Lawrence County History
Lawrence County, the sixty-ninth county formed in Kentucky, dates from 1821. Its
territory, composed of 272,000 acres, was taken from Greenup and Floyd Counties. It lies
in the extreme eastern part of the state along the Kentucky-West Virginia boundary.
Charles Vancouver of London, England was issued a patent for a 2,000 acre tract of
land which contained the present site of Louisa, the county seat, by the British government
in 1772. The survey of this grant was made by George Washington during the late 1760s.
Vancouver came to the newly formed United States and settled at the Forks of the Big
Sandy in 1789. He erected a fort, built a few cabins and did some farming. However, he
abandoned the area because Indians of several tribes used this area as their hunting
grounds -- until finally forced out by settlers.
Frederic Moore migrated west to Lawrence County in 1815 and established a trading
center at Louisa. Soon after that, the framework for a community began to take shape.
Lawrence County was named for James Lawrence, a distinguished American naval
officer of the Tripolitan War.
Louisa was established in 1822. It was named for the Louisa (Levisa) Fork of the Big
Sandy River which had been named by Dr. Thomas Walker in honor of the wife of the Duke
of Cumberland.
Paul Patton, 59th governor of Kentucky, was born and raised in Fallsburg, in Lawrence
County.
Former Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson was born in Louisa. He was Chief Justice of the
U. S. Supreme Court from 1946 until his death in 1953.
Ricky Skaggs, popular country music entertainer, is a native of Cordell, in Lawrence
County. Ricky's career rises from traditional Bluegrass and Country roots and has reached
around the globe. Ricky is a member of the Grand Ole' Opry and still has family and friends
in the area.
Lawrence County's population in 1850 was 6,281. Gradually increasing, it reached
20,067 in 1910. In the years since, the population steadily decreased with the exception of
1940 when it was 17,275. The population started to grow again in the 1970s and 1980s, and
is now about 14,500.
Yatesville Lake, opened in 1992, has a surface impoundment of 2,242 acres, with 40
miles of shoreline. The lake starts 21 miles upstream from Yatesville Dam and runs along
the main stem of Blaine Creek. Tourism from the lake helps boost the local economy.
Septemberfest, a festival held annually, draws many natives back to enjoy good food,
music, crafts and old friends.
Much of this information was taken from THE 1997 LAWRENCE COUNTY ALMANAC.
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