Bourbon County. Settlers first moved into this area northeast of Lexington around 1776, building on the watershed of what was to become Stoner Creek. At the time, this area was part of Virginia, and covered a huge, unsettled swath of northeastern Kentucky. It was named in honor of French Royal House of Bourbon by the Virginians, in gratitude for Frances assistance to America in our War of Independence from England. Bourbon County was officially founded on October 17th, 1785 and the appropriately named town of Paris designated the county seat. In time, the Bourbon County of Virginia was divided into 18 Kentucky counties.
Bourbon County sits at 715 to 1050 feet above sea level, covering 292 square miles of land with one square mile of water. It is primarily agrarian, with rolling hills, few heavily wooded areas, and abundant streams and sink holes. The eastern woodland Indians hunted extensively here, as evidenced by large caches of artifacts found throughout the county. The movie Seabiscuit was filmed on the former Xalapa Farm in southeastern Bourbon County and some of its scenery is typical of the landscape common in this area. Population growth has been modest since the 1790 when there were 7,837 settlers counted; there were an estimated 19,839 residents in 2007.
Thanks to Lucy Clare who will be a regular "Historian" and contributor for Bluergrass Trophy Properties