Adair County is named for John Adair, who was the Governor of Kentucky from 1820 to 1824.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Green County, Taylor County and Casey County
E – Russell County
W – Metcalfe County
Created: December 11, 1801 
County Seat:
Columbia 1802 – present
County Courthouse – Columbia
Location: 500 Public Square / Jamestown Street
Built: 1885 – 1887
Style: Second Empire
Architect: H P McDonald Brothers of Louisville
Contractor: William H Hudson and Stone Company of Columbia
Description: The building faces southeast and is a three story white colored brick and stone structure. The building is located on the landscaped grounds of the Courthouse Square in the center of Columbia. The white colored stone was quarried at Sparksville in the County. The southeast portico has two thin columns rising to a balcony at the second story. In the columns that support the portico are carved the face of the builder William H Hudson of Collumbia. The building rises to the third story with the side sections rising only to the second story. The southwest and northeast wings are one story with white colored balustrades. On the center of the roof, is a large square stone cupola with glass windows and a clock at the roof level. The roof is hipped. The courtroom is located on the second story. The building was renovated in 1975. The architect was Clotfelter & Associates of Lexington and the contractor was McLean Construction Company od Columbia. The consulting engineer was Adams, Frazier & Anderson of Lexingtonn.
See: The architect H P McDonald and Brothers of Louisville, Kentucky.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Adair County Courthouse
County Judicial Center – Columbia
Location: 201 Campbellsville Street / Merchant Street
Built: 2008 – 2010
Style: Modern
Architect: DLZ of Frankfort
Contractor: Branscum Construction Company of Russell Springs
Description: The building faces southeast and is a two story red colored brick, concrete and glass structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Columbia to the north of the courthouse. The southeast front has a circular section with six columns rising to a wide header and with a central entrance on the first story. There are hipped roofs on the south and east sections of the building.
History: The county was created in 1802 and Columbia was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was built on the Courthouse Square in 1806. The second and present courthouse was constructed in 1885 to 1887. The County Judicial Center was constructed in 2008 to 2110 at a cost of $12,470,000.
County Courthouse – Columbia
County Judicial Center – Columbia
Photos taken 2007 and 2014