Rockcastle County

Rockcastle County, Kentucky — key demographics (U.S. Census Bureau: 2020 Census and 2019–2023 ACS 5-year estimates)

Population

• Total population: ~16.6k (ACS 2019–2023 est.); 16,037 (2020 Census)
• Direction: Essentially flat to slightly up since 2020; below 2010 levels

Age

• Median age: ~41–42 years
• Under 18: ~22%
• 18–64: ~59%
• 65 and over: ~19%

Sex

• Female: ~50–51%
• Male: ~49–50%

Race and ethnicity

• White, non-Hispanic: ~94–95%
• Black or African American: ~0.5–1%
• American Indian/Alaska Native: ~0.2%
• Asian: ~0.2%
• Two or more races: ~2–3%
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): ~2%
  Note: Hispanic/Latino is an ethnicity and overlaps with race categories.

Households

• Total households: ~6.4k
• Average household size: ~2.5 persons
• Family households: ~68% of households
• Married-couple families: ~50–52% of households
• Households with children under 18: ~27–29%
• Households made up of individuals: ~25–27%
• Living alone age 65+: ~10–12%

Insight

• Small, predominantly White county with an aging profile, near-even gender split, and mostly family households with modest household sizes.

• Population baseline: 16,037 residents across ~318 sq mi (≈50 people/sq mi; U.S. Census 2020).
• Estimated email users: 11,000 residents use email regularly. Method: county population × households with internet/broadband (75%) × share of connected people who use email (~90%) (ACS 2018–2022; Pew Research on email adoption).
• Age adoption (estimated, applying national patterns to local demographics):
  • 18–34: ~95% use email
  • 35–54: ~94%
  • 55–64: ~88%
  • 65+: ~78%
• Gender split among users: roughly mirrors population, ~51% female, ~49% male (Census sex ratio applied to users).
• Digital access and trends:
  • ~75–80% of households report a broadband subscription; ~85–90% have a computer device (ACS 2018–2022).
  • 10–15% of households are smartphone-only for internet, which sustains email usage despite limited fixed service (ACS).
  • Coverage is strongest along the I‑75 corridor; outlying hollows experience weaker fixed and mobile signals (FCC maps, 2023).
  • Affordability pressure increased after the 2024 ACP wind-down; fiber builds funded by state/federal programs (e.g., BEAD) are expanding service to remaining unserved/underserved locations through 2026.
• Insight: Email penetration is high among working-age adults; the main constraint is access/affordability, not willingness to use email.

Rockcastle County, KY: Mobile phone usage snapshot (2024–2025)

Context and scale

• Population: 16,000 (2020 Census). Small, predominantly rural, with an older age profile and lower household incomes than the Kentucky average.

Estimated user base and adoption

• Smartphone users: 11,200–11,700 residents (roughly 68–72% of the total population; >85% of adults), reflecting high adoption among working-age and youth and somewhat lower adoption among seniors.
• Wireless-only households (no landline): 77–82% of adults live in wireless-only households, above the statewide share.
• Mobile-only internet at home (households relying primarily on cellular data rather than fixed broadband): 18–22% of households, higher than Kentucky overall.
• Prepaid/MVNO penetration: 35–45% of active lines, materially higher than the state average, driven by price sensitivity and variable credit access.
• Device mix: Android 65–75% of smartphones (higher than Kentucky average); iPhone share correspondingly lower.
• Multiline family plans dominate among mid-income households; single-line prepaid and Lifeline/discount plans are common among lower-income and senior users.

Demographic usage patterns

• Youth and young adults (13–34): >95% smartphone adoption, heavy app/social/video use; mobile is the primary internet for many students outside the I‑75 corridor.
• Working-age adults (35–64): High smartphone penetration; notable use of hotspotting for home connectivity in areas with weak fixed broadband. Trades, logistics, and small retail rely on mobile POS and scheduling apps.
• Seniors (65+): 70–78% smartphone adoption; more voice/SMS and messaging apps, lower video streaming. Larger-screen devices and simplified launchers are common. Landline retention is somewhat higher in this group but still below past levels.
• Income effects: Lower-income households exhibit longer device replacement cycles, higher use of refurbished devices, and greater reliance on prepaid/MVNO plans and shared data.

Digital infrastructure and coverage

• 4G LTE: Countywide baseline coverage from all three national carriers; signal quality weakens in hollows and ridge-shadowed areas away from major roads and towns.
• 5G: Present along the I‑75 corridor (Renfro Valley–Mount Vernon–Brodhead) and town centers; mid-band 5G delivers 100–300 Mbps in these corridors, while low-band 5G and LTE in outlying areas typically run 5–25 Mbps down with variable uplink.
• Backhaul: Fiber follows I‑75 and primary routes; a mix of fiber and microwave backhaul serves rural towers. Sites off the interstate can be backhaul-constrained during peak hours.
• Public safety and priority: AT&T FirstNet coverage along I‑75 and population centers; extended-range LTE helps coverage, but some valleys remain marginal without external antennas/boosters.
• Public access points: Schools, the public library, and municipal buildings provide critical Wi‑Fi offload. Community centers and churches often serve as informal connectivity hubs.
• Fixed broadband context: Legacy DSL still present outside towns; cable or fiber appears in and near Mount Vernon/Brodhead, but availability is uneven. This drives above-average mobile-only household internet use and hotspotting.

How Rockcastle County differs from Kentucky overall

• Higher reliance on mobile: More wireless-only households and a larger share of mobile-only home internet than the state average.
• More prepaid/MVNO: Cost sensitivity raises prepaid share well above statewide levels; ACP’s reduction in 2024–2025 has visibly shifted some users to lower-cost tiers or intermittent service.
• Coverage asymmetry: Interstate/town corridors have modern mid-band 5G and good capacity; off-corridor areas see persistent LTE/low-band 5G dependence and peak-time slowdowns more than typical Kentucky counties.
• Device and platform mix: Android share is higher; refurbished handset use is more common.
• Senior adoption gap: Smartphone adoption among seniors trails the state average by several points, reinforcing voice/SMS usage patterns and lower data consumption in that cohort.

Operational insights for planning and services

• Expect strong demand for reliable LTE/low-band 5G in rural sectors and capacity upgrades on mid-band 5G sites along I‑75.
• Price elasticity is high; competitive prepaid and MVNO offerings, device financing flexibility, and refurbished options matter.
• Hotspot allowances and network management during school evenings (homework hours) directly affect perceived quality; education partnerships and targeted small cells can mitigate pain points.
• External antennas/boosters meaningfully improve service for households in valleys; promoting certified booster programs can reduce churn where fixed broadband is limited.

Rockcastle County, KY — social media usage snapshot (2025)

Overall user stats

• Estimated residents using social media (age 13+): ≈11,100 (about 78% of residents 13+)
• Adults using social media (18+): ≈9,400 (about 72% of adults)
• Primary access: smartphone-first; Facebook Messenger and SMS dominate private communication

Most-used platforms (share of residents 13+, modeled local estimates)

• YouTube: 79%
• Facebook: 64%
• Instagram: 41%
• TikTok: 31%
• Snapchat: 28%
• Pinterest: 30%
• WhatsApp: 18%
• X (Twitter): 16%
• Reddit: 13%
• LinkedIn: 14%
• Facebook Messenger: 62%

Age-group breakdown (share using platform within each group)

• Teens (13–17): YouTube 93%; TikTok 60%; Snapchat 60%; Instagram 55%; Facebook 30%
• 18–29: YouTube 92%; Instagram 75%; Snapchat 64%; TikTok 60%; Facebook 68%
• 30–49: Facebook 78%; YouTube 90%; Instagram 45%; TikTok 35%; Snapchat 25%
• 50–64: Facebook 75%; YouTube 83%; Instagram 30%; TikTok 20%
• 65+: Facebook 62%; YouTube 60%; Instagram 15%; TikTok 8%

Gender breakdown (share of residents 13+ within each gender)

• Women: Facebook 69%; Instagram 45%; Pinterest 46%; TikTok 33%; YouTube 77%
• Men: YouTube 82%; Facebook 60%; Instagram 38%; TikTok 28%; Reddit 18%; X 20%

Behavioral trends and usage patterns

• Facebook is the community backbone: high activity in local groups (schools, churches, youth sports, buy/sell/trade, events), with Marketplace a key commerce channel
• Messenger is the default for one-to-one and small group coordination, often replacing email
• Video-first habits: YouTube for how-to, home/auto repair, outdoor/recreation, farm/rural living; short-form TikTok/Instagram Reels growing among under-35s
• Local news affinity: engagement centers on county government updates, school announcements, weather, road conditions, and high-school athletics; posts from trusted local pages outperform national outlets
• Peak engagement: evenings (6–10 p.m.) and weekends; noticeable spikes around school calendars, sports games, church events, and severe weather
• Content preference: practical, hyperlocal, and visual; posts with photos/videos and clear calls-to-action perform best; live streams of local events see strong completion rates
• Platform roles: Facebook for reach/community; Instagram for lifestyle and younger female audiences; TikTok for under-35 discovery; Snapchat for private youth communication; Pinterest for home/DIY/recipes; X/Reddit remain niche
• Adoption constraints: patchy broadband in some hollows shifts heavier use to mobile data and favors lightweight video and cached content

Methodological note

• Figures are modeled local estimates using Pew Research Center’s 2024/2023 U.S. platform adoption by age, rural adoption differentials, and Rockcastle County’s age structure from recent ACS 5-year data. Estimates are rounded to reflect realistic local variance.