Newport, Kentucky

Newport is a city in Campbell County, Kentucky, United States, at the confluence of the Ohio and Licking Rivers. The population was 17,048 at the 2000 census. Historically, it was one of four county seats of Campbell County. Newport is part of the Greater Cincinnati, Ohio Metro Area which comprises over 2 million inhabitants. . Today, Newport is becoming the entertainment community of the fast-growing Northern Kentucky area while its neighboring cities--Bellevue and Covington--become the business centers.

History
Settled about 1791, on land granted to George Muse, purchased by James Taylor Sr. and settled by his son James Taylor, Jr.. Newport was incorporated as a town in 1795 and in 1850 Newport received a city charter. In 1803 the Ft. Washington military post was moved from Cincinnati to become the Newport Barracks. In 1900, 28,301 people lived in Newport, Kentucky; in 1910, 30,309; in 1920, 29,317; and in 1940, 30,631.

Newport once had the reputation of "Sin City" due to its upscale gambling casinos on Monmouth street. Monmouth also had many men's stores, nice restaurants, and ice cream parlors. Investigations for racketeering pushed out the casinos, which were replaced by peep shows and adult strip clubs. Many of the old businesses disappeared when parking became difficult on Monmouth street and the commercial district opened on the hill of south Newport.

In the 1980s and 1990s Newport made plans to develop its riverfront and core to focus primarily on "family friendly" tourism, instead of the "Sin City" tourism of the past. In May 1999 the $40-million Newport Aquarium opened, and the historic Posey Flats apartments were leveled in favor of the Newport on the Levee entertainment complex, which opened the following year.

In 1997 plans were announced for a 1,015-foot structure called the "Millennium Tower" were revealed. The tower's main selling point was that building it would be financed by private money, as opposed to tax-payer money. The tower was expected to be completed by 2003, but investors later pulled out and no construction was done. Today the site for the tower is a parking lot next to the World Peace Bell.

County seat
Newport was the county seat of Campbell County, Kentucky from 1797 until 1823, and then again from 1824 until 1840. In the 19th Century, the overwhelming majority of the population lived in Newport and the surrounding cities. Many citizens did not like traveling south to Alexandria to conduct county business, as southern Campbell County was primarily undeveloped.

In 1883, Newport successfully lobbied the state legislature, in Frankfort, for an exception to state law, which both required that a county seat be located in the center of the county, and that certain county business only be conducted at the county seat. Frankfort passed a special law, creating the Newport Court House District, and within that district, the Newport Courthouse Commission which functioned as a special taxing district, so that an additional courthouse could be built, and business could take place in Newport, in addition to Alexandria. In 2008, the Kentucky General Assembly removed the taxing authority from the Courthouse Commission, but left the District and Commission intact.



The special Courthouse Commission legislation has led to a misconception that Newport was also a county seat, and that Campbell County was dual-seated. However, a recent court ruling clarified that, indeed, Alexandria is the only county seat, and Newport is not a county seat. It explained that "In 1840, pursuant to an act of the Kentucky Legislature, the county seat, then located at Newport, was established at Alexandria. No evidence has been presented to this court that this formal designation of Alexandria as the county seat of Campbell County has ever changed.  Evidence provided by the Defendants that Newport is considered a county seat or one of two county seats by historians, encyclopedias (editor's note: Wikipedia was cited in this case by the Defendants) and government agencies is based upon practical realities of how county government and the court system have functioned, pursuant to law, in Campbell County for the past 150 years.  However, none of the special acts related to the Newport Court House District ever designated Newport as the county seat."

Geography
Newport is located at °N, °W (39.088661, -84.490206).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.0 square miles (7.7 km²). 2.7 square miles (7.0 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.6 km²) of it (8.42%) is water.

Newport, Kentucky is located within the Bluegrass region found in the Upland South of the United States of America. Newport is also commonly, but technically inaccurately, referred to as being located in the Midwest. Either description of Upland South or Midwest is acceptable due to Newport being located at the extreme periphery of both regions.

Climate
Newport is located within a transition zone and is proximal to the extreme northern limit of the humid subtropical climate of the Southeastern United States.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 17,048 people, 6,975 households, and 4,045 families residing in the city. The population density was 6,267.8 inhabitants per square mile (2,420.0/km²). There were 7,828 housing units at an average density of 2,878.0 per square mile (1,111.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.67% White, 5.50% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.67% from other races, and 1.44% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.68% of the population.

There were 6,975 households out of which 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.4% were married couples living together, 20.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.0% were non-families. 34.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the city the population was spread out with 26.4% under the age of 18, 10.6% from 18 to 24, 31.9% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 94.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $27,451, and the median income for a family was $32,858. Males had a median income of $29,337 versus $22,723 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,207. About 20.7% of families and 22.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.1% of those under age 18 and 16.3% of those age 65 or over.

Landmarks

 * Newport Aquarium
 * Newport on the Levee, an entertainment and shopping complex founded by Joshua Treadway of Main Moon Productions and Wallks International
 * Southgate House, historic live music venue; birthplace of John T. Thompson, inventor of the Thompson submachine gun
 * Corpus Christi Church, Newport now converted into low-costing housing.
 * East Row Historic District, the second-largest National Register Historic District in Kentucky
 * Old Post Office
 * Masonic Temple, Newport, Ky..
 * Southgate Street School
 * Grace Methodist Episcopal Church
 * St. Paul's Episcopal Church, built in 1871 completed in 1873, noted for its beautiful stone tower on the Courthouse Square
 * World Peace Bell, located next to the White Castle.
 * Newport Southbank Bridge

Landmarks lost

 * Immaculata Academy, Newport, Ky.
 * Newport National Bank, circa 1923
 * Newport Riverfront circa 1910
 * West River Front. Newport
 * Church of the Immaculate Conception, Newport
 * St. John's German Lutheran Church
 * Mount Saint Martin's, Newport
 * St. Stephens Church, 9th & Saratoga Sts., Newport
 * C. & O. and L. & N. R. R. Depot, Newport, Ky.
 * George Wiedemann Brewing Company, Kentucky's largest brewery complex, now torn down for urban renewal, for many years Wiedemann beer was synonymous with Newport

Dining
There are a number of restaurants in the city, attracting residents from the surrounding cities. Many are located in the popular Newport on the levee. Some are listed below:
 * The Chart House
 * Don Pablo's
 * York Street Cafe
 * Hooters
 * Johnny Rockets
 * Jefferson Hall
 * Mokka Restaurant
 * Geselbracht's German Brewhouse
 * Claddagh Irish Pub
 * Mitchell's Fish Market
 * Hofbräuhaus Newport
 * Beer Sellar
 * Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant
 * BRIO Tuscan Grille
 * Dewey's Pizza
 * AOI Japanese Cuisine
 * Bar Louie
 * Casual Chinese Restaurant
 * Hong Kong Grand Buffet
 * 1st Wok
 * Sis's Family Affair & Catering
 * La Mexicana

Some local restaurants that are city institutions:
 * Dixie Chili and Deli
 * Newport Pizza Company
 * The Green Derby
 * The Pepper Pod
 * Pompilio's Italian Restaurant

Trivia

 * A pivotal scene (toothpicks) in the movie Rain Man was filmed in Newport at Pompilio's, a local restaurant.
 * Former Republican presidential hopeful Gary Bauer grew up in Newport.
 * One of the "50 Greatest Players in NBA History" Dave Cowens grew up in Newport