ZIP Code 42025

Benton was founded in 1842 by John Bearden and Francis H. Clayton. The town was named for Thomas Hart Benton, a senator from Missouri. In 1908, Benton drove its African American residents out of town, becoming a sundown town along with the rest of Marshall County. Benton is the county seat of Marshall county, in the far western region of west Kentucky known as the Jackson purchase. On December 10, 2021, the town was hit by the 2021 Western Kentucky Tornado. The city has a total area of 3.9 square miles (10 km²), all land. It is the oldest continuous trade day in the United States in which goods such as guns, tobacco, and livestock are swapped. Tater Day brings to a market, games, carnival rides, a potato eating contest, mule pulls, and a "big potato" contest. There is also a Junior Miss Tater day for little girls ages 5 to 12, and Little Miss Tiny Miss Tiny pageants for the younger kids. The biggest part of the festival is the parade, which completes one circuit around the town. It includes political floats, horses, vintage cars, clowns, vintage horses, and clowns. It also includes a parade for the Marshall County High School marching band, which complete one circuit. The population was 4,756 at the 2020 census. The current mayor of this city is Rita Dotson, who has been in office since 2008. The median income for a household in the city was $42,342. The per capita income was $21,959.

History

Benton was founded in 1842 by John Bearden and Francis H. Clayton. The town was named for Thomas Hart Benton, a senator from Missouri. Benton was then incorporated in 1845. In 1908, Benton drove its African American residents out of town, becoming a sundown town along with the rest of Marshall County. On December 10, 2021, the town was hit by the 2021 Western Kentucky Tornado. On January 23, 2018, a shooting occurred at Marshall County High School, near Benton. The shooting resulted in 19 injuries and 2 fatalities, with Benton being the site of one of the worst school shootings in U.S. history. In the same year, a tornado hit the town, causing $1.2 million in damage. The tornado was the worst tornado to hit Marshall County in more than 30 years. It was also the deadliest tornado in the state of Kentucky, with more than 1,000 people killed in the storm. The storm was the first to hit the state since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. It also was the second deadliest tornado to strike the state in the last 10 years, after Hurricane Ike in 2008. The Tornado caused more than $1 billion in damage in Marshall County and the surrounding areas. It is the deadliest Tornado to hit Kentucky since Hurricane Rita in 2005, with a death toll of more than 100 in that storm. In 2010, the state had the highest death toll from a tornado in history, with at least 20 people killed.

Geography

Benton is the county seat of Marshall county, in the far western region of west Kentucky known as the Jackson purchase. Benton lies in the center of the county encompassing the hills just south and west of Clarks River. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.9 square miles (10 km²), all land. The city is located on the Ohio River, which runs through the city. It is located in the eastern part of the state, just south of the Kentucky-Louisiana state line. The town has a population of 1,788. The county seat is Marshall, which is home to the University of Kentucky, which was founded in 1859. It was the site of the first recorded European settlement of the area, in 1805. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates the city's population at 1,856. It has a land mass of 3,908 square miles, or 10 km², all of which is land. It lies on theOhio River, a tributary of the Cumberland River, and the Kentucky–Louisiana border, which forms the western edge of Marshall County. The area is known as "The Jackson Purchase" because of the large amount of land that was purchased by the state in the early 1800s. The Jackson Purchase is a region of western Kentucky known for its coal-mining history, which dates back to the early 19th century. The region is also known for being one of the most fertile areas in the state.

Demographics

As of the 2010 Census, there were 4,349 people, 1,809 households, and 1,154 families residing in the city. There were 2,032 housing units at an average density of 470.7 per square mile (181.7/km²) The racial makeup of the city was 97.4% White (96.4%) and 0.6% Asian (0.6%) Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 1.8% of the population. The median income for a household in theCity was $42,342, and the median income. for a family was $62,500. The per capita income for the city is $21,959. About 5.3% of those under age 18 and 10.7% ofThose age 65 or over are living below the poverty line. The city is located on the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey quadrangle, which covers the state of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and New Mexico. It is the only city in the state that is not on the National Register of Historic Places. It was the site of the World War II Battle of the Bulge, which took place in World War I. The U.N. World Heritage Site is on the city's outskirts, and it is home to the American Museum of Natural History and the National Museum of American History. The National Park Service has a base office in the City of Seattle, which was established in 1881.

Culture

Tater Day brings to town carnival rides, games, a market, a potato eating contest, mule pulls, and a "biggest potato" contest. It is also the oldest continuous trade day in the United States, in which goods such as guns, 'coon hounds, tobacco, or livestock are swapped or sold. There is also an annual Tater day derby that is hosted at the dirt track at the Benton City Park. The biggest part of the festival is the parade, which completes one circuit around the town. It includes political floats, Marshall County High School marching band, horses and buggies, clowns, vintage cars, horses, Miss Tater Day, and other things for which Marshall County is known. There are pageants for little girls ages 5 to 12, and Little Mister, Tiny Miss, and Baby Miss tater day pageants and floats for the younger kids. The Big Singing Day, organized in 1884, is the oldest Continuous Southern Harmony singing in the U.S. It was started in 1843 as a celebration of spring and a time when all of the townsfolk would get together and trade in sweet potato slips, used to grow the plants. This event is also known as The Bigsinging or Big Singer Day, because it is held on the 4th Sunday in May in Benton, Kentucky. It's also called The Big singing day because it's the biggest day for shape note singers in the country. It also includes a parade, a pageant, and an annual derby.

Education

Benton is part of the Marshall County School District. There are 11 schools in the district, not including the technical school that is incorporated with Marshall County High School. For the 2011 to 2012 school year, there were approximately 4,838 students enrolled in the school district. Benton has a lending library, a branch of theMarshall County Public Library. The school district has a total of 11 schools, including a technical school and a high school. The district also has a public library, the Benton Public Library, which is open to the public on weekdays and evenings. It is located on the main campus of the high school in Benton. The high school is the district's only secondary educational institution, and it is located in the center of the district. It has an enrollment of about 4,800 students. It was the largest school district in the state in the 2010-11 school year. It also had the most students in the 2011-12 school year with approximately 4.838. It's the second-largest district in Marshall County, after Marshall County Elementary School. It had a total enrollment of 4,788 students in 2009-10 school year and 4,938 students in 2010-2011 school year; it had the highest number of students in 2012-13 school year (4,917) and the second highest in the 2013-14 school year for the district (3,907). It is the only school in the county to have a college preparatory program.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Benton, Marshall County, Kentucky = 86. 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 101. 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 Benton = 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 4,756 individuals with a median age of 42.7 age the population grows by 0.26% in Benton, Marshall County, Kentucky population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 944.03 residents per square mile of area (364.52/km²). There are average 2.14 people per household in the 1,807 households with an average household income of $43,605 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 11.00% of the available work force and has dropped -3.85% 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 21.30%. The number of physicians in Benton per 100,000 population = 60.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Benton = 51.4 inches and the annual snowfall = 7.3 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 104. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 195. 92 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 26.7 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 27, 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 Benton, Marshall County, Kentucky which are owned by the occupant = 66.74%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 40 years with median home cost = $102,460 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 $6.07 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 $4,484 per student. There are 16.5 students for each teacher in the school, 592 students for each Librarian and 364 students for each Counselor. 3.10% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 8.33% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 10.20% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).