Adair County, Kentucky

Adair County Education, Geography, and History

Adair County is a county located in the state of Kentucky. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 18,656. The county was created in 1801. The county seat is Columbia. Adair county is named for John Adair, then Speaker of the House in Kentucky and later Governor of Kentucky (1820 - 1824)

Etymology - Origin of Adair County Name

The county is named or General John Adair (1757-1840), commander of Kentucky forces in the Battle of New Orleans in 1815; also Kentucky's eighth governor.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Adair County History

Adair county was formed in 1801. It is located in the Pennyrile region of the state. The elevation in the county ranges from 585 to 1120 feet above sea level. In 2000 the county population was 17,244 in a land area of 406.84 square miles, an average of 42.4 people per square mile. The county seat is Columbia.

A gang of five men, believed to include Frank and Jesse James, robbed the Bank of Columbia of $600 on April 29, 1872, and killed the cashier, R.A.C. Martin.

The courthouse on the Columbia town square, completed in 1884, replaced the original 1806 courthouse

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 412 square miles (1,070 km²), of which 405 square miles (1,050 km²) is land and 7.1 square miles (18 km²) (1.7%) is water..

Adair county is located close to the center of Kentucky. This county is part of the Pennyroyal Plateau region of Kentucky and is part of western Appalachia. Timber makes up over 40% of the county's land. The Green River is the county's major waterway. The river was impounded to form Green River Lake, the major feature of Green River Lake State Park, which lies in Adair and Taylor counties

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• North: Taylor County
• Northeast: Casey County
• Southeast: Russell County
• Southwest: Cumberland County; Metcalfe County
• Northwest: Green County

Education

The county is served by Adair County Schools.

Its schools are:

• Colonel William Casey Elementary School
• Adair County Elementary School
• Adair County Middle School
• Adair County High School

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