Garrard County, Kentucky | |
|---|---|
 Garrard County Courthouse in Lancaster | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofKentucky | |
| Coordinates:37°38′22″N84°32′15″W / 37.63958°N 84.53763°W /37.63958; -84.53763 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Kentucky |
| Founded | December 17, 1796 |
| Named after | James Garrard |
| Seat | Lancaster |
| Largest city | Lancaster |
| Area | |
• Total | 234 sq mi (610 km2) |
| • Land | 230 sq mi (600 km2) |
| • Water | 3.9 sq mi (10 km2) 1.7% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 16,953 |
• Estimate (2024) | 18,040 |
| • Density | 74/sq mi (28/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 2nd |
| Website | garrardcounty |
Garrard County (/ˈɡærərd/GARR-ərd) is acounty located east-centralKentucky. As of the2020 census, the county's population was 16,953.[1] Itscounty seat isLancaster.[2] The county was formed in 1796 and was named forJames Garrard,Governor of Kentucky from 1796 to 1804.[3] One of the earliest settlers was Harman Back Jr. (1737–1797). He, his wife Katherine, and their three sons (Joseph, Harman Jr., and Jacob) had migrated there, in 1789, from Little Fork, Virginia.[4]
It was a prohibition ordry county until November 7, 2023, when voters approved to allow alcohol sales countywide.
Lancaster was founded as a collection of log cabins in 1776 near a spring that later provided a constant source of water to early pioneers. It is one of the oldest cities in the Commonwealth. Boonesborough, 25 miles to the east, was founded by Daniel Boone in 1775. Lexington, 28 miles to the north, was founded in 1775. Stanford, originally known as St. Asaph, is 10 miles south of Lancaster. It too was founded in 1775. The oldest permanent settlement in Kentucky, Harrodsburg, was founded in 1774 and is 18 miles to the west. Garrard's present day courthouse is one of the oldest courthouses in Kentucky that is in continuous use.
The area presently bounded by Kentucky state lines was a part of the U.S. State of Virginia, and was established as Kentucky County by the Virginia legislature in 1776, before the British colonies separated themselves in the American Revolutionary War. In 1780, the Virginia legislature divided Kentucky County into three counties: Fayette, Jefferson, and Lincoln. In 1785, parts of Lincoln County were divided off to createMercer andMadison Counties.
In 1791 the previous Kentucky County was incorporated into the new nation as a separate state, Kentucky. This change became official on June 1, 1792. In 1796, a portion of the remaining Lincoln County was combined with areas split off from Mercer and Madison Counties to form Garrard County. It was the 25th county to be formed in the new state.[5][6] It was named for Col.James Garrard, secondGovernor of Kentucky and acting governor at the time of the county's establishment.[7][8]
Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of the powerful antebellum novelUncle Tom's Cabin, visited the Thomas Kennedy home located in the Paint Lick section of Garrard County in her only visit to the South while gathering material for the book. The cabin that formed the basis of her novel was an actual structure behind the plantation house.[9] In 2008, Garrard County officials announced their intention to recreate the slave cabin on the grounds of theGovernor William Owsley House.[10] However, in 2018 newspaper articles showed the proposed site abandoned and grown over; a memorial in another Kentucky county (Mason) was continuing to honor the memory and contribution of Stowe.[11]
Garrard County is historically aWhig andRepublican County. Its early political leaders were outspoken supporters ofHenry Clay. It was strongly pro-Union during theCivil War and has remained a Republican stronghold in the Bluegrass Region which was, until recently, largelyDemocratic.
Garrard County is the home ofCamp Dick Robinson, the first Federal base south of theOhio River during the Civil War.
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 234 square miles (610 km2), of which 230 square miles (600 km2) is land and 3.9 square miles (10 km2) (1.7%) is water.[12]
Located in east-central Kentucky, most of the county lies in the rolling hills of theBluegrass region. The southeastern end of the county near the Cartersville community is in theKnobs region. Garrard County is considered to be part ofAppalachia.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1800 | 6,186 | — | |
| 1810 | 9,186 | 48.5% | |
| 1820 | 10,851 | 18.1% | |
| 1830 | 11,871 | 9.4% | |
| 1840 | 10,480 | −11.7% | |
| 1850 | 10,237 | −2.3% | |
| 1860 | 10,531 | 2.9% | |
| 1870 | 10,376 | −1.5% | |
| 1880 | 11,704 | 12.8% | |
| 1890 | 11,138 | −4.8% | |
| 1900 | 12,042 | 8.1% | |
| 1910 | 11,894 | −1.2% | |
| 1920 | 12,503 | 5.1% | |
| 1930 | 11,562 | −7.5% | |
| 1940 | 11,910 | 3.0% | |
| 1950 | 11,029 | −7.4% | |
| 1960 | 9,747 | −11.6% | |
| 1970 | 9,457 | −3.0% | |
| 1980 | 10,853 | 14.8% | |
| 1990 | 11,579 | 6.7% | |
| 2000 | 14,792 | 27.7% | |
| 2010 | 16,912 | 14.3% | |
| 2020 | 16,953 | 0.2% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 18,040 | [13] | 6.4% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[14] 1790-1960[15] 1900-1990[16] 1990-2000[17] 2010-2020[1] | |||
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 16,953. The median age was 43.3 years. 23.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 18.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 94.3 males age 18 and over.[18][19]
The racial makeup of the county was 91.9% White, 1.8%Black or African American, 0.2%American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Asian, 0.1%Native Hawaiian andPacific Islander, 1.0% from some other race, and 4.7% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.7% of the population.[19]
0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.[20]
There were 6,584 households in the county, of which 32.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 22.2% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 22.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[18]
There were 7,254 housing units, of which 9.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 76.8% were owner-occupied and 23.2% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.6%.[18]
As of thecensus of 2000, there were 14,792 people, 5,741 households, and 4,334 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 64 per square mile (25/km2). There were 6,414 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile (11/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 95.75%White, 3.06%Black orAfrican American, 0.13%Native American, 0.04%Asian, 0.43% fromother races, and 0.59% from two or more races. 1.32% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race.
There were 5,741 households, out of which 33.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.60% weremarried couples living together, 9.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.50% were non-families. 21.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 2.95.
By age, 24.40% of the population was under 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 30.90% from 25 to 44, 23.60% from 45 to 64, and 13.00% were 65 or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 96.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.00 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $34,284, and the median income for a family was $41,250. Males had a median income of $30,989 versus $21,856 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $16,915. About 11.60% of families and 14.70% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 19.10% of those under age 18 and 17.00% of those age 65 or over.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 481 | 17.33% | 1,232 | 44.40% | 1,062 | 38.27% |
| 1916 | 1,628 | 53.78% | 1,375 | 45.42% | 24 | 0.79% |
| 1920 | 2,994 | 54.74% | 2,434 | 44.51% | 41 | 0.75% |
| 1924 | 2,592 | 54.63% | 2,126 | 44.81% | 27 | 0.57% |
| 1928 | 2,862 | 62.34% | 1,729 | 37.66% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 2,276 | 46.84% | 2,582 | 53.14% | 1 | 0.02% |
| 1936 | 2,252 | 49.66% | 2,276 | 50.19% | 7 | 0.15% |
| 1940 | 2,148 | 49.75% | 2,162 | 50.07% | 8 | 0.19% |
| 1944 | 2,042 | 53.46% | 1,764 | 46.18% | 14 | 0.37% |
| 1948 | 1,890 | 51.12% | 1,725 | 46.66% | 82 | 2.22% |
| 1952 | 2,398 | 55.37% | 1,927 | 44.49% | 6 | 0.14% |
| 1956 | 2,311 | 55.92% | 1,798 | 43.50% | 24 | 0.58% |
| 1960 | 2,759 | 60.78% | 1,780 | 39.22% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 1,828 | 46.45% | 2,092 | 53.16% | 15 | 0.38% |
| 1968 | 2,205 | 56.15% | 1,000 | 25.46% | 722 | 18.39% |
| 1972 | 3,143 | 67.49% | 1,441 | 30.94% | 73 | 1.57% |
| 1976 | 2,045 | 51.28% | 1,887 | 47.32% | 56 | 1.40% |
| 1980 | 2,585 | 57.70% | 1,774 | 39.60% | 121 | 2.70% |
| 1984 | 3,284 | 67.21% | 1,566 | 32.05% | 36 | 0.74% |
| 1988 | 2,681 | 60.18% | 1,710 | 38.38% | 64 | 1.44% |
| 1992 | 2,359 | 49.18% | 1,730 | 36.06% | 708 | 14.76% |
| 1996 | 2,540 | 58.11% | 1,486 | 34.00% | 345 | 7.89% |
| 2000 | 4,043 | 69.43% | 1,713 | 29.42% | 67 | 1.15% |
| 2004 | 4,784 | 71.85% | 1,841 | 27.65% | 33 | 0.50% |
| 2008 | 5,118 | 70.98% | 2,012 | 27.91% | 80 | 1.11% |
| 2012 | 5,310 | 75.03% | 1,661 | 23.47% | 106 | 1.50% |
| 2016 | 5,904 | 77.45% | 1,453 | 19.06% | 266 | 3.49% |
| 2020 | 6,754 | 77.58% | 1,830 | 21.02% | 122 | 1.40% |
| 2024 | 7,086 | 79.47% | 1,719 | 19.28% | 112 | 1.26% |
Garrard County is governed by the Garrard County Fiscal Court, composed of theJudge Executive, who is elected countywide, and five Magistrates who are elected in magisterial districts representing different geographic areas of the county. Each member of the Fiscal Court is elected to a four-year term, pursuant to the Kentucky Constitution. Magistrates are addressed by the honorific "Squire." The Fiscal Court is represented by the County Attorney. The County Clerk archives all court records and keeps the minutes of meetings.
Garrard County lies at the northeastern end of the historically Unionist belt of Kentucky, covering the easternPennyroyal Plateau, the southern tip of the Bluegrass Plateau, and the southwestern part of theEastern Coalfield. Although it only provided a modest level of volunteers for theUnion Army duringthe Civil War and had a very high proportion of slave owners amongst its 1860 electorate,[22] Garrard County nonetheless came to form the northernmost border of the rock-ribbed Republican bloc of south-central Kentucky that includes such counties asClinton,Cumberland,Russell,Casey,Pulaski,Laurel,Rockcastle,Monroe,McCreary,Clay,Jackson,Owsley andLeslie. The only Democratic presidential candidates to carry Garrard County since the end of Reconstruction have beenWoodrow Wilson in 1912,Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932, 1936 and 1940, andLyndon Johnson in 1964, and Roosevelt only won by 24 votes overAlf Landon and 14 votes overWendell Willkie. Since 1944, when Thomas Dewey defeated Franklin Roosevelt by 278 votes, Garrard has voted Democratic in a presidential contest only once.
| Elected officials as of January 3, 2025[23][24] | ||
| U.S. House | Andy Barr (R) | KY 6 |
|---|---|---|
| Ky. Senate | Donald Douglas (R) | 22 |
| Ky. House | David Meade (R) | 80 |
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Municipalities and communities ofGarrard County, Kentucky,United States | ||
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| Unincorporated communities | ||
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| Other | |
37°38′22″N84°32′15″W / 37.63958°N 84.53763°W /37.63958; -84.53763
