The city was named for Revolutionary WarGeneralDaniel Morgan, who was awarded a land grant for his military service. Morganfield later developed on this land.
Geography
Morganfield is located at. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.1 square miles, of which 2.1 square miles is land and 0.04 square mile is water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,494 people, 1,434 households, and 926 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,671.5 people per square mile. There were 1,581 housing units at an average density of 756.3 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 82.34% White, 16.23% African American, 0.03% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.17% from other races, and 1.06% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.86% of the population. There were 1,434 households out of which 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.6% were married couples living together, 14.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.4% were non-families. 32.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 3.01. In the city, the population was spread out with 24.5% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 24.8% from 25 to 44, 24.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.7 males. The median income for a household in the city was $38,676, and the median income for a family was $52,864. Males had a median income of $32,831 versus $22,736 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,251. About 9.9% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.2% of those under age 18 and 15.1% of those age 65 or over.
Morganfield is located near Camp Breckinridge, a World War II infantry division camp and prisoner-of-war camp. During that war, the camp comprised and could accommodate 2,031 officers and 42,092 enlisted men. About 40,000 soldiers preparing for the war stayed at the camp. The camp also held about 3,000 German prisoners-of-war before being deactivated in 1949. During the Korean War, Camp Breckinridge was the headquarters of the 506th Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division and was used for basic training of newly inducted U.S. Army recruits. The Associated Press reported on May 22, 2007, that families of displaced residents of the area that became Camp Breckenridge have continued to seek more compensation from the U.S. government for their former properties, claiming they were not given just value. Former U.S. Supreme CourtJustice Sandra Day O'Connor was named as a mediator in the dispute in February 2007. The camp was renovated and re-opened in 1965 as the "Breckinridge Job Corps Center". The name was later changed to the "Earle C. Clements Job Corps Center" in 1980, to honor Earle C. Clements, a former Kentucky governor and U.S. senator.
