Clinton County, Kentucky

state">U.S. state of Kentucky in the Pennyrile Region along the southern border with Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,253. Its county seat is Albany. The county was formed in 1835 and named for DeWitt Clinton, the seventh Governor of New York. It is a prohibition or dry county.

Clinton County
County
Clinton County courthouse in Albany
Location within the U.S. state of Kentucky
Kentucky's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 36°43′N 85°08′W / 36.72°N 85.13°W / 36.72; -85.13
Country	United States
State	Kentucky
Founded	February 20, 1835
Named for	DeWitt Clinton
Seat	Albany
Largest city	Albany
Area
• Total	205 sq mi (530 km2)
• Land	197 sq mi (510 km2)
• Water	8.2 sq mi (21 km2)  4.0%
Population  (2020)
• Total	9,253
• Estimate  (2023)	9,148
• Density	45/sq mi (17/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	1st
Website	clintoncounty.ky.gov

Clinton County was formed on February 20, 1835, from portions of Cumberland and Wayne counties. It was named for DeWitt Clinton, governor of New York and driving force behind the Erie Canal.

Courthouse fires in 1864 (Civil War guerrillas) and 1980 resulted in the destruction of county records, but in the latter case, local volunteers' assistance successfully preserved almost all records.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 205 square miles (530 km²), of which 197 square miles (510 km²) is land and 8.2 square miles (21 km²) (4.0%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Russell County (north)
• Wayne County (east/EST border)
• Pickett County, Tennessee (south)
• Clay County, Tennessee (southwest)
• Cumberland County (west)

As of the census of 2000, there were 9,634 people, 4,086 households, and 2,811 families residing in the county. The population density was 49 per square mile (19/km²). There were 4,888 housing units at an average density of 25 per square mile (9.7/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 99.09% White, 0.10% Black or African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.04% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 0.08% from other races, and 0.32% from two or more races. 1.22% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,086 households, out of which 29.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.50% were married couples living together, 9.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.20% were non-families. 28.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.70% under the age of 18, 8.60% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 26.00% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $19,563, and the median income for a family was $25,919. Males had a median income of $21,193 versus $16,194 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,286. About 20.20% of families and 25.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.80% of those under age 18 and 29.90% of those age 65 or over.

In presidential elections Clinton County has been overwhelmingly Republican ever since Reconstruction ended. Its Republican sympathies are reflected by the fact that, relative to population, Clinton County was a leader in providing soldiers for the Union Army, seeing 12.54% of its white population volunteer for Union service, exceeded only by the now-similarly Republican Owsley, Estill and Clay counties.

The last Democrat to carry Clinton County was Horatio Seymour in 1868 – when party realignment was just beginning – and the last Democrat to pass so much as 30 percent of the county's vote was Grover Cleveland in 1888. Nor has any Republican in this time span – even William Howard Taft during the divided 1912 election – fallen short of 60 percent. Jackson County is the only other county in the United States that has seen no Democrat reach 30 percent since the beginning of the 1890s, and apart from these two only Hooker County, Nebraska has seen no Democrat reach 30 percent since 1940.

• Garlin Murl Conner
• Champ Ferguson
• Preston Leslie
• Dry counties
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Clinton County, Kentucky

36°43′N 85°08′W / 36.72°N 85.13°W / 36.72; -85.13