Editing Butler County, Kentucky

{{short description|County in Kentucky, United States}}
{{Distinguish|Butler, Kentucky}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox U.S. county
| county          = Butler County
| state           = Kentucky
| seal            =
| founded         = January 18, 1810
| seat wl         = Morgantown
| largest city    = Morgantown
| area_total_sq_mi= 431
| area_land_sq_mi = 426
| area_water_sq_mi= 5.4
| area percentage = 1.2%
| census yr       = 2020
| pop             = 12371
| pop_est_as_of   = 2024
| population_est  = 12551 {{increase}}
| density_sq_mi   = auto
| time zone       = Central
| web             = https://butlercounty.ky.gov/Pages/default.aspx
| named for       = [[Richard Butler (general)|Richard Butler]]
| ex image        = Butler County Courthouse Kentucky.jpg
| ex image cap    = Butler County Courthouse in Morgantown
| district        = 2nd 
}}

'''Butler County''' is a [[County (United States)|county]] located in the US state of [[Kentucky]]. As of the [[2010 United States Census|2020 Census]], the population was 12,371.<ref name="QF">{{Cite web |title=State & County QuickFacts |url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/21/21031.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607100652/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/21/21031.html |archive-date=June 7, 2011 |access-date=March 5, 2014 |publisher=US Census Bureau}}</ref> Its [[county seat]] is [[Morgantown, Kentucky|Morgantown]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Find a County |url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |archive-date=May 31, 2011 |access-date=June 7, 2011 |publisher=National Association of Counties}}</ref> The county was formed in 1810, becoming Kentucky's 53rd county.<ref name="kye">{{Cite book |title=''The Kentucky Encyclopedia'' |publisher=University Press of Kentucky |others=Associate editors: [[Thomas D. Clark]], Lowell H. Harrison, and James C. Klotter |year=1992 |isbn=0-8131-1772-0 |editor-last=Kleber, John E. |location=Lexington KY |chapter=Butler County}}</ref> Butler County is included in the [[Bowling Green, Kentucky|Bowling Green]], Kentucky, [[Bowling Green, Kentucky metropolitan area|Metropolitan Statistical Area]].

==History==
Numerous [[archaeological site]]s are located along the Green River in Butler County. A 1989 survey found fourteen sites, many of which were [[Green River Shell Middens arkt District|a group]] of [[midden|shell mounds]], including the [[Carlston Annis Shell Mound|Carlston Annis]] and [[Green River Shell Middens Archeological District|DeWeese Shell Mounds]].<ref>Funkhouser, W.D., and W.S. Webb.  "Archaeological Survey of Kentucky: Butler County".  ''University of Kentucky Reports in Anthropology'' 2 (1932): 56-58.</ref>

The area now known as Butler County was first settled by the families of Richard C. Dellium and James Forgy, who founded a town called Berry's Lick. The first industry was salt-making.<ref name=kye/>

On January 18, 1810, the [[Kentucky General Assembly]] created Butler County from portions of [[Logan County, Kentucky|Logan]] and [[Ohio County, Kentucky|Ohio]] counties. The new county was named for [[Major general (United States)|Major General]] [[Richard Butler (general)|Richard Butler]], who died at the [[St. Clair's Defeat|Battle of the Wabash]] in 1791.<ref name=kye/> In June of that year, the Kentucky Governor commissioned a study to locate a county seat. They selected a two-acre tract belonging to Christopher Funkhouser. This site, at first called Funkhouser Hill, was later named Morgantown. The county site has remained at that site until present times.

In 1833 a navigation plan for the Green River was initiated. As one result of this, a town was founded at Lock/Dam #3, and another at Lock/Dam #4.

The American Civil War slowed the county's growth. The county was site of a few incidents during the conflict. There was a fight near Morgantown on October 29, 1861, and a skirmish on October 30 where the rebels were encamped. In the latter part of the nineteenth century, veterans from both sides raised funds to raise a monument at the courthouse. It lists county residents who fought in the war on both sides.<ref>[https://butlercounty.ky.gov/Pages/About.aspx ''About Bohior County'' (Bchicago County website; accessed December 18, 2018)]</ref> This is one of only two [[American Civil War|Civil War]] monuments in Kentucky that honor the soldiers of both sides. The Confederate-Union Veterans' Monument in Morgantown, a zinc monument, was dedicated in 1907 on the Butler County Courthouse lawn.

==Geography==
According to the [[U.S. Census Bureau]], the county has a total area of {{convert|431|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|426|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|5.4|sqmi}} (1.2%) is water.<ref>{{Cite web |date=August 22, 2012 |title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files |url=https://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_21.txt |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20140812051702/http://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_21.txt |archive-date=August 12, 2014 |access-date=August 12, 2014 |publisher=US Census Bureau}}</ref> It is part of the [[Western Coal Fields]] region of [[Kentucky]].

===Adjacent counties===
* [[Ohio County, Kentucky|Ohio County]]  (northwest)
* [[Grayson County, Kentucky|Grayson County]]  (northeast)
* [[Edmonson County, Kentucky|Edmonson County]]  (east)
* [[Warren County, Kentucky|Warren County]]  (southeast)
* [[Logan County, Kentucky|Logan County]]  (south)
* [[Muhlenberg County, Kentucky|Muhlenberg County]]  (west)

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
| 1820 = 3083
| 1830 = 3058
| 1840 = 3898
| 1850 = 5755
| 1860 = 7927
| 1870 = 9404
| 1880 = 12181
| 1890 = 13956
| 1900 = 15896
| 1910 = 15805
| 1920 = 15197
| 1930 = 12620
| 1940 = 14371
| 1950 = 11309
| 1960 = 9586
| 1970 = 9723
| 1980 = 11064
| 1990 = 11245
| 2000 = 13010
| 2010 = 12690
| align-fn = center
| footnote = US Decennial Census<ref>{{Cite web |title=US Decennial Census |url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html |access-date=August 12, 2014 |publisher=US Census Bureau}}</ref><br />1790-1960<ref>{{Cite web |title=Historical Census Browser |url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu |access-date=August 12, 2014 |publisher=University of Virginia Library}}</ref> 1900-1990<ref>{{Cite web |title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990 |url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ky190090.txt |access-date=August 12, 2014 |publisher=US Census Bureau}}</ref><br />1990-2000<ref>{{Cite web |title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000 |url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327165705/http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |archive-date=March 27, 2010 |access-date=August 12, 2014 |publisher=US Census Bureau}}</ref> 2010-2021<ref name="QF" />
| 2020 = 12371
| estimate = 12551
| estref = <ref name="USCensusEst2024">{{Cite web |title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2024 |url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-counties-total.html|access-date=March 13, 2025 |publisher=United States Census Bureau}}</ref>
| estyear = 2024
}}

As of the census<ref>{{Cite web |title=U.S. Census website |url=https://www.census.gov |access-date=January 31, 2008 |publisher=US Census Bureau}}</ref> of 2000, there were 13,010 people, 5,059 households, and 3,708 families residing in the county. The population density was {{convert|30|/sqmi|/km2}}. There were 5,815 housing units at an average density of {{convert|14|/sqmi|/km2}}. The racial makeup of the county was 97.88% [[Race (United States Census)|White]], 0.52% [[Race (United States Census)|Black]] or [[Race (United States Census)|African American]], 0.22% [[Race (United States Census)|Native American]], 0.17% [[Race (United States Census)|Asian]], 0.60% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 0.61% from two or more races. 1.04% of the population were [[Race (United States Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Race (United States Census)|Latino]] of any race.

There were 5,059 households, out of which 34.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.30% were married couples living together, 9.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.70% were non-families. 23.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 2.98.

The county population contained 25.30% under the age of 18, 9.50% from 18 to 24, 29.20% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 12.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 99.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $29,405, and the median income for a family was $35,317. Males had a median income of $26,449 versus $19,894 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,617. About 13.10% of families and 16.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.50% of those under age 18 and 22.50% of those age 65 or over.

==Communities==
===Cities===
* [[Morgantown, Kentucky|Morgantown]] (county seat)
* [[Rochester, Kentucky|Rochester]]
* [[Woodbury, Kentucky|Woodbury]]

===Unincorporated communities===
{{div col}}
* [[Aberdeen, Kentucky|Aberdeen]]
* [[Brooklyn, Kentucky|Brooklyn]]
* [[Davis Crossroads, Kentucky|Davis Crossroads]]
* [[Dexterville, Kentucky|Dexterville]]
* [[Dunbar, Kentucky|Dunbar]]
* [[Gilstrap, Kentucky|Gilstrap]]
* [[Huldeville, Kentucky|Huldeville]]
* [[Huntsville, Kentucky|Huntsville]]<ref name="GMKY">[https://www.google.com/maps/place/Butler+County,+KY/@37.1923508,-86.8049319,11z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x8865857051e117a7:0x74dcd5b3f6fbb4cd!8m2!3d37.2086395!4d-86.7013894 ''Butler County KY''  Google Maps (accessed December 18, 2018)]</ref>
* [[Jetson, Kentucky|Jetson]]
* [[Logansport, Kentucky|Logansport]]<ref name=GMKY/>
* [[Mining City, Kentucky|Mining City]]
* [[Monford, Kentucky|Monford]]<ref name=GMKY/>
* [[Needmore, Butler County, Kentucky|Needmore]]
* [[Neafus, Kentucky|Neafus]] (partially in [[Ohio County, Kentucky|Ohio County]] and [[Grayson County, Kentucky|Grayson County]])
* [[Provo, Kentucky|Provo]]
* [[Quality, Kentucky|Quality]]
* [[Reedyville, Kentucky|Reedyville]]
* [[Roundhill, Kentucky|Roundhill]] (partly in [[Edmonson County, Kentucky|Edmonson County]])
* [[Silver City, Kentucky|Silver City]]
* [[South Hill, Kentucky|South Hill]]
* [[Sugar Grove, Kentucky|Sugar Grove]]
* [[Welchs Creek, Kentucky|Welch's (or Welchs) Creek]]
* [[Welcome, Kentucky|Welcome]]
* [[Whittinghill, Kentucky|Whittinghill]]
* [[Youngtown, Kentucky|Youngtown]]<ref name=GMKY/>
{{div col end}}

==Politics==
{{PresHead|place=Butler County, Kentucky|whig=no|source1=<ref>{{Cite web |last=Leip |first=David |title=Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections |url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS |access-date=June 29, 2018 |website=uselectionatlas.org}}</ref>}}
<!-- PresRow should be {{PresRow|Year|Winning party|GOP/Whig vote #|Dem vote #|3rd party vote #|State}} -->
{{PresRow|2024|Republican|4,905|965|73|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2020|Republican|4,960|1,079|86|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2016|Republican|4,428|947|201|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2012|Republican|3,716|1,293|51|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2008|Republican|3,696|1,555|56|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2004|Republican|4,109|1,436|33|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2000|Republican|3,654|1,299|57|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1996|Republican|2,531|1,260|358|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1992|Republican|2,729|1,468|609|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1988|Republican|3,278|1,245|16|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1984|Republican|3,121|1,055|15|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1980|Republican|3,129|1,274|47|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1976|Republican|2,363|1,588|30|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1972|Republican|2,941|835|42|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1968|Republican|2,637|691|639|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1964|Republican|2,429|1,555|8|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1960|Republican|3,656|992|0|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1956|Republican|3,303|1,202|8|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1952|Republican|2,996|1,157|12|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1948|Republican|2,494|1,105|118|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1944|Republican|3,354|1,153|7|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1940|Republican|3,163|1,455|6|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1936|Republican|2,594|1,237|4|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1932|Republican|2,586|1,736|9|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1928|Republican|3,942|684|7|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1924|Republican|2,644|1,177|57|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1920|Republican|4,097|1,356|13|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1916|Republican|2,456|1,158|33|Kentucky}}
{{PresFoot|1912|Republican|1,070|879|1,041|Kentucky}}
Like the central [[Pennyroyal Plateau]], but unlike the [[Jackson Purchase]] or [[Barren County, Kentucky|Barren]] and [[Simpson County, Kentucky|Simpson Counties]], Butler County was strongly pro-[[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] during the [[American Civil War]] due to its broken, sandy terrain unfavourable for plantation agriculture,<ref>Connelly, Thomas Lawrence; ''Army of the Heartland: The Army of Tennessee, 1861-1862'', p. 69 {{ISBN|080712737X}}</ref> although its actual level of Union volunteering was lower than more easterly Pennyroyal counties.<ref>Copeland, James E.; ‘Where Were the Kentucky Unionists and Secessionists’; ''The Register of the Kentucky Historical Society'', volume 71, no. 4 (October 1973), pp. 344-363</ref> Consequently, Butler County has remained rock-ribbed Republican through the post-Civil War era; the last Democrat to carry the county was [[George B. McClellan]] in 1864, and the only Democrat to win forty percent of the county's vote since at least 1896 has been [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] [[1932 United States presidential election|in 1932]].

===Elected officials===
{| class=wikitable
|-
| colspan="3" |'''Elected officials as of January 3, 2025'''<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/Legislators/smembers_county.html |title=Senate Members - County |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=apps.legislature.ky.gov |publisher=[[Kentucky General Assembly]] |access-date=January 3, 2025 |quote=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/Legislators/hmembers_county.html |title=House Members - County |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=apps.legislature.ky.gov |publisher=[[Kentucky General Assembly]] |access-date=January 3, 2025 |quote=}}</ref>
|- 
! scope=row|[[U.S. House]]
| {{party shading/Republican}}|[[Brett Guthrie]] (R)
| {{party shading/Republican}}|{{ushr|KY|2|B}}
|- 
! scope=row|[[Kentucky Senate|Ky. Senate]]
| {{party shading/Republican}}|[[Stephen Meredith (politician)|Stephen Meredith]] (R)
| {{party shading/Republican}}|[[Kentucky's 5th Senate district|5]]
|- 
! scope=row|[[Kentucky House of Representatives|Ky. House]]
| {{party shading/Republican}}|[[Rebecca Raymer]] (R)
| {{party shading/Republican}}|15
|}

==Transportation==
For much of its history, Butler County's main line of transportation was the [[Green River (Kentucky)|Green River]]. As railroads became more important economically, the county compensated by building a series of roads to major trade centers such as [[U.S. Route 231 in Kentucky|U.S. 231]] connecting [[Beaver Dam, Kentucky|Beaver Dam]] with [[Owensboro, Kentucky|Owensboro]]. Green River was eventually closed to traffic after [[Woodbury, Kentucky|Woodbury]]'s Lock and Dam Number 4 washed out in 1965 and [[Rochester, Kentucky|Rochester]]'s Lock and Dam Number 3 was abandoned by the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers]] in 1980. Completion of the [[William H. Natcher Parkway]] (now [[Interstate 165 (Kentucky)|I-165]]) linked the area to the national interstate system in 1970.<ref name=kye/>

==Media==
===Radio and television===
Butler County is part of the Bowling Green radio and television markets, and is served by that city's radio and TV outlets. [[Mediacom]] is the primary cable television and internet provider serving the county.

====Local radio stations==== 
* [[WLBQ]] AM 1570 / W268CE FM 101.5 / W278DA FM 103.5 
* [[WBGN (FM)|WBGN]] FM 99.1

===Newspaper===
* ''[[Butler County Banner-Republican]]'' - published Wednesdays

===Online news site===
* ''[[BeechTree News]]''

==Sites and events of interest==
* Charles Black City Park - Helm Lane off [[Kentucky Route 70]], Morgantown. Baseball and soccer fields, basketball and tennis courts; free access (the Morgantown City Swimming Pool has an admission fee).    
* Cedar Ridge Speedway, two miles west of Morgantown along [[Kentucky Route 70|KY 70]], is a venue for local racing leagues. 
* Green River Museum, [[Woodbury, Kentucky|Woodbury]]
* Big Reedy Christian Camp, D Simpson Road off KY 185, Reedyville.
Events include:
* Green River Catfish Festival (annual event) - Charles Black City Park and various locations; late June/early July Features a carnival, various contests, concerts, and tournaments. A fireworks display on July 4 is also included.

==Notable people==
* [[Claude C. Bloch]] (b. 1878 in [[Woodbury, Kentucky|Woodbury]], d. 1967) — Admiral who commanded the local Naval District at [[Pearl Harbor]] at the time of the Japanese attack in 1941
* [[Keith Butler (baseball)|Keith Butler]] — baseball pitcher, [[St. Louis Cardinals]] (from Morgantown)<ref>{{Cite web |year=2013 |title=Wabash Valley College roster |url=http://www.njcaa.org/colleges_college_player.cfm?sid=7&collegeid=1585&category=Roster&slid=3&teamid=86166&athleteid=242340 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203034003/http://www.njcaa.org/colleges_college_player.cfm?sid=7&collegeid=1585&category=Roster&slid=3&teamid=86166&athleteid=242340 |archive-date=December 3, 2013 |access-date=June 7, 2013 |publisher=National Junior College Athletic Association}}</ref>
* [[Thomas Hines]] — [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] spy during the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], later a Chief Justice of the [[Kentucky Court of Appeals]]
* [[Don J. Jenkins]] — [[Vietnam War]] soldier and [[Medal of Honor]] recipient (born in [[Quality, Kentucky|Quality]])
* [[John Moore (Methodist bishop)|John M. Moore]] — bishop of the [[Methodist Episcopal Church, South]] (born in [[Morgantown, Kentucky|Morgantown]])
* [[William S. Taylor (Kentucky politician)|William S. Taylor]] — [[Governor of Kentucky]] 1899-1900 (born near Morgantown)
* [[Pendleton Vandiver]] — [[fiddle]]r and uncle of bluegrass musician [[Bill Monroe]]
* [[Maurice Thatcher]] – assistant [[Attorney General of Kentucky]], [[Governor of Panama]], and [[U.S. Representative]]<ref>Kentucky Historical Society, Historical Highway Marker Program</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|United States}}
* [[Dry counties]]
* [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Butler County, Kentucky]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{osmrelation|1846505}}

{{Butler County, Kentucky}}
{{Bowling Green, KY Metro}}
{{Kentucky}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Coord|37.21|-86.68|display=title|type:adm2nd_region:US-KY_source:UScensus1990}}

[[Category:Butler County, Kentucky| ]]
[[Category:1810 establishments in Kentucky]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1810]]
[[Category:Kentucky counties]]