Editing Crittenden County, Kentucky

{{short description|County in Kentucky, United States}}
{{Distinguish|Crittenden, Kentucky}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox U.S. county
 | county               = Crittenden County
 | state                = Kentucky
 | seal                 = 
 | founded year         = 1842
 | founded date         = 
 | seat wl              = Marion
 | largest city wl      = Marion
 | area_total_sq_mi     = 371
 | area_land_sq_mi      = 360
 | area_water_sq_mi     = 11
 | area percentage      = 3.0%
 | census yr            = 2020
 | pop                  = 8990
 | pop_est_as_of        = 2024
 | population_est       = 8982 {{decrease}}
 | pop_est_footnotes    = <ref name=qf>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/crittendencountykentucky/PST045224|title=Crittenden County, Kentucky|website=Census.gov|access-date= }}</ref>
 | density_sq_mi        = 25
 | time zone            = Central
 | footnotes            = 
 | web                  = https://www.crittendencountyky.org/
 | named for            = [[John J. Crittenden]]
 | ex image             = Crittenden County Courthouse, Marion.jpg
 | ex image cap         = Crittenden County Courthouse in Marion
 | district             = 1st
 | coordinates          = 
{{Coord|37.36|-88.09|display=inline,title|type:adm2nd_region:US-KY_source:UScensus1990}}
}}

'''Crittenden County''' is a [[County (United States)|county]] in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Kentucky]]. At the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], the population was 8,990.<ref>{{cite web|title=Census - Geography Profile: Crittenden County, Kentucky|url=https://data.census.gov/profile/Crittenden_County,_Kentucky?g=0500000US21055|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=December 30, 2022}}</ref> Its [[county seat]] and only municipality is [[Marion, Kentucky|Marion]].<ref name="GR6">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |access-date=June 7, 2011 |title=Find a County |publisher=National Association of Counties |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |archive-date=May 31, 2011 }}</ref> The county was formed in 1842 and named for [[John J. Crittenden]], senator and future [[Governor of Kentucky]].<ref>{{cite book | url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_luoxAQAAMAAJ | title=The Register of the Kentucky State Historical Society, Volume 1 | publisher=Kentucky State Historical Society | year=1903 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_luoxAQAAMAAJ/page/n35 35]}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ | title=The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States | publisher=Govt. Print. Off. | author=Gannett, Henry | year=1905 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ/page/n95 96]}}</ref>

==History==
Crittenden County, located on the Ohio and Tradewater Rivers in the [[Pennyroyal Plateau|Pennyroyal]] region of Kentucky, was created by the state legislature on April 1, 1842, from a portion of [[Livingston County, Kentucky|Livingston County]]. It became the state's 91st county, and was named for [[John J. Crittenden]], a U.S. senator, attorney general, and governor of Kentucky. The first county seat was in Crooked Creek, but it was moved to Marion just two years later.

Crittenden County was once crossed by the Chickasaw Road, which was a part of the Old Saline Trace. This footpath was used by [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] when hunting game that crossed the [[Ohio River]] to the [[salt licks]] in Illinois. The first settler in the area was James Armstrong, who arrived from [[South Carolina]] in 1786 and built a log cabin. His family joined him five years later, along with other families who came to settle there. Early in the nineteenth century, Flynn's Ferry was established where the trail crossed the river.

Generally pro-[[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] during the [[American Civil War]], the county saw little fighting, although both armies passed through it repeatedly. However, several skirmishes did place there, and the county courthouse was burned by [[Confederate States Army|Confederate]] [[Brigadier General]] [[Hylan B. Lyon]] during his raid across western Kentucky in December 1864. Lyon's men, all Kentuckians, burned a total of seven courthouses, since the [[Union Army]] was using them for barracks. The Confederates allowed the locals to remove the records before setting fire to the courthouses.<ref name="ReferenceA">Kleber, John E., ed. 1992, The Kentucky Encyclopedia. The University Press of Kentucky, Lexington.</ref>

Crittenden County has valuable deposits of [[fluorspar]], zinc, porcelain, coal, limestone, and sand for making glass. Marion was primarily an industrial town in the 1840s associated with the large fluorspar mining industry. This industry peaked in 1947 and has been in slow decline since. Iron production was also a prominent industry in the mid-19th century, with several furnaces being built in the county, one owned by [[Andrew Jackson]]. Other products produced in the county include lumber, glass, modular homes, and blue crystal that was made famous by Ball canning jars. Today the county has a strong agricultural economy. In 1992, 66 percent of the population lived on farms, with 45 percent of the population reporting farming as their primary occupation.<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref>Hill, William 2014 "Phase I Archaeological Survey for the Planned Perry and Lisa Jones Wetland Reserve Enhancement Project, Crittenden County, Kentucky" Corn Island Archaeology, LLC. Louisville KY.</ref>

==Geography==
According to the [[U.S. Census Bureau]], the county has a total area of {{convert|371|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|360|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|11|sqmi}} (3.0%) is water.<ref name="GR1">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_21.txt |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=August 13, 2014 |date=August 22, 2012 |title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812210847/http://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_21.txt |archive-date=August 12, 2014 }}</ref> Its northwestern border with Illinois is formed by the [[Ohio River]].

===Major highways===
* [[Image:US 60.svg|20px]] [[U.S. Route 60 in Kentucky|U.S. Route 60]]
* [[Image:US 641.svg|20px]] [[U.S. Route 641 (Kentucky)|U.S. Route 641]]
* [[Image:Elongated circle 70.svg|20px]] [[Kentucky Route 70]]
* [[Image:Elongated circle 91.svg|20px]] [[Kentucky Route 91]]
* [[Image:Elongated circle 120.svg|20px]] [[Kentucky Route 120]]
* [[Image:Elongated circle 295.svg|20px]] [[Kentucky Route 295]]

===Adjacent counties===
* [[Hardin County, Illinois]]  (northwest)
* [[Union County, Kentucky|Union County]]  (north)
* [[Webster County, Kentucky|Webster County]]  (northeast)
* [[Caldwell County, Kentucky|Caldwell County]]  (southeast)
* [[Lyon County, Kentucky|Lyon County]]  (south)
* [[Livingston County, Kentucky|Livingston County]]  (west)

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
| 1850 = 6351
| 1860 = 8796
| 1870 = 9381
| 1880 = 11688
| 1890 = 13119
| 1900 = 15191
| 1910 = 13296
| 1920 = 13125
| 1930 = 11931
| 1940 = 12115
| 1950 = 10818
| 1960 = 8648
| 1970 = 8493
| 1980 = 9207
| 1990 = 9196
| 2000 = 9384
| 2010 = 9315
| align-fn = center
| footnote = U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=U.S. Decennial Census|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=August 13, 2014}}</ref><br />1790-1960<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=August 13, 2014|archive-date=August 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811110448/http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/|url-status=dead}}</ref> 1900-1990<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ky190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=August 13, 2014}}</ref><br />1990-2000<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |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 |url-status=live|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=August 13, 2014}}</ref> 2010-2021<ref name="QF">{{cite web|title=State & County QuickFacts|url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/21/21055.html|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=March 6, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110806013821/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/21/21055.html|archive-date=August 6, 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> 2024<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><ref name=qf/>
| 2020 = 8990
| estimate = 8982
| estyear = 2024
}}

As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |access-date=January 31, 2008 |title=U.S. Census website }}</ref> of 2000, there were 9,384 people, 3,829 households, and 2,707 families residing in the county. The [[population density]] was {{convert|26|/sqmi|/km2}}. There were 4,410 housing units at an average density of {{convert|12|/sqmi|/km2}}. The racial makeup of the county was 98.24% [[Race (United States Census)|White]], 0.65% [[Race (United States Census)|Black]] or [[Race (United States Census)|African American]], 0.15% [[Race (United States Census)|Native American]], 0.09% [[Race (United States Census)|Asian]], 0.14% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 0.74% from two or more races. 0.51% of the population were [[Race (United States Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Race (United States Census)|Latino]] of any race.

There were 3,829 households, out of which 29.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.80% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 8.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.30% were non-families. 27.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.80% 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 2.93.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.20% under the age of 18, 8.00% from 18 to 24, 26.10% from 25 to 44, 26.40% from 45 to 64, and 16.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 93.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $29,060, and the median income for a family was $36,462. Males had a median income of $30,509 versus $18,961 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the county was $15,262. About 14.70% of families and 19.10% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 30.80% of those under age 18 and 15.70% of those age 65 or over.

==Communities==
===City===
* [[Marion, Kentucky|Marion]] (county seat)

===Census-designated places===
* [[Crayne, Kentucky|Crayne]]
* [[Tolu, Kentucky|Tolu]]

===Other unincorporated communities===
* [[Centerville, Crittenden County, Kentucky|Centerville]]
* [[Dycusburg, Kentucky|Dycusburg]]
* [[Frances, Kentucky|Frances]]
* [[Irma, Kentucky|Irma]]
* [[Levias, Kentucky|Levias]]
* [[Mattoon, Kentucky|Mattoon]]
* [[Mexico, Kentucky|Mexico]]
* [[Midway, Crittenden County, Kentucky|Midway]]
* [[Nunn, Kentucky|Nunn]]
* [[Piney, Kentucky|Piney]]
* [[Piney Fork, Kentucky|Piney Fork]]
* [[Repton, Kentucky|Repton]]
* [[Shady Grove, Kentucky|Shady Grove]]
* [[Sheridan, Kentucky|Sheridan]]
* [[Tribune, Kentucky|Tribune]]
* [[View, Kentucky|View]]
* [[Weston, Kentucky|Weston]]

===Ghost towns===
* [[James Ford (pirate)|Fords Ferry]]
* [[Bells Mines, Kentucky|Bells Mines]]

==Politics==
{{PresHead|place=Crittenden County, Kentucky|whig=no|source1=<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS|title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|last=Leip|first=David|website=uselectionatlas.org|access-date=July 1, 2018}}</ref>}}
<!-- PresRow should be {{PresRow|Year|Winning party|GOP/Whig vote #|Dem vote #|3rd party vote #|State}} -->
{{PresRow|2024|Republican|3,349|608|53|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2020|Republican|3,451|731|60|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2016|Republican|3,290|617|130|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2012|Republican|2,839|960|55|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2008|Republican|2,604|1,254|72|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2004|Republican|2,726|1,438|26|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|2000|Republican|2,469|1,610|75|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1996|Republican|1,509|1,480|415|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1992|Democratic|1,576|1,740|504|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1988|Republican|2,211|1,443|12|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1984|Republican|2,167|1,483|13|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1980|Republican|2,219|1,508|44|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1976|Democratic|1,596|1,715|41|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1972|Republican|2,248|859|36|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1968|Republican|1,942|838|753|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1964|Republican|1,863|1,627|7|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1960|Republican|2,770|1,319|0|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1956|Republican|2,548|1,494|26|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1952|Republican|2,471|1,427|16|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1948|Republican|1,927|1,497|74|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1944|Republican|2,690|1,544|25|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1940|Republican|2,624|1,834|14|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1936|Republican|2,441|1,926|8|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1932|Republican|2,185|2,119|16|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1928|Republican|3,000|1,376|6|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1924|Republican|2,539|1,869|66|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1920|Republican|3,149|2,138|24|Kentucky}}
{{PresRow|1916|Republican|1,794|1,455|43|Kentucky}}
{{PresFoot|1912|Republican|1,367|1,230|406|Kentucky}}
Although Crittenden County was by no means pro-[[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] during the Civil War – only 4.02 percent of its white male population served in the [[Union Army]] vis-à-vis over six percent for Kentucky as a whole<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> – the county became strongly Republican in later years due to its deep ties to Illinois areas which came to support that party as a result of the war. Since 1884, the solitary Democrat to gain a majority in Crittenden County has been [[Jimmy Carter]] in 1976, although [[William Jennings Bryan]] won by two votes in 1896 and [[Bill Clinton]] obtained a plurality of 164 votes in 1992.

In gubernatorial elections, Crittenden was during the twentieth century likewise frequently the only county west of the Western Coalfield to support the Republican candidate – a scenario observed in 1979,<ref>Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas; [http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?year=1979&fips=21&f=1&off=5&elect=0 1979 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Kentucky]</ref> and with one exception in 1995.<ref>Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas; [http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?year=1995&fips=21&f=1&off=5&elect=0 1995 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Kentucky]</ref>

===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}}|[[James Comer]] (R)
| {{party shading/Republican}}|{{ushr|KY|1|B}}
|- 
! scope=row|[[Kentucky Senate|Ky. Senate]]
| {{party shading/Republican}}|[[Jason Howell]] (R)
| {{party shading/Republican}}|[[Kentucky's 1st Senate district|1]]
|- 
! scope=row|[[Kentucky House of Representatives|Ky. House]]
| {{party shading/Republican}}|[[Jim Gooch Jr.]] (R)
| {{party shading/Republican}}|12
|}

==Education==
Students in Crittenden County attend [[Crittenden County Schools]] located in [[Marion, Kentucky|Marion]].

==Notable people==
* [[Lee Cruce]], attorney, second Governor of Oklahoma, Crittenden County native, [[Democratic Party (United States)]].
* [[William J. Deboe]] (June 30, 1849 – June 15, 1927), a [[United States Republican Party|Republican]], was a [[United States Senate|U.S. Senator]] representing [[Kentucky]] from 1897 to 1903.
* [[Ollie M. James]] (July 27, 1871 – August 28, 1918), a [[United States Democratic Party|Democrat]], represented [[Kentucky]] in the [[United States House of Representatives]] from 1903 to 1913 and the [[United States Senate]] from 1913 to 1918.
* [[Walter Walker (politician)|Walter Walker]] (1883–1932), a [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]], was a United States Senator representing [[Colorado]] in 1932, and a newspaperman in [[Grand Junction, Colorado]].
* [[Kenneth W. Winters]], a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] member of the [[Kentucky State Senate]], was born in Crittenden County but resides in [[Murray, Kentucky]].
* [[Forrest Pogue]] (1912–1996), eminent military historian, a combat historian in the [[US Army]] during [[World War II]], author of the biography of General [[George C. Marshall]], and Director of the [[George C. Marshall Foundation]] and library in [[Lexington, VA]].
* [[Shelby Hearon]] (1931–2016), author, recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Ingram Merrill Foundation, winner of an American Academy of Arts and Letters Literature Award.

==See also==
* [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Crittenden County, Kentucky]]

{{Portal|United States}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Crittenden County, Kentucky}}
{{Kentucky}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Crittenden County, Kentucky| ]]
[[Category:1842 establishments in Kentucky]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1842]]
[[Category:Kentucky counties]]
[[Category:Kentucky counties on the Ohio River]]