Johnson County, Kentucky

Johnson County is a located in the  of. It was formed in 1843. As of 2000, the population was 23,445. Its is. The county is named for, general, , , and. Johnson is a prohibition or.

Geography
According to the (as of 2000), the county has a total area of 684  (264 ). 677 km² (262 sq mi) of it is land and 6 km² (2 sq mi) of it (0.91%) is water.

Adjacent counties

 * (north)
 * (east)
 * (south)
 * (southwest)
 * (northwest)

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 23,445 people, 9,103 households, and 6,863 families residing in the county. The was 35/km² (90/sq mi). There were 10,236 housing units at an average density of 15/km² (39/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 98.64%, 0.25% or , 0.13% , 0.29% , 0.02% , 0.09% from , and 0.58% from two or more races. 0.61% of the population were or  of any race.

There were 9,103 households out of which 34.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.50% were living together, 11.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.60% were non-families. 22.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.00% under the age of 18, 8.80% from 18 to 24, 28.90% from 25 to 44, 25.70% from 45 to 64, and 12.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 93.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $24,911, and the median income for a family was $29,142. Males had a median income of $29,762 versus $20,136 for females. The for the county was $14,051. About 21.70% of families and 26.60% of the population were below the, including 35.50% of those under age 18 and 19.30% of those age 65 or over.

Schools in Johnson County
Johnson County is the home of several schools. These include: Porter Elementary, W.R. Castle Elementary, Meade Memorial Elementary, Highland Elementary, Flat Gap Elementary, Central Elementary, Our Lady of the Mountain School (K-8), Johnson County Christian School, Paintsville Independent Elementary, Johnson Co. Middle School, Paintsville Independent Middle School,, Johnson County Alternative School and.

Central Elementary was ranked top-performing elementary school in 5-6 statewide CTBS/CATS testing. Central Elementary was also the top-performing elementary school (based on national CTBS testing) in the Southeastern US.

Johnson County Middle School's academic team has won numerous State s. It won in 1999, 2000, 2004, 2006, and 2007.. It won numerous State awards and its  team has won State and International awards and acclaim.

performs well in various areas and are well known statewide for their academic, football, and basketball teams. Johnson Central High school is considered a "powerhouse" in the high school scene, starting with the 1994-1995 season. They are also noted as a well-performing national competitor. Their team, coached by Jim Matney, in recent years, has been noted for their up-and-coming program and very successful seasons. In fact, the 2006 Season was a record one, having a 13-1 record. The team is coached by Tommy McKenzie and played in the  (KHSAA) State basketball tournament. Johnson Central offers many clubs including, , , , , , and. Johnson Central is also home to a new.

, located in a separate independent school district, also has earned numerous sport and academic titles. Although much smaller than Johnson Central, the school has won boys' state championships in golf, baseball and basketball and made it to the finals of the state football playoffs. For many years, Paintsville High School ranked among the top 10 academic school districts in Kentucky.

Both the Johnson County Public and Paintsville Independent School Systems met all of the standards set by the national government.

Formation
In 1843, Johnson County was formed. The land now occupied by Johnson County was previously part of. At that time, its county seat of had already been a chartered city for nine years. Homes had been built in Paintsville as early as the 1810s.

Most of the families at the beginning of Johnson County's formation were of Scottish, Irish, English, or German decent. May of them moved from, , and following their participation in the.

For approximately the first twenty-five years, Johnson County and Paintsville struggled along. Roads and highways were nonexistent. Mail and supplies reached Johnson County from the by means of horseback and steamboat. Years later, stage coaches began to connect eastern Kentucky and Johnson County to the bluegrass region and the rest of civilization.

Civil War era
As Johnson County and its county seat had begun to thrive, in 1860 the became a disrupter. Like other border areas, brothers fought against brothers, tearing families apart. Johnson County was not only part of a border state during the Civil War, but it was a border county as well.

Sometime between 1860-1862, the Fiscal Court enacted a county ordinance that neither the Union or Confederate flags were to be flown within the county. This was repealed quickly, following Colonel 's Union brigade marching through Paintsville on their way to defeat the Confederate cavalry at the Battle of Middle Creek in Floyd County.

John C. C. Mayo
Following the Civil War, Thomas Jefferson Mayo moved to Paintsville to fulfill a need role as a gifted and talented teacher. He fathered, an important figure in the development of eastern Kentucky. John Mayo assisted in the development of Paintsville, and as a result, its parent, Johnson County. He helped to bring about the development of banks, churches, streets, public utilities and railroad transportation.

Coal was important for Johnson County and the rest of eastern Kentucky even before the Civil War, but its development was quickly halted at the start of the war. The financing was slow to returning to the coal industry in eastern Kentucky and development in Johnson County was limited because of this inhibitor. Mayo was invaluable to Johnson County's growth, as he opened up the coal fields of eastern Kentucky to the industrialized north which spurred the development of railroads in the area.

The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway first opened its Paintsville depot on, , following 25 years of work connecting it to. Following the development of the railroad, tens of thousands of tons of coal were being transported out of eastern Kentucky by 1910.

Mayo went on to be a political lobbyist, and eastern Kentucky's only member of the. He had influence in electing Kentucky's s, and the election of.

He died on, , after becoming fatally ill following a trip to Europe. During his life, he built a historic mansion in Paintsville which has become known as simply "Mayo Mansion".

Apple Festival
In the same year as Mayo's death (1914), the first county fair was held in Paintsville, where the first Apple King was also crowned.

In 1962, Johnson County hosted the first Kentucky Apple Festival, which has been held annually in Paintsville since. The streets of downtown Paintsville are closed to vehicular traffic and festivities to include live music and entertainment are held.

Famous residents

 * , country singer, raised here. The title song on her 2004 album, , references her Johnson County upbringing.
 * , country singer and younger sister of Loretta Lynn.
 * , held captive by native Americans.
 * , visionary and entrepreneur, assisted in bringing railroad service to eastern Kentucky.