Apr 14, 2012 2 min read

Fayette County’s population has fluctuated willdly over the years, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Starting at 13,318 in 1790, the county’s population peaked at 200,999 in 1940.

In between, there various highs and lows as people poured into the county at times and deserted it at other times.

After the original census in 1790, the county’s population grew at a fast pace until 1860 with increases ranging from 6.9 percent in 1830 to 51.4 percent in 1800.

By 1860, the county’s population stood at 39,909. However, the population growth was stagnant during the next decade with the county’s population growing by only 2 percent.

But the county’s population soared over the next 50 years, growing by 35.9 percent by 1880, 36 percent by 1890, 38 percent by 1900 and 51.7 percent by 1910. That year the county’s population stood at 167,449, a gain of 127,540 since 1860.

But the county’s stunning growth rate slowed down after that, never reaching those dizzying heights again.

The county’s population grew by 5.5 percent by 1930 and by 1.2 percent by 1940.

But it was clear by now that Fayette County’s population was on the decline. Over the next 30 years, Fayette County lost 25 percent of its population, sinking to 154,667 by 1970.

Over the next 30 years, the population would go back and forth from a 3.1 percent gain in 1980 to a 8.8 percent loss in 1990 and a 2.30 percent gain by 2000. Then, the county’s population stood at 148,645.

Then, came the stunning news last year that Fayette County had lost 8.1 percent of its population in the 2000, leaving the county with 136,606 people.

With that loss, Fayette County had its lowest population since the early 1900s.