Hazard Water Department

Hazard Water Department Municipal Water Report Information

ELIJAH COMBS arrived from Virginia during the summer months of 1795 and constructed the first dwelling, a temporary "improver's cabin," on the North Fork of the Kentucky River. After returning to Virginia, he married Sarah (Sally) Roark and then journeyed back with his new bride and two slaves to build a two-story log structure near the river, locally known as the "Old Log Fort."

Court proceedings were held in his residence for several years. Elijah Combs established this small settlement, initially officially designated Perry Court House when selected as the county seat of Perry County, Kentucky's 68th county, established in 1821. Even early court documents referred to the town as Hazard, and by 1854 the first post office carried the name Hazard. The town was formally incorporated as Hazard in 1884.

When Perry County formed, its founding fathers were veterans of the Revolutionary War and War of 1812 who had settled in this region along the North Fork of the Kentucky River where Elijah Combs established his home near a salt lick beside the waterway.

COMMODORE OLIVER HAZARD PERRY gave his name to the settlement. Perry was dispatched to Erie, Pennsylvania in March 1813 to construct an American fleet for deployment on Lake Erie against British forces. General William Henry Harrison provided 100 Kentucky volunteers wearing fringed buckskin garments and carrying their renowned Long Rifles to support the ship crews. Perry positioned these marksmen in the riggings of the "Lawrence" (his flagship) and the "Niagara," causing significant casualties on British Navy decks and securing American control of the lake.

On September 10, 1813, Perry achieved an unprecedented naval victory by defeating the British Fleet, immediately dispatching a message to General Harrison: "We have met the enemy and they are our own."

Hazard grew gradually following its founding. By the Civil War's outbreak nearly fifty years later, approximately twelve families resided in the small settlement. The Civil War brought a period of suffering and hardship to Hazard that persisted for generations, with the town frequently subjected to guerrilla raids by small bandit groups.

INTERSTATE RAILWAY development transformed the region. Until railroad extension reached Hazard, supplies arrived via river flatboats from Jackson. The timber industry flourished during the 1880s, but after rail service arrived in Hazard in 1912, coal mining superseded logging in economic importance. During the 1920s, Hazard emerged as the principal mining center in the southeastern coalfields, and an active coal industry continues today. Each September, Hazard celebrates its coal heritage with the Black Gold Festival in downtown Hazard.