Middlesboro, Kentucky

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Coordinates: 36°36′37″N 83°43′24″W / 36.61028, -83.72333
Middlesboro, Kentucky
Location of Middlesboro, Kentucky
Country	United States
State	Kentucky
County	Bell
Incorporated	1890
Government
- Mayor	Ben A. Hickman
Area
- Total	7.6 sq mi (19.8 km²)
- Land	7.6 sq mi (19.8 km²)
- Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km²)
Population (2000)
- Total	10,384
- Density	1,359.1/sq mi (524.8/km²)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	40965
Area code(s)	606
FIPS code	21-51924

Middlesboro, also spelled Middlesborough, is a city in Bell County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 12,251 at the 2000 census. However the micropolitan cluster that consists of the entire population not included in the 2000 census, including suburbs Ambleside, Vista Venado and areas around the belt line and Noe Town increases Middlesboro's population to 18,792. The entire Micropolitan area has a population of 68,890 which includes Bell and Whitley counties. It is the principal city of the Middlesborough, KY Micropolitan Statistical Area.

The city was incorporated in 1890 as "Middlesborough", named after the town of Middlesbrough on the south bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. However, the U.S. Post Office began using the spelling "Middlesboro" in 1894. [1] Both spellings are used interchangeably; for example, the city's school district uses the Middlesboro spelling, as does the Kentucky Secretary of State's Land Office [2].

The city is located on the Kentucky side of the Cumberland Gap near the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park.

As the coal industry has declined over the last several years, the area has been increasingly hopeful for a growth in tourism, primarily from the nearby national park. The Pine Mountain State Resort Park is also located in nearby Pineville.

The town is home to the Middlesboro Country Club. Founded in 1889, the 9-hole course is one of the oldest golf courses in the country. The club also claims to be the oldest continuously played course in the nation.

Geologists believe that the Middlesboro basin between Pine Mountain and the Cumberland Mountains is the remains of an ancient meteor crater, which would give the town the rare distinction of being one of the few cities in the world completely built inside a crater. The crater is one of three known astroblemes in the state.

It is the hometown of actor Lee Majors. It is also the hometown of the late Susan Kingsley, stage and movie actress.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 History
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Middlesboro is located at 36°36′37″N, 83°43′24″W (36.610146, -83.723230)^[1]. The city sits just inside the Cumberland Gap, along U.S. Highway 25, and is believed to have been built inside a meteor crater.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.6 square miles (19.8 km²), all of it land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 12,251 people, 4,443 households, and 2,927 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,359.1 people per square mile (524.8/km²). There were 4,955 housing units at an average density of 648.5/sq mi (250.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.84% White, 4.90% African American, 0.38% Native American, 0.63% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.19% from other races, and 1.02% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 0.79% of the population.

There were 4,443 households out of which 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.1% were married couples living together, 18.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.1% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.88.

The age distribution was 23.6% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 17.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 83.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $19,565, and the median income for a family was $25,016. Males had a median income of $23,285 versus $19,040 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,189. About 24.4% of families and 28.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 41.2% of those under age 18 and 16.5% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] History

Middlesboro was originally founded as a resort town for English tourists, during a vogue for Appalachian mountain resorts. The presence of iron deposits in the area also inspired the city's founder with ill-founded hopes of a center for iron mining and processing, like its namesake town of Middlesbrough, England. Unfortunately, the iron deposits were not economically viable, and an economic downturn doomed town's efforts to make the resort popular.

Eventually, the local economy turned to coal mining and became dependent on the variations in that industry.

In 1995 a branch campus of Southeast Community College opened on reclaimed swamp land just north of the town's airport on 30th Street. It consists of three buildings and serves approximately 1,000 students from Bell and adjacent counties. In 1998 Southeast ended its affiliation with the University of Kentucky and became part of the newly-created Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS).