ZIP Code 41653

Prestonsburg is a small home rule-class city in and the county seat of Floyd County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 3,255 at the time of the 2010 census, down from 3,612 at the 2000 census. It is the location of the Mountain Arts Center, which hosts music concerts and is home to the Kentucky Opry. Middle Creek National Battlefield is the site of the largest and most significant Civil War battle in Eastern Kentucky. Country music stars including Loretta Lynn, Crystal Gayle, Wynonna Judd, Naomi Judd, Billy Ray Cyrus, Tom T. Hall, Ricky Skaggs, Keith Whitley, Dwight Yoakam, and Patty Loveless are all from the Big Sandy Valley. U.S. Route 23, also called "The Country Music Highway" to celebrate the region's rich heritage of music, runs through Prestonsburg. The town had a pack horse library in the late 1930s to bring library materials to rural mountain residents. The Samuel May House Living History Museum is the oldest known brick home remaining in the Bigandy Valley. It was utilized by the Confederate forces as a recruiting station during the American Civil War. The Jenny Wiley Theatre is located in Prestonsberg and offers theatrical productions all year long at both the outdoor Jenny Wiley Amphitheater, located within the Jenny Wiley State Resort Park. The East Kentucky Science Center contains one of the most technologically advanced planetariums in the United States, opened in 2004. It has a total area of 12.9 square miles (33.4 km²), which is 0.7 square miles and 0.2 square miles of land.

History

Prestonsburg is the primary city name, but also Emma, Endicott, Hippo are acceptable city names or spellings, Bonanza, Cliff, Dock, Lancer, Sloan, Watergap on the other hand no longer accepted or obsolete and are no longer used as a designation. The official name is Prestonsburg, Kentucky. The area was part of the 100,000-acre (400 km²) grant in the early 1700s to the family of John Preston's wife, born Elizabeth Patton. The grant was intended to permit British colonization beyond the Blue Ridge Mountains, but subsequent French and Indian resistance and a reversal of British policy limited its impact. The land was not settled until John Spurlock of Montgomery County, Virginia, arrived in 1791. It became the seat of Floyd County upon its formation in 1799 and was formally established in 1818. The post office was known as "Floyd Court House" from its establishment in 1816 until the late 1820s, when it was renamed "Prestonsburg" On January 10, 1862, nearby Middle Creek was the scene of the largest battle of the Civil War to occur in eastern Kentucky. The town was also the site of one of the worst school bus disasters in American history on February 28, 1958. The town had a pack horse library in the late 1930s to bring library materials to rural mountain residents. It is located on the Kentucky-Tennessee border and was once known as Preston's Station, after the owner of the land where the town was laid out in 1797. It has a population of about 2,000 people, making it the second largest town in Floyd County, after Paducah, Kentucky. The county seat is in the eastern part of Kentucky and is home to the Kentucky Caverns National Park, a national historic site.

Culture

U.S. Route 23, also called "The Country Music Highway" to celebrate the region's rich heritage of music, runs through Prestonsburg. Loretta Lynn, Crystal Gayle, Wynonna Judd, Naomi Judd, Billy Ray Cyrus, Tom T. Hall, Ricky Skaggs, Keith Whitley, Dwight Yoakam, and Patty Loveless are all from the Big Sandy Valley. Heavy metal singer and guitarist Dave Reffett also grew up near this area. Middle Creek National Battlefield is the site of the largest and most significant Civil War battle in Eastern Kentucky. The Samuel May House Living History Museum is the oldest known brick home remaining in the region. The Jenny Wiley Theatre offers theatrical productions all year long at both the outdoor Jenny Wiley Amphitheater, located within the Jenny Wiley State Resort Park, and the nearby Mountain Arts Center. The East Kentucky Science Center contains one of the most technologically advanced planetariums in the United States. It is also the home of the Kentucky Opry, a country music awards show that has been running for more than 40 years. It was founded by country music legend George Jones in the early 1900s. It has been named after his father, George Jones, who was a member of the country music hall of fame at the University of Kentucky from 1928 to 1939. The theatre's presentations of classic Broadway musicals, comedies, historical dramas and holiday productions have kept theatre-goers entertained for the past 40 years, and it is located in a state park.

Geography

Prestonsburg is located in northern Floyd County at 37°3956N 82°4618W (37.6656527, -82.7715486) It is 13 miles (21 km) south of Paintsville and 25 miles (40 km) northwest of Pikeville. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Prestonsburg has a total area of 12.9 square miles (33.4 km²) of which 12.7 sq mi (32.9 km) is land and 0.5sq mi (0.5 sq km) (1.52%) is water. It is located on the Levisa Fork of the Big Sandy River, which flows through Floyd County. The town has a population of 1,071 (1,082 in 2011 census). It is the largest town in Floyd County, with a total population of 2,816 (1 1/2 million) in 2011. It has a climate of humid subtropical climate (Köppen "Cwb") with an average monthly temperature of °C (°F) of 7.2°F (7.4°C) and an average annual rainfall of 1.7 square miles (3.2 km) of water. The city has a history of being heavily affected by the Great Depression and the Great Recession. It was the site of the first atomic bomb test in the United States in the late 1800s.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 3,612 people, 1,563 households, and 956 families residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 97.51% White, 0.33% African American,0.50% Native American, 0.53% Asian, 0.44% from other races, and 0.69% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.02% of the population. The city's population was spread out, with 20.2% under the age of 18, 9.2%, 26.1% from 18 to 24, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 20.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there are 83.1 males. For each 100 females age 18 and over, there is 80.8 males. The average household size was 2.09 and the average family size was2.72. The per capita income for the city is $18,013. About 26.3% of families and 27.5%. of the residents were below the poverty line, including 44. 2% of those under the ages of 18 and 10.3%. The median income for a household was $20,810, and the median income. for a family was $27,852. It was $30,809 for males and $22,439 for females.

Education

Prestonsburg has a public library, a branch of the Floyd County Public Library. Schools are managed by Floyd County Schools. Big Sandy Community & Technical College is located in the town. The town has a population of about 1,000 people. It is located on the banks of the Little Sandy River, which flows through the town to the north and south. The community has a history of being heavily affected by the Great Depression and World War II. It also has a long history of supporting the arts and sciences. It has a high school and a middle school, as well as an elementary and high school. The city has a post-secondary school, which was founded in the 1950s. The high school has a college, which opened in the 1970s. It was the first high school in the area. The post-graduate program began in the 1980s. There is also a technical college in the community, which is called Big Sandy College. It offers a variety of programs for high school students and adults, including a welding program and a business program. The school also has an after-school program, which offers classes in the evenings and on the weekends. The district has a junior high, high school, and an adult education program.

Recreation

Archer Park, Jenny Wiley State Resort Park, Sugarcamp Mountain Trails, and The Passage Trail are among the trails in the park. The park is open to the public for hiking, biking, and other outdoor activities.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky = 87. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 81. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 89. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Prestonsburg = 4.3 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 3,681 individuals with a median age of 42.7 age the population dropped by -0.42% in Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 253.0 residents per square mile of area (97.70/km²). There are average 1.96 people per household in the 1,656 households with an average household income of $24,851 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 12.80% of the available work force and has dropped -3.28% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 20.64%. The number of physicians in Prestonsburg per 100,000 population = 148.4.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Prestonsburg = 45.8 inches and the annual snowfall = 10.3 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 110. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 170. 88 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 24.6 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 40, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky which are owned by the occupant = 49.33%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 38 years with median home cost = $89,990 and home appreciation of 0.09%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $6.63 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $4,540 per student. There are 15.6 students for each teacher in the school, 493 students for each Librarian and 458 students for each Counselor. 3.57% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 7.70% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 9.52% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).