Grant County KY Historical Society

07/29/2026

On this Day in History
Grant County, Kentucky
7/29/1820

On July 29th, 1820, Grant County Justices of the Peace William Layton, Samuel Simpson, Nathaniel Henderson, and William Woodyard select William Arnold to construct the first Grant County Court House.

From the Grant County minute book:

“Ordered that the following be adopted as the plan for the Court house of this County, To wit: It shall be built of good Merchantable brick 34 by 30 feet two Stories high, and from the lower to the middle floor 12 feet, and from the middle to the upper floor 8 feet, the Lobby floor to be made of good paveing brick, and the bar floor to be made of good flooring ash or oak plank and raised 18 inches higher than the brick floor, a good and sufficient pair of stairs leading from the bar floor to the 2nd floor, there to be two Jury rooms on the second floor, leaving a Gallery in the front view of the Jury rooms well secured with banisters, the front and partition of the Jury rooms to be of good seasoned plank, and each Jury room to have a door with a good shutter hung on good hinges, and the lower part of the third floor to be lathed and plastered, the roof of the house to be covered with sheeting plank and Joint shingles, there shall be two doors below one in each side fronting each other, and 4 windows below, one at each end of the Judges bench, and one in each side, and two windows to each Jury room, all of which to consist of 18 lights 10 by 12 inches, one fire place to be in each Jury room. The door and window frames to be made of black walnut, black Locust or mulberry with good shutters to the Lower windows hung with good strong iron hinges, two pairs of steps to lead from the Lobby floor to the bar floor one at each end of the bar, and a pair of stairs to lead up to each end of the Judges bench, the floor for the Judges bench to be at least two feet higher than the bar floor; the shutters of the doors below to be Double batten doors & hung on good strong iron hinges, and a good lock to be put on one of the doors; all that part of the house which may be necessary to be plaistered in a good workman like manner; and the whole of the work on said house shall be completed in a good workman like manner equal and sim-milar to the Court house in Falmouth: And it is furthered ordered that Messrs. William Layton, Samuel Simpson, Nathaniel Henderson, and William Woodyard Esqrs. or any three of them be and they are hereby appointed Commissioners to let out and contract for the building of said Court house, the first payment to be made in November 1822 the second in November 1823. and the third in November 1824 equally, and that they report at the next County Court.”

07/04/2026

Happy Independence Day!!

Happy Independence Day America!
Join us Noon-2:00 today. Cannon shoot at high noon; free watermelon & lemonade; bubbles and giveaways for kids. 🇺🇸 🤩 🎉We are open for tours until 7:30pm 😃

06/13/2026

In honor of Williamstown’s Marigold Day Festival today, here is a view of the same Festival which took place September 19th, 1991.

06/02/2026

The Corinth Academy
From the Williamstown Courier
May 30, 1901

“The Corinth Academy was chartered in 1878, owns good property, including residence for principal; has always been well patronized. Most of the teachers of the county were at one time or another students of the school. The corporation is about out of debt and the outlook is encouraging for the future. Prof. W. V. Case, A.B., has been principal the past year, with Miss Pearl Dickerson assistant. Corinth is a good school town, three churches, no saloons, and a cheap, healthy place to live. The school property is for sale. Dr. Daugherty is president and G. W. Trimnel, sceretary and treasurer of the school board.”

02/26/2026

View Patrick Allen Tiller's obituary, send flowers, find service dates, and sign the guestbook.

02/25/2026

The Flege Brothers
A Grant County Story
August 12th, 1844

On August 12th, 1844, brothers Henreich Flege and Johann Fredereck Flege appeared before the Grant County Court, which consisted of Justices of the Peace B.H. Evans, W.H. Morgan, Martin Draper, John McClure, and Thomas Clark. Though several other County matters were attended to, the Flege brothers appeared for a different cause. Being introduced as "Subjects of Augustus, Grandduke of Aldenburg, and "Subjects of Ernest Augustus, King of Hanover," Henry and John Flege had fled their homes in what is now Germany to seek prosperity in the United States of America. Arriving first in Baltimore, Maryland, the brothers finally landed in Grant County, Kentucky.

As what was a formality of sorts, the brothers had to “appear to the satisfaction of the (Grant County) Court that they are men of good moral character” and “declared on oath in open court that is their bonafide intention to become citizens of the United States and renounced forever all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, prince potentate State or sovereignty.” After satisfaction was given by the Court, the oaths of the Flege Brothers were certified.

The brothers then purchased a farm on what is now Stewartsville Road, where John Flege ultimately later bought out the interests of his older brother. It is said that Henry Flege later moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, operating a jewelry store, while John Flege remained in Grant County, finding work at the Ruddles Mill which was located at the bottom of Ruddles Mill Road (Now Baton Rouge Road). It was there where he became fluent in English.

Though the rest of Henreich Flege’s story is not known, Johann Frederick Flege went on to marry Grant County Native Sarah Proctor Woodyard, granddaughter of one of Grant County’s first Justices of the Peace, William Woodyard. He and Sarah went on to live a comfortable life on their farm on Stewartsville Road, raising seven children. During the Civil War, John Flege was one of 27 citizens of Grant and Pendleton Counties to be arrested and taken to Camp Chase, Indiana. He passed away in 1910, five years after his wife, Sarah.

Photo depicts Johann Frederick Flege.

02/12/2026

Grant County is Formed!
On this date in History
2/12/1820

"An Act for the Division of Pendleton County," the piece of Legislation that enabled the formation of the County of Grant, was passed by the Kentucky General Assembly on February 12th, 1820. With this piece of legislation in place, the people that inhabited the western portion of Pendleton County were then able to put the pieces in place to form their own government. According to the Act, Grant County was entitled to choose seven Justices of the Peace to take the necessary oaths of office at the first Court meeting which was ordered to take place at the "House of Henry Childers on the Dry Ridge Road."

The first paragraph of the Act reads as follows:

"Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, that from and after the first day of April next, all that part of the County of Pendleton contained in the following bounds to wit: Beginning at a saw mill built and formerly owned by David Robinson on Crooked Creek, just below the junction of the Scaffold lick fork of said creek in the Pendleton and Harrison line; thence northwardly a direct line to intersect the Campbell and Pendleton Line, four miles east of the Dry Ridge Road; thence westwardly with the Campbell and now Pendleton Line, to the present northwest corner of Pendleton on the Gallatin line; thence southwardly with said Gallatin and now Pendleton Line, to the Owen corner on the same; thence with the Owen line and now Pendleton line, to the Scott, Harrison and Owen corner on the said Pendleton line at Million's on the Dry Ridge Road; thence with the Harrison and now Pendleton line, down Crooked creek to the beginning; shall be one distinct county, called and known by the name of Grant."

Before this Act of the General Assembly took place, however, there were growing gripes and complaints among the people that made up Western Pendleton County, as they were ready to form their own government. Even more, they were tired of driving their buggies to Falmouth. The following was taken from the writing of R.H. Elliston, who wrote what was likely the first-ever history of Grant County. It was read at a Grant County Independence Day Celebration in 1876.

"We all seem to know by intuition that Grant was taken from Pendleton. Her identity does not seem to extend further back, and hence it was not uncommon formerly, when Grant, from any political or sectional cause, showed symptoms of waywardness, for Pendleton to assume the old responsibility of a good mother and urge her, by much kindly advice from her abundant store, to follow, and learn from the example of her maternal friend and guide; but Grant, be it said to her credit, has always had a will of her own, and has reared sons and daughters with capacity and energy to execute that will. The formation of Grant county was talked of long before the people then enclosed within the Territory realized the bright dream that constituted them an independent people. It was exceedingly inconvenient for them to attend their courts at Falmouth and transact all the business of so large a territory, necessary to be transacted at the county seat. And if there is an alleviating circumstance which the historian can now discover for the onerous responsibility in the discharge of their duty as citizens and loyal subjects of their county, it is the romance connected therewith. At this day it was a circumstance that was probably animating and gratifying to the heart of a good citizen whose patience and endurance were trained by the hardihood of pioneer life, to accouter himself in his buck-skin trowsers, his moccasins, his coon-skin cap, sling over his shoulder, his bullet pouch and powder-horn, take up his rifle and start upon his journey to Falmouth through the long, dismal woods, a distance of perhaps thirty miles, to answer the suit of Mr. A. or Mr. B. in some trivial matter or controversy; or perhaps this long tour had to be made in order to have spread upon the Books of the Court of Record, to be known by all men that his stock-mark was a “crop and under it out of the right ear and a swallow fork out of the left ear.” This was romance; but people weary of romance as well as of other good things when protracted too long."

The people's voices were heard, and an Act was passed. Pursuant to this Act, Seven Justices of the Peace met at the House of Henry Childers on the Dry Ridge Road on April 10th, 1820 for the first ever Court Meeting.