Calloway 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 on the southwest border of the

U.S. The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 37,103. 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 ...

is Murray. The county was founded in November 1822 and named after

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), 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 colon ...

Richard Callaway, one of the founders of Boonesborough. Calloway County comprises the Murray, KY Micropolitan Statistical Area. , Calloway County is a

moist county In the United States state of Kentucky, a moist county is a county the regulations in force of which are between those of a "dry county" (in which the sale of alcoholic beverages is prohibited) and a " wet county" (in which alcohol is sold). Th ...

: the sale of alcohol in the county is prohibited, with the exception of the city of Murray.

History

Calloway County was created in 1822 from land taken from Hickman County. The courthouse was built in 1823. A fire at the courthouse in 1906 caused the almost complete destruction of the county records. Calloway county was named after Richard Callaway.

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 (6.3%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Marshall County (north) * Trigg County (northeast) *

Stewart County, Tennessee Stewart County is a county located on the northwestern corner of Middle Tennessee, in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,657. Its county seat is Dover. Stewart County is part of the Clarksville Metr ...

(southeast) * Henry County, Tennessee (south) * Graves County (west)

National protected area

* Fort Donelson National Battlefield (Fort Heiman 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 34,177 people, 13,862 households, and 8,594 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 16,069 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.48%

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 ...

, 3.56%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.20% Native American, 1.33% 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 ...

, 0.46% from other races, and 0.93% from two or more races. 1.38% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 13,862 households, out of which 25.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.00% 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, 8.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.00% were non-families. 29.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.79. The age distribution was 18.70% under the age of 18, 19.80% from 18 to 24, 24.60% from 25 to 44, 21.90% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. The relatively large 18-to-24 population is mostly due to the presence of

Murray State University Murray State University (MSU) is a public university in Murray, Kentucky, in the Southern United States. In addition to the main campus in Calloway County in southwestern Kentucky, Murray State operates extended campuses offering upper-level an ...

. For every 100 females there were 93.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.00 males. The median income for a household in the county was $30,134, and the median income for a family was $39,914. Males had a median income of $31,184 versus $22,046 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 $16,566. About 9.80% of families and 16.60% 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 17.70% of those under age 18 and 10.00% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Elected officials

Communities

Cities

Hazel Hazels are plants of the genus ''Corylus'' of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family, Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K ...

* Murray

Census-designated place

* Dexter

Other unincorporated communities

* Almo * Backusburg * Bethel *

Blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood is com ...

* Boatwright * Coldwater * Crossland * Elm Grove * Faxon * Hamlin * Harris Grove * Hico * Kirksey * Lynn Grove * Midway * New Concord *

Penny A penny is a coin (: pennies) or a unit of currency (: pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (hence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. At present, it is ...

* Protemus * Shiloh * Stella * Wadesboro *

Wiswell Wiswell is a small village and civil parish in the Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England, close to Whalley, Lancashire, Whalley and Clitheroe at the foot of Wiswell Moor. At the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 Census, it had a population of 967 ...

Place of interest

* Fort Heiman, part of Fort Donelson National Battlefield

Notable people

* W. Earl Brown, actor/musician * T.R.M. Howard, surgeon, civil rights leader and entrepreneur * Joe Staton, cartoonist * Frank Stubblefield, politician * Nathan Stubblefield, inventor * Harry Lee Waterfield, politician *

Molly Sims Molly Sims (born May 25, 1973) is an American fashion model and actress. She was featured in campaigns for Jimmy Choo, Escada, Giorgio Armani, Michael Kors, and Chanel, among others. She frequently modeled for the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Iss ...

, actress/model *

Cleanth Brooks Cleanth Brooks ( ; October 16, 1906 – May 10, 1994) was an American literary critic and professor. He is best known for his contributions to New Criticism in the mid-20th century and for revolutionizing the teaching of poetry in American higher ...

, professor, literary critic *

Mel Purcell Mel Purcell (born July 18, 1959) is a former professional tennis player and coach from the U.S. His career-high singles ranking was world No. 21, achieved in November 1980. Purcell's finest moment was when he reached the quarterfinals of Wimbl ...

, professional tennis player *

Jackie DeShannon Jackie DeShannon (born Sharon Lee Myers; August 21, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and radio broadcaster who has had many hit song credits beginning in the 1960s, as both a singer and composer. She was one of the first female singer-son ...

, 1960s singer-songwriter * Tim Masthay, NFL Punter, Super Bowl Champion

References

External links

Calloway County official website
{{authority control 1822 establishments in Kentucky Populated places established in 1822 Kentucky counties