Jessamine County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 52,991. Its county seat is Nicholasville. The county was founded in December 1798. Jessamine County is part of the Lexington-Fayette, KY Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is within the Inner Blue Grass region, long a center of farming and thoroughbred horse breeding. The legislature established a commercial wine industry here in the late 18th century.
History
Jessamine County was established in 1798 from land given by Fayette County. Jessamine was the 36th Kentucky county in order of formation. The county is claimed to be named for a Jessamine Douglass, the daughter of a pioneer settler, who was either killed by Native Americans or committed suicide after being unlucky in love, but that story is dismissed by modern scholars, who say the name is from Jessamine Creek and the jasmine flowers that grow next to it. Most of the early pioneers were from Virginia, who came through the mountains after the American Revolutionary War.
In the late 18th century, the Kentucky General Assembly passed a bill to establish a commercial vineyard and winery, based in Nicholasville and the first in the United States, known as First Vineyard. Wine making based on European grapes became widespread in the United States. After the Prohibition era, which lasted from 1920 to 1933, the county voted to prohibit alcohol sales. Voters in the city of Nicholasville allowed package alcohol sales. In 2020, voters voted to allow alcohol sales, reversing the county's dry policy. The Chrisman Mill Vineyards is authorized to operate and sell its product in the "dry" portion of the county.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.4%) is water. In 2000, nearly of the county's total area was dedicated to agriculture.
The county's entire southern border is formed by the Kentucky River. Jessamine County's river bank extends roughly long due to meandering, and the river's scenic Palisades feature heavily along this border.
Adjacent counties
- Fayette County (northeast)
- Madison County (southeast)
- Garrard County (south)
- Mercer County (southwest)
- Woodford County (northwest)