Stephensport is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in Breckinridge County,

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

, United States.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Stephensport has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

Geography

Stephensport is located on the

Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...

along

Kentucky Route 144 Kentucky Route 144 (KY 144) is a state highway running northeast from KY 603 in Owensboro, Kentucky to US 31W in Radcliff near Fort Knox Fort Knox is a United States Army installation in Kentucky, south of Louisville and nort ...

, north-northwest of Hardinsburg.

History

Richard Stephens served as a private in the Continental Army for 3 years during the American Revolution. For his service to George Washington, Richard Stephens, in February 1784, then 29 years old, accepted a 100,000 land grant on the Ohio River in Kentucky. Over time, Richard Stephens added more land to his estate. By 1799, with over 100,000 acres (about 150 square miles), including a large plantation 8 miles south of Hawesville and the land Stephensport was sitting on, and at least a dozen slaves, Richard Stephens was the wealthiest landowner in Breckinridge County. Stephensport, which was plotted in 1803, was named in his honor. It was incorporated in 1825. In 1830, Richard Stephens' son, Daniel J. Stephens, had a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

church built. In the 1850s a

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

congregation was formed. During the nineteenth century the town was relatively prosperous. It had several general stores, a drug store, warehouses, a school, flour mills, a bank, hotels, and saloons. In 1887, the town had oil street lamps installed. The economic activity was brought in by riverboats and then by the completion of the Louisville, Henderson & St. Louis railroad in 1888. In 1896 the town purchased a city hall. A fire swept through the northeast corner of town in 1912 destroying several stores and the bank. The town Board of Trustees no longer met after 1915. Another fire in 1927 burned down two warehouses and two stores. Most non-agricultural economic activity that was left was destroyed by the

Ohio River flood of 1937 The Ohio River flood of 1937 took place in late January and February 1937. With damage stretching from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Cairo, Illinois, 385 people died, one million people were left homeless and property losses reached $500 million ...

. In 1950, a new bridge was placed over Sinking Creek and in 1952 Main Street was paved.

Post office

Stephensport has a

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

with ZIP code 40170, which opened on December 12, 1825.

References

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Breckinridge County, Kentucky Unincorporated communities in Kentucky Kentucky populated places on the Ohio River