movements, instead of pedaling ...

, and a

rock climbing Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending climbing routes, routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in c ...

area. Some of this facility will be located on a reclaimed landfill, which had served as Bowling Green's garbage dump for many years.

2021 tornadoes

During the early-morning hours of December 11, 2021, two destructive tornadoes struck Bowling Green. The first was an EF3 tornado that heavily damaged or destroyed several buildings and homes and killed seventeen people. The second tornado formed alongside the Main EF3 and caused additional damage on the southern and eastern parts of the city and was rated EF2.

Geography

The Bowling Green-Warren County Regional Airport is above sea level. Located in the

Upland South The Upland South and Upper South are two overlapping cultural and geographic subregions in the inland part of the Southern United States. They differ from the Deep South and Atlantic coastal plain by terrain, history, economics, demographics, a ...

, 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 city has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.45%, is covered by water.

Neighboring cities

Climate

Bowling Green has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

: ''Cfa''). The monthly daily average temperature ranges from in January to in July. On average, 41 days of + highs occur annually, and 11 days occur each winter when the high fails to rise above freezing. Annual precipitation is 47.51 in, with spring being slightly wetter; snowfall averages per year. Extreme temperatures range from on January 23 and 24, 1963, up to on July 28, 1930.

Demographics

As of the census of 2020, 72,294 people resided in the city. The population density was . The racial makeup of the city was 64.3% White, 13.8% African American, 0.4% Native American, 8.0% Asian, 0.8% Pacific Islander, and 7.1% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 5.6% of the population. The town also has the ninth largest Bosnian population in the United States. Of the 27,504 households, 30.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 33.3% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46% were not families. About 33.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34, and the average family size was 3.02. In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.4% under the age of 18, 26.7% from 15 to 24, 27% from 25 to 44, 16.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.5% who were 65 or older. The median age was 27.6 years. Females made up 51.5% of the population and males made up 48.5%. The median income for a household in the city was $42,044, and for families was $50,853. Males had a median income of $35,986 versus $28,271 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,302. About 20.9% of families and 25.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.7% of those under age 18.

Government

Economy

is the largest employer in Bowling Green; according to a 2022 report, WKU employed 3,274 people. A 2011 study estimated that WKU salaries account for approximately 10% of all income earned in Warren County, which includes the city.

' Bowling Green Assembly Plant, which opened in 1981, is located in the city; by 2023, the plant had produced approximately 1.1 million

s. As of 2022, GM employed approximately 1,100 people in Bowling Green. The plant's workers are

unionized A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

, belonging to

United Auto Workers The United Auto Workers (UAW), fully named International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, is an American labor union that represents workers in the United States (including Puerto Rico) and sou ...

Local 2164. Auto supplier

Holley Performance Products Holley Performance Products is an automobile, automotive performance company based in Bowling Green, Kentucky. It was founded in 1896 in Bradford, Pennsylvania, by George Holley and Earl Holley. When the company was based in Michigan it was a majo ...

has manufactured products in Bowling Green since 1952, and has been headquartered in the city since 1994. The Japan-based Kobe Steel Ltd. operates a large assembly plant in Bowling Green, manufacturing aluminum products used in car bumpers and frames for the North American auto sector; construction of the plant began in 2016, and began operation in 2018. Camping World Holdings Inc., an RV company, was founded in Bowling Green in 1966 by David Garvin, the owner of the Beech Bend amusement park; the company maintains Bowling Green as one of three headquarters (the others being Lincolnshire, England and

Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

). In 2022, AESC, a Japanese

electric vehicle battery An electric vehicle battery is a rechargeable battery used to power the electric motors of a battery electric vehicle (BEV) or hybrid electric vehicle (HEV). They are typically lithium-ion batteries that are designed for high power-to-weigh ...

firm, announced plans to establish the Envision AESC plant at Bowling Green, creating an estimated 2,000 jobs in a $2 billion " gigafactory" investment. Apparel manufacturer Union Underwear Co. LLC,

doing business as A trade name, trading name, or business name is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is fictitious business name. Registering the fictitious name with ...

, is headquartered in Bowling Green,Fruit of the Loom losing about 100 jobs, most in Kentucky
Associated Press (May 23, 2019). employing about 930 people in the city as of 2022. The company shuttered its plant in nearby Jamestown in 2014. Conglomerate

Houchens Industries Houchens Industries, Inc. is an American employee-owned company, in business since 1917 when it began as a small grocery operated by founder Ervin Houchens in rural Barren County, Kentucky. The company is headquartered in Bowling Green, Kentucky. ...

, one of the U.S.'s largest 100% employee-owned enterprises, is based in Bowling Green. The Swedish company SCA opened a manufacturing facility in Bowling Green in 1988; as of 2016, the company employed about 160 employees in Bowling Green and 500 employees at a paper mill in

Harrodsburg, Kentucky Harrodsburg is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Mercer County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 9,064 at the 2020 census. Although Harrodsburg was formally established by the Virginia House of Burgesses after Boo ...

, acquired from Wausau Paper.

Top employers

According to the city's 2022

Comprehensive Annual Financial Report An Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR), formerly called a Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR)) is a set of U.S. government financial statements comprising the financial report of a state, municipal or other governmental entity t ...

, the top employers in the city are:

Arts and culture

Museums

* Kentucky Museum and Library – Home of rich collections and education exhibits on Kentucky history and heritage. Genealogical materials, published works, manuscripts and folk life information. *

– Showcase of America's sports car with more than 75 Corvettes on display, including mint classics, one-of-a-kind prototypes, racetrack champions and more. * Historic Railpark and Train Museum – L & N Depot – Train museum in the original train depot of Bowling Green. Opened after the library moved at the end of 2007. Includes 5 restored historic rail cars. * Riverview at Hobson Grove – This historic house museum is a classic example of

Italianate architecture The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century ...

—arched windows, deep eaves with ornamental brackets, and cupola. Painted ceilings. Began late 1850s, Confederate munitions magazine in winter 1861–62, and completed 1872.

Other attractions

* Bowling Green Ballpark * Beech Bend Park * General Motors Assembly Plant * National Corvette Homecoming * Capitol Arts Center * Cave Spring Caverns * Eloise B. Houchens Center * Historic Railpark at the L&N Depot *

Lost River Cave Lost River Cave is a seven-mile cave system located in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The Lost River originates outside of the cave and flows into it. The cave contains one of the largest natural entrances in the Eastern U.S. Boat tours are available ...

and Valley * Riverview at Hobson Grove * Great American Donut Shop (GADS) * William H. Natcher Federal Building and United States Courthouse * Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center (SkyPac) * Low Hollow Bike Trail at Weldon Peete Park * Civil War Discovery Trail * Duncan Hines Scenic Byway * Shake Rag Historic District * Warren County Quilt Trail * St. Joseph Historic District

Public library

Bowling Green is served by the Warren County Public Library. The main library is the Lisa Rice Library. Its website is warrenpl.org.

Sports

E.A. Diddle Arena, located on the campus of

, is a multi-purpose arena with a seating capacity of 7,500 persons. Built in 1963 and renovated in 2004, the arena has hosted college sports such as basketball and volleyball. It also hosted the

KHSAA The Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) has been the governing body of the U.S. state of Kentucky's List of high schools in Kentucky, high school athletics since 1917. It is located in Lexington, Kentucky, Lexington. Sports The o ...

Girls' Sweet Sixteen state championship event in high school basketball from 2001 to 2015, after which it moved to BB&T Arena at Northern Kentucky University. The arena has also played host to various traveling rodeos and circuses. In 2006, Diddle Arena hosted the first WWE event to be held in Bowling Green in over ten years. BGBallparkJune2012

The city and surrounding area is home to the Warren County Inline Hockey League. It also is home to the Western Kentucky University Hilltoppers team, which competes in the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

, and are part of conference USA Bowling Green Ballpark is a baseball stadium currently in use in Bowling Green. It is primarily used for baseball, for the High-A Bowling Green Hot Rods organization of the High-A East. The Hot Rods began play in the spring of 2009 in the

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its h ...

, transferring to the

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

for 2010. In 2021 as part of

Minor League Baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

's realignment they began play in the newly formed High-A East. They are a farm team for Major League Baseball's

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in the Tampa Bay area. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. They are one of two major ...

. The Bowling Green Hornets of the Central Basketball League are based in Bowling Green, although they play their home games in Russellville. The Hornets are coached by Russellville native Nathan Thompson.

Parks and recreation

The Bowling Green Parks and Recreation Department administers of public land for recreational use.

Community centers

* F. O. Moxley – Facility includes a game room (

billiards Cue sports are a wide variety of games of skill played with a cue stick, which is used to strike billiard balls and thereby cause them to move around a cloth-covered table bounded by elastic bumpers known as . Cue sports, a category of stic ...

, video games),

board game A board game is a type of tabletop game that involves small objects () that are placed and moved in particular ways on a specially designed patterned game board, potentially including other components, e.g. dice. The earliest known uses of the ...

room, concession stand,

racquetball Racquetball is a racquet sport and a team sport played with a hollow rubber ball on an indoor or outdoor court. Joseph Sobek invented the modern sport of racquetball in 1950, adding a stringed racquet to paddleball in order to increase vel ...

/ wallyball courts and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

courts. * Parker-Bennett – Facility has hourly rental rates for meetings, parties and receptions. * Kummer/Little Recreation Center – Facility includes

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

courts, concession stand, and

walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an " inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults o ...

trails. * Delafield Community Center – Facility includes an

auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoriums can be found in entertainment venues, community halls, and t ...

courts, a

playground A playground, playpark, or play area is a place designed to provide an environment for children that facilitates play, typically outdoors. While a playground is usually designed for children, some are designed for other age groups, or people wi ...

, and picnic shelters.

Parks

Swimming centers

Swim centers include Russell Sims Aquatic Center, and Warren County Aquatics Facility. Disc golf course Bowling Green Kentucky May 2006

Education

Primary and secondary education

Public education is provided by the Bowling Green Independent School District in inner sections of Bowling Green and by Warren County Public Schools in outlying sections. Several private schools also serve Bowling Green students. WKUMidCampus

Elementary schools

=Warren County Public Schools

= * Alvaton Elementary * Briarwood Elementary * Bristow Elementary * Cumberland Trace Elementary * Jennings Creek Elementary * Jody Richards Elementary * Lost River Elementary * North Warren Elementary * Oakland Elementary * Plano Elementary * Rich Pond Elementary * Richardsville Elementary * Rockfield Elementary * Warren Elementary * William H. Natcher Elementary

= Bowling Green Independent School District

= * Dishman-McGinnis * Parker Bennett Curry * Potter Gray * T.C. Cherry * W.R. McNeill

Middle and junior high schools

All of these schools are operated by the Warren County district except Bowling Green Junior High. * Bowling Green Junior High * Drakes Creek Middle School * Henry F. Moss Middle School * Warren East Middle School * South Warren Middle School

High schools

All schools are operated by the Warren County district except Bowling Green High and Carol Martin Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science. * Bowling Green High * Carol Martin Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science in Kentucky * Greenwood High * Warren Central High * Warren East High * South Warren High School * Lighthouse Academy High School

Religious schools

* Legacy Christian Academy - Preschool through 12th grade * Foundation Christian Academy – Preschool through 12th grade

Church of Christ Church of Christ may refer to: Church groups * Christianity, the Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ * Christian Church, an ecclesiological term used by denominations to describe the true body of Christia ...

Christian school * Holy Trinity Lutheran – Preschool through 6th grade

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

Christian school * Old Union School – Preschool through 12th grade Christian school * Saint Joseph Interparochial School– Preschool through 8th grade

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

school

Postsecondary education

* Bowling Green Adult Learning Center * Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College *

Media

Print media

* The Amplifier – Arts & Entertainment monthly * Bowling Green Daily News * College Heights Herald – WKU student newspaper * Soky Happenings

Television

* WDNZ

Antenna TV Antenna TV is an American digital television network owned by Nexstar Media Group. The network's programming consists of classic television series, primarily sitcoms, from the 1950s to the 1990s. Antenna TV's programming and advertising operatio ...

Channel 11 *

WBKO WBKO (channel 13) is a television station in Bowling Green, Kentucky, United States, affiliated with American Broadcasting Company, ABC, Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox, and The CW Plus. It is owned by Gray Media alongside Telemundo affiliate WB ...

ABC Channel 13 * WKYU

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

Channel 24 * WCZU

Court TV Court TV is an American digital broadcast network and former pay-television channel. It was originally launched in 1991 with a focus on crime-themed programs such as true crime documentary series, legal analysis talk shows, and live news cover ...

Channel 39 * WNKY

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

Channel 40 * WKGB

/ KET Channel 53

Digital broadcast

* WDNZ

Channel 11.1 720i * WDNZ

Stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...

Channel 11.2 1080i * WDNZ The Country Network Channel 11.3 480i * WBKO ABC Channel 13.1 720p * WBKO Fox Channel 13.2 480i * WBKO CW Channel 13.3 480i * WKYU

Channel 24.1 1080i * WKYU Create Channel 24.2 480i * WCZU

Channel 39.1 480i * WCZU

Buzzr Buzzr (stylized as BUZZR) is an American digital broadcast television network owned by Fremantle North America, a unit of the Fremantle subsidiary of RTL Group. The network serves as an outlet for the extensive library of classic game shows ow ...

Channel 39.2 480i * WCZU

Bounce TV Bounce TV is an American digital terrestrial television, digital broadcast television network owned by Scripps Networks, a subsidiary of E. W. Scripps Company. It launched on September 26, 2011, and was promoted as "the first 24/7 digital multic ...

Channel 39.3 480i * WCZU SBN Channel 39.4 480i * WCZU GRIT Channel 39.5 480i * WCZU Court TV Mystery Channel 39.6 480i * WCZU

Cozi TV Cozi TV (stylized on-air as COZI TV) is an American free-to-air television network owned by the NBC Owned Television Stations division of NBCUniversal. The network airs classic television series from the 1950s to the 2000s. The network originat ...

Channel 39.7 480i * WNKY

Channel 40.1 1080i * WNKY CBS Channel 40.2 480i * WNKY

MeTV MeTV, an acronym for Memorable Entertainment Television, is an American broadcast television network owned by Weigel Broadcasting. Marketed as "The Definitive Destination for Classic TV", the network airs a variety of classic television progra ...

Channel 40.3 480i * WKGB PBS Channel 53.1 KET1 720p * WKGB PBS Channel 53.2 KET2 480i * WKGB PBS Channel 53.3 KETKY The Kentucky Channel 480i * WKGB

PBS Kids PBS Kids (stylized as PBS KIDS) is the branding used for nationally distributed children's programming carried by the U.S. public television network PBS. The brand encompasses a daytime block of children's programming carried daily by most PBS ...

Channel 53.4 480i

Radio

* AM 930 WKCT – News/Talk * AM 1340 WBGN – The Ticket(Fox Sports Radio) * AM 1450 WWKU –

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

Radio * FM 88.1 WAYFM – WAYFM * FM 88.9 WKYU – Western Kentucky University Public Radio * FM 90.7 WCVK – Christian Family Radio * FM 91.7 WWHR – "Revolution" WKU's student radio station * FM 93.3 WDNS – Bowling Green's Classic Rock Station * FM 95.1 WGGC – Goober 95.1 – Country * FM 96.7 WBVR – The Beaver – Country (licensed to Auburn, Kentucky) * FM 100.7 WKLX – Sam 100.7 – Classic hits (licensed to

Brownsville, Kentucky Brownsville is a List of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in Edmonson County, Kentucky, Edmonson County, Kentucky, in the United States. It is the county seat and is a certified Kentucky Trail Town. The population was 836 at the time of ...

) * FM 103.7 WHHT – Howdy 103.7 – Country (licensed to Cave City, Kentucky) * FM 105.3 WPTQ – The Point – Classic / Active Rock (licensed to

) * FM 106.3 WOVO – Wovo106.3 – Adult contemporary (licensed to Horse Cave, Kentucky) * FM 107.1 WUHU – Woohoo – Top 40 (licensed to Smiths Grove, Kentucky)

Infrastructure

Transportation

Major highways

north to

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

south to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

Interstate 165 north to

Owensboro, Kentucky Owensboro is a Home rule in the United States, home rule-class city in Daviess County, Kentucky, United States, of which it is also the county seat. It is the List of cities in Kentucky, fourth-most populous city in the state. Owensboro is loca ...

U.S. Route 231 U.S. Route 231 (US 231) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway System, U.S highway that is a parallel route of U.S. Route 31, US 31. It runs for from St. John, Indiana, St. John, Indiana, at U.S. Route 41 in Indiana, US&nbs ...

north to Morgantown, Kentucky south to

Scottsville, Kentucky Scottsville is a list of Kentucky cities, home rule-class city in Allen County, Kentucky, Allen County, Kentucky, in the United States. It is the county seat, seat of its county. The population was 4,299 during the 2020 United States census. His ...

U.S. Route 31W north to Park City, south to Franklin, Kentucky * US 68

U.S. Route 68 / Kentucky State Route 80 west to

Hopkinsville, Kentucky Hopkinsville is a list of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in and the county seat of Christian County, Kentucky, United States. The population at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census was 31,180. History Early years The area of p ...

, east to

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

Somerset, Kentucky Somerset is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Pulaski County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 11,924. History Somerset was first settled in 1798 by Thomas Hansford and received its name from ...

Other highways

Kentucky State Route 185 * Elongated circle 234

Kentucky State Route 234 * Elongated circle 242

Kentucky State Route 242 * Elongated circle 880

Kentucky State Route 880

Former highways

Kentucky State Route 67 (1929–1969) *William H. Natcher Green River Parkway-KY-9007(Replaced by I-165, North to Owensboro, Morgantown, Beaver Dam, South to Bowling Green)

Air transport

The city is served by Bowling Green–Warren County Regional Airport.

Buses

Community Action of Southern Kentucky operates GO bg Transit, which provides public transportation within Bowling Green.

operates transit around campus, branded as Topper Transit. Bowling Green was served for many years by intercity bus carriers, primarily

Greyhound The English Greyhound, or simply the Greyhound, is a dog breed, breed of dog, a sighthound which has been bred for coursing, greyhound racing and hunting. Some are kept as show dogs or pets. Greyhounds are defined as a tall, muscular, smooth-c ...

. But with the onset of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, Greyhound downgraded their existing station to an unstaffed stop, and then eliminated the stop entirely in May 2020. The end of Greyhound service marked the first time the city has been without some form of public intercity transportation since 1858, when the

first reached the city. Greyhound now serves a stop in Franklin, Kentucky, about south of Bowling Green. Tornado Bus Company, based in Mexico to primarily serve the Hispanic market, lists Bowling Green as a destination, but the stop is actually located in Smiths Grove, Kentucky, about northeast of downtown Bowling Green.

Rail

Bowling Green receives rail freight service from

CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Railroad classes, 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 trac ...

through the former

(L&N) namesake line. The R.J. Corman Railroad Group operates freight service on the former L&N line to Memphis from Bowling Green to

Clarksville, Tennessee Clarksville is a city in Montgomery County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 166,722 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tennessee, fifth-most populo ...

; the line joins with CSX at Memphis Junction on Bowling Green's southern side.

Notable people

* Thomas Lilbourne Anderson – U.S. Representative from

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

* Ben Bailey – comedian and host of TV game show '' Cash Cab'' * Gary Barnidge – professional football tight end for the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

* David Bell - author * Danny Julian Boggs – United States circuit judge of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (in case citations, 6th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * Eastern District of Kentucky * Western District of K ...

* Sam Bush – musician * Athena Cage – musician *

Cage the Elephant Cage the Elephant is an American Rock music, rock band formed in 2006 in Bowling Green, Kentucky. They moved to England and settled in London in 2008, shortly before their Cage the Elephant (album), self-titled first album was released. The ban ...

– rock band * Chris Carmichael – musician *

John Carpenter John Howard Carpenter (born January 16, 1948) is an American filmmaker, composer, and actor. Most commonly associated with horror film, horror, action film, action, and science fiction film, science fiction films of the 1970s and 1980s, he is ...

– film director, producer, actor, screenwriter, and composer * Rex Chapman – former professional basketball player, played for the

Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30, ...

in college, played professionally for the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team ...

Washington Bullets The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern C ...

and the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

* David F. Duncan – epidemiologist and drug policy consultant in the

Clinton Administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following his victory over Republican in ...

Robert Duvall Robert Selden Duvall (; born January 5, 1931) is an American actor. With a career spanning seven decades, he is regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. He has received an Academy Awards, Academy Award, a British Academy Film Awards ...

- Kentucky state representative * George Fant - Professional football offensive tackle for the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team plays its home games at N ...

, former offensive tackle for the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

, played college basketball for the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers before pursuing football career * Frances Fowler – painter *

Foxhole Foxhole may refer to: Military * Foxhole, a type of defensive fighting position A defensive fighting position is a type of Earthworks (engineering)#Military use, earthwork constructed in a military context, generally large enough to accommodat ...

– instrumental post-rock group * Dorothy Grider – artist and illustrator of children's books * Henry Grider – U.S. Representative *

Brett Guthrie Steven Brett Guthrie (born February 18, 1964) is an American businessman and politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for since 2009. The district is in central Kentucky and includes Fort Knox, Owensb ...

– U.S. Representative * Eliza Calvert Hall - author and women's rights advocate * Mordecai Ham – Christian evangelist and pastor of the Burton Memorial Baptist Church early in the 20th century * Corey Hart –

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...

right fielder, 2008 and 2010 MLB All Star * Duncan Hines – food critic and cookbook author * Hillbilly Jim – professional wrestler * Ben Keith – American pedal steel guitarist, solo musician and producer * Paul Kilgus – former professional baseball player * John D. Minton Jr. – Chief Justice of the Kentucky Supreme Court * Doug Moseley – former United Methodist clergyman and former

state senator A state senator is a member of a State legislature (United States), state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. History There are typically fewer state senators than there ...

* Louise Murphy – poet * William Natcher - U.S. Representative from 1953 to 1994 * Thomas Nicholson – Professor at Western Kentucky University, drug abuse and drug policy expert *

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 ...

– ophthalmologist and U.S. Senator; son of U.S. Representative

Ron Paul Ronald Ernest Paul (born August 20, 1935) is an American author, activist, and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1976 to 1977, and again from 1979 to 1985, as well as for Texas' ...

from

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

* Deborah Renshaw – former

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...

driver * Robert Reynolds – former professional football player * Jody Richards – former Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives * Nappy Roots – platinum album selling rap group * B. Chance Saltzman - General and 2nd Chief of Space Operations for the

United States Space Force The United States Space Force (USSF) is the space force branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces, armed forces of the United States and one of the eight uniformed services of the Unite ...

Sleeper Agent A sleeper agent is a spy or operative who is placed in a target country or organization, not to undertake an immediate mission, but instead to act as a potential asset on short notice if activated in the future. Even if not activated, the "sle ...

– rock band * Zachary Stevens – vocalist of the band Savatage * Mary Hall Surface - American playwright * Chris Turner – former professional baseball player * Terry Taylor - Professional Basketball player for the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

Sister cities

Bowling Green has one

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inte ...

, as designated by

Sister Cities International Sister Cities International (SCI) is a non-governmental organization (NGO) with the goal of facilitating partnerships between communities within the United States and other countries by establishing sister cities. Sister cities are agreements of ...

: * Kawanishi, Japan

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 1798 establishments in Kentucky Bowling Green metropolitan area, Kentucky Cities in Kentucky Cities in Warren County, Kentucky County seats in Kentucky Populated places established in 1798