Hart County, Kentucky facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hart County
U.S. county
Hart County Courthouse in Munfordville
Location within the U.S. state of Kentucky
Kentucky's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Kentucky
Founded	1819
Named for	Nathaniel G. S. Hart
Seat	Munfordville
Largest city	Horse Cave
Area
• Total	418 sq mi (1,080 km2)
• Land	412 sq mi (1,070 km2)
• Water	5.8 sq mi (15 km2)  1.4%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	19,288
• Estimate  (2023)	19,724
• Density	46.14/sq mi (17.816/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	2nd

Hart County is a county in the south central part of Kentucky. In 2020, about 19,288 people lived there. Its main town, or county seat, is Munfordville. The biggest town is Horse Cave. Hart County is known as a "dry county," which means there are rules about selling alcohol.

History of Hart County

Hart County was created in 1819. It was formed from parts of two other counties: Hardin and Barren. The county is named after Captain Nathaniel G. S. Hart. He was an officer in the Kentucky army during the War of 1812. Captain Hart was hurt in a battle and later died.

During the American Civil War in 1862, a battle took place in the county. This was the Battle of Munfordville, which was won by the Confederate side.

In January 1928, a fire at the courthouse destroyed some old county records.

A group of Amish people started a settlement near Munfordville in 1989. Many of them came from an Amish settlement in Ohio. This Amish community is one of the fastest-growing in America. By 2013, it had about 1,800 people.

Geography of Hart County

Hart County covers about 418 square miles (1,083 square kilometers). Most of this area, about 412 square miles (1,067 square kilometers), is land. The rest, about 5.8 square miles (15 square kilometers), is water.

Animals in Hart County

In 2013, a female wolf was seen and shot in Hart County. This was the first gray wolf seen in Kentucky in modern times.

Neighboring Counties

Hart County shares borders with these other counties:

• Hardin County (to the north)
• LaRue County (to the northeast)
• Green County (to the east)
• Metcalfe County (to the southeast)
• Barren County (to the south)
• Edmonson County (to the southwest)
• Grayson County (to the northwest)

Cool Natural Places

A part of Mammoth Cave National Park is located in western Hart County. This park is famous for its huge cave system.

The Fisher Ridge Cave System is also in Hart County. As of 2018, this cave system has been explored for about 125 miles (201 kilometers). It is one of the longest caves in the United States and in the world.

Population of Hart County

In 2000, there were 17,445 people living in Hart County. The county had about 42 people per square mile (16 people per square kilometer).

About 25.7% of the people were under 18 years old. The average age in the county was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were about 97 males.

Amish Community in Hart County

The Amish settlement in Hart County is mostly between Munfordville and Horse Cave. It was started in 1989. Many of the Amish families came from Ohio. This community is growing quickly. In 2013, there were about 1,800 Amish people. By 2020, the Amish population grew to 2,486, which was about 12.9% of the total population.

Religion in Hart County

Religion in Hart County, according to ARDA (2020)      Evangelical Churches (28.5%)     Anabaptist Church (Amish) (12.9%)     Mainline Protestant Churches (4%)     Catholic Church (0.8%)     Others (0.9%)     None * (52.9%)

Towns and Communities

Cities

• Horse Cave
• Munfordville (This is the main town, or county seat)

Census-designated place

• Hardyville

Other Small Towns and Places

Schools in Hart County

The school districts in the county are:

• Caverna Independent School District
• Hart County School District

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Hart (Kentucky) para niños