Letcher County, Kentucky

The Letcher County Courthouse is located at 156 Main Street, Whitesburg, KY 41858; phone: 606-633-2129.

The earliest settlement in Letcher County occurred about 1804 but because of the extremely rugged terrain along Pine Mountain, the area that would become Whitesburg remained desolate and only sparsely settled for much of the balance of the nineteenth century. Letcher County became Kentucky's ninety-fifth county when it was created in 1842 from portions of Perry and Harlan Counties. The new political subdivision was named for Robert P. Letcher, who served as governor from 1840-1844. Several settlements, including Mayking, Indian Bottom, Ermine, and Colson vied for designation as county seat, as did Summit City, the name by which Whitesburg was first known. [1]

1. David L. Taylor, Principal, Taylor & Taylor Associates, Whitesburg Historic District, Letcher County, KY, nomination document, 2006, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places, Washington, D.C.