The Background & Formation 
of
Pendleton County

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Map provided by Ronda Wilburn Houston

The following excerpts were taken from "THE FIRST 200 YEARS OF PENDLETON COUNTY"
  by Mildred Bowen Belew with permission of the author; thanks Millie!

The area which is now Pendleton County was part of Orange County, Virginia in 1734. In 1738, it became Augusta County, Virginia; in 1770, it became Botetourt County, Virginia. Fincastle County, Virginia was carved from Botetourt in 1772 and Kentucky County, Virginia was created from Fincastle County on December 31, 1776. Mrs. Belew notes in her excellent book that "Kentucky [County] became entitled to a separate county court, justice of the peace, sheriff, constable, coroner and militia officers. This brought law and order for the first time to the Kentucky territory." She further states "The Revolutionary War was raging and the settlement of this county did not increase very rapidly before the year 1779, when the land law was enacted by the Virginia Legislature, authorizing individuals appropriation of land in Kentucky. Settlements and village claims were to be adjusted by commissioners appointed by Virginia, whose first session was on the 13 October 1779, at Logans Station near the present village of Stanford. In 1780 the Virginia Assembly passed an act dividing Kentucky County into three counties. North of the Kentucky River was Fayette County; west of the same river was Jefferson County; while the rest of the county received the name of Lincoln County. In the creation of these three counties the name of Kentucky disappeared. For a little while there was no Kentucky." "In 1785, Bourbon County, was formed from Fayette County. Woodford County was formed in 1789 and Mason County in 1789. In 1792 Kentucky was made a state and Scott County was formed from half of Bourbon County. In 1794, Campbell County was formed from Harrison, Scott and Mason Counties. In 1798, Pendleton County was founded from Bracken and Campbell Counties and Boone County was formed from Campbell County."

December 13, 1798 the General Assembly approved an act to create a new county out of the counties of Campbell and Bracken, stating:"that after the 10th. day of May, 1799, all the part of the counties of Campbell and Bracken, beginning at the Ohio River, two miles below Big Stepping Stone Creek, thence a direct line across the Main Licking, continuing east to the Scott and Franklin County lines, thence to the Harrison County line and from there to the Main Licking River, to the mouth of the North Fork, thence a direct line to the mouth of Big Stepping Stone Creek and down the Ohio River to the beginning. This shall be called PENDLETON COUNTY." The county embraces about 300 square miles and was named for Judge Edmund Pendleton of Carolina County, Virginia. It was the 28th county in the state of Kentucky. Falmouth, laying in the center of the county, is the County Seat. William Covington Kennett was the first County Clerk and James M. Wilson was elected the first mayor.

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