Pulaski 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 ...
in the U.S.
Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the
2020 census, the population was 65,034.
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
Somerset
Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...
.
The county was founded in December 1798 from land given by
Lincoln and
Green Counties and named for Polish patriot
Count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
Casimir Pulaski. Pulaski County comprises the Somerset, KY
Micropolitan Statistical Area. Somerset's population is just over 11,000, but the Micropolitan Area for Somerset/Pulaski County is over 65,000.
Geography
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (2.8%) is water.
It is the third-largest county by area in Kentucky.
Adjacent counties
*
Lincoln County (north)
*
Rockcastle County (northeast)
*
Laurel County (east)
*
McCreary County (southeast)
*
Wayne County (southwest)
*
Russell County (west/CST Border)
*
Casey County (northwest)
Demographics
As of the census
of 2000, there were 56,217 people, 22,719 households, and 16,334 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 27,181 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.48%
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 ...
, 1.07%
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 ...
or
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 ...
, 0.22%
Native American, 0.37%
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 ...
, 0.17% from
other races, and 0.67% from two or more races. 0.81% 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 22,719 households, out of which 31.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.50% were married couples living together, 10.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.10% were non-families. 24.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.80% 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 2.87.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.40% under the age of 18, 8.00% from 18 to 24, 28.60% from 25 to 44, 24.90% from 45 to 64, and 15.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $27,370, and the median income for a family was $32,350. Males had a median income of $27,398 versus $19,236 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,352. About 14.80% of families and 19.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.90% of those under age 18 and 16.60% of those age 65 or over.
Politics
As is typical of the Unionist bloc of south-central Kentucky comprising the eastern
Pennyroyal Plateau and the western part of the
Eastern Coalfield, Pulaski County has been deep red Republican ever since the Civil War. The solitary Democrat to carry Pulaski County since that time has been Woodrow Wilson in 1912 and Wilson did so only when the Republican Party was deadlocked between the conservative incumbent
Taft and the progressive
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
Wilson took just 34.68 percent of the county's vote and won Pulaski only by 195 votes over Roosevelt and 249 over Taft.
With the exception of the cities of Burnside and Somerset, Pulaski County is a
dry county.
Elected officials
Education
K-12
Three public school districts serve the county:
Pulaski County School District** The largest of the three districts, it serves the county outside the independent school districts of Somerset and Science Hill, with numerous elementary and middle schools feeding into Pulaski County High School and Southwestern Pulaski County High School.
Somerset Independent School District** Serves the city of Somerset with an elementary school (Hopkins Elementary), a middle school (Meece Middle) and a high school (Somerset High).
Science Hill Independent School District** Serves the city of Science Hill, with a single K-8 school. Students graduating from Science Hill can choose to attend either Pulaski County, Southwestern or Somerset High School.
There are also several private schools in the county, including Somerset Christian School.
Colleges and universities
Campbellsville University-Somerset, Noe Education Centerbr>
Somersetis a regional center for Campbellsville University located in Campbellsville, KY. The Somerset Noe Education Center offers a variety of degree and certificate programs. CU-Somerset prides itself on being flexible and affordable for students from across the nation.
Somerset Community College is one of 16 two-year, open-admissions colleges of the
Kentucky Community and Technical College System. The college offers academic, general education, and technical curricula leading to certificates, diplomas, and associate degrees. The college's Somerset Campus is located on Monticello Street in Somerset, across the street from the
Center for Rural Development.
Transportation
Through Pulaski County run U.S. Highway South 27 from north to south and Highway East and West 80. Through the city limits of Somerset, Highway 27 stems into a three-lane road with u-turn and left turn options at each stoplight. Many food chains, local businesses and commerce centers are strewn along the highway, due to accessibility and consistent traffic throughout the area. Outside the Somerset city limits, the highway becomes a four-lane road until it becomes a two-lane highway through downtown Burnside just south of Somerset.
Intersecting these highways are many junctions and bypasses that have been paved in order to allow quick and easy traffic flow through the county, revolving around the circumscribed
Kentucky Route 914
Kentucky Route 914 (KY 914) is a highway in Somerset, Kentucky that encircles the city of Somerset.
Route description
KY 914 begins at an interchange with the Cumberland Parkway northwest of downtown Somerset in Pulaski County, Kentucky, ...
around the outskirts of Somerset, in which transporters can enter through or exit from the city from any direction easily. These series of roads mimic the infrastructure of larger cities such as
Interstate 465 in
Indianapolis, Indiana and
New Circle Road in
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 ...
. Many of these roads were paved in the 2000s. Despite the grand area of the county, the accessibility from one end to the other is smooth and expedited.
Lake Cumberland Regional Airport is located in Pulaski County, on the southern end of Somerset's US 27 business district. The airport is owned by the city of Somerset and Pulaski County. It also serves the area around Lake Cumberland. It is mostly used for general aviation, and from late 2008 until February 2010, was served by one commercial airline, Locair. Currently, the $3 million federally funded passenger terminal is not in use.
The airport was renamed in 2008; it was formerly known as Somerset-Pulaski County Airport or J.T. Wilson Field.
Communities
Cities
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Burnside
*
Eubank
*
Ferguson
*
Science Hill
*
Somerset
Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...
(county seat)
Unincorporated places
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Acorn
The acorn is the nut (fruit), nut of the oaks and their close relatives (genera ''Quercus'', ''Notholithocarpus'' and ''Lithocarpus'', in the family Fagaceae). It usually contains a seedling surrounded by two cotyledons (seedling leaves), en ...
*
Alcalde
*
Antioch
*
Bandy
Bandy is a winter sport and ball sport played by two team sport, teams wearing Ice skates#Bandy skates, ice skates on a large ice surface (either indoors or outdoors) while using sticks to direct a ball into the opposing team's goal.
The playin ...
*
Barnesburg
*
Bee Lick
*
Blue John
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Bronston
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Burnetta
*
Cains Store
*
Clarence
*
Coin
A coin is a small object, usually round and flat, used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to facilitate trade. They are most often issued by ...
*
Dabney
*
Delmer
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Elihu
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Estesburg
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Etna
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Faubush
*
Goochtown
*
Hargis
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Haynes Knob
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Ingle
*
Jacksonville
*
Keno
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King Bee
*
Mangum
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Meece
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Mount Victory
*
Nancy
*
Norfleet
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Norwood
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Oak Hill
*
Omega
*
Pointer
*
Public
In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...
*
Pulaski
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Ringgold
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Shafter
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Shopville
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Slate Branch
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Sloans Valley
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Squib
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Stab
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Tateville
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Valley Oak
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Welborn
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White Lilly
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Woodstock
Notable residents
*
Harriette Simpson Arnow (1908–1986), author of Eastern Kentucky novels and histories. She and her husband Harold Arnow farmed near Burnside in the late 1930s and early 1940s.
[The Arnow Farm, Keno, Kentucky, in pictures then and now]
/ref>
* Silas Adams, (1839–1896), born in Pulaski County, lawyer and member of the United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
* John Sherman Cooper, (1901–1991), born in Pulaski County. Lawyer, member 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 ...
, Pulaski County Judge, United Nations delegate, member United States Senate
The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
, U.S. Ambassador to India and Nepal, first U.S. Ambassador to the German Democratic Republic (i.e. East Germany), member Warren Commission
The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, known unofficially as the Warren Commission, was established by President of the United States, President Lyndon B. Johnson through on November 29, 1963, to investigate the A ...
.
* Jack Daws, (1970–), born in Pulaski County. Conceptual artist.
* Daniel Dutton, (1959–), born in Pulaski County. Contemporary artist, musician, and story teller.
* Vermont Garrison, (1915–1994), career United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
officer and " triple ace"
* Jack I. Gregory, (1931–) is a former general in the United States Air Force and the former commander in chief of the Pacific Air Forces.
* Reggie Hanson, (1968–), former NBA player for the Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...
* Free Frank McWorter, (1777–1854), enslaved resident of Pulaski country, managed a saltpeter mine so effectively that he bought freedom for himself and his family, and emigrated to Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
.
* Rose Will Monroe, or Rosie the Riveter, (1920–1997) born in Pulaski County and moved to Michigan during World War II, where she helped build B-24s and B-29s for the war effort.
* Edwin P. Morrow, (1877–1935), Kentucky Governor, 1919–1923.
* Venus Ramey, (1924–2017), Miss America, 1944
* Lloyd B. Ramsey, (1918–2016), Major General United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
, Commander 23rd Infantry Division (United States) (1969–1970), United States Army Provost Marshal General (1970–1974)
* Hal Rogers, (1937–), U.S. Congressman from Kentucky
* Brent Woods, (1855–1906), Sergeant, United States Army, Medal of Honor recipient.
See also
* National Register of Historic Places listings in Pulaski County, Kentucky
References
External links
Pulaski County official website
Somerset-Pulaski Co. Chamber of Commerce
{{Coord, 37.06, -84.35, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-KY_source:enwiki
Kentucky counties
1798 establishments in Kentucky
Populated places established in 1798