City of Pikeville, Kentucky | ||
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City | ||
Main Street in Pikeville
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Nickname(s): "The City That Moves Mountains" | ||
Motto: For Progress | ||
Location in Pike County and the state of Kentucky. |
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Coordinates: 37°28′38″N 82°31′48″W / 37.47722°N 82.53000°WCoordinates: 37°28′38″N 82°31′48″W / 37.47722°N 82.53000°W | ||
Country | United States | |
State | Kentucky | |
County | Pike | |
Established | 1824 | |
Incorporated | 1848 | |
Named for | Pike County, Kentucky | |
Government | ||
• Type | Council/Manager | |
• Mayor | James A "Jimmy" Carter | |
• City Manager | Donovan Blackburn | |
Area | ||
• Total | 15.4 sq mi (40.0 km2) | |
• Land | 15.4 sq mi (40.0 km2) | |
• Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) | |
Elevation | 679 ft (207 m) | |
Population (2010) | ||
• Total | 6,903 | |
• Density | 408/sq mi (157.5/km2) | |
U.S. Census Bureau, 2007 Population Estimates | ||
Time zone | EST (UTC-5) | |
• Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) | |
ZIP codes | 41501-41502 | |
Area code(s) | 606 | |
FIPS code | 21-60852 | |
GNIS feature ID | 0510155 | |
Website | www |
Pikeville (local /pækʌəl/) is a city in and the county seat of Pike County, Kentucky, United States. During the 2010 U.S. Census, the population within Pikeville's city limits was 6,903. In Kentucky's current city classification system, Pikeville is a "Home Rule Class" city, a category that includes all of the state's more than 400 cities except for the two largest, Louisville and Lexington.
On March 25, 1822, state officials decided to build a new county seat named "Liberty", 1.5 miles (2.4 km) below the mouth of the Russell Fork River. Public disapproval of the site led a new decision on December 24, 1823, to establish the county seat on land donated by local farmer Elijah Adkins. This settlement was established as the town of Pike after the county in 1824. This was changed in 1829 to Piketon and the town was incorporated under that name in 1848. In 1850, this was changed to the present Pikeville. Pikeville was host to a part of the Hatfield-McCoy feud, and patriarch Randall McCoy as well as his wife and daughter are buried on a hillside overlooking the town.
The National Civic League designated Pikeville as an All-American City in 1965.
From 1973 to 1987, the Pikeville Cut-Through was constructed immediately west of downtown. The massive rock cut is one of the largest civil engineering projects in the western hemisphere, moving nearly 18,000,000 cubic yards (14,000,000 m3) of soil and rock. The project alleviated traffic congestion in downtown and eliminated flooding by rerouting the Levisa Fork River.