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Ballard County
Ballard County
County
	Ballard County Courthouse in Wickliffe
	Location within the U.S. state of Kentucky
	Kentucky's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 37°04′N 89°00′W / 37.06°N 89°W
Country	United States
State	Kentucky
Founded	1842
Named for	Bland Ballard
Seat	Wickliffe
Largest city	LaCenter
Area
• Total	274 sq mi (710 km2)
• Land	247 sq mi (640 km2)
• Water	27 sq mi (70 km2) 9.9%
Population (2020)
• Total	7,728
• Estimate (2023)	7,582
• Density	28/sq mi (11/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	1st
Website	www.ballardcounty.ky.gov

Ballard County is a county located in the west portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 7,728. Its county seat is Wickliffe and its largest city is LaCenter.^[1] The county was created by the Kentucky State Legislature in 1842 and is named for Captain Bland Ballard, a soldier, statesman, and member of the Kentucky General Assembly.^[2] Ballard County is part of the Paducah, KY-IL Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Ballard County was formed from portions of Hickman County and McCracken County. It was named for Bland Ballard (1761–1853), a Kentucky pioneer and soldier who served as a scout for General George Rogers Clark during the American Revolutionary War, and later commanded a company during the War of 1812. On February 17, 1880, the courthouse was destroyed by a fire, which also destroyed most of the county's early records.^[3] The county seat was transferred from Blandville to Wickliffe in 1882.^[4]

Geography

Fort Jefferson Memorial Cross at the Confluence in Wickliffe

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 274 square miles (710 km²), of which 247 square miles (640 km²) is land and 27 square miles (70 km²) (9.9%) is water.^[5]

State protected area

Axe Lake Swamp State Nature Preserve is a 458 acres (1.85 km²) nature preserve located in Ballard County, in the Barlow Bottoms. The preserve is part of the 3,000-acre (12 km²) Axe Lake Swamp wetlands complex which supports at least eight rare plant and animal species. The site has been recognized as a priority wetland in the North American Waterfowl Management Plan.^[6]

Adjacent counties

Pulaski County, Illinois (north) – across the Ohio River
McCracken County (east)
Carlisle County (south)
Mississippi County, Missouri (southwest) – across the Mississippi River
Alexander County, Illinois (west) – across the Ohio River

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1850	5,496		—
1860	8,692		58.2%
1870	12,576		44.7%
1880	14,378		14.3%
1890	8,390		−41.6%
1900	10,761		28.3%
1910	12,690		17.9%
1920	12,045		−5.1%
1930	9,910		−17.7%
1940	9,480		−4.3%
1950	8,545		−9.9%
1960	8,291		−3.0%
1970	8,276		−0.2%
1980	8,798		6.3%
1990	7,902		−10.2%
2000	8,286		4.9%
2010	8,249		−0.4%
2020	7,728		−6.3%
2023 (est.)	7,582	^[7]	−1.9%
U.S. Decennial Census^[8] 1790-1960^[9] 1900-1990^[10] 1990-2000^[11] 2010-2021^[12]

As of the census^[13] of 2000, there were 8,286 people, 3,395 households, and 2,413 families residing in the county. The population density was 33 per square mile (13/km²). There were 3,837 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile (5.8/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.32% White, 2.87% Black or African American, 0.08% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.08% from other races, and 1.44% from two or more races. 0.63% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race.

There were 3,395 households, out of which 30.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.60% were married couples living together, 8.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.90% were non-families. 25.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.85.

The age distribution was 23.10% under the age of 18, 7.60% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 25.40% from 45 to 64, and 16.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $32,130, and the median income for a family was $41,386. Males had a median income of $32,345 versus $20,902 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,035. About 10.70% of families and 13.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.30% of those under age 18 and 15.40% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Voter registration

Ballard County Voter Registration & Party Enrollment as of November 17, 2015^[update]^[14]
Political Party		Total Voters	Percentage
	Democratic	4,671	73.37%
	Republican	1,402	22.02%
	Others	227	3.57%
	Independent	57	0.90%
	Libertarian	5	0.08%
	Green	2	0.03%
Total		6,366	100%

Statewide elections

United States presidential election results for Ballard County, Kentucky^[15]
Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	3,331	81.48%	697	17.05%	60	1.47%
2020	3,356	79.43%	825	19.53%	44	1.04%
2016	3,161	77.08%	816	19.90%	124	3.02%
2012	2,647	67.96%	1,189	30.53%	59	1.51%
2008	2,537	62.49%	1,427	35.15%	96	2.36%
2004	2,389	57.19%	1,759	42.11%	29	0.69%
2000	1,824	48.38%	1,880	49.87%	66	1.75%
1996	1,064	28.43%	2,255	60.26%	423	11.30%
1992	1,108	28.56%	2,268	58.45%	504	12.99%
1988	1,460	40.23%	2,162	59.58%	7	0.19%
1984	1,663	45.13%	2,002	54.33%	20	0.54%
1980	1,190	31.10%	2,583	67.51%	53	1.39%
1976	649	17.57%	2,794	75.66%	250	6.77%
1972	1,542	49.92%	1,411	45.68%	136	4.40%
1968	564	16.38%	1,632	47.39%	1,248	36.24%
1964	519	15.22%	2,867	84.10%	23	0.67%
1960	1,121	28.99%	2,746	71.01%	0	0.00%
1956	838	21.29%	3,088	78.46%	10	0.25%
1952	851	22.59%	2,910	77.25%	6	0.16%
1948	454	14.04%	2,702	83.55%	78	2.41%
1944	637	18.25%	2,845	81.50%	9	0.26%
1940	758	19.09%	3,212	80.89%	1	0.03%
1936	773	17.96%	3,523	81.87%	7	0.16%
1932	572	12.48%	3,987	86.98%	25	0.55%
1928	940	24.49%	2,896	75.44%	3	0.08%
1924	767	19.18%	3,128	78.22%	104	2.60%
1920	1,107	21.24%	3,987	76.48%	119	2.28%
1916	692	23.05%	2,222	74.02%	88	2.93%
1912	555	21.54%	1,706	66.20%	316	12.26%

Previous gubernatorial elections results
Year	Republican	Democratic	Third parties
2023	63.72% 1,691	36.28% 963	0.00% 0
2019	65.34% 2,010	32.90% 1,012	1.75% 54
2015	55.20% 1,312	41.65% 990	3.16% 75
2011	35.80% 773	59.01% 1,274	5.19% 112
2007	34.09% 927	65.91% 1,792	0.00% 0
2003	46.53% 1,433	53.47% 1,647	0.00% 0
1999	6.70% 99	83.28% 1,230	10.02% 148
1995	32.30% 938	67.46% 1,959	0.24% 7

Communities

Cities

Barlow
Blandville
Kevil
LaCenter (largest city)
Wickliffe (county seat)

Census-designated places

Other unincorporated communities

Notable people

Morris E. Crain, Medal of Honor recipient for his bravery during World War II
Kenny Rollins, an American basketball player who was a member of the University of Kentucky's "Fab Five" who won the 1948 NCAA Championship, the 1948 gold medal-winning U.S. Olympic Team, and the NBA's Chicago Stags and Boston Celtics
Oscar Turner (1825–1896), state senator, U. S. representative and namesake of Oscar, Kentucky
Earl Grace, Major League Baseball catcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Philadelphia Phillies, and Chicago Cubs^[16]
Kelsey Waldon, Country Singer-songwriter raised in Monkey's Eyebrow, Kentucky

References

^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
^ E., Kleber, John; Kentucky, University Press of; Policy, Institute for Regional Analysis and Public; Library, Camden-Carroll; University, Morehead State (January 1, 2000). "The Kentucky Encyclopedia". kyenc.org. Retrieved December 29, 2016. {{cite web}}: |last3= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ "Ballard County, Kentucky Genealogy and History". genealogytrails.com. Retrieved December 29, 2016.
^ Hogan, Roseann Reinemuth (1992). Kentucky Ancestry: A Guide to Genealogical and Historical Research. Ancestry Publishing. p. 189. ISBN 9780916489496. Retrieved July 26, 2013.
^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved August 12, 2014.
^ Axe Lake Swamp State Nature Preserve web site Archived September 25, 2006, at the Wayback Machine URL accessed on August 20, 2006.
^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 12, 2014.
^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 12, 2014.
^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 12, 2014.
^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved August 12, 2014.
^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 26, 2014. Retrieved November 28, 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
^ "Earl Grace". baseball-reference.com. Baseball-reference.com. Retrieved December 31, 2019.