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Jessamine County History and Information |
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The thirty-sixth county in order of formation,
Jessamine County is located in the Inner Bluegrass region
of central Kentucky. Formed on December 19, 1798, from
a portion of Fayette County .
The county was named for Jessamine Creek. The county seat,
NICHOLASVILLE, was named for George Nicholas, who drew
up the first Kentucky constitution.
The County is bordered by Fayette County (northeast), Madison County (souttheast), Garrard County (south), Mercer County (southwest), Woodford County (northwest). Cities, Towns and Communities include Nicholasville, Wilmore
The topography is gently rolling; the Kentucky
River, the county's southern boundary, creates a deeply
entrenched valley. In 1987 farms occupied 92 percent of
the land area and 74 percent of farmland was in cultivation.
The county ranked thirty-ninth in the state in agricultural
receipts, from livestock, poultry, hay, corn, vegetables,
fruits, tobacco, and nursery and greenhouse crops.
The rich farmland attracted early settlers
such as John, Jacob, and Samuel Hunter, who staked out
a nine-hundred-acre tract between Hickman Creek and the
Kentucky River in the late 1770s. A number of early settlers
were of German descent from Pennsylvania and Maryland and
others of French Huguenot extraction. Hemp was established
as a popular crop around 1796. By 1840 two-thirds of the
hemp produced in the state came from Jessamine County,
and Nicholasville had a number of rope walks, or hemp factories.
As late as 1870, the county was producing 1.8 million pounds
of hemp annually.
Whiskey distilling was an early
industry. U.S. district court records listed Edmund Singleton,
of Jessamine County, as one of the distillers who refused
to register his distillery and was fined $250 by Judge
Harry Innes on June 30, 1798. In 1801 a Jessamine County
farm offered for rent included "a distillery sixty by thirty-four feet
with stills and boilers for a house of that size." Around
1875, at Camp Nelson, the E.J. Curley Distillery was established
on the Kentucky River in a complex of connected buildings
constructed of limestone, known locally as the Great Stone
Manor. In 1884, Curley operated two distilleries, one on
each side of the river with a total mashing capacity of
1,100 bushels per day and production capacity of one hundred
barrels per day. The distillery ceased operation in 1971.
CAMP NELSON, on the Kentucky River, was established
in 1863 to recruit Union troops. It was also a haven for
black families, some of whom were escaped slaves. A mile
and a half above it is Camp Nelson National Cemetery, the
burial place of soldiers from the Civil War to Vietnam.
Jessamine County was considered for many years
a residential suburb for Lexington's workforce, but by
the late twentieth century it had developed its own industrial
base. In 1988 twenty-four manufacturing firms employed
more than 2,000. In 1957 Faulkner-Fair Company began producing
wood fixtures for banks, stores, and hotels. The Hayden
Company, established in 1966, builds horse stall equipment
and barns. The decade of the 1970s saw a number of industries
move into the county: Gulf States Paper's carton division;
Donaldson Company; Sargent and Greenleaf, makers of locks;
and the automotive trim division of NL Industries. Mainline
service is provided by Southern Railway System over the
cantilever-designed High Bridge across the Kentucky River,
seven miles south of Nicholasville. Highway U.S. 27 is
a major north-south route.
Early leaders in education, the county's first
schools were private. Bethel Academy was established in
1790; in 1802 Nancy LaFever operated a female academy;
in 1859 Neil McDugal Gordon began a boys' school in Keene;
and the Jessamine Female Institute was chartered in Nicholasville
in 1854 and operated until 1910. ASBURY College and Theological
Seminary is located in Wilmore.
Keene, four miles northwest of Nicholasville,
grew up around a stone mill in 1794. The Keene Springs
Hotel, a Greek Revival-style frame building constructed
in 1877, was a popular health spa. Wilmore, three miles
west of Nicholasville, the county's second incorporated
town, was established by the Cincinnati Southern Railroad
in 1876.
The population of Jessamine County was 17,430
in 1970; 26,146 in 1980; and 30,508 in 1990. The Official County Website is located at http://www.jessamineco.com/ .
See Extended History for More information.
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See Also Kentucky Land Records, Marriage Records, Court & Probate Records
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PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information. |
Jessamine County Clerk has Marriage Records from 1799 and Land Records from 1799 and is located at 101
North Main Street, Nicholasville,
KY 40356-1270; Phone:
(859) 885-4161, FAX:
(859) 885-5837 .
The duties of the county clerk are numerous and varied, falling into the general categories of clerical duties of the fiscal court, issuing and registering, recording and keeping records of various legal instruments, election duties, tax duties, transfers, and titling, and issuance of marriage licenses and much more. One of the most important responsibilities of the County Clerk's office is the recording of land records. The most common documents recorded are deeds, mortgages, and assignments and mortgage releases. The other is Marriage Liscenses
Jessamine County Clerk of the Circuit Court has Probate Records from 1799 and Court Records from 1799 and is located at Courthouse
Annex,
107 North Main Street,
Nicholasville, Ky 40356; Phone:
859-885-4531, [EMAIL] .
The Circuit Clerk's office is responsible for maintaining the records of the circuit court. Divorces, civil litigation, criminal crimes, probate, wills , estates and various other functions.
Below is a list of online resources for Jessamine County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Jessamine County Court Records by clicking the link below:
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See Also Vital Records in Kentucky
Some documents are just too important to wait six weeks for. With VitalChek Express Certificate Service you won’t have to. Birth, Marriage, Divorce & Death Certificates Signed. Sealed. Delivered. Often in as few as three business days!
Kentucky Office of Vital Statistics is located at State
Dept of Human Resources, 275 E. Main St. 1EA, Frankfort, KY 40621; (502) 564-4212. They have the following records:
- Birth & Death Certificates:
The Vital Statistics Law of Kentucky, providing for and legalizing the registration of births and deaths, was enacted by the General Assembly of 1910 and became effective Jan. 1, 1911.
The Office of Vital Statistics has no records of births and deaths occurring prior to the above date except delayed records of births for those born before 1911, which have been established by affidavits and documentary evidence.Fees are listed below. You can download an application online for Birth Certificates or Death Certificates . You can also order Order Electronically and get the certificates much quicker by ordering HERE
- Marriage & Divorce Certificates: Central registration of marriages and divorces began in Kentucky in June 1958. The Office of Vital Statistics has no records of marriages and divorces prior to that date. Copies of marriage certificates prior to June 1958 may be obtained from the county clerk in the county where the license was issued. Records of divorce proceedings are available from the Jessamine County clerk of the circuit court that granted the decree.You can download an application online for Marriage Certificates or Divorce Certificates . You can also order Order Electronically and get the certificates much quicker by ordering HERE
Cost of certificates: Birth: $10 per certificate;
Death, Marriage and Divorce are $6 per certificate
In Person: You can stop in the office at 275 E. Main St. in Frankfort and obtain a certified copy of a birth, death, marriage or divorce certificate by completing an application form between the hours of 8 a.m. - 3 p.m. EST, Monday-Friday. There is approximately a one-hour wait to receive the certificate.
Directions to Vital Statistics Office
By Mail: Mail a check or money order (no cash) payable to the "Kentucky State Treasurer" along with the necessary information to the following address: Office of Vital Statistics, 275 E. Main St. 1E-A, Frankfort, KY 40621. Please include return address on envelope and application form.
Processing Time: Please allow up to approximately 30 working days for processing of all type of certificates when ordered through the mail.
Birth Records: Expect longer delays during peak request periods from May through September. You should request certified copies of your birth certificate early enough to avoid delays if you are planning retirement, sporting events for the children, travel/passports, children entering school for the first time, etc.
Death Records: There may be delays in issuing new certified death certificates if the original certificate is not promptly filed in Frankfort by the funeral homes. Click Here to Search the Social Security Death Index for FREE
Phone, Fax, On-Line, or Credit Card: To obtain a certified copy of a vital record by phone, fax, on-line or purchase with a credit card, please link to VitalChek. There is an additional $10.50 fee for all credit card purchases. Discover, Visa, MasterCard and American Express are accepted. If faster delivery is required, you may wish to have the certified copy sent by Federal Express. Please state this when placing the order for the copy. There is an additional fee for this service.
Below is a list of online resources for Jessamine County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Jessamine County Vital Records by clicking the link below:
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See Also Research In Census Records
Countywide Records: Federal Population Schedules that exist for Jessamine County, Kentucky are 1810, 1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1890 (fragment, see below), 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. Earlier U.S. censuses for Kentucky were destroyed, but published tax lists serve as a replacements for the lost 1790 and 1800 censuses. Other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your family tree in Jessamine County, Kentucky are Industry and Agriculture Schedules availible for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. Slave Schedules exist for 1850 & 1860. The Mortality Schedules for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. Union Veterans Schedules were conducted in 1890 but only returns for sixty-five Kentucky counties remain of the 1890 Union veterans and widows schedule of the federal census of Kentucky.
Statewide Records that exist for Kentucky are 1810, 1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1890 (fragment, see below), 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. Earlier U.S. censuses for Kentucky were destroyed, but published tax lists serve as a replacements for the lost 1790 and 1800 censuses. Extracts and indexes for many of Kentucky's censuses have been compiled and published. Original or microfilm copies of the federal census returns are available at the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives. Several Kentucky indexes to censuses predate those published by AISI.
State School Census for Kentucky infrequently enumerated public school students beginning in 1888. Scattered records are at the office of the respective county Board of Health or Board of Education. Some are maintained by the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives and the Kentucky Historical Society.
See Also Statewide Records that exist for Kentucky
Below is a list of online resources for Jessamine County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Jessamine County Census Records by clicking the link below:
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Genealogy Atlas has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for Kentucky and other states.
You can view rotating animated maps for Kentucky showing all the county boundaries for each census year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at Census Maps
You can view rotating animated maps for Kentucky showing all the county boundary changes for each year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries . You can view a list of maps for other states and State Department of Transportation Maps at County Maps. The Kentucky Department of Transportation has county maps the show the locations of churches, cemeteries, roads, ect...
Below is a list of online resources for Jessamine County Maps. Email us with websites containing Jessamine County Maps by clicking the link below:
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See Also Military Records in Kentucky
The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design. A list of Wars fought on American.
Below is a list of online resources for Jessamine County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Jessamine County Military Records by clicking the link below:
- Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
- Compiled Service Records of Soldiers Who Served in the American Army During the Revolutionary War (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
- Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, from NARA publication M804.
- Southern Claims Commission from the State of Kentucky (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents In the 1870s, southerners claimed compensation from the U.S. government for items used by the Union Army, ranging from corn and horses, to trees and church buildings.
- Organization Index to Pension Files of Veterans Who Served Between 1861 and 1900 from the State of Kentucky (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Pension applications for service in the U.S. Army between 1861 and 1917, grouped according to the units in which the veterans served.
- Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the CSA (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Compiled service records of Confederate soldiers from southern units, labeled with each soldier's name, rank, and unit, with links to revealing documents about each soldier.
- Kentucky Society of Daughters of the American Revolution, 323 High Str, Paris, Ky, 40361;(859) 987- 1788
- National Society of Daughters of the American Revolution,
- Kentucky Society of Sons of the American Revolution,
- National Society of Sons of the American Revolution, 1000 South Fourth Street, Louisville, Kentucky 40203; (502) 589-1776
- Jessamine County, Kentucky Military Books at Amazon.com
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See Also Research In Tax Records
One of the most valuable sources for early Kentucky until 1892 is its tax records. Most counties have yearly tax records from the date of organization. Some early tax schedules list watercourse, value and acreage of real estate, men over twenty-one, young men between sixteen and twenty-one, slaves, and horses. Extant county tax schedules from the date of organization of the county through 1892 have been microfilmed for most counties and are available from the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives and the FHL.
Numerous original tax records from 1892 are available at the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives. The Kentucky Historical Society has tax records to 1875.
Kentucky tax lists are arranged by county and date. Within the counties, residents within its districts are grouped together and names usually arranged under the beginning letter of the surname, although these are not in strict alphabetical order. Some early tax records have been published and are available in research libraries.
Below is a list of online resources for Jessamine County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Jessamine County Tax Records by clicking the link below:
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See Also Other Kentucky Genealogical Addresses
The Repositories
in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical
and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical
Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly,
quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies
should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are
usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived
materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be
more generalized and over look the smaller details that local
societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to
look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy
section and may have some resources that are not located at
archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums
in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years
gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All
these places are vitally important to the family genealogist
and must not be passed over.
Below is a list of online resources for Jessamine County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Jessamine County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:
- Jessamine
County Historical and
Genealogical Society
- Local Kentucky Researchers, Find a local researcher or become a local researcher.
- The Kentucky Historical Society, 100 W. Broadway, Frankfort, KY 40601; 877-444-7867,[EMAIL]
- The Kentucky Genealogical Society, PO Box 153, Frankfort, KY 40602-0153 [EMAIL]
- Kentucky Newspapers & Periodicals Records - Newspapers and periodicals are the diaries of local communities. They are excellent sources of family history details - often recorded nowhere else. Look for obituaries, marriages, legal notices, and more found in our Historical Newspaper Archives.
- Kentucky Genealogical Society Books at Amazon.com
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See Also Church & Cemetery Records in Kentucky
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Click Here to Search Kentucky Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships. |
There are many churches and cemeteries in Jessamine County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Jessamine County Tombstone Transcription Project.
Church membership of early Kentuckians include Baptist, Church of Christ, Episcopal, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Roman Catholic. Some church records were published, others were microfilmed, some are housed in church repositories, but many remain in the local church. Church records and histories may be found in periodicals pertaining to Kentucky. Repositories include the DAR Library, the FHL, Kentucky Historical Society, University of Kentucky Library, and Filson Club Library.
Many
collections of cemetery records are available for Kentucky.
In 1977 the Kentucky Historical Society began computerizing
extant cemetery records for the state. Cemetery tombstone transcriptions
are included in the Ardery collection.
Kentucky regional libraries and some other large genealogical
libraries outside the state have collections of Kentucky cemetery
transcriptions. In addition, publications pertaining to Kentucky
and Kentuckians frequently contain cemetery records for the
state.
Below is a list of online resources for Jessamine County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Jessamine County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:
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When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Jessamine County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information . Email us with websites containing Jessamine County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:
- Search 60 Years Of Everton Data: For the first time ever you can get access to more than 150,000 pedigree files and family group sheets from Evertons. Learn More
- Search the Family Tree DNA Project- Use DNA testing to break through your genealogical barriers!
- Sites on USGenweb: [ Jessamine County ] [ Kentucky ] [ Main Page ]
- [GenForum Message Boards] [Rootsweb Message Boards]
- Genealogy Encyclopedia: General Abbreviations, Early Illnesses, Nickname Meanings, Worldwide Epidemics, Early Occupations, Common Terms, Censuses Explained, Free Genealogical Forms
- Nichols and Related Families of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virgina.
- Meet your ancestors. Learn their stories. Start your FREE family tree.
- Kentucky Family & Local History Records - The Family & Local Histories Collection lets you read journals, memoirs, and other first-hand historical narratives right on your computer. Gathered from some of the world's finest libraries, these materials may provide hard-to-find town, county, and state information; tax records and wills; military, church, and court records; as well as photographs, stories, and maps.
- Jessamine County, Kentucky Family Books at Amazon.com
- The Autobiography of David Meade, II
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