Hazard, Kentucky

Hazard is a city located in Perry County, Kentucky. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 4,806. It is the county seat of Perry County{{GR|6}}.

History

The town of Hazard, as well as Perry County, is named after U.S. Navy Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, known for his victory report during the War of 1812 stating, "We have met the enemy and they are ours." A post office named Perry Court House was established in the area in the 1820s, though some reports note that locals had always referred to the area as "Hazard". The town's name was officially changed to Hazard in 1854.

Related Topics:
U.S. Navy - Oliver Hazard Perry - War of 1812 - 1820s - 1854

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Long isolated by the surrounding mountains, Hazard met the outside world with the arrival of the railroad in 1912. Previously, the only ways in or out of the valley were 45 miles down the North Fork of the Kentucky River, or a 2-week trip over the surrounding mountains. The railroad brought boom times to the town, but the Great Depression saw prosperity end as quickly as it had begun.

Related Topics:
Railroad - 1912 - Kentucky River - Great Depression

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Need details here, including the 1927, 1957 and 1963 floods, the rise and fall of the coal-based economy, and the building of State Highway 15, State Highway 80, and the Daniel Boone Turnpike (now the Hal Rogers Parkway).

Related Topics:
1927 - 1957 - 1963 - Coal - Daniel Boone - Hal Rogers Parkway

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The early 1980s CBS television series The Dukes of Hazzard brought visitors to the town, even though the fictional "Hazzard County" was set in Georgia. During and after the popular show's run, members of the show's cast were frequent visitors to Hazard's annual Black Gold Festival.

Related Topics:
1980s - CBS - The Dukes of Hazzard - Georgia - Black Gold

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In July, 1999, Hazard received the dubious honor of being the first stop on President Bill Clinton's tour of poverty-stricken communities that had failed to share in the boom of the 1990s.

Related Topics:
1999 - Bill Clinton's - Poverty - 1990s

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