Greenup County

History

Located with its northern border formed by the Ohio River, Greenup County was organized by an act of the General Assembly of Kentucky on December 12, 1803, from Mason County, which included the majority of eastern Kentucky at the time.

Three courthouses have served Greenup County. The first courthouse, built of logs, was replaced by a brick structure in 1811.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 354 square miles (920 km2), of which 344 square miles (890 km2) is land and 10 square miles (26 km2) (2.8%) is water.

Features

Like most eastern Kentucky counties, Greenup County is predominantly made up of rolling hills and valleys. The land in the Ohio River valley is generally flat and mostly populated by industry, commerce and residential development. Beyond this the land gives way to a series of hills and valleys that are representative of the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. It is relatively sparsely inhabited by farmers. Among these hills, popular fishing spots can be found among the Little Sandy River, Greenbo Lake, and Tygarts Creek. Greenup County's land is still predominantly covered by forest with minimal clear cutting of the old forests.

The soil has long supported a healthy agriculture and livestock industry. Traditionally, this has meant a sizeable tobacco base and cattle ranching. Since the late 20th century, as traditional agriculture products have been dominated by industrial-scale agri-corporations, growth has been seen in non-traditional products such as American Quarter Horses, ostriches, and marijuana.

Major highways

U.S. Highway 23 is the primary route for travel through Greenup County. It enters Greenup County at the southeasternmost point and follows the Ohio River north along the eastern border passing through Russell, Flatwoods, Raceland, Wurtland, Greenup and South Shore. It then exits just west of South Shore crossing the Ohio River via the U.S. Grant Bridge into Portsmouth, Ohio and continuing north towards Columbus, Ohio.

The AA Highway begins at U.S. Highway 23 and connects to U.S. Highway 52 in Ohio via the Jesse Stuart Memorial Bridge. The AA Highway (also known as Route 10) runs west intersecting Route 7 and eventually exiting west into Lewis County. Since its completion in 1995, the AA Highway has allowed Northeastern Kentucky residents to more easily travel to Maysville, Kentucky as well as Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati, Ohio.

The northern terminus of the Industrial Parkway (Kentucky Route 67) ends at U.S. Highway 23 at Wurtland. This highway serves to connect Wurtland and the surrounding towns of Greenup, Flatwoods and the unincorporated area of Argillite to the EastPark industrial park and Interstate 64 in Carter County.

Adjacent counties

Boyd County (southeast)

Carter County (southwest)

Lewis County (west)

Scioto County, Ohio (north)

Lawrence County, Ohio (east)

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 35,962. The median age was 43.9 years. 22.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.2% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 94.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 91.4 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 94.8% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.4% from some other race, and 3.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 0.9% of the population.

57.3% of residents lived in urban areas, while 42.7% lived in rural areas.

There were 14,430 households in the county, of which 29.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 26.3% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 26.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 16,235 housing units, of which 11.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 76.6% were owner-occupied and 23.4% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.3%.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 36,891 people, 14,536 households, and 11,032 families residing in the county. The population density was 107 per square mile (41/km2). There were 15,977 housing units at an average density of 46 per square mile (18/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 98.07% White, 0.57% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.38% Asian, 0.15% from other races, and 0.64% from two or more races. 0.55% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 14,536 households, out of which 32.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.30% were married couples living together, 10.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.10% were non-families. 21.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.60% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 27.90% from 25 to 44, 26.00% from 45 to 64, and 14.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $32,142, and the median income for a family was $38,928. Males had a median income of $35,475 versus $21,198 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,137. About 11.60% of families and 14.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.60% of those under age 18 and 9.90% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Education

Public school districts

Greenup County School District serves the cities of Greenup, Wurtland, South Shore and rural Greenup County.

Russell Independent School District serves the cities of Russell, Flatwoods and Bellefonte.

Raceland-Worthington Independent School District serves the cities of Raceland and Worthington.

Library

The Greenup County Public Library serves the county with three locations. The main library is located in Greenup and branch libraries are located in Flatwoods and just outside of South Shore (McKell branch). The library also operates two bookmobiles that provide services in areas of the county not able to be served by the three libraries.

Communities

Unincorporated communities

Lloyd

South Portsmouth

Frost

Limeville

Places of interest

EastPark

Greenbo Lake State Resort Park

Raceland Race Course

Alcohol sales

Greenup County is a wet county, meaning that sale of alcohol in the county is prohibited except in certain areas as voted on by the residents of the area, including at least one area where full retail sales are permitted. In the case of Greenup County, alcohol sales are permitted in the following areas:

The city of Russell has allowed the full retail sale of alcohol since 2014 after allowing, since 2008, by the drink alcohol sales at restaurants which seat at least 100 diners and derive at least 70% of their total sales from food.

The cities of Greenup, Raceland and South Shore allow full retail sale of alcohol after voters approved local option petitions in 2020.

The city of Flatwoods allows full retail sale of alcohol after voters approved a local option petition in 2024.

The city of Bellefonte has allowed the full retail sale of alcohol since 2017 after allowing, since 2009, the Bellefonte Country Club to sell alcohol by the drink under a provision that allows voters of an otherwise dry precinct to allow alcohol sales at a specific, voter approved, USGA regulation golf course. The status change had no practical effect within the city itself as restaurants (other than the Bellefonte Country Club), liquor stores, gas stations, grocery stores and other businesses that generally sell alcohol are, by local ordinance, prohibited within the city limits of Bellefonte. The change in status allowed the Bellefonte Country Club to receive a "caterer's license" to serve alcohol by the drink at private offsite events, which was not permitted under the previous alcohol status.

The Hunnewell election precinct in unincorporated Greenup County approved a petition in 2020 allowing the River Bend Golf Course to sell alcohol by the drink under a provision that allows voters of an otherwise dry precinct to allow alcohol sales at a specific, voter approved, USGA regulation golf course.

The sale of alcohol is prohibited in the cities of Worthington, Wurtland and in all areas of unincorporated Greenup County outside the River Bend Golf Course.

Notable people

Billy Ray Cyrus – singer/actor, son of Ron Cyrus and father of Miley Cyrus

Ron Cyrus – politician

Don Gullett – Major League Baseball pitcher

Herb Roe – mural artist

John Stephenson – Major League Baseball Catcher

Jesse Stuart – Kentucky Poet Laureate

Clint "Hawk" Thomas – baseball player for the New York Black Yankees of the Negro leagues

Richard Whitt - Newspaper journalist, (The Courier-Journal), 1978 Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on the fire at the Beverly Hills Supper Club fire in Southgate, Kentucky.