Formed December 17, 1796 (22nd county)
Garrard County (16,949), Lancaster (3,901)
1868 was the construction year of the classic Federalist red/tan brick courthouse. The building was renovated in 1914 and 1975. A Justice Center was added in 2010. The courthouse architects are Weber, Warner & Adkins. The courthouse features a tower and columns. The county was organized on December 17, 1796 from parts of Madison, Lincoln, and Mercer counties as the 22nd county. Lancaster has always been the county seat. The county is named for Governor James Garrard. The county seat is named for Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Garrard County was the birthplace of 1 Kentucky Governor, William O. Bradley. The courthouse is Lexington and Baughmon streets. United States Highway 27 is Lexington Street in the town.
Garrard County government consists of a County Judge Executive, a sheriff, a clerk, an attorney, a treasurer, a coroner, and an appraiser (executive). It has 5 Magistrates (legislative.) Two Circuit Court Judges, Two District Court Judges, and One Family Court Judge serve Garrard and Jessamine counties and a court clerk serves Garrard County (judicial.) The county is located in south central Kentucky. Lexington, Kentucky is north and Louisville, Kentucky is northwest of the county. The county center is 2.1 miles Northeast of Lancaster. The county is surrounded clockwise by Jessamine, Madison, Rockcastle, Lincoln, Boyle, and Mercer counties.
The area of the county is 231 square miles. It is 92 out of 120 in the state. It ranks 67 out of 120 in population in the state. It has a density of 73.4 persons per square mile making it 48 out of 120 in the state. Garrard County has 23.0% of its population in its incorporated areas. United States Highway 27 travels north to south in the county from Jessamine County to Lincoln County. The county looks like a pencil point. Lancaster is in the southwest quarter of the county. Lancaster is the county seat and the largest city since it is the only incorporated city. It is 23.0% of the county population. The county is pronounced GAER-AD.
Lancaster
