Lincoln County is named for Benjamin Lincoln, who was a general in the American Revolutionary War and lived from 1733 to 1810.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Boyle County
E – Garrard County and Rockcastle County
S – Pulaski County
W – Casey County
Created: May 1, 1780 
County Seat:
Stanford 1780 – present
County Courthouse – Stanford
Location: 102 East Main Street / Mill Street
Built: 1906 – 1907
Style: Classical Revival
Architect: Frank Pierce Milburn of Washington, DC of Milburn, Heisler & Company
Contractor: F Kruger & Sons of Mount Vernon
Description: The building faces south and is a two story red colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Stanford. The south front has a large portico with four large Ionic columns rising to the pediment at the roof. The foundations, including the projecting pedestals of the stairs, are of finely laid stone. The courtrooms are marked on the outside by the large rounds-arched windows of the second story. A decorative white colored cornice runs along the roof line. On the center of the roof is a high square white colored cupola with clock in the top dome. The courtroom is located on the second story. The supervisor was J R Powell. In 1938 to 1940 an annex was added under the Works Project Administration. On the north side is the County Clerk’s Office.
See: The architect Frank Pierce Milburn of Washington, DC.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Lincoln County Courthouse
County Judicial Center – Stanford
Location: 101 East Main Street / Mill Street
Built: 1996 – 1998
Style: Modern
Architect: Garlan Vanhook of Vanhook Architectural Services of Stanford
Contractor: E H Construction of Shepherdsville
Description: The building faces north and is a two story red colored brick, stone and concrete structure. The building is located in the center of Stanford to the south of the courthouse. The north front has a central entrance with large arched window rising to the top of the second story and with peaked roof at the top. On either side are vertical pilasters. Along the first story are four arches. A horizontal belt runs below and above the second story windows. The roof is hipped.
See: The 28th Judicial Circuit includes Lincoln County, Pulaski County and Rockcastle County.
History: The county was created in 1870 as one of the three original counties in Kentucky and Fort Harrod ( Harrodsburg ) was designated as the county seat. The county seat was moved to Stanford when Mercer County was created. The first courthouse was a two-room log structure erected in 1785. The second courthouse was a large log structure. The third courthouse was a brick structure designed by John McRoberts and William Shanks and constructed by Jonathan A Bryant and William Hutcherson and converted for use as the courthouse. The fourth and present courthouse was constructed in 1906 to 1909. The County Judicial Center was constructed in 1996 to 1998.
County Courthouse – Stanford
County Judicial Center – Stanford
County Clerk’s Office – Stanford
Photos taken 2007 and 2014