Paducah is a city in McCracken County, Kentucky at the confluence of the Tennessee River and the
Ohio River. The population was 26,307 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of McCracken County. Twenty blocks of the
Paducah Downtown Commercial District have been placed on the National Register of Historic Places. 6
Geography
Paducah is located at 37°4′20″N, 88°37′39″W (37.072226,
-88.627436).1
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area
of 50.5 km² (19.5 mi²). 50.5 km² (19.5 mi²) of it
is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.10%) is water.
Paducah is the largest city in the Jackson Purchase Region of Western Kentucky. It
is one of two cities named Paducah located in the United States. The other Paducah is in
the state of Texas, near the panhandle, and was named after Paducah, Kentucky [1].
Climate
Paducah has a borderline humid subtropical climate, with an average annual
temperature of 57.2°F (14°C). Average annual
precipitation is 49.31 inches (125.25 centimeters), and average
annual snowfall is 10.6 inches (26.92 centimeters).
The highest recorded temperature in Paducah was 106°F (41°C), recorded on June 30,
1952 and July 28, 1952. The lowest recorded temperature was -15°F
(-26°C), recorded on January 20, 1985.
| Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures |
| Month |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
| Rec High °F |
70 |
77 |
84 |
90 |
94 |
103 |
102 |
104 |
100 |
89 |
83 |
74 |
| Norm High °F |
41.9 |
48 |
58.1 |
68.4 |
76.9 |
85.2 |
88.6 |
87.4 |
81.2 |
70.8 |
57.2 |
46.3 |
| Norm Low °F |
23.9 |
28.2 |
37.1 |
45.6 |
55 |
63.8 |
67.7 |
64.9 |
57.1 |
45.2 |
36.5 |
27.5 |
| Rec Low °F |
-15 |
-8 |
11 |
24 |
35 |
44 |
52 |
44 |
35 |
24 |
10 |
-10 |
| Precip (in) |
3.47 |
3.93 |
4.27 |
4.95 |
4.75 |
4.51 |
4.45 |
2.99 |
3.56 |
3.45 |
4.53 |
4.38 |
| Source: USTravelWeather.com [2] |
History
The story of Pekin (Paducah)
Lewis and Clark statues in Paducah.
Paducah, originally called Pekin, began around 1815 as a mixed community of Native Americans and white settlers who were
attracted by its location at the confluence of many waterways.
According to legend, Chief Paduke, most likely a Chickasaw, welcomed the people
traveling down the Ohio and Tennessee on flatboats.
His wigwam, located on a low bluff at the mouth of Island Creek, served as the counsel lodge for
his village. The settlers, appreciative of his hospitality,
and respectful of his ways, settled across the creek.
The two communities lived in harmony trading goods and services enjoying the novelty
of each other's culture. The settlers had brought horses and
mules which they used to pull the flatboats upstream to farms,
logging camps, trading posts and other settlements along the waterways, establishing a primitive, but thriving economy.
This cultural interaction continued until William Clark, famed leader of the
Lewis and Clark Expedition, arrived in 1827 with a title deed to the land upon which Pekin sat. Clark was the superintendent of Indian
affairs for the Mississippi-Missouri River region. He asked the Chief and the settlers to move along, which they did, offering
little resistance probably because the deed was issued by the United States
Supreme Court. Though the deed cost only $5.00 to process, it carried with it the full authority of the U. S. Government
backed by the United States Army.
Clark surveyed his new property and laid out the grid for a new town which remains evident to
this day. The Chief and his villagers moved to Mississippi allowing Clark to continue with
the building of the new city which he named Paducah in honor of the Chief. Upon completion of the platt, Clark sent envoys to
Mississippi to invite Chief Paduke back to a ribbon-cutting ceremony, but he died of
malaria in the boat while making the return trip. The settlers had been allowed to purchase
tracts within the new grid but most of them moved on to less developed areas.
Incorporation, steamboats and railroads
Paducah was incorporated as a town in 1830, and because of the dynamics of the waterways, it
offered valuable port facilities for the steam boats that traversed the river system. A factory for making red bricks, and a Foundry for making rail and locomotive components became the neucleus of a thriving River and Rail industrial economy.
After a period of nearly exponential growth, Paducah was chartered as a
city in 1856. It became the site of dry dock
facilities for steamboats and towboats and thus headquarters
for many bargeline companies. Because of its proximity to coalfields further to the east in Kentucky and north in Illinois, Paducah also became an important railway hub for the
Illinois Central Railroad, the primary north-south railway connecting
Chicago and East St.
Louis to the Gulf of Mexico at Gulfport,
Mississippi. The IC system also provided east-west links to Burlington
Northern Railroad and Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
lines (which later merged to become the BNSF Railway).
Paducah in the Civil War
During the American Civil War on September 6,
1861, forces under Union General
Ulysses S. Grant captured Paducah, which gave the Union control of the mouth of the
Tennessee River. Throughout most of the war, US Colonel Stephen
G. Hicks was in charge of Paducah and massive Union supply depots and dock
facilities for the gunboats and supply ships that supported Federal forces along the Ohio,
Mississippi and Tennessee River systems.
On December 17, 1862, under the terms of General Order No. 11, thirty Jewish families, longtime residents all, were forced from their
homes. Cesar Kaskel, a prominent local Jewish businessman, dispatched a telegram to President
Lincoln, and met with him, eventually succeeding in getting the order revoked.
On March 25, 1864, Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest
raided Paducah as part of his campaign Northward from Mississippi into Western Tennessee and
Kentucky to re-supply the Confederate forces in the region with recruits, ammunition, medical supplies, horses and mules and to
generally upset the Union domination of the regions south of the
Ohio river. The raid was successful in terms of the re-supply effort and in intimidating the
Union, but Forrest returned south.
- Forrest's report: "I drove the enemy to their gunboats and fort; and held the town for ten hours, captured many
stores and horses; burned sixty bales of cotton, one steamer, and a drydock, bringing out fifty prisoners."
Later, Forrest, having read in the newspapers that 140 fine horses had escaped the raid, sent Brigadier General Abraham Buford
back to Paducah, to get the horses and to keep Union forces busy there while he attacked Fort Pillow.
On April 14, 1864 Buford's men found the horses hidden in a
foundry as the newspapers reported. Buford rejoined Forrest with the spoils, leaving the Union in control of Paducah until the
end of the War.
-
1937 flood
- See also: Ohio River flood of 1937
In 1937, the Ohio River at Paducah rose above its 50-foot flood stage on January 21,
cresting at 60.8 feet on February 2 and receding again to 50-feet on February 15. For nearly three weeks, 27,000 residents were
forced to flee to stay with friends and relatives in higher ground in McCracken County or in other counties. Some shelters were
provided by the American Red Cross and local churches. Buildings in downtown Paducah
still bear plaques that highlight the high water marks.
With 18 inches of rainfall in 16 days, along with sheets of swiftly moving ice the '37 flood was the worst natural disaster in Paducah's history. Because Paducah's earthen levee was ineffective against this
flood, the United States Army Corps of Engineers was commissioned
to build the flood wall that now protects the city from the ravages of flooding.
The Atomic City
In 1950 the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission selected Paducah as
the site for a new Uranium enrichment Plant. Construction began in 1951 and began
operations in 1952. The plant, originally operated by Union Carbide has changed hands
several times to Martin Marieta, Lockheed-Martin, and is now operated by the United States Enrichment Corporation. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE),
successor to the AEC, remains the owner.
Quilt City, USA
On April 25, 1991, the American Quilter's Society located its Museum - MAQS in downtown Paducah. Each
spring, during the Dogwood season, quilt enthusiasts from all
over the world flock to Paducah for the Society's annual event. The Quilt Show is one of Paducah's largest events of the year and
draws large revenue in tourism. Hotels for miles around the city fill up months in advance of the show.
The Heath shootings
-
On December 1, 1997, a 14-year old boy named Michael Carneal
carried five loaded guns to Heath High School about 10 miles from the city. He shot at a group of fellow students in the school's
lobby as they were leaving a prayer group before school. Three girls were killed, and five other victims were wounded; one of the
wounded was left a paraplegic. Five of the victims were shot in the head, and three were hit
in the upper torso. (See School massacre)
Contemporary Christian music star Steven Curtis Chapman, a 1981 Heath graduate, performed at the memorial service for the three
slain girls.
- Further information: James v. Meow Media
Annual telethon
Local Chapters of Paducah's Lions Club and WPSD, the local NBC affiliate, hold an annual telethon to raise money for local charities. The money
raised over the past 49 years has totaled more than $18,000,000 as of 2005. Talent throughout the years has been very diversified
including:
- (Nathan Ellis)1993
- Leonard Nimoy (1967)
- "Doc" Severinson (1966)
- Betty White (1959)
- Hugh Downs (1959)
- Bill Anderson (1980)
- Carl Perkins (1979)
- Tom T. Hall (1976)
- Melissa Sue Anderson (1976)
- Count Basie (1971)
- Barbara Mandrell (several appearances)
- Steve Wariner (several appearances)
- Peter Marshall (1983)
- Ed Begley, Jr. (1984)
- Todd Bridges (1984)
- Bobby Vee (1988)
- JD Sumner and the Stamps (1993)
- Terry Mike Jeffrey (several appearances)
- Lew Jetton & 61 South (several appearances)
- Juice Newton (2002)
- Pam Tillis (2004)
- Ralph Emery (as emcee - many years)
- Other various NBC soap opera stars
- Players and coaches from the St Louis Cardinals
- Ford. (2005) Legend Electronica Artist
Contemporary Paducah
In August of 2000, Paducah’s "Artist Relocation Program" was started to offer incentives for artists to relocate to its historical Downtown and Lower Town areas. The program has become a national model for
using the arts for economic development, and has
been awarded the Governors Award in the Arts, The Kentucky Chapter of the American Planning Association Distinguished Planning
Award, The American Planning Association National Planning Award, and most
recently Kentucky League of Cities' Enterprise Cities Award.
Lower Town, home of the Artist Relocation Program, is the oldest neighborhood in Paducah. As retail commerce moved toward the
outskirts of town, efforts were made to preserve the architectural stylings, restoring the historic Victorian structures in the older parts of the city. The program helped that effort and became a
catalyst for revitalizing the Downtown area. The Luthor F. Carson Center for the Performing Arts was also constructed.
In September of 2004 plans gelled to bring a heightened awareness of Paducah's
musical roots to the forefront of public consciousness, through the redevelopment of the
South side of Downtown. The centerpiece of the effort is the renovation of Maggie Steed's Hotel Metropolitan[3], where legends
such as Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington,
Cab Calloway, Chick Webb's orchestra, B.B. King, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Ike and Tina Turner and other R & B and
Blues legends polished their craft along what has become known as the Chitlin' circuit. Using this genre as a foundation, Paducah intends to assert its place in the
annals of American music.
Music in Paducah
The town of Paducah has given birth to great artists from all genres. The more mainstream artists include Steven Curtis Chapman, the greatest selling Christian artist of all time, and Terry Mike Jeffrey, who has been showcased many times on national television.
The local community also boasts a great "underground" musical environment, with many musical acts finding success on smaller
levels. Much of this is due to the recent promotion of musical growth in the city with the new Middletown project. Some of these
artists include renowned punk rockers Teenage Rehab, Southern Rock band Adamgrant & The Satisfaction, the folk group Bawn in
the Mash, and indie artist Kelsey Waldon.
The town has recently began redeveloping its Middletown section as a hotspot for musical growth. The plan is very similar to
its very successful Lowertown Artist District. The vocal point of Middletown will be the Metropolitan Hotel, where many blues and
jazz musicians played during the mid-20th century.
The town celebrates its local musicians many times in the year, but most notably during its annual Summer Festival and
the Rock The Vote-sponsored Paducahpalooza festival.
See also: Urban planning, Gentrification
Media
Local media in Paducah includes NBC affiliate WPSD-TV and regional daily newspaper
The Paducah Sun, both owned by Paxton Media Group. Six radio stations call
Paducah home with half of the stations owned by Bristol Broadcasting
Company, while weekly newspapers the West Kentucky News and Lone Oak News also enjoy significant readership.
A National Weather Service Forecast Office is based in Paducah, providing
weather information to western Kentucky, southeastern Missouri, southern Illinois, and southwestern Indiana.
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 26,307 people, 11,825 households, and 6,645 families
residing in the city. The population density was 521.4/km² (1,350.2/mi²). There were
13,221 housing units at an average density of 262.0/km² (678.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 72.78% White, 24.15% African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.64% Asian, 0.08%
Pacific Islander, 0.55% from other races, and 1.56% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 1.38% of the population.
There were 11,825 households out of which 25.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.8% were married couples living together, 16.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.8% were
non-families. 39.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or
older. The average household size was 2.12 and the average family size was 2.84.
The age distribution was 22.5% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 20.3%
who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 83.4 males. For every 100
females age 18 and over, there were 77.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $26,137, and the median income for a family was $34,092. Males had a median
income of $32,783 versus $21,901 for females. The per capita income for the city was
$18,417. About 18.0% of families and 22.4% of the population were below the poverty
line, including 33.8% of those under age 18 and 16.8% of those age 65 or over.
Notable residents
Paducah was the birthplace or residence of the following notable people:
- Vice President Alben W.
Barkley spent much of his life in Paducah, and has a lake, an airport and other landmarks named after him in the area. His historic home, Angles, is a
private residence. One can visit Whitehaven, a mansion-turned-welcome-center off Interstate 24, where some of his memorabilia is
displayed.
- Julian Carroll, Governor of Kentucky
from 1974 to 1979
- Steven Curtis Chapman, contemporary Christian music star
- Irvin S. Cobb, humorist
- Russ Cochran, PGA Tour golfer
- Steve Finley, a longtime (and current) Major
League Baseball player, was born in West Tennessee, but grew up in Paducah.
- Clarence "Big House" Gaines, Hall of
Fame basketball coach
- Dr. Robert H. Grubbs, a 2005 Nobel
Laureate in Chemistry, grew up in Paducah.
- Eddie Haas, former Major League Baseball
outfielder, coach, manager and scout.
- Callie Khouri, who won an Oscar for her screenplay to Thelma and Louise, lived in Paducah for most of her childhood.
- Fate Marable, jazz pianist and bandleader
- Boots Randolph, saxophonist
- Phil Roof, a former Major League Baseball
player and coach and minor league baseball manager.
- Actress Jeri Ryan (Star Trek: Voyager,
Boston Public, Shark) spent her
teenage years in Paducah.
- John Scopes, of Scopes Trial fame, is buried in
Paducah
- Terry Shumpert, a former Major League Baseball player.
- William Sledd, notable YouTube celebrity
- Confederate General Lloyd Tilghman
lived in Paducah for a number of years. The only public high school in the Paducah
Public Schools district, Paducah Tilghman High School, is named in
honor of General Tilghman's wife Augusta Tilghman.
- Marcy Walker, Liza Colby on All My
Children
- Col. JD Wilkes, musician and visual artist, who still lives in Paducah
- Hoyt Hawkins, a member of the Jordanaires who gained international fame for singing background for Elvis Presley, was born in
Paduch in 1927.
- Vernon Carver Rudolph, the founder of Krispy Kreme, was involved with a Broad Street
doughnut shop in Paducah purchased by his uncle. Rudolph turned the company’s assets and the
rights to a secret yeast-raised doughnut recipe into Krispy Kreme in Winston- Salem, NC. Ironically, Paducah has never had a
franchised Krispy Kreme. Local doughnut shops have served similar doughnuts in Paducah since World War II.
- Charles "Speedy" Atkins, whose mummified body was on display at a local funeral home from 1928 to 1994.
See also
References
External links
Coordinates:
37.072226° N 88.627436°
W
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