Breckinridge County, Kentucky

Breckinridge County, Kentucky
Breckinridge County, Kentucky courthouse in Hardinsburg
Location in the U.S. state of Kentucky
Kentucky's location in the U.S.
Founded	1799
Named for	John Breckinridge
Seat	Hardinsburg
Largest city	Hardinsburg
Area
• Total	586 sq mi (1,518 km2)
• Land	567 sq mi (1,469 km2)
• Water	18 sq mi (47 km2), 3.2%
Population
• (2010)	20,059
• Density	35/sq mi (14/km²)
Congressional district	2nd
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.breckinridgecounty.net

Breckinridge County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2010 census, the population was 20,059. Its county seat is Hardinsburg, Kentucky. The county was formed in 1799 and was named for John Breckinridge (1760–1806), an Kentucky Attorney General, state legislator, United States Senator, and United States Attorney General. Breckinridge County is a wet county following a local option election on January 29, 2013 but was a prohibition or dry county for the prior 105 years.

In August 1779, Sinclair Hardin (first cousin of Captain William Hardin, the founder of Hardin's Fort), was killed by Shawnee Indians while taking at drink at Big Springs. He was the first white settler in Breckinridge County to be killed by Native Americans. The Indian threat remained for the settlers for some years after that. However, the only sizable expedition against the Native Americans that Breckenridge County settlers took part in culminated in the Battle of Saline Creek in August 1786. Fought in Illinois, the battle lasted only about four minutes, but was fiercely fought in hand-to-hand combat. Between 18 and 30 Shawnee warriors were killed, with six more wounded. The remainder of the Shawnee fled. Captain William Hardin had commanded the white volunteers, many of whom also were killed or wounded. Hardin's victorious militia took home 16 Shawnee scalps, nine captured horses, 17 muskets, and "a mighty nice sword".