Caldwell

Formed January 1, 1809 (51^st county)

Caldwell County (12,648), Princeton (6,269)

A concrete and masonry 1938 Art Deco courthouse serves Caldwell County.  It is on a square between Main and Market streets at Court Street.  United States Highway 62 turns from Market to Court Street at the courthouse.  Lawrence Casner is the building architect.  The building features faux columns and a working clock.  Veteran memorials are on the grounds and an Annex is across the street.  There was an 1865 courthouse also in Princeton, the only county seat.  Caldwell County was formed from Livingston County on January 1, 1809 as the 51^st county.  It is named for Lieutenant Governor John Caldwell.  The county seat is named for settler William Prince. 

Caldwell County government consists of a County Judge Executive, a sheriff, a clerk, an attorney, a treasurer, a coroner, and an appraiser (executive).  It has 4 Magistrates (legislative.)  Two Circuit Court Judges and One District Court Judge serve Caldwell, Livingston, Lyon and Trigg counties and a court clerk serves Caldwell County (judicial.) The county is situated in western Kentucky.  Owensboro, Kentucky is northeast and Paducah, Kentucky is northwest of the county.  The county center is 4.8 miles North-Northwest of Princeton.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Webster, Hopkins, Christian, Trigg, Lyon, and Crittenden counties. 

The area of the county is 347 square miles.  It is 46 out of 120 in the state.  It ranks 87 out of 120 in population in the state.  It has a density of 36.4 persons per square mile making it 94 out of 120 in the state.  Caldwell County has 52.5% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 62 crosses the county east to west from Hopkins County to Lyon County.  United States Highway 641 clips the northwest corner of the county from Crittenden County, north, to Lyon County, west.  The county is shaped like a container of ice cream with a scoop missing.  Princeton is in the southern third of the county.  Princeton is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 49.6% of the county population.