Whitley County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 36,712. Its county seat is at Williamsburg, though the largest city is Corbin, and the county's District Court (a trial court of limited jurisdiction) sits in both cities. Whitley County is included in the London, KY Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

The area now encompassed by Kentucky's Whitley County was first founded in 1772, when all of what is now the state of Kentucky was in the frontier county of Fincastle County, Virginia. Fincastle was divided in 1776, with the western portion named Kentucky County, Virginia. In 1780, Virginia set aside all land in Kentucky County for soldiers who had served in the Revolutionary War. Kentucky County was divided into 3 counties, Jefferson, Fayette, and Lincoln. Lincoln County was divided in 1799, with part of becoming Knox County. On January 17, 1818, the Legislature removed the southwest portion of Knox to create a separate subdivision, named Whitley County.

In 1912, some of the previous Whitley area was partitioned off to create McCreary County.

The new county was given the name of Whitley in honor of William Whitley, noted pioneer and Indian fighter. In the years prior to 1818, many skirmishes were fought between Indians and hunters and trappers in the area. Colonel William Whitley, is famous locally for fighting many of these battles within the area, safeguarding the Wilderness Road, as well as for his service in the War of 1812, where he was killed at the Battle of the Thames. The county seat, Williamsburg, is also named for Colonel Whitley, with the first court held at the home of the town's earliest resident, Samuel Cox.

Thomas Walker was the first known white man to see Whitley County. His expedition began in 1750. During his passage he named the Cumberland River, after the Duke of Cumberland.

<!-- PresRow should be -->

Whitley County is a historically Republican county, and part of the pro-union bloc of southern Kentucky. Since 1900, the only Democrats who have carried the county were Woodrow Wilson in 1912 (when the Republican Party was bitterly divided) and Lyndon B. Johnson over Barry Goldwater in 1964, with Goldwater losing by three votes.

Local government

The current elected officials of Whitley County are:

  • County Judge/Executive: Pat White Jr.
  • County Magistrate: Scotty Harrison
  • County Magistrate: Michael Jarboe
  • County Magistrate: Raleigh Meadors
  • County Magistrate: Mondo Cima
  • County Attorney: Don R. Moses
  • County Coroner: Andy Croley
  • County Treasurer: Nicholas Simpson
  • County Sheriff: Bill Elliotte
  • County Surveyor: Robert Moses
  • Property Valuation Administrator: Ronnie Moses
  • County Clerk: Carolyn Wilson
  • Circuit Court Clerk: Gary Barton

Elected officials

{| class=wikitable

|-

| colspan="3" |Elected officials as of January 3, 2025

|-

! scope=row|U.S. House

| |Hal Rogers (R)

| |

|-

! scope=row|Ky. Senate

| |Robert Stivers (R)

| |25

|-

! scope=row|Ky. House

| |Nick Wilson (R)

| |82

|}

Public corruption

From 2009 to 2011, young journalist Adam Sulfridge and his editor Samantha Swindler of the Times-Tribune (Corbin, KY) worked to expose corruption in the Whitley County Sheriff's Department. Then-Sheriff Lawrence "Larry" Hodge (R) was first elected in 2002. Sheriff Hodge built his reputation as a tough crime fighter, but most residents did not know the Sheriff accepted money in exchange for allowing defendants to walk free. Sheriff Hodge also stole seized firearms and drug evidence, according to the Times-Tribune and affidavits filed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

On November 8, 2010 (while he was still Sheriff), a Whitley County grand jury returned a 21-count indictment against Hodge. He remained Sheriff until the end of 2010, as he was defeated in the Republican Party primary earlier in the year (May) in a landslide by Colan Harrell, who won in the general election in November. In the late spring of 2011, Hodge appeared in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky in London and pleaded to an 'information.' That summer, Hodge was sentenced to 15.5 years in federal prison for drug trafficking, money laundering and extorting persons arrested by his department (with Williamsburg attorney Ronnie "Ron" W. Reynolds, who was sentenced to three years in federal prison for his part in the crimes). Kentucky state auditors determined at least $200,000 had been stolen or was otherwise missing from Sheriff Hodge's official accounts.

Geography

right|thumb|250px|Cumberland Falls

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.6%) is water.

Whitley County is located within the Cumberland Plateau of southeastern Kentucky, which is greatly overlapped by the broad Eastern Coal Field region of the state. Because of its location in the midst of Cumberland Mountains, elevations in the county range from above sea level. of western Whitley County are preserved within the Daniel Boone National Forest. Cumberland Falls, in Cumberland Falls State Resort Park, is the largest waterfall in Kentucky. Both Daniel Boone Forest and Cumberland Falls State Park are operated by the Kentucky State Parks system, also located in the county. The county contains two regionally significant waterways, the Laurel and Cumberland rivers.

Geographic features

  • Cumberland Falls
  • Cumberland Plateau
  • Cumberland River
  • Jellico Mountain
  • Laurel River
  • Laurel River Lake

Adjacent counties

  • Laurel County - north
  • Knox County - northeast
  • Bell County - east
  • Claiborne County, Tennessee - southeast
  • Campbell County, Tennessee - south
  • McCreary County - west

National protected area

  • Daniel Boone National Forest (part)

Transportation

Major highways

  • Interstate 75
  • U.S. Route 25W
  • Kentucky Route 11
  • Kentucky Route 26
  • Kentucky Route 90
  • Kentucky Route 92
  • Kentucky Route 312
  • Kentucky Route 904

Airport

  • KBYL, Williamsburg-Whitley County Airport

Demographics