Native peoples have lived along the banks of Elkhorn Creek in what is now Scott County for at least 15,000 years.[8] At the time of European encounter, the historic Shawnee people occupied this area.[citation needed]
Anglo-American exploration can be dated to the late colonial period and a June 1774 surveying expedition from Fincastle County, Virginia, led by Colonel John Floyd. For his military service, he was granted a claim of 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) in the area by the state of Virginia. He named it Royal Spring but did not settle it.[12] John McClellan was the first English colonist to settle the area and established McClellan's Station there in 1775, but the compound was abandoned following an Indian attack on December 29, 1776.[13]
In 1782, the Baptist preacher Elijah Craig led his congregation to the site from Orange County, Virginia, and established a new settlement which he called Lebanon. This was incorporated by the Virginia legislature in 1784. At the time, Virginia claimed this territory under its colonial charter.[12] Craig established some of the first mills west of the Appalachian Mountains along the Royal Spring Branch, where he also manufactured cloth and paper.[8] He also founded a distillery in 1789, as well as a school called the Rittenhouse Academy. This eventually developed as Georgetown College.[14]
The county developed an agricultural economy, as it was part of the fertile Bluegrass Region. Planters cultivated tobacco and hemp, and raised blooded livestock, including Thoroughbred racehorses, and cattle and sheep. During the Civil War, Kentucky stayed in the Union. Georgetown was raided by Confederate Gen. John Hunt Morgan twice, once on July 15, 1862, and the second time on July 10, 1864.[12]
Throughout the 20th century, Georgetown has been in transition from an economy based primarily on agriculture, to one mixing manufacturing, small business, and the family farm. During the 1960s, the construction of Interstate 75 placed the city on one of the nation's busiest highways. The selection of Georgetown as the site of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky in 1985 has resulted in the greatest period of growth in the city's history.[17]
The historic Ward Hall, now home to The Ward Hall Preservation Foundation, is located just outside Georgetown. Ward Hall was the summer home of Junius Ward.[18] The home represents the height of the Greek Revival period of architecture in Kentucky and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).[19]
The Georgetown business section has a historic district known as the Oxford Historic District. It is also listed on the NRHP.[20]
Geography
Georgetown is located north of Lexington in the Bluegrass region of the state. Major highways that run through the city include Interstate 75 and US Routes 25, 62, and 460. Numerous state highways run through the city. I-75 runs to the east of downtown, with access from exits 125, 126, 127, and 129. Via I-75, downtown Lexington is 16 mi (26 km) south, and Cincinnati, Ohio is 69 mi (111 km) north. US 25 runs through the center of town, leading south to Lexington and north 22 mi (35 km) to Corinth. US 62 runs along the southern and eastern part of the city as a bypass, leading northeast 21 mi (34 km) to Cynthiana and southwest 11 mi (18 km) to Midway. US 460 runs east−west through the town, leading east 17 mi (27 km) to Paris and west 18 mi (29 km) to Frankfort, the state capital.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.85 square miles (41 km2), all land.
Climate
Georgetown has a humid subtropical climate (KöppenCfa), with warm summers and moderately cold winters. Precipitation is relatively well spread (although the late spring and summer months are typically wetter), with an average of 45.28 in (1,150 mm).
There were 10,733 households, out of which 38.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.6% were married couples living together, 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.6% were non-families. 24.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.09.
The age distribution was 27.9% under 18 and 8.3% who were 65 or older. The median age was 31.7 years. The median income for a household in the city was $51,692. The per capita income for the city was $24,376. About 13.9% of the population was below the poverty line.
Economy
The best selling car in the United States, the Toyota Camry, is manufactured in Georgetown
Top employers
According to the city's 2018 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,[23] the largest employers in the city are:
Public education in Georgetown and Scott County consists of a preschool center serving special needs and economically at-risk students aged 3–5, nine elementary schools (grades K–5), three middle schools (grades 6–8) and two high schools (grades 9–12). These schools are all part of the Scott County Schools system. Plans had been in progress for an additional high school and middle school within the city limits during the 2010s due to the expanding population. The district chose not to build a new middle school, opting instead to expand one of its three existing middle schools, but opened a new high school and a new elementary school in 2019.[24][25] Elkhorn Crossing School, which had been a detached campus of Scott County High before the 2019 opening of Great Crossing High School, provides some sophomores and juniors at both high schools with a curriculum that integrates academic and career-based disciplines. [citation needed]
Public schools located within Georgetown and Scott County include:[26]
Private education in Georgetown and Scott County includes St. John elementary and middle school, Providence Christian Academy elementary and middle school, and Keystone Montessori elementary school.
Georgetown also has a lending library, the Scott County Public Library.[27]
Media
Georgetown's newspaper, the Georgetown News-Graphic, prints on Tuesday and Friday. Residents of the area commonly subscribe to this locally geared newspaper in addition to the larger Lexington daily newspaper, the Lexington Herald-Leader.[28]
Infrastructure
Healthcare
Georgetown has one hospital, Georgetown Community Hospital, operated by LifePoint Health.
UK HealthCare and Baptist Health Lexington have regional campuses in Georgetown. Georgetown also has many nursing facilities, including Signature HealthCARE of Georgetown, Windsor Gardens Retirement Community, Dover Manor Nursing Home, and Ashton Grove Assisted Living. [citation needed]
Notable people
William E. Applegate (1851–1928) – thoroughbred bookmaker, breeder, racer and track owner. Born in Georgetown.
Mike Ayers (1948– ) – former football coach for East Tennessee State University and Wofford College
Dale Polley (1965– ) – former Major League Baseball pitcher
Phillip Pratt (1955– ) – politician in the Kentucky House of Representatives from the 62nd district
Ryan Quarles (1983– ) – politician, Agriculture Commissioner of Kentucky, 2024 candidate for governor
Dallas Robinson (1982– ) − 2014 Olympian-soldier; sole Olympian from Kentucky in the Sochi Russia Games
James Fisher Robinson (1800−1882) – politician, 22nd Governor of Kentucky. Federal Governor during the Civil War. Cardome in Georgetown was his family home.
John McCracken Robinson (1794−1893) – politician, US Senator from Illinois. Born in Georgetown.
^"International Exchange". List of Affiliation Partners within Prefectures. Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR). Archived from the original on December 24, 2015. Retrieved November 21, 2015.