Clark County Courthouse
Winchester, Clark County, Kentucky
Marker Inscription
Clark County Courthouse. Clark County, named in honor of Revolutionary War hero General George Rogers Clark, was created in 1792. A two-room log cabin courthouse built here in 1794 on land donated by John Baker. Replaced by two-story brick bldg. in 1797. Third courthouse, built 1821, was where Henry Clay argued his last case before a jury, 1849. (Reverse) Today’s courthouse, designed by noted Lexington architect John McMurtry, was completed in 1855 at a cost of over $40,000. Clock tower raised and courtroom moved upstairs in 1889. Courthouse was expanded in 1938 by addition of a rear block matching the front. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
Erected by Kentucky Historical Society
The Story
Clark County, created in 1792 and named for Revolutionary War hero General George Rogers Clark, has seen a succession of courthouses on this Winchester site—from a two-room log cabin in 1794 to a brick building in 1797 and a third courthouse in 1821, where Henry Clay argued his last jury case in 1849. The present limestone courthouse, designed by noted Lexington architect John McMurtry and completed in 1855, was later heightened and expanded, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
Why it matters
The building's layered history traces how a raw frontier county matured into a settled community, and it preserves a tangible link to figures like George Rogers Clark and Henry Clay who shaped the early West.
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Related people
- · George Rogers Clark
- · Henry Clay
- · John McMurtry
Themes & tags
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