and Chris Buis

Grayson County High School

Local History Class

Clarkson seems to have been around for ages. The community was first settled in 1863, 141 years ago. Clarkson isn't even 150 years old yet. The city is six miles northeast of Leitchfield on U.S. 62.

Clarkson was previously known as Brey's Station. Because of all the Clarkson's who lived in the town, they wanted to change the name to Clarkson, so they did.

Clarkson also had a railroad that ran through it, and this stop on the tracks was known as the Grayson Springs Station. It was near the Grayson Springs Resort.

The name Clarkson comes from a Grayson Springs hotel owner, M.P. Clarkson. The train station at Clarkson closed in 1942.

The first post office was established in 1870, when the town population was 55 people. Now, Clarkson's population is around 600.

Early families in the area are the Terrys, the VanMeters, the Pertyles, the Bratchers, the Bakers, the Higgins, the O'Rileys, the Muhalls and the Higdons.

Clarkson has several buildings and businesses. There is Clarkson Elementary School, built in 1939, formerly Clarkson High School. The school mascot is the Redhawk.

There are a couple furniture stores, a bank, a gun shop, K's Cafe, The Dixie House Restaurant, Blimpie's, Bland's Auto Shop, a Feed Mill, an Antique Shop, two barber shops, an appliance shop, and what Clarkson is probably most recognized for, the Kelley Bee Hive Company.

Every year the town has a festival called the Honeyfest, celebrating the company and its affiliation with the town.

Clarkson has a Baptist church, a Catholic church and a Methodist church. Clarkson Baptist recently was relocated from its previous location to a spot outside the city limits and east of Clarkson on U.S. 62.

The city started as a farming center and a significant trading center. The surrounding farmland is mainly flat with hills and valleys. There are a few caves in the area and several sinkholes.

Here are a few population figures from the latest census:

For population 25 years or older:

High school or higher education, 62.7 percent.

Bachelor's degree or higher, 6.4 percent.

Graduate or professional degree, 2.8 percent.

Unemployed, 6.6 percent.

Mean travel time to work, 20.7 minutes.

For population 15 years or older:

Never married, 23.6 percent.

Now married, 50.6 percent

Separated, 1.7 percent.

Widowed, 5.8 percent.

Divorced, 18.3 percent.

Foreign born, 0 percent.

White, 99.9 percent.

Land area of Clarkson, 0.6 square mile.

Males in 2000, 360 (45.3 percent).

Females in 2000, 434 (54.7 percent).

(Next in the continuing series: Falls of Rough)