Coal miners' children cross a footbridge into Hazard, Kentucky, July 1940. Photograph by Marion Post Wolcott.
Local landowner Elijah Combs Sr. laid out the town in 1824 as the planned seat of the newly established Perry County. Both the town and the county were named for Cdre. Oliver Hazard Perry, a commander in the 1813 Battle of Lake Erie in the War of 1812.[8] The post office was initially known as Perry Court House but the name was officially changed to Hazard in 1854.[9] The city was formally incorporated by the state assembly in 1884.[10]
Long isolated by the surrounding mountains, Hazard was opened to the outside world by the arrival of the railroad in 1912. The only access to the valley had previously been 45 miles down the North Fork of the Kentucky River or a two-week trip over the surrounding mountains.[11] The railroad brought prosperity to the town, which ended up on the start of the Great Depression.
The song "High Sheriff of Hazard" was written by Tom Paxton in reference to a coal miner's strike in 1964.
After several decades of population decline, the city has seen a rapid increase of new residents as the growth rate approached 20% between 2010 and 2020. In July 1999, Hazard was the first stop on PresidentBill Clinton's tour of poverty-stricken communities that had failed to share in the boom of the 1990s. Hillary Clinton visited Hazard on November 2, 2008, at a political rally for DemocraticU.S. Senate candidate Bruce Lunsford.[13][14]
One of the two ZIP codes serving Hazard is 41702; as of 2024, there are precisely 41,702 ZIP codes in the United States.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.0 square miles (18 km2), all land.
Climate
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Hazard has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.[16]
As of the census[19] of 2021, there were 5,263 people, and 2,046 households. The population density was 692.5 inhabitants per square mile (267.4/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 78.4% White, 16.57% African American, 0.08% Native American, 2.07% Asian, 0.15% from other races, and 0.87% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.86% of the population.
In 2000, there were 1,946 households, out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.9% were married couples living together, 18.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.9% were non-families. Of all households, 31.7% were made up of individuals, and 13.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.88.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.9% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 17.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $20,690, and the median income for a family was $27,226. Males had a median income of $34,398 versus $22,386 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,782. About 30.9% of families and 30.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 44.3% of those under age 18 and 13.9% of those age 65 or over.
