Editing Monticello, Kentucky (section)

== History ==
[[File:Horse-hollow-cabin-ky1.jpg|left|200px|thumb|This log cabin in downtown Monticello, Kentucky, was built in the early 19th century by [[John Smith (Restoration Movement)|"Raccoon" John Smith]] (1784–1868). The cabin was originally located in Horse Hollow on the Little South Fork River.
|alt=Log cabin in downtown Monticello, Kentucky, built in the early 19th century by "Raccoon" John Smith (1784–1868). The cabin was originally located in Horse Hollow on the Little South Fork River.]]
Monticello was designated as the county seat when the Wayne County was formed in 1800. The first Wayne county clerk, [[Micah Taul]], named the town after [[Thomas Jefferson]]'s plantation and home; Jefferson was elected President of the United States that year.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sparks |first=Elder |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zWLPFpm5e1MC |title=Raccoon John Smith: Frontier Kentucky's Most Famous Preacher |date=2005-12-23 |publisher=University Press of Kentucky |isbn=978-0-8131-7182-1 |pages=65 |language=en}}</ref> Joshua Jones, a surveyor and Revolutionary War veteran, laid out the town on 13 acres owned by William Beard. By 1810, the population numbered 27.

In the late 1800s, oil was discovered in Wayne County, creating an economic boost. Drilling began in these local oil fields in the 1880s, and was renewed in 1921 and 1922.<ref>{{Cite web |title=PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS |url=http://www.uky.edu/OtherOrgs/KPS/goky/pages/gokych23c.htm#f |website=University of Kentucky}}</ref>

Electricity was introduced to the city in 1905. City water was installed in 1929. Manufacturing dominated the economy from the late 1950s and 1960s until the late 20th and early 21st centuries.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Kentucky Encyclopedia|editor-last=Kleber|editor-first=John|publisher=University of Kentucky|year=1992|isbn=0813117720|location=Lexington Ky|pages=644–45}}</ref>

In 1973, Belden Corporation (wire and cable) employed 300 people, Gamble Brothers (wood products) employed 161 people, Waterbury Garment (clothing) employed 271 people, and Monticello Manufacturing (clothing) employed 240 people. Each of these companies has left Monticello.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Kentucky, A Regional Geography|editor-last=Karen|editor-first=P. P.|publisher=Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company|year=1973|location=Dubuque, Iowa|pages=88}}</ref>