Owsley County | |
|---|---|
 Owsley County courthouse in Booneville | |
 Location within the U.S. state of Kentucky | |
 Kentucky's location within the U.S. | |
| Coordinates: 37°25′N 83°41′W / 37.41°N 83.69°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Kentucky |
| Founded | 1843 |
| Named for | William Owsley |
| Seat | Booneville |
| Largest city | Booneville |
| Area | |
| • Total | 198 sq mi (510 km2) |
| • Land | 197 sq mi (510 km2) |
| • Water | 0.9 sq mi (2 km2) 0.4% |
| Population (2020) | |
| • Total | 4,051 |
| • Estimate (2023) | 4,001  |
| • Density | 20/sq mi (7.9/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 5th |
Owsley County is a county located in the Eastern Coalfield region of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,051,[1] making it the second-least populous county in Kentucky. The county seat is Booneville.[2] The county was organized on January 23, 1843, from Clay, Estill, and Breathitt counties and named for William Owsley (1782–1862), the judge of the Kentucky Court of Appeals and Governor of Kentucky (1844–48).[3] According to the 2010 census reports, Owsley County has the second-highest level of child poverty of any county in the United States.[4] In terms of income per household, the county is the poorest in the nation.[5] Between 1980 and 2014, the rate of death from cancer in the county increased by 45.6 percent, the largest such increase of any county in the United States.[6]
- ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved March 6, 2014.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ "Owsley County". Archived from the original on November 16, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ "Table 1: 2011 Poverty and Median Income Estimates - Counties". Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. U.S. Census Bureau. 2011. Archived from the original on October 10, 2013.
- ^ "SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS 2009-2013 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on January 17, 2015. Retrieved January 12, 2015.
- ^ Barry-Jester, Anna Maria. "How Americans Die May Depend On Where They Live". FiveThirtyEight. December 13, 2016.