Paintsville, Kentucky

A Paint Lick Station was referred to in military dispatches as early as 1780. The site was named for Indian art painted on the debarked trees near a local salt lick when the first white settlers arrived and was originally part of a 19,050-acre (7,710 ha) tract belonging to George Lewis.[2] The trading post was purchased by the Carolinian Rev.Henery Dixon in 1812 and laid out as the town of Paint Lick Station in 1826.[2] The town was formally established under that name in 1834,[1] although the post office was probably named Paint Creek.[2] It was incorporated as a city under its present name of Paintsville in 1843,[1] the same year it became the seat of Johnson County.

The Civil War found Johnson County Fiscal Court passing an ordinance barring both Union and Confederate flags from being flown in its jurisdiction. This was quickly repealed when then-Col. James A. Garfield marched his brigade into the city.

During the early twentieth century, Paintsville began to transform into a modern American city. In 1902, the city's first bank – First National – opened for business. In 1906, the city received telephone service and, two years later, all of its streets were paved. In 1912, Paintsville received electricity and natural gas services. In 1926, Paintsville residents received public water and the city's fire department was established.[7] Library services were originally provided through the Pack Horse Library Project.[8]

Since the 1990s, Paintsville has seen a steady loss of population (4,345 in 1990 to 3,459 in 2010[9]), in part due to a downturn in the economy, and the loss of coal jobs.[10][11] Despite this, there have been some business developments in the past few years, as well as growing tourist interest. Paintsville has been in the process of revitalizing the downtown area to rejuvenate its original business district. On June 9, 2009, Paintsville became a "wet" city for the first time since March 14, 1945, permitting stores located within the city limits to sell alcoholic beverages.[12]

The Levisa Fork River in Paintsville

Paintsville is located at 37°48′41″N 82°48′24″W (37.811324, −82.806780)[13] in the bottomland at the confluence of Paint Creek and the Levisa Fork of the Big Sandy River amid the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in the Cumberland Plateau. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.3 square miles (14 km²), all of it land.

Court Street

As of the census[18] of 2010, there were 3,459 people, 1,604 households, and 856 families residing in the city. The population density[19] was 1300.1 people per square mile. There were 1,844 housing units at an average density of 693.2 per square mile. The racial makeup[20] of the city was 99.3% White, 0.3% African American, 0.8% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, and 0.2% from other races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 0.4% of the population.

In the city, the population[20] was spread out, with 20.5% under 19, 6.1% from 20 to 24, 11.0% from 25 to 34, 11.9% from 35 to 44, 15.1% from 45 to 54, 14.4% from 55 to 64, and 21.1% who were 65 or older. The median age is 41.9 years. There were 1,574 males and 1,885 females.

The median income for a household in the city was $25,259, and the median income for a family was $30,575. Males had a median income of $30,478 versus $25,640 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,876. About 21.0% of families and 29.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 39.9% of those under age 18 and 22.0% of those age 65 or over.

In 2009, the following crime rate (per 100,000 population) was reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation by the city police department:[21]

Johnson County Judicial Center

2022 shooting that left Three people fatally wounded. Five people died in a 2018 shooting spree.[22]

Paintsville has a mayor–council form of government.[23] Paintsville's current mayor/city executive is Bill Mike Runyon, who was appointed in 2016.

Former mayors:[24]

The representative body of the city of Paintsville is the city council. The council members include Sara Blair, Tim Hall, Tommy Trimble, Jim Meek, David Trimble, and Shawn Thompson.[23]

Paintsville High School

The Paintsville Independent School District includes Paintsville High School (7th–12th grades) and Paintsville Elementary School. Paintsville Independent has consistently had college attendance rates between 95% and 100% since 2008.[25] In 2012, the district had a composite ACT score of 22.7.[26] It was the 4th highest composite ACT score out of the 169 school districts in the state of Kentucky.[26][27]

Johnson County Schools also operates three schools within the city of Paintsville: Johnson Central High School, Johnson County Middle School (Kentucky), and Central Elementary School. Johnson County is also well known for its academics. Johnson Central High School has won five international Future Problem Solving titles while the middle school has won 10 Governor's Cup state titles along with three international FPS titles.[28][29]

Our Lady of the Mountains School is a private institution operated by the Roman Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of Lexington.[30]

Big Sandy Community and Technical College operates a campus in Paintsville that offers two-year degrees in various fields of study.[31]

Paintsville has a lending library, the Johnson County Public Library.[32]

Paintsville ARH Hospital is a full-service hospital providing healthcare to the region. It has a full-service emergency room with a pediatric trauma room, a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, a special birthing room, and full service surgical services, including a daVinci Si robotic system providing state-of-the-art laparoscopic surgery for the greater Paintsville region.[43]

• The majority of the 1983 film Kentucky Woman was filmed in Paintsville.[45]
• Paintsville was one of the three filming locations for the 2010 drama film, Passenger Pigeons.[46]

• Willie Blair, pitcher in Major League Baseball 1990–2001
• Tyler Childers, country, bluegrass, and rock musician
• Jim Ford, singer-songwriter; born in Paintsville[47]
• Jim Fyffe, sportscaster and radio talk-show host
• Crystal Gayle, country music singer and recording artist; born in Paintsville in 1951 (Older sister Loretta Lynn was born in nearby Butcher Hollow/Van Lear in 1932)
• Andrew Jackson Kirk, U.S. Representative from Kentucky
• Johnnie LeMaster, Major League Baseball player (San Francisco Giants, Cleveland Indians, Pittsburgh Pirates); resides in Paintsville
• John C. C. Mayo, entrepreneur
• Wendell H. Meade, Republican member of U.S. House of Representatives 1947–49; born in Paintsville
• John Pelphrey, Kentucky "Mr. Basketball" of 1987, one of four University of Kentucky basketball players dubbed "The Unforgettables"; former Arkansas head coach
• Venus Ramey, Miss America 1944; grew up in Paintsville[48]
• Ovie Scurlock, born in Paintsville on November 11, 1918, former jockey in horse racing
• Benjamin F. Stapleton, Mayor of Denver, Colorado 1923–1931 and 1935–1947, born in Paintsville
• Chris Stapleton, country, bluegrass, rock musician signed to Universal Music Group Nashville; attended Johnson Central High School in Paintsville[49]
• Richard Scott Thomas, born in Paintsville on December 3, 1925, dancer, educator, co-founder of New York School of Ballet; father of Richard Earl Thomas, actor best known for role as John-Boy Walton in CBS drama The Waltons[50]

• Johnson County, Kentucky
• Paul B. Hall Regional Medical Center
• Citizens National Bank
• Paintsville High School
• Johnson Central High School
• U.S. 23 Country Music Highway Museum
• Francis M. Stafford House

• City of Paintsville
• Paintsville/Johnson County Chamber of Commerce
• The Paintsville Herald