Fleming County, Kentucky

Fleming County
Fleming County
County
	Fleming County courthouse in Flemingsburg
	Location within the U.S. state of Kentucky
	Kentucky's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 38°22′N 83°41′W / 38.37°N 83.69°W
Country	United States
State	Kentucky
Founded	1798
Named for	John Fleming (1735–1791), early settler of Kentucky
Seat	Flemingsburg
Largest city	Flemingsburg
Area
• Total	351 sq mi (910 km2)
• Land	349 sq mi (900 km2)
• Water	2.8 sq mi (7 km2) 0.8%
Population (2020)
• Total	15,082
• Estimate (2023)	15,442
• Density	43/sq mi (17/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	6th
Website	www.flemingkychamber.com

Fleming County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,082.^[1] Its county seat is Flemingsburg.^[2] The county was formed in 1798 and named for Colonel John Fleming, an Indian fighter and early settler.^[3]^[4] It is a moist county. In 1998, the Kentucky General Assembly designated Fleming County as the Covered Bridge Capital of Kentucky.^[5]

History

Fleming County was established in 1798 from land given by Mason County.^[6] The first courthouse, possibly built of logs, was replaced in 1830 and again in 1952.^[7]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 351 square miles (910 km²), of which 349 square miles (900 km²) is land and 2.8 square miles (7.3 km²) (0.8%) is water.^[8]

Adjacent counties

Mason County (north)
Lewis County (northeast)
Rowan County (southeast)
Bath County (south)
Nicholas County (west)
Robertson County (northwest)

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1800	5,016		—
1810	8,947		78.4%
1820	12,186		36.2%
1830	13,499		10.8%
1840	13,268		−1.7%
1850	13,914		4.9%
1860	12,489		−10.2%
1870	13,398		7.3%
1880	15,221		13.6%
1890	16,078		5.6%
1900	17,074		6.2%
1910	16,066		−5.9%
1920	15,614		−2.8%
1930	12,931		−17.2%
1940	13,327		3.1%
1950	11,962		−10.2%
1960	10,890		−9.0%
1970	11,366		4.4%
1980	12,323		8.4%
1990	12,292		−0.3%
2000	13,792		12.2%
2010	14,348		4.0%
2020	15,082		5.1%
2023 (est.)	15,442	^[9]	2.4%
U.S. Decennial Census^[10] 1790-1960^[11] 1900-1990^[12] 1990-2000^[13] 2010-2020^[1]

As of the census of 2000, there were 13,792 people, 5,367 households, and 3,966 families residing in the county. The population density was 39 people per square mile (15 people/km²). There were 6,120 housing units at an average density of 17 per square mile (6.6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.33% White, 1.41% Black or African American, 0.14% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 0.67% from two or more races. 0.75% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 5,367 households, out of which 34.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.30% were married couples living together, 9.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.10% were non-families. 23.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.40% under the age of 18, 8.40% from 18 to 24, 29.00% from 25 to 44, 23.90% from 45 to 64, and 13.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 96.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $27,990, and the median income for a family was $33,300. Males had a median income of $26,463 versus $19,895 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,214. About 14.80% of families and 18.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.90% of those under age 18 and 20.10% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

United States presidential election results for Fleming County, Kentucky^[14]
Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	5,534	78.30%	1,474	20.85%	60	0.85%
2016	4,722	75.43%	1,348	21.53%	190	3.04%
2012	3,780	65.38%	1,911	33.05%	91	1.57%
2008	3,432	58.85%	2,279	39.08%	121	2.07%
2004	3,749	60.44%	2,406	38.79%	48	0.77%
2000	3,282	63.37%	1,813	35.01%	84	1.62%
1996	2,313	48.55%	1,913	40.16%	538	11.29%
1992	2,045	39.82%	2,257	43.95%	833	16.22%
1988	2,409	53.27%	2,086	46.13%	27	0.60%
1984	2,824	63.33%	1,616	36.24%	19	0.43%
1980	2,189	50.73%	2,051	47.53%	75	1.74%
1976	1,647	41.35%	2,317	58.17%	19	0.48%
1972	2,484	62.38%	1,455	36.54%	43	1.08%
1968	2,220	53.28%	1,406	33.74%	541	12.98%
1964	1,668	38.33%	2,678	61.53%	6	0.14%
1960	2,777	55.62%	2,216	44.38%	0	0.00%
1956	2,744	51.97%	2,519	47.71%	17	0.32%
1952	2,592	51.33%	2,446	48.44%	12	0.24%
1948	2,088	42.66%	2,722	55.62%	84	1.72%
1944	2,666	50.38%	2,612	49.36%	14	0.26%
1940	2,855	48.65%	2,999	51.11%	14	0.24%
1936	2,749	48.66%	2,879	50.96%	21	0.37%
1932	2,638	43.08%	3,442	56.21%	44	0.72%
1928	3,798	64.50%	2,086	35.43%	4	0.07%
1924	2,572	49.38%	2,590	49.72%	47	0.90%
1920	2,960	45.72%	3,488	53.88%	26	0.40%
1916	1,836	44.60%	2,240	54.41%	41	1.00%
1912	1,400	36.77%	1,915	50.30%	492	12.92%