Kentucky Info
- Capital: Frankfort
- State abbreviation/Postal code: Ken. /KY.
- Nickname: Bluegrass State.
- Organized as territory: Actually, never. Kentucky was a part of Virginia
when the Southwest Territory was organized in 1790.
- Entered Union: 01JUNE 1792.
- Present constitution adopted: 1891.
- Motto: United we stand, divided we fall.
- Land area: Kentucky covers 40,411 square miles, making it the 37th
largest state.
- Highest point: Black Mountain, which is 4,139 feet above sea level.
- Lowest point: Mississippi River, 257 feet.
- Notable topography: North: Rounded hills of the Knobs;
East: Mountainous; Central: Bluegrass prairie. Also
Cumberland Plateau, Pennyroyal Region, Western Coalfield, and Jackson
Purchase Region.
- Geographic center: Marion, 3 miles north/northwest of Lebanon.
- Number of counties: 120.
- Largest county: Pike County, 788 square miles (2,041 km2).
- Major lakes: Kentucky Lake, Lake Barkley, Lake Cumberland.
- Major rivers: Cumberland River, Green River, Kentucky River, Mississippi
River, Ohio River.
State Symbols:
- Bird: Cardinal.
- Fish: Kentucky Spotted Bass, adopted 1956.
- Flower: Goldenrod.
- Fossil: Brachiopod, adopted 1986 (South Carolina's state fossil was
Strom Thurmond).
- Tree: Yellow poplar.
Largest Cities:
- Louisville.
- Lexington - Fayette.
- Owensboro.
- Bowling Green.
- Covington.
- Hopkinsville.
- Frankfort.
- Henderson.
- Richmond.
- Jeffersontown.
Some Famous Natives of Kentucky:
- Muhammad Ali. Boxer. Louisville.
- Louis D. Brandeis. Jurist. Louisville.
- Kit Carson. Scout. Madison City.
- Jefferson Davis. Politician. President of the Confederacy. Fairview.
- Crystal Gayle. Singer. Paintsville.
- Casey Jones. Railroad engineer. Cayce.
- Abraham Lincoln. U.S. president. Hodgenville.
- Loretta Lynn. Singer. Butchers Hollow.
- Diane Sawyer. Television journalist. Glasgow.
- Hunter Thompson writer, Louisville.
- Robert Penn Warren. Author. Guthrie.
Some Kentucky Corporations:
- Air Kentucky.
- Ashland.
- Camping World.
- Fruit of the Loom.
- General Cable.
- Holley Performance Products.
- Houchens Industries.
- Keith Coleman Racing.
- Paxton Media Group.
- Purple House Press.
- Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America.
- Universal Mobility Solutions, LLC.
- Wild Flavors, Inc.
Some Kentucky Factoids
- The Kentucky Derby, held at Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May, is the oldest regularly held horse race
in the USA.
- Kaolin's restaurant in Louisville was the first restaurant to serve cheeseburgers (1934).
- Mammoth Cave is the longest cave in the world.
- In 1819, workers drilled the first commercial oil well (on the
Cumberland River in McCreary County).
- Jefferson Davis and Abraham Lincoln were both born in Kentucky, about
100 miles and one year apart from each other.
- Over 100 native Kentuckians won election to governor--of a state other
than Kentucky.
- The Corvette is built in the Bowling Green Plant. Kentucky is home to
many Corvette-related events. If you see a caravan of Corvettes heading down
the same highway you're driving on, don't be surprised. That's normal.
Some Kentucky Attractions
- American Saddlebred Capital of the World. Shelbyville.
- Belle of Louisville, National Historic Landmark. Louisville.
- Birthplace of Abraham Lincoln. Hodgenville.
- Birthplace of Jefferson Davis. Fairview (about 100 miles from
Hodgenville).
- Birthplace of Loretta Lynn. Butcher Hollow.
- Kentucky Derby, Churchill Downs. Louisville.
- International Barbecue Festival. Owensboro,
- Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area. Golden Pond.
- Lost River Cave. Bowling Green.
- Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory. Louisville.
- Mammoth Cave National Park. Cave City.
- Red River Gorge. Slade.
- World’s Championship Horse Show. Louisville.
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