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Introduction:
The Commonwealth of Kentucky (IPA: /kənˈtʌ.ki/) is a state located in the east central United States of America. Kentucky is normally included in the group of Southern states, but it is sometimes included, geographically and culturally, in the Midwest. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states to be officially known as a commonwealth. Originally a part of Virginia, in 1792 it became the 15th state to join the Union. Kentucky is the 37th largest state in terms of land area, and ranks 26th in population.
Kentucky is known as the "Bluegrass State," a nickname based on the fact that bluegrass is present in many of the lawns and pastures throughout the state. It is a land with diverse environments and abundant resources, including the world's longest cave system, the most miles of navigable waterways and streams in the Lower 48 states, the two largest man-made lakes east of the Mississippi River, the highest per capita number of deer and turkey in the United States, and the nation's most productive coalfield. Kentucky is also known for thoroughbred horses, horse racing, bourbon distilleries, bluegrass music, automobile manufacturing (including the best selling car, truck, and SUV in the U.S. market), and college basketball.
Capital: Frankfort
Geography: Kentucky borders states of both the Midwest and the Southeast. West Virginia lies to the east, Virginia to the southeast Tennessee to the south, Missouri to the west, Illinois and Indiana to the northwest, and Ohio to the north and northeast. Kentucky's northern border is formed by the Ohio River; its western border by the Mississippi River.
Kentucky is the only U.S. state to have a non-contiguous part exist as an exclave surrounded by other states. Far western Kentucky includes a small part of land, Kentucky Bend, on the Mississippi River bordered by Missouri and accessible via Tennessee, created by the New Madrid Earthquake.
Kentucky can be divided into five primary regions: the Cumberland Plateau in the east, the north-central Bluegrass region, the south-central and western Pennyroyal Plateau, the Western Coal Fields and the far-west Jackson Purchase. The Bluegrass region is commonly divided into two regions, the Inner Bluegrass — the encircling 90 miles (145 km) around Lexington — and the Outer Bluegrass, the region that contains most of the Northern portion of the state, above the Knobs. Much of the outer Bluegrass is in the Eden Shale Hills area, made up of short, steep, and very narrow hills.
Kentucky has 120 counties, third in the U.S. behind Texas' 254 and Georgia's 159. The original motivation for having so many counties was to ensure that residents in the days of poor roads and horseback travel could make a round trip from their home to the county seat and back in a single day. Later, however, politics began to play a part, with citizens who disagreed with the present county government simply petitioning the state to create a new county. The 1891 Kentucky Constitution placed stricter limits on county creation, stipulating that a new county:
- must have a land area of at least 400 square miles;
- must have a population of at least 12,000 people;
- must not by its creation reduce the land area of an existing county to less than 400 square miles;
- must not by its creation reduce the population of an existing county to less than 12,000 people;
- must not create a county boundary line that passes within 10 miles of an existing county seat.
These regulations have reined in the proliferation of counties in Kentucky. Since the 1891 Constitution, only McCreary County has been created. Because today's largest county by area, Pike County, is 788 square miles, it is now impossible to create a new county from a single existing county under the current constitution. Any county created in this manner will by necessity either be smaller than 400 square miles or reduce the land area of the old county to less than 400 square miles. It is still theoretically possible to form a new county from portions of more than one existing county (McCreary County was created from portions of three counties), but the area and boundary restrictions would make this extremely difficult.
Climate
Located within the southeastern interior portion of North America, Kentucky has a climate described as humid subtropical (indicating that all monthly average temperatures are above freezing). Monthly average temperatures in Kentucky range from a high in the high 80's and low 90's (30.9 °C) to a low in the high 30's to low 40's (-4.9 °C) and averages 46 inches (116.84 cm) of precipitation a year. Kentucky experiences all four seasons, usually with striking variations in the severity of summer and winter from year to year. In fact, it is not unusual to see marked changes in temperature and weather conditions within the same day, leading many locals to observe, "If you don't like the weather, just wait a few hours and it will change."
Major weather events that have affected Kentucky include:- The Mid-Mississippi Valley Tornado Outbreak of March 1890
- The Ohio River flood of 1937
- The Super Outbreak of tornadoes in 1974
- Massive flooding in 1997
- The North American blizzard of 2003 (mostly ice in Kentucky)
Lakes and rivers
Kentucky’s 90,000 miles of streams provides one of the most expansive and complex stream systems in the nation. Kentucky has both the largest artificial lake east of the Mississippi in water volume (Lake Cumberland) and surface acreage (Kentucky Lake). It is the only U.S. state to be bordered on three sides by rivers — the Mississippi River to the west, the Ohio River to the north, and the Big Sandy River and Tug Fork to the east. Its major internal rivers include the Kentucky River, Tennessee River, Cumberland River, Green River, and Licking River.
Though it has only three major natural lakes, the state is home to many artificial lakes. Kentucky also has more navigable miles of water than any other state in the union, other than Alaska.
Natural Environment and Conservation
Kentucky has an expansive park system which includes one national park, two National Recreation areas, two National Historic Parks, two national forests, 45 state parks, 37,696 acres of state forest, and 82 Wildlife Management Areas.
Kentucky has been part of two of the most successful wildlife reintroduction projects in United States history. In the winter of 1997, the state's eastern counties began to re-stock elk, which had been extinct from the area for over 150 years. As of 2006, the state's herd was estimated at 5,700 animals, the largest herd east of the Mississippi River.
The state also stocked wild turkeys in the 1950s. Once extinct in the state, today Kentucky has more turkeys per capita than any other eastern state.
Top tourist attractions in Kentucky
Significant natural attractions
- Cumberland Gap, chief passageway through the Appalachian Mountains in early American history.
- Cumberland Falls State Park, the only place in the Western Hemisphere where a "moon-bow" may be seen.
- Mammoth Cave National Park, featuring the world's longest cave system.
- Red River Gorge Geological Area, part of the Daniel Boone National Forest.
- Land Between the Lakes, a National Recreation Area managed by the United States Forest Service.
- Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest a 14,000 acre (57 km²) arboretum, forest and nature preserve located in Clermont.
- Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site in Hodgenville.
- Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area near Whitley City.
- Trail of Tears National Historic Trail also passes through Kentucky.
- Black Mountain, state's highest point. Runs along the border of Harlan and Letcher counties.
- Bad Branch Falls State Nature Preserve, 2,639-acre state nature preserve on southern slope of Pine Mountain in Letcher County. Includes one of the largest concentrations of rare and endangered species in the state
, as well as a 60-foot waterfall and a Kentucky Wild River.- Jefferson Memorial Forest, located south of Louisville in the Knobs region, the largest municipally run forest in the United States.
- Green River Lake State Park, located in Taylor County.
- Lake Cumberland, 1255 miles of shoreline located in South Central Kentucky.
Economy - overview:
The total gross state product for 2005 was US$140.4 billion, 27th in the nation. Its per-capita personal income was US$28,513, 43rd in the nation. Kentucky's agricultural outputs are horses, cattle, tobacco, dairy products, hogs, soybeans, and corn. Its industrial outputs are transportation equipment, chemical products, electric equipment, machinery, food processing, tobacco products, coal, and tourism. The Eastern Kentucky Coal Fields are recognized as being among the most productive in the nation.
Kentucky ranks 4th among U.S. states in the number of automobiles and trucks assembled. The Chevrolet Corvette, Ford Explorer, Ford Super Duty trucks, Toyota Camry, Toyota Avalon, and Toyota Solara are assembled in Kentucky.
Unlike many bordering states which developed a widespread industrial economy, much of rural Kentucky has maintained a farm based economy, with cattle, corn, and soybeans being the main crops. The area immediately outside Lexington is also the leading region for breeding Thoroughbred racing horses, due to the high calcium content in the soil. Despite being the 14th smallest state in terms of land area, Kentucky still ranks 5th in the total number of farms, with more farms per square mile than any other U.S. state. The average farm size in Kentucky is only 153 acres.
Kentucky ranks 5th nationally in goat farming, 8th in beef cattle production , and 14th in corn production.
State taxes
There are 5 income tax brackets, ranging from 2% to 6% of personal income. The sales tax rate in Kentucky is 6%. Kentucky has a broadly based classified property tax system. All classes of property, unless exempted by the Constitution, are taxed by the state, although at widely varying rates. Many of these classes are exempted from taxation by local government. Of the classes that are subject to local taxation, three have special rates set by the General Assembly, one by the Kentucky Supreme Court and the remaining classes are subject to the full local rate, which includes the tax rate set by the local taxing bodies plus all voted levies. Real property is assessed on 100% of the fair market value and property taxes are due by December 31. Once the primary source of state and local government revenue, property taxes now account for only about 6% of the Kentucky's annual General Fund revenues.
Until January 1, 2006, Kentucky imposed a tax on intangible personal property held by a taxpayer on January 1 of each year. The Kentucky intangible tax was repealed under House Bill 272. Intangible property consisted of any property or investment which represents evidence of value or the right to value. Some types of intangible property included: bonds, notes, retail repurchase agreements, accounts receivable, trusts, enforceable contracts sale of real estate (land contracts), money in hand, money in safe deposit boxes, annuities, interests in estates, loans to stockholders, and commercial paper.
"Unbridled Spirit"
To boost Kentucky’s image, make it consistent through all the ways we reach people, and help Kentucky stand out from the crowd" the Fletcher administration launched a comprehensive branding campaign with the hope of making its $12 - $14 million advertising budget more effective. The "Unbridled Spirit" brand was the result of a $500,000 contract with New West, a Kentucky-based public relations, advertising and marketing firm to develop a viable brand and tag line. The administration has been aggressively marketing the brand in both the public and private sectors. The "Welcome to Kentucky" signs at border areas have Unbridled Spirit's symbol on them.
The previous campaign was neither a failure nor a success. Kentucky's "It's that friendly" slogan hoped to draw more people into the state based of the idea of southern hospitality. Though most Kentuckians liked the slogan, as it embraced southern values, it was also not an image that encouraged tourism as much as initially hoped for. Therefore it was necessary to reconfigure a slogan to embrace Kentucky as a whole while also encouraging more people to visit the Bluegrass.
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