HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Murray is a home rule-class city in
Calloway County, Kentucky Calloway County is a County (United States), county located on the southwest border of the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 37,103. Its county seat is Murray, Kentucky, Murray. ...
, United States. It is the
seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but may also refer to concentrations of power in a wider sense (i.e " seat (legal entity)"). See disambiguation. Types of seat The ...
of Calloway County and the 19th-largest city in Kentucky. The city's population was 17,307 during the 2020 U.S. census, and its micropolitan area's population is 37,191. Murray is a
college town A college town or university town is a town or city whose character is dominated by a college or university and their associated culture, often characterised by the student population making up 20 percent of the population of the community, bu ...
and is the home 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 ...
.


History


Early history

The city now known as Murray began as a post office and trading center sometime in the early 1820s. It was at first called “Williston” in honor of James Willis, an early settler. Later, the name was changed to “Pooltown” after Robert Pool, a local merchant. The name was changed again to “Pleasant Springs” before its incorporation on January 17, 1844, when the present name was adopted to honor Rep. John Murray. Murray was not the first county seat, which was at Wadesboro. Calloway County was then much larger than today. In 1842, however, the
state legislature A state legislature is a Legislature, legislative branch or body of a State (country subdivision), political subdivision in a Federalism, federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of ...
divided the area, creating Marshall County. It was felt that a more centrally located county seat was needed, and as the village of Murray was at the geographic center, it was chosen. A new courthouse was built along with a jail, and the town Murray was laid out on an plot subdivided into 137 business and residential lots divided by eight streets.


The Civil War era

Kentucky did not officially secede from the Union at the start during the
Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
, instead declaring its neutrality, but both Murray and Calloway County were strongly pro-
Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
. Calloway County was one of the counties that sent a delegate to the Russellville Convention signing an Ordinance of Secession in which the
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 ...
was formed and Kentucky was admitted into the Confederacy on December 10, 1861, with Bowling Green as the first capital. This region fell under Confederate control early in the war. No major battles were fought near the town, but
guerrilla warfare Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include recruited children, use ambushes, sabotage, terrori ...
sometimes took place nearby. In the spring of 1862, a Union force stationed in Paducah marched across the county to 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 ...
, taking anything it wanted from the inhabitants without paying. Also, parts of Murray were burned on several occasions. Once, part of the town was burned by the Union Army in retaliation for its presumed support for the Confederate guerrillas. A diary kept by Josh Ellison of Murray tells that one night during the winter of 1864–65, a detachment of Union soldiers from Paducah torched every building on the east side of the court square, and three days later burned all those north of the square. An estimated 800 men from the area joined in the
Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...
, either as
infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...
in the Kentucky
Orphan Brigade The Orphan Brigade was the nickname of the First Kentucky Brigade, a group of military units recruited from Kentucky to fight for the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. The brigade was the largest Confederate unit to be ...
or in the
cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...
. About 200 sided with the Union. Calloway County's Confederate veterans are honored by a monument on the northeast side of the court house square. The Confederate Monument was donated by the United Daughters of the Confederacy and has been subject to calls for removal most recently in 2020. The courthouse grounds on which the statue stands belongs to Calloway County and the County Court voted unanimously in 2020 to keep the statue rather than relocate it from courthouse grounds.


Demographics and geography

Murray is located at (36.609494, −88.315656), north of the
Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...
border. Benton is to the north, and Mayfield is to the northwest. 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 , or 0.26%, is water. Murray is situated west of the of the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area, which offers hiking, elk and bison viewing, birding, 1850s historic buildings, a planetarium, a nature center, off-highway vehicle riding, fishing, boating, swimming, camping, and a large wildlife population.


Climate

Murray 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 ...
and four distinct seasons. The warmest month of the year is July, with an average high temperature of 90 °F (32 °C). The coldest month is January, with an average high temperature of 45 °F.


Tornadoes and storms

Murray has had several tornadoes and storms in recent years and has been the site of two F4 tornadoes. On February 5, 2008, Kentucky and surrounding states were subject to many violent tornadoes with some of them in Western Kentucky. On June 30, 2009, a violent storm with winds of up to ravaged trees and damaged buildings. On July 4, 2009, another tornado outbreak in Western Kentucky interrupted
Independence Day An independence day is an annual event memorialization, commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or Sovereign state, statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or after the end of a milit ...
celebrations throughout the region.


Cityscape

The architecture of Murray preserves its history throughout many of its downtown businesses. A commemoration was held on October 28, 2014, for the 150th Civil War anniversary of Fort Heiman in New Concord, Kentucky, which became a
National Battlefield National Military Park, National Battlefield, National Battlefield Park, and National Battlefield Site are four designations for 25 battle sites preserved by the United States federal government because of their national importance. The designat ...
on October 30, 2006.


Census data

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 14,950 people, 6,004 households, and 2,869 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 6,622 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 88.16%
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 ...
, 6.80%
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 ...
, 0.21% Native American, 2.75% 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 ...
, 0.68% from other races, and 1.38% from two or more races.
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 people of any race were 1.73% of the population. There were 6,004 households, out of which 19.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.6% 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, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 52.2% were non-families. 39.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.02 and the average family size was 2.70. In the city, the population was spread out, with 13.6% under the age of 18, 33.7% from 18 to 24, 20.7% from 25 to 44, 16.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 26 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $25,647, and the median income for a family was $41,331. Males had a median income of $30,266 versus $22,294 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 city was $15,389. About 11.2% of families and 22.1% 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 20.8% of those under age 18 and 9.9% of those age 65 or over.


Religion

The city of Murray is host to 75 religious assemblies within the surrounding area. Baptists are the most prominent faith in Murray, with 28 assemblies within the area.


Culture


Museums and galleries

The Clara M. Eagle Gallery is a multi-level art gallery that houses around 1,200 permanent artworks. The gallery has also been home to temporary shows, featuring contemporary art, African art, woodworking, and tapestries from
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. The galleries have about of show space. The Wrather West Kentucky Museum is located in the first building constructed on the campus of Murray State University and has been placed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
. The museum, which is free to the public, highlights the social development, economic and cultural development of the people of the
Jackson Purchase The Jackson Purchase, also known as the Purchase Region or simply the Purchase, is a region in the U.S. state of Kentucky bounded by the Mississippi River to the west, the Ohio River to the north, and the Tennessee River to the east. Jackson's P ...
region of Kentucky through permanent and changing exhibits.


Parks

Murray has three city parks that cover over of land: Central Park, Chestnut Park, and Bee Creek. A three-pool community swimming complex and Owens Spray Park are housed in Murray's Central Park. The parks feature 17 soccer fields, two basketball courts, five playgrounds, nine baseball and softball fields, four-bay batting cages, Lions Club Skate Park, and a three-mile (5 km) nature walking trail. The parks have nine covered picnic pavilions for family gatherings, the Murray Rotary amphitheater and west Kentucky's first dog park. The park features an 18-hole disc golf course that was the first one of its kind in the area.


Playhouse in the Park

Playhouse in the Park is one of the oldest community theatres in the state of Kentucky. The theatre is located in Murray's Central Park and is housed in a 1907 train and freight depot. The playhouse is open year-round and produces original works, comedies, dramas, children's theatre, and musicals. On May 16, 2008, former President Bill Clinton made an appearance at Playhouse in the Park to speak about his wife's (Hillary Clinton) presidency campaign.


Sports

College athletics College sports or college athletics encompasses amateur sports played by non- professional, collegiate and university-level student athletes in competitive sports and games. College sports have led to many college rivalries. College sports ...
are the sporting events of choice in the Murray area. Murray State University participates in NCAA Division I athletics, the highest level of collegiate athletics. The university has 16 athletic programs that compete in the
Ohio Valley Conference The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It participates in Division I of the NCAA; the conference's football programs compete in partnership with ...
, and have provided 117 conference titles since 1948. The most popular sport at Murray State is the men's basketball program. It is one of the winningest programs in NCAA history, with over 1,300 wins and an all-time winning percentage of .637, which places Murray State 20th best in NCAA history. Murray State has won 23 regular season
Ohio Valley Conference The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It participates in Division I of the NCAA; the conference's football programs compete in partnership with ...
titles and 15 OVC Tournament titles, which is the best in the OVC. The men's basketball program has produced a number of
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
players, most notably Ja Morant, Jeff Martin, Popeye Jones, Isaiah Canaan, Cameron Payne, and
Joe Fulks Joseph Franklin "Jumping Joe" Fulks (October 26, 1921 – March 21, 1976) was an American professional basketball player. The NBA's first scoring champion, he was sometimes called "the first of the high-scoring forwards". He was posthumously en ...
, who is a
Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...
inductee and has been credited with being one of the pioneers of the jump shot. The Murray State men's basketball program is currently coached by Ryan Miller, while past coaches include Steve Prohm, Matt McMahon, Billy Kennedy, and Mick Cronin. The Murray State football program has won eight Ohio Valley Conference titles and has produced 17 NFL players. Even more well-known are the coaches the football program has produced.
Ralph Friedgen Ralph Harry Friedgen (born April 4, 1947) is a former American football coach. He was most recently the special assistant coach for Rutgers in 2015 after serving as their offensive coordinator in the 2014 season. He was the head coach at the Un ...
,
Frank Beamer Franklin Mitchell Beamer (born October 18, 1946) is an American former college football player and coach, most notably for the Virginia Tech Hokies football, Virginia Tech Hokies. Beamer was a cornerback, defensive cornerback for Virginia Tec ...
, Mike Gottfried, Houston Nutt, and Ron Zook have all had their coaching careers run through the Murray State football program. Ten players have been selected as first team All-Americans, and 21 have been second, third, and honorable mention All-Americans. The Murray State football program has won more than 400 games, the most decisive win coming in 1932 when Murray State beat 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 ...
105–0.


Cinema

Murray has two movie theaters. The Cheri Theater has seven screens and shows nothing but first-run films. The Cheri was started in 1967 as a single-screen theater with seating for 600. There have been many additions and renovations throughout the years, and in 1997, two 290-stadium seat auditoriums were added. In 2008, the theater upgraded its projectors to take advantage of
Dolby 3D Dolby 3D (formerly known as Dolby 3D Digital Cinema) is a marketing name for a system from Dolby Laboratories, Inc. to show three-dimensional motion pictures in a digital cinema. Technology Dolby 3D uses a Dolby Digital Cinema projector that ...
technology. The Curris Center Theater hosts Cinema International. The program is run through the department of modern languages at Murray State and is open, free of charge, to students and the public. Cinema International is open most weekends during regular university semesters. Around 18 shows per year showcase every film
genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...
by directors around the world.


Education

The Murray Independent School system has been a part of the community since 1872, when the first public school was built in the center of town. Murray's school system has an enrollment of over 1,800 students. There have been 35 National Merit Finalists since 1974. In 2006, the Murray High School test scores were ranked as being 9th in the state of Kentucky.
Standard & Poor's S&P Global Ratings (previously Standard & Poor's and informally known as S&P) is an American credit rating agency (CRA) and a division of S&P Global that publishes financial research and analysis on stocks, bonds, and commodities. S&P is co ...
recognized the Murray Independent school district as being one of only 18 Kentucky school districts as an outperforming school district. The athletic program competes in Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) Class AA in
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
and class A in cross-country, and track, the only three sports in which the KHSAA divides schools into classes by enrollment. Other sports, most notably
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 ...
, are conducted in a single-class format. The school system also covers numerous extracurricular activities, from band,
arts The arts or creative arts are a vast range of human practices involving creativity, creative expression, storytelling, and cultural participation. The arts encompass diverse and plural modes of thought, deeds, and existence in an extensive ...
, social clubs, and an
academic team Quiz bowl (quizbowl, scholars' bowl, scholastic bowl, academic bowl, academic team, academic challenge, etc.) is a family of quiz-based competitions that test players on a wide variety of academic subjects. Standardized quiz bowl formats are pl ...
. The Calloway County School District has an enrollment of 3,200 students that are located in Calloway County Preschool, three elementary schools, Calloway County Middle School, and Calloway County High School. The Calloway County Lakers participate in KHSAA sports such as football, basketball, baseball, softball, tennis, wrestling, cross-country, track and field,
bass fishing Bass fishing is the recreational fishing activity, typically via rod-based angling, for various North American freshwater game fishes known collectively as '' black bass''.Henshall, James A. (Dr.), ''Book of the Black Bass'', Cincinnati, OH: R ...
, and
trap shooting Trap shooting is one of the three major disciplines of competitive clay pigeon shooting. The other disciplines are skeet shooting and sporting clays. Trap shooting is distinguished by the targets being launched from a single "house" or machine, ...
. Additionally, Calloway County students participate in several extracurricular activities, including state-renowned chapters of
academic team Quiz bowl (quizbowl, scholars' bowl, scholastic bowl, academic bowl, academic team, academic challenge, etc.) is a family of quiz-based competitions that test players on a wide variety of academic subjects. Standardized quiz bowl formats are pl ...
, Future Business Leaders of America, FFA, and
Robotics Robotics is the interdisciplinary study and practice of the design, construction, operation, and use of robots. Within mechanical engineering, robotics is the design and construction of the physical structures of robots, while in computer s ...
. In 2022, Calloway County High School won the state competition in
Future Problem Solving Future Problem Solving Program International (FPSPI), originally known as Future Problem Solving Program (FPSP), and often abbreviated to FPS, is a non-profit educational program that organizes academic competitions in which students apply criti ...
, while in 2023, Calloway County Middle School placed second in the state in Quick Recall, a buzzer-style competition within academic team. Students from both Murray High School and Calloway County High School can attend the Murray/Calloway County Area Technology Center, where students can take classes in automotive technology, carpentry, culinary arts, electrical skills, machine tool technology, nursing, and welding.


Higher education

Murray is the home of Murray State University, a four-year public university. It was founded in 1922 as the Murray Normal School. The university today offers 11 associate, 64 bachelor, and 42 master's programs, and has an enrollment of over 10,000 students. Murray State University is led by President Dr. Bob Jackson.


Public library

Murray has a lending library, the Calloway County Public Library.


Media

The only daily newspaper in the city of Murray is the ''Murray Ledger & Times''. The ''Ledger'' was established in 1879 and has remained locally operated. It is printed six days per week and has a city/county circulation of around 7,200 papers per day. The ''Ledger'' also has many out-of-city readers who receive it via mail. ''The Murray State News'' is a weekly, award-winning student produced newspaper that has become popular not only with students, but with regular citizens of Murray. The paper features everything from campus news, sports, activities, and opinions. There are four radio stations with buildings in Murray, although the city can receive 25 different FM signals. Murray has one television station: WKMU 21, the local transmitter for the statewide KET public television network. Other major network stations available in Murray are: * WSIL 3 –
Harrisburg Harrisburg ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat, seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50, ...
, ABC *
WPSD WPSD-TV (channel 6) is a television station licensed to Paducah, Kentucky, United States, serving as the NBC affiliate for Western Kentucky's Jackson Purchase region, Southern Illinois, the Missouri Bootheel, and northwest Tennessee. Own ...
6 – Paducah,
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 ...
*
KBSI KBSI (channel 23) is a television station licensed to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, United States, serving as the Fox affiliate for Southeastern Missouri, the Purchase area of Western Kentucky, Southern Illinois, and Northwest Tennessee. It is ...
23 – Cape Girardeau, FOX


Infrastructure


Transportation


Roads

* US 641, locally known as 12th Street, is the main highway in and out of the city. It connects with
Interstate 69 Interstate 69 (I-69) is an Interstate Highway in the United States currently consisting of eight unconnected segments. The longest segment runs from Evansville, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, and includ ...
to the north, and
Interstate 40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west transcontinental Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States, southeastern and Southwestern United States, southwestern portions of the United States. At a leng ...
to the south. The four-lane US 641 north of Murray is heavily traveled and can see well over 25,000 cars per day within Murray. Currently, US 641 from the south of Murray is a two-lane highway until it reaches the
Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...
state line. However, the
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) is Kentucky's state-funded government agency, agency charged with building and maintaining U.S. Highway System, federal highways and List of primary state highways in Kentucky, Kentucky state highways, ...
has made plans in its six-year highway plan to widen the highway to four lanes. The current two-lane version has become too saturated, due to the high number of citizens of Tennessee who come to Murray to save on
sales tax A sales tax is a tax paid to a governing body for the sales of certain goods and services. Usually laws allow the seller to collect funds for the tax from the consumer at the point of purchase. When a tax on goods or services is paid to a govern ...
and the large number of Murray residents who had to travel to Tennessee to buy packaged alcohol before the city voted fully wet in July 2012. * Kentucky 80 is the newest divided highway. The highway links Columbus, Kentucky, to the
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 ...
border and passes just north of Murray. The highway is expected to increase tourism and industry in the Murray area. * Kentucky 94, locally known as Main Street, is the main east–west road that runs directly through Murray. It connects to U.S. 45 in the west at Water Valley, and to Kentucky 80 in the east near
Aurora An aurora ( aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...
. * Kentucky 121, locally known as 4th Street, is another highway that runs through Murray. It connects to Kentucky 80 in the west and Tennessee 119 at the Tennessee border in the east. Other road projects in Murray are to include the widening of Kentucky 121 through the city of Murray. Over 12,000 cars travel that stretch of road per day. There are also a downtown loop and four-lane bypass in the works to help relieve
traffic congestion Traffic congestion is a condition in transport that is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. Traffic congestion on urban road networks has increased substantially since the 1950s, resulting in m ...
within the city.


Airport

The airport in Murray is the
Murray-Calloway County Airport Murray-Calloway County Airport , also known as Kyle-Oakley Field, is a public use airport located northwest of the central business district of Murray, in Calloway County, Kentucky, United States. The airport opened in 1961. It is owned by the ...
. The airport, known as Kyle-Oakley Field, is a
general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...
airport that features a 24-hour terminal and has a runway dimension of 6,200'x 100' and can handle up to a dual-wheel aircraft. The
IATA airport code An IATA airport code, also known as an IATA location identifier, IATA station code, or simply a location identifier, is a unique three-letter geocode designating many airports, cities (with one or more airports) and metropolitan areas (citie ...
for Kyle-Oakley Field is CEY.


MCTA

The Murray Calloway Transit Authority recently started the "Racer Routes" service which provides four public bus routes throughout Murray. It also has services for those who do not have a vehicle.


Rail

The KWT Railway starts one mile (1.6 km) north of Murray and travels south to
Bruceton, Tennessee Bruceton is a town in Carroll County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 1,507 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Bruceton and neighboring town Hollow Rock, Tennessee, Hollow Rock share a school district, the ''Hollow Rock-B ...
, where it connects with
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 ...
railway that travels to Memphis and beyond.


Utilities

Electric service in the city of Murray is provided by the Murray Electric System. The electric system is locally owned and governed and gets all of its energy from the
Tennessee Valley Authority The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolin ...
. In turn, electric customers in Murray enjoy one of the lowest electric rates in the United States. The cost is around 7.2 cents per
kilowatt hour A kilowatt-hour ( unit symbol: kW⋅h or kW h; commonly written as kWh) is a non-SI unit of energy equal to 3.6 megajoules (MJ) in SI units, which is the energy delivered by one kilowatt of power for one hour. Kilowatt-hours are a commo ...
. In recent years, MES has branched out into telecommunications. It offers internet service with speeds of up to 12
Mbit/s In telecommunications, data transfer rate is the average number of bits (bitrate), characters or symbols (baudrate), or data blocks per unit time passing through a communication link in a data-transmission system. Common data rate units are multi ...
, home telephone service, and
digital cable Digital cable is the distribution of cable television using digital data and video compression. The technology was first developed by General Instrument. By 2000, most cable companies offered digital features, eventually replacing their previo ...
television service. Natural gas and water service falls under the city of Murray's
Public Works Public works are a broad category of infrastructure projects, financed and procured by a government body for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community. They include public buildings ( municipal buildings, ...
department. The natural gas service has roughly 5,500 customers, in which is used per year. The water system treats 1.3
billion Billion is a word for a large number, and it has two distinct definitions: * 1,000,000,000, i.e. one thousand million, or (ten to the ninth power), as defined on the short scale. This is now the most common sense of the word in all varieties of ...
gallons of water per year going through of
water main A water distribution system is a part of water supply network with components that carry potable water from a centralized treatment plant or wells to consumers to satisfy residential, commercial, industrial and fire fighting requirements. Defi ...
piping. The current treatment plant was built in 1992 with a capacity of 7 million gallons per day. At current, the plant treats 3.6 million gallons per day. The Murray sewer treatment plant treats 4 million gallons of sewage per day and is connected with of
sanitary sewer A sanitary sewer is an underground pipe or tunnel system for transporting sewage from houses and commercial buildings (but not stormwater) to a sewage treatment plant or disposal. Sanitary sewers are a type of gravity sewer and are part of ...
piping.


Notable people

* Timothy D. Adams, former United States Undersecretary of the Treasury for International Affairs; former Chief of Staff,
United States Secretary of the Treasury The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...
; current President and CEO, Institute of International Finance (IIF) * Shane Andrus, football player *
Leigh-Allyn Baker Leigh-Allyn Baker (born March 13, 1972) is an American actress. She had recurring roles on ''Charmed'' and as Ellen on ''Will & Grace'', and a starring role as mother Amy Duncan (Good Luck Charlie), Amy Duncan on the Disney Channel sitcom ''Good ...
, actress *
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 ...
, literary critic * W. Earl Brown, actor *
Joe Buck Joseph Francis Buck (born April 25, 1969) is an American sportscaster for ESPN. The son of sportscaster Jack Buck, he worked for Fox Sports from its 1994 inception through 2022, including roles as lead play-by-play announcer for Fox's Nati ...
, musician * Robert Emmett Beckham, Mayor of
Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...
*
Gordon Cooper Leroy Gordon Cooper Jr. (March 6, 1927 – October 4, 2004) was an American aerospace engineer, test pilot, United States Air Force Aviator, pilot, and the youngest of the Mercury Seven, seven original astronauts in Project Mercury, the f ...
, astronaut * Jerry Crutchfield, country and music producer * Rod Ferrell, murderer * S.G. Goodman, singer-songwriter * Gene Graham, recipient of Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 1962 * Dustin Howard, professional wrestler, known under the ring name Chuck Taylor * T. R. M. Howard, surgeon, civil rights leader, and entrepreneur *
Rebbie Jackson Maureen Reillette "Rebbie" Jackson-Brown (; born May 29, 1950) is an American singer and the eldest child of the Jackson family of musicians. She first performed on stage with her siblings during shows in Las Vegas Valley, Las Vegas, Nevada, a ...
, singer, eldest sibling of
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...
* Billy Lane Lauffer, Medal of Honor recipient * Ora Kress Mason, nurse and physician who founded and owned Mason Memorial Hospital * Tim Masthay, football player * Edward Craig Morris, curator, American Museum of Natural History * Seth Morrison, skier * Forrest Pogue, historian *
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 *
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 ...
, model and actress * Nathan B. Stubblefield, inventor * Hawk Taylor, baseball playerHawk Taylor at SABR Baseball Biography Project
/ref> *
Chris Thile Christopher Scott Thile (; born February 20, 1981) is an American mandolinist, singer, songwriter, composer, and radio personality, best known for his work in the progressive acoustic trio Nickel Creek and the acoustic folk and progressive blue ...
, mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, and host of ''
Live from Here ''Live from Here'', formerly known as ''A Prairie Home Companion with Chris Thile'', is an American variety radio show known for its musical guests, tongue-in-cheek radio drama, and relaxed humor. Hosted by Chris Thile, it aired live on Saturday ...
''


References


External links


City of Murray official website

Murray Convention and Visitors Bureau
{{authority control * Cities in Calloway County, Kentucky Cities in Kentucky County seats in Kentucky Populated places established in 1844 1844 establishments in Kentucky