Jenkins, KY
Music connected to Jenkins
About Jenkins
- • Billy Ray Cyrus, singer of "Achy Breaky Heart," was born in Flatwoods, near Jenkins.
- • Jenkins hosted one of Kentucky's earliest and most successful high school basketball programs.
- • Consolidation Coal Company founded Jenkins in 1912 to house its coal miners.
- • A 1920s Jenkins ordinance banned dancing after midnight, reflecting strict social norms.
- • The Great Flood of 1957 caused immense damage to Jenkins and surrounding areas.
- • It was named for Albert Gallatin Jenkins, a Confederate general, and founded in 1912.
- • With under 2,000 people, the population is less than half of its peak in the 1920s.
- • Sitting at 1,535 feet, the elevation provides stunning Appalachian Mountain views.
- • Coal mining declined, so healthcare and social assistance are now major employers.
- • Jenkins evokes a sense of resilience amidst the quiet beauty of the mountains.
- • The Cincinnati Reds, 150 miles away, won the 1990 World Series sweeping the Oakland A's.
- • Jenkins High School won Kentucky's Sweet Sixteen basketball tournament in 1928.