Madison 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 central part 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 ...

. At the 2020 census, its population was 92,701. 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 ...

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

. The county is named for

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

statesman A statesman or stateswoman is a politician or a leader in an organization who has had a long and respected career at the national or international level, or in a given field. Statesman or statesmen may also refer to: Newspapers United States ...

James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...

, who later became the fourth

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

. The county is part of the Richmond-Berea, KY Micropolitan Statistical Area which is also included in the Lexington-Fayette–Richmond–Frankfort, KY combined statistical area. Madison County was considered 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 ...

, meaning that although the county prohibited the sale of alcoholic beverages (and is thus a

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 ...

), it contained a city where retail alcohol sales are allowed. Nevertheless, two of the county's 19 precincts are completely dry. Alcohol can also be sold by the drink in Berea, Richmond, and at Arlington and The Bull golf clubs. In 2023, the county voted to become wet. Madison County is home to

Eastern Kentucky University Eastern Kentucky University (Eastern or EKU) is a public university in Richmond, Kentucky. It also maintains branch campuses in Corbin, Hazard, and Manchester and offers over 40 online undergraduate and graduate options. History Founding ...

Berea College Berea College is a private liberal arts work college in Berea, Kentucky. Founded in 1855, Berea College was the first college in the Southern United States to be coeducational and racially integrated. It was integrated from as early as 1866 ...

, and historic Boone Tavern. Famous pioneer

Daniel Boone Daniel Boone (, 1734September 26, 1820) was an American pioneer and frontiersman whose exploits made him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. He became famous for his exploration and settlement of Kentucky, which was then beyo ...

lived in Madison County and built Fort Boonesborough, now a state historic site.

History

Indian trader John Findley, Daniel Boone, and four others first came into the area that is now Madison County in 1769 on a hunting and exploring expedition. In 1774, the Transylvania Company, led by Judge Richard Henderson of North Carolina, purchased of land west of the Appalachians (including present-day Madison County) from the

Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...

Nation. Daniel Boone was hired to cut a trail through the Cumberland Gap and establish a settlement on the Kentucky River. The settlement at Fort Boonesborough began in April 1775. In 1785, Madison County was established from a portion of Lincoln County, Virginia.

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 (1.3%) is water.

Major highways

Interstate 75 Interstate 75 (I-75) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. As with most Interstates that end in 5, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, traveling from S ...

* U.S. 25 * U.S. 421 * KY 52

Adjacent counties

* Fayette County (north) * Clark County (northeast) * Estill County (east) * Jackson County (southeast) * Rockcastle County (south) * Garrard County (southwest) * Jessamine County (northwest)

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 70,872 people, 27,152 households, and 18,218 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 29,595 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.01%

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 ...

, 4.44% Black or African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.72% Asian, 0.02%

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 ...

, 0.34% from other races, and 1.19% from two or more races. 0.97% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race. There were 27,152 households, out of which 31.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.10% 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, 10.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.90% were non-families. 25.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.90. By age, 21.90% were under 18, 18.80% from 18 to 24, 29.40% from 25 to 44, 20.10% from 45 to 64, and 9.80% 65 or older. The median age was 31 years. Both the relatively large 18-to-24 population and the relatively low median age can be explained by the presence of

, and to a considerably lesser extent

. For every 100 females, there were 93.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.20 males. The median income for a household in the county was $32,861, and the median income for a family was $41,383. Males had a median income of $31,974 versus $22,487 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 $16,790. About 12.00% of families and 16.80% 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 17.80% of those under age 18 and 17.10% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

The county voted "No" on 2022 Kentucky Amendment 2, an anti-abortion ballot measure, by 52% to 48%, and backed

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

with 62% of the vote to

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

's 35% in the 2020 presidential election.

Local government

The Madison County courthouse is located at 135 W Irvine Street in Richmond. County Judge-Executive: Reagan Taylor County Clerk: Kenny Barger Sheriff: Mike Coyle Coroner: Jimmy Cornelison Jailer: Steve Tussey County Attorney: Jennie Haymond Circuit Clerk: David M. Fernandez County Property Valuation Administrator (PVA): Billy Ackerman County Surveyor: Stuart W. Spencer

Elected officials

Education

Schools

Madison County is served by two school districts: * Madison County Schools, currently consisting of 10 elementary, 5 middle, and 2 high schools. * Berea Independent Schools, currently consisting of 1 elementary, 1 middle, and 1 high school. The county is also served by Model Laboratory School which is part of

Colleges and universities

, located in

, located in Berea * National College of Business & Technology, located in

Communities

Cities

* Berea *

(county seat)

Unincorporated communities

* Baldwin * Bighill * Bobtown * Boonesborough * Buggytown * Bybee * College Hill * Dreyfus *

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

* Kirksville *

Million 1,000,000 (one million), or one thousand thousand, is the natural number following 999,999 and preceding 1,000,001. The word is derived from the early Italian ''millione'' (''milione'' in modern Italian), from ''mille'', "thousand", plus the ...

* Moberly * Newby * Redhouse * Round Hill * Ruthton * Speedwell * Union City, Kentucky, where vaudevillian Andrew Tribble was born A historical marker commemorates his life at Union City Park. * Valley View * Waco

Economy

Military

The Blue Grass Army Depot is located just south of Richmond.

Notable people

Frances Estill Beauchamp Frances Estill Beauchamp (, Estill; June 27, 1860 – April 11, 1923) was an American temperance activist, social reformer, and lecturer. In 1886, Beauchamp took active responsibilities of leadership in the Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WC ...

(1860–1923), temperance activist, social reformer, lecturer * Daniel S. Bentley (1850–1916), American minister, writer, newspaper founder *

- American frontiersman and explorer of Kentucky. *

Kit Carson Christopher Houston Carson (December 24, 1809 – May 23, 1868) was an American frontiersman, fur trapper, wilderness guide, Indian agent and United States Army, U.S. Army officer. He became an American frontier legend in his own lifetime ...

- Christopher Houston Carson (December 24, 1809 – May 23, 1868), better known as Kit Carson, was an American frontiersman. * Mary Kavanaugh Eagle (1854–1903), American activist, clubwoman, book editor. * Lonnie Napier (1940–2023) – former representative for House District 36 in the

Kentucky House of Representatives The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form a ...

Sister communities

* Hokuto City, Yamanashi, Japan (since 1990)

References

External links

Madison County government's website

Madison County school district's website

The Kentucky Highlands Project

List of Madison County historic places on Placeography
{{authority control Kentucky counties Richmond–Berea micropolitan area 1785 establishments in Virginia Populated places established in 1785 Former counties of Virginia