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Grayson, Kentucky

15 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1903 and the latest in 1982. It stands in the Grayson census division. It lies in ZIP code area 41143. It stands on Town Branch. The Survey maps it on the Grayson quadrangle. 3,834 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 633 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Grayson within Carter County

On record in Grayson

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 1 record

Surveyed buildings and structures 1 record

Population over time

2 figures

Grayson fell from 4,217 to 3,834 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

YearPeople Change
20104,217
20203,834-383 (-9%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

7 surveys from 15 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Photographs

1 photograph,

Taken for the Office of War Information and the Farm Security Administration, who photographed the country between 1935 and 1944. Works of United States government photographers, with no known restriction on use. Each opens its catalogue record.

Mount Savage Iron Furnace, Junction of U.S. Route 60 & State Route 1, Grayson, Carter County, KY
Mount Savage Iron Furnace, Junction of U.S. Route 60 & State Route 1, Grayson, Carter County, KY
Photographer not recorded. Library of Congress

Fires near this place

142 since 1997

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 142 fires within 5 miles of Grayson between 1997 and 2020, burning about 2,848 acres in total. 1 started naturally. 25 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Debris and open burning48
Missing data/not specified/undetermined34
Recreation and ceremony28
Arson/incendiarism25
Smoking3
Railroad operations and maintenance2
Natural1
Equipment and vehicle use1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
24 September 2007Debris and open burning1.0 acresKentucky Division of Forestrynot named
22 September 2007Debris and open burning1.0 acresKentucky Division of Forestrynot named
18 September 2007Recreation and ceremony8.0 acresKentucky Division of Forestrynot named
14 September 2008Missing data/not specified/undetermined8.0 acresKentucky Division of Forestrynot named
8 August 2002Recreation and ceremony1.0 acresKentucky Division of Forestrynot named
21 August 2019Equipment and vehicle use2.0 acresKentucky Division of ForestryAA HAYFIELD
18 August 2008Debris and open burning1.0 acresKentucky Division of Forestrynot named
18 August 1999Arson/incendiarism35 acresKentucky Division of Forestrynot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Carter County

Mines and quarries near this place

2 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 2 workings within 5 miles of Grayson: 1 producer, 1 unknown. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Clay, Fire Clay (Refractory). Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Hitchens WorksClayProducer
Olive Hill Fire Clay DistrictFire Clay (Refractory)Unknown

Every working recorded in Carter County

Storms near this place

47 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Grayson in 47 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 20 hail, 19 thunderstorm wind, 5 flash flood, 2 flood. The reports record 1 injury. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
June 2001Flash FloodGrayson1 hurt, $250,000Streams, such as Star Creek, Norton Branch, Williams Creek, and Wilson Creek flooded. Twelve people were evacuated. About 40 to 50 homes and mobile homes were affected, some with just basement flooding. A barn was destroyed. A parked car was swept away near the junction of Route 60 and 207. A Rush resident said, "I've lived here 41 years and I've never seen it this bad." Water got into the Star Elementary School, causing damage to the teacher lounge and kitchen. An unconfirmed report of 6.5 inches of rain was received from a fireman on Wilson Creek. One woman received a broken leg.
June 2003Flash FloodGrayson$200,000Williams Creek flooded roads. About a dozen homes were flooded around Grayson.
August 2018Flash FloodGrayson$150,000An abundant amount of rain fell over Carter County causing high water along Highway 1 in Hitchins. In Grayson, parts of the town were evacuated due to flooding. More than 20 apartments were evacuated due to high water with some of the bottom floor units having water inside them. The Carter County fairgrounds were also evacuated as Barrett Creek flooded. The events on the final day of the fair were cancelled.
March 2021FloodGrayson$50,000The Little Sandy River at Grayson rose above its 21 foot flood stage on the last day of February. On March 1st the river crested at 27.95 feet, tentatively the fifth highest crest of all time at this location, then returned to its banks the next day on the 2nd. Extensive property damage occurred in the town of Grayson while the river was out of its banks and backwater along streams and creeks drained into the Little Sandy. Many of the local roadways became unusable as flood water spilled into the town and up toward the I-64 corridor.
August 1997LightningGrayson$30,000The emergency dispatch system for the county was damaged. The director said, "we lost the entire control console".
May 2016Thunderstorm WindGrayson$25,000A damage path started along Criswell Lane, where a few trees were snapped and uprooted. A single wide trailer was destroyed near the intersection of Satellite Road and Route 60. The strongest winds were estimated around 85 mph in this valley. The damage extended to Sunset Hill Road and ended along Green Oaks Drive. Several large trees were uprooted. Two small old barns were also damaged in this event. Luckily, no injuries occurred.
May 2016HailGrayson$25,000In addition to the wind damage, golf ball size hail fell along Green Oaks Drive.
August 2010Thunderstorm WindGrayson$25,000Trees were blown down in town. A metal roof was damaged.
July 2015Thunderstorm WindGrayson$20,000Several trees were blown down. A few trees fell onto power lines.
August 2010Thunderstorm WindGrayson$20,000Several trees were blown down. A few trees fell onto power lines.
February 2009Thunderstorm WindGrayson$20,000Trees and large branches fell on power lines.
August 1997Thunderstorm WindGrayson$20,000Uprooted trees blew onto a house along Route 7. A 100 pound well box was blown 70 feet.
June 2009Thunderstorm WindGrayson$10,000Trees fell down onto power lines and houses.
August 1997Thunderstorm WindGrayson$10,000no account filed
July 2016Thunderstorm WindGrayson$8,000A roof to a house was damaged.
June 2016Thunderstorm WindGrayson$7,000Trees fell onto wires across several roads.
February 2011Thunderstorm WindGrayson$5,000Trees were blown down.
June 1995Thunderstorm WindGrayson$5,000no account filed
May 2002Flash FloodGrayson$3,000Roads were flooded and slightly damaged by small streams, but no dwellings were affected.
April 2017Thunderstorm WindGrayson$2,000Several trees were downed by thunderstorm winds.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindGrayson$2,000Trees were blown down onto power lines in the Stinson vicinity.
August 2001Thunderstorm WindGrayson$2,000A few trees and large branches were knocked down.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindGrayson$1,000Large tree branches were snapped off.
November 2002Thunderstorm WindGrayson$1,000Numerous trees were knocked down along Route 207.
September 2025Thunderstorm WindGrayson$500A tree blew down along South State Highway One in Grayson.
February 2025FloodGrayson-East Midland Trail was closed due to flooding in Grayson.
May 2024Flash FloodGrayson-Multiple high water spots were observed within the city of Grayson.
June 2007HailGrayson-Penny size hail was seen at Grayson Lake.
May 2016HailGrayson-no account filed
April 2014HailGrayson-no account filed
April 2014HailGrayson-no account filed
July 2012HailGrayson-no account filed
July 2012HailGrayson-no account filed
May 2011HailGrayson-no account filed
April 2011HailGrayson-no account filed
April 2010HailGrayson-no account filed
April 2010HailGrayson-no account filed
April 2010HailGrayson-no account filed
June 2009HailGrayson-no account filed
June 2008HailGrayson-no account filed
April 2006HailGrayson-no account filed
June 2006HailGrayson-no account filed
August 2005HailGrayson-no account filed
May 1996HailGrayson-no account filed
May 1995HailGrayson-no account filed
May 1995Thunderstorm WindGrayson-no account filed
May 1993HailGrayson-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Carter County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
The Cross Roads (historical)0.9 miles15
Beech Grove2.1 miles15
Lindsey Chapel (historical)2.2 miles15
Pactolus2.4 miles15
Leon3.4 miles15
Fairview Hill3.6 miles15
Hitchins3.9 miles15
Gregoryville3.9 miles9

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on GraysonAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q1955210The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 493221. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.