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Lawrence County, Kentucky facts for kids

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Lawrence County
Lawrence County Courthouse in Louisa
Lawrence County Courthouse in Louisa
Map of Kentucky highlighting Lawrence County
Location within the U.S. state of Kentucky
Map of the United States highlighting Kentucky
Kentucky's location within the U.S.
Country  United States
State  Kentucky
Founded December 14, 1821
Named for James Lawrence
Seat Louisa
Largest city Louisa
Area
 • Total 420 sq mi (1,100 km2)
 • Land 416 sq mi (1,080 km2)
 • Water 4.5 sq mi (12 km2)  1.1%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 16,293
 • Estimate 
(2023)
16,000 Decrease
 • Density 38.8/sq mi (14.98/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district 5th

Lawrence County is a special area in the state of Kentucky, USA. It's called a county. In 2020, about 16,293 people lived here.

The main town and center of the county is Louisa. Lawrence County is named after James Lawrence. It was also helped into being by Isaac Bolt.

Many famous people come from Lawrence County. These include country music star Tyler Childers and former Kentucky Governor Paul E. Patton. Also, a very important judge, Frederick Moore Vinson, who was once the Chief Justice of the United States, was born here.

History of Lawrence County

Lawrence County was created in 1821. It was formed from parts of two other counties: Floyd County and Greenup County.

The county has had four different courthouses over the years. The very first courthouse was finished in 1823.

Geography of Lawrence County

Lawrence County covers a total area of about 420 square miles. Most of this area, about 416 square miles, is land. The rest, about 4.5 square miles, is water.

The Unique T-Bridge

There is a very interesting bridge in Louisa. It connects Louisa in Kentucky to Fort Gay, West Virginia. This bridge is special because it's a "multi-way T-bridge."

It's a concrete bridge about a quarter-mile long. It crosses over two rivers, the Levisa Fork and the Tug River. These two rivers join to form the Big Sandy River. What makes it unique is that halfway across, the bridge has a right turn! This turn connects traffic to a neighborhood in Louisa called the Point Section.

Yatesville Lake State Park

Yatesville Lake
Yatesville Lake, a popular spot for outdoor activities.

Yatesville Lake opened in 1992. It is a large lake, covering about 2,300 acres. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers manages this lake.

Yatesville Lake helps control floods in the area. It also offers many fun things to do outdoors. For example, there's a boat ramp at the Rich Creek area for people who want to go boating.

Neighboring Counties

Lawrence County shares its borders with several other counties:

People of Lawrence County

Historical population
Census Pop.
1830 3,900
1840 4,730 21.3%
1850 6,281 32.8%
1860 7,601 21.0%
1870 8,497 11.8%
1880 13,262 56.1%
1890 17,702 33.5%
1900 19,612 10.8%
1910 20,067 2.3%
1920 17,643 −12.1%
1930 16,713 −5.3%
1940 17,275 3.4%
1950 14,418 −16.5%
1960 12,134 −15.8%
1970 10,726 −11.6%
1980 14,121 31.7%
1990 13,998 −0.9%
2000 15,569 11.2%
2010 15,860 1.9%
2020 16,293 2.7%
2023 (est.) 16,000 0.9%
U.S. Decennial Census
1790-1960 1900-1990
1990-2000 2010-2020

In 2000, there were about 15,569 people living in Lawrence County. These people made up 5,954 households and 4,477 families.

Most of the people living in the county were White (about 98.93%). A small number were Black or African American, Native American, or Asian. Some people identified with two or more races.

About 35% of the households had children under 18 living with them. Many households (61.3%) were married couples. About 22.4% of households were single people living alone.

The average age of people in Lawrence County was 36 years old. About 25.3% of the population was under 18.

Towns and Communities

Lawrence County has two main cities:

Cities

  • Blaine
  • Louisa (This is the county seat, meaning it's where the county government is located.)

Other Communities

There are also several smaller, unincorporated communities in Lawrence County. These are places that don't have their own city government.

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Condado de Lawrence (Kentucky) para niños

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