In 1799 Taylorsville was founded on the land of Richard TAYLOR, proprietor of the grist mill, and owner of a large tract of land at the mouth of Brashears Creek. About sixty acres of land was taken from the Taylor tract by the Shelby County Court on the motion of Taylor himself. George CAVINSTON, William BRIDGEWATER, Robert JEFFERIES, Elijah PREWITT and Isaac ELLIS became the first trustees. The town was named Taylorsville after Richard TAYLOR. According to Miss Katie BEAUCHAMP, the name Bellview was once considered because the land surrounded by Brashears Creek and Salt River was shaped like a bell, but the name Taylorsville became official.
The fact that steamboats came all the way to Taylorsville from the Ohio River was one of the reasons for its creation at this particular site. In July, 1814 a plat of the town of Taylorsville was admitted to record by the Shelby County Court (Deed book M, page 399). Taylorsville was later to become the economic and governmental center of Spencer County. Taken from Spencer County History by Mary Francis Brown
January 1824, the thirty-second General Assembly established by act the creation of Spencer county from Shelby, Bullitt and Nelson Counties. Spencer County became Kentucky's 77th county. The county was named for Captain Spear Spencer, a valiant Indian fighter who lost his life at Tippecanoe. The General Assembly made Taylorsville the official county seat in December, 1824 and in 1829 the town was incorporated. Soon thereafter the first county court house was erected on Public Square.
Spencer County is located in the Outer Bluegrass region of the state. The elevation in the county ranges from 420 to 880 feet above sea level. In 1990 the county population was 6,801 in a land area of 185 square miles, an average of 36.8 people per square mile. The county seat is Taylorsville. Taylorsville was founded before 1790. It was laid out and named for Richard Taylor, a local land owner and miller, in 1799 and incorporated in 1829. The Taylorsville post office opened in 1817. The population in 1990 was 774.
The current Spencer County was once situated in Jefferson County, Virginia. Kentuckians adopted a constitution in preparation for statehood in May 1792. On June 1, 1792 Kentucky joined the Union as the 15th state. It is difficult to establish an exact date that settlers first came into this territory. Lewis COLLINS mentions in his History of Kentucky that on 25 May 1778, that a boat on the Salt River was attacked by Indians. At that time the Salt River was navigable to the present site of Taylorsville, so it is likely that the incident occurred within the area now known as Spencer County.
Lewis Collins reports that Indians migrated into the Salt River basin following the battle of Blue Licks which occurred in the vicinity of present day Maysville, Kentucky. In his history Lewis Collins gave a detailed account of an Indian massacre on Simpson Creek which took place on 1 September 1782. A Colonel FLOYD, when informed, ordered militia to search for the savages. Some of the searching party were from Kincheloe Station, a small settlement of six or seven families living on Simpson Creek west of Taylorsville. Finding no reason for alarm, the militia dispersed and the men returned to their homes. In the night the Indians suddenly and savagely attacked the Simpson Creek settlement, intent on massacre of all--men, women, children alike. Only a few escaped into the woods, and were taken captive. One William HARRISON placed his wife and another young woman under the floor of the cabin, and after escaping and successfully hiding in the woods, he later returned and rescued the two women. Thompson RANDOLPH saw his wife, Ann BAYLISS and their infant child murdered. He and a remaining child, climbed out through the roof, after killing and wounding several Indians, they escaped.
Spencer County History and Information
This page is for the general information on Spencer County, Kentucky. Which includes Spencer County, Kentucky County Records, Spencer County, Kentucky History, Spencer County, Kentucky facts, Spencer County, Kentucky Genealogical Addresses & websites related to Spencer County, Kentucky Genealogy in general.
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