Johnson County is named for Richard Mentor Johnson, who was Vice President of the United States from 1837 to 1841.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Lawrence County
E – Martin County
S – Floyd County
W – Magoffin County and Morgan County
Created: February 24, 1842 
County Seat:
Paintsville 1843 – present
County Courthouse – Paintsville
Location: 338 2nd Avenue / Court Street
Built: 1957 – 1958
Style: Modern
Architect: James Allen Clark of Winchester
Contractor: Big Sandy & Ohio Valley Corporation
Description: The building faces south and is a three story brick and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Paintsville. The building is a rectangular shape. The first story is recessed with white colored pillars supporting the second and third stories. Green colored panels divide the windows on the second and third stories. Red colored brick faces the north side. The southeast section of the building extends south from the main building. The building was renovated in 1976. The architect was Meriwether Kennedy Hisel and the contractor was James N Gray Construction Company.
County Judicial Center – Paintsville
Location: 908 Third Avenue / Highway 460
Built: 2005 – 2006
Style: Modern Greek Temple
Architect: Vaughn & Metlor
Contractor: Codell Construction Company of Winchester.
Description: The building faces south and is a two story stone and concrete structure. The building is located on spacious landscaped grounds on the west side of Paintsville. The north front has a large portico with four columns rising to a pediment at the roof line. The roof line is flat.
See: The contractor was Codell Construction Company of Winchester which company constructed many courthouse in Kentucky ( see Louisville ).
History: The county was created in 1843 and Paintsville was selected as the county seat. The county used rented premises. The first courthouse was built in 1850. The second courthouse was a three story structure designed by Frank P Milburn and constructed in 1890. The third courthouse was constructed in 1957 to 1959 at a cost of $300,000 and is still standing. The fourth and present courthouse, County Judicial Center was constructed in 2006 to 2007.
County Courthouse – Paintsville
County Justice Center – Paintsville
Photos taken 2007 and 2018