Fulton County is a county in Kentucky, United States, the westernmost county in the state, bordered on the west by the Mississippi River. It had a population of 6,515 at the 2020 census and covers 231 square miles (600 km2), of which 206 square miles (530 km2) are land and 25 square miles (65 km2) are water, centred near 36°33′N 89°11′W.
Hickman is the county seat and its postal code is 42050. The county has two cities (Fulton and Hickman), one census-designated place (Cayce) and several unincorporated communities. Fulton County does not use civil townships. It lies in the Central time zone.
Towns & Villages in Fulton County
Fulton County has two incorporated cities, one census-designated place and a scatter of unincorporated communities along the Mississippi River bottoms. CDP = census-designated place; Unincorp. = unincorporated community with no formal municipal government.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hickman | City · seat | 2,365 | 42050 |
| Fulton | City | 2,357 | 42041 |
| Cayce | CDP | — | 42033 |
| Bondurant | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Brownsville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Crutchfield | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Jordan | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Kentucky Bend | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Mabel | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Miller | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Riceville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Sassafras Ridge | Unincorp. | — | — |
| State Line | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Tyler | Unincorp. | — | — |
Hickman and Fulton are near-identical in size (2,365 versus 2,357 residents), an unusual split for a rural Kentucky county — Hickman holds the courthouse, Fulton holds the old rail yards. Kentucky Bend is a geographic curiosity worth noting on its own: a Mississippi River oxbow cut Fulton County’s western tip off from the rest of Kentucky, so the community there is reachable only by driving through Tennessee.
ZIP Codes
- 42041 — Fulton
- 42050 — Hickman (county seat)
- 42033 — Cayce
Smaller communities such as Bondurant, Crutchfield and Tyler share the ZIP code of their nearest post office town rather than having their own.
Geography
Fulton County sits on the alluvial bottomland of the Mississippi River in Kentucky’s far southwest corner, flat and low-lying with the river forming its entire western edge. The county is bordered by Mississippi County, Missouri to the northwest, Hickman County, Kentucky to the northeast, Obion County, Tennessee to the south, Lake County, Tennessee to the southwest, and New Madrid County, Missouri to the west across the river.
Demographics
Fulton County had 6,515 residents at the 2020 census, spread across 206 square miles of land for a density of about 32 people per square mile. Its two largest communities, Hickman (2,365) and Fulton (2,357), together hold more than two-thirds of the county’s population. Median household income runs well below the Kentucky median of $61,118, consistent with the county’s declining rail- and farm-based economy.
Economy & Local Life
Agriculture — corn, soybeans and wheat on the Mississippi bottomland — anchors the county’s economy today. Historically, Fulton was known as the “Banana Capital of the World”: the Illinois Central Railroad’s ice house there re-iced banana cars shipped north from New Orleans by the United Fruit Company, and at its peak more than 70% of bananas consumed in the U.S. passed through the city. That rail-driven prosperity has faded, and both Fulton and Hickman now function as small county-seat-scale service centers for surrounding farms.
History
Fulton County was formed in 1845 from part of Hickman County, and named for Robert Fulton, inventor of the commercially successful steamboat. Hickman, on the river bluff, predates the county and was an established steamboat landing before 1845. The county recorded a heavy toll of racial violence in the decades after Reconstruction, among the highest documented totals of any Kentucky county between 1877 and 1950. Hickman was also struck by major Mississippi River floods in 1912, 1913 and again in August 2023, when mudslides damaged the downtown area.
Getting There
U.S. Route 51 runs north-south through the county connecting Fulton and Hickman; Kentucky Route 94 and Route 125 link the smaller communities.
- Union City, Tennessee — 12 miles south
- Paducah, Kentucky — 55 miles northeast
- Cairo, Illinois — 45 miles north
- Memphis, Tennessee — 100 miles south
The nearest commercial airport is Barkley Regional Airport in Paducah, Kentucky.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Fulton County, Kentucky?
It is Kentucky’s westernmost county, on the Mississippi River in the state’s far southwestern corner, bordering Missouri and Tennessee.
What is the population of Fulton County?
6,515 people, at the 2020 census.
How big is Fulton County?
231 square miles total, 206 square miles of land and 25 square miles of water.
What is the county seat of Fulton County?
Hickman is the county seat.
How many towns are in Fulton County?
Two incorporated cities (Hickman and Fulton), one census-designated place (Cayce), and several small unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Fulton County?
42041 (Fulton), 42050 (Hickman) and 42033 (Cayce) are the main ZIP codes.
Why is Fulton County called the “Banana Capital of the World”?
Because a rail ice house in Fulton re-iced banana shipments moving north from New Orleans, and at its peak more than 70% of U.S.-consumed bananas passed through the city.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Kentucky.