Kenton, Ohio

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kenton is a city in Hardin County, Ohio, along the Scioto River. The population was 8,336 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Hardin County^GR6, named for Kentucky/Ohio frontiersman, Simon Kenton.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 Controversy
4 Notable natives and residents
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Kenton is located at 40°38′48″N, 83°36′31″W (40.646555, -83.608706)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.8 km² (4.6 mi²). 11.6 km² (4.5 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (1.97%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 8,336 people, 3,495 households, and 2,149 families residing in the city. The population density was 718.4/km² (1,860.6/mi²). There were 3,795 housing units at an average density of 327.1/km² (847.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.11% White, 0.91% African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.37% Asian, 0.32% from other races, and 1.01% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.90% of the population.

There were 3,495 households out of which 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.0% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.5% were non-families. 33.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.5% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 28.3% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,065, and the median income for a family was $37,170. Males had a median income of $31,225 versus $19,413 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,324. About 11.6% of families and 16.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.0% of those under age 18 and 17.2% of those age 65 or over.

The local High School is Kenton Senior High School, with the nickname, the "Wildcats". The school is active in the Western Buckeye League (WBL) in sports. The football team has won two state championships, in 2001 and 2002. In 2003 they were state runners up in division 3.

[edit] Controversy

On November 18, 2005 two teenagers were injured in a prank orchestrated by Dailyn Campbell, 16, and Jesse Howard, 17, both members of the football team. The players had placed a fake deer decoy in a road, watching motorists swerve to avoid the "deer." But when Robert Roby Jr., 19, and Dustin Zachariah, 18, came upon the decoy, Roby overcorrected, ejecting both boys from the vehicle. Roby suffered a broken neck, arm and leg and has had 11 surgeries; Zachariah suffered brain damage.

Controversy broke out in August, 2006 when Judge Gary McKinley allowed the two players to finish the football season before serving their sentences. This action prompted accusations of favoritism because the boys were on the team.