Greenup was laid out in 1803 and 1804 by Robert Johnson, a pioneer and legislator who owned the land. Upon the formation of Greenup County out of land separated from Mason County, Johnson's settlement was chosen to be the seat of government and adopted the name "Greenupsburg". Its post office was erected on July 1, 1811. The state assembly formally established the town on February 4, 1818, and incorporated the city thirty years later on February 29, 1848. The name was shortened to "Greenup" on March 13, 1872, partially to avoid confusion with Greensburg. The Ohio River flood of 1937 brought devastation to Greenup and many other towns along the river. Some people left the area permanently, with the population of Greenup showing a decline of 5.5% in the 1940 census.
Geography
Greenup is located in eastern Greenup County at , along the south bank of the Ohio River. The northeast boundary of the city follows the Ohio–Kentucky border within the river. The Little Sandy River forms most of the western boundary of the city, except for a small portion of the city that extends west across the river between Seaton Avenue and Main Street. U.S. Route 23 runs through the southwest side of the city, leading northwest to Portsmouth, Ohio and southeast to Ashland, Kentucky. Kentucky Route 1 leads south to Grayson, and Kentucky Route 2 leads southwest to Olive Hill. According to the United States Census Bureau, Greenup has a total area of, of which is land and, or 36.08%, is water.
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,198 people, 478 households, and 321 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,523.0 people per square mile. There were 526 housing units at an average density of 668.7 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 90.07% White, 8.85% African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.17% from other races, and 0.50% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.75% of the population. There were 478 households, out of which 24.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.0% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.83. In the city the population was spread out, with 18.5% under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 18.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.0 males. The median income for a household in the city was $33,158, and the median income for a family was $41,548. Males had a median income of $33,750 versus $23,036 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,926. About 6.2% of families and 10.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.7% of those under age 18 and 12.1% of those age 65 or over.
Education
Greenup has a public library, a branch of the Greenup County Public Library.
