County of the Month: Daviess

Daviess County was the 58th county formed in Kentucky in January of 1815. It is named to honor Col. Joseph Hamilton Daveiss, a distinguished lawyer and soldier. Col. Hamilton is noted for having the position of U.S. Attorney for Kentucky and prosecuting Aaron Burr's treason case. He is also noted as a war hero, dying during the Battle of Tippecanoe under the command of General Harrison.

At the creation of the county, the enrolling clerk misspelled the "Daveiss," transcribing it as "Daviess." Later the General Assembly passed an act correcting the mistake, but the original spelling remained, and is used today.

In 1780, the first settlers came to Daviess County, via the Ohio River. Joseph Black established a hunting camp on Blackford Creek, but was later killed by Indians. William Smeathers settled at Yellow Banks in 1798, so named due to the deep yellow color of the clay-laden river banks. The settlement was situated in the area now known as Elizabeth Street in Owensboro.

Yellow Banks was selected as the county seat, and the name changed to Rossboro, in honor of landowner David Ross. Rossboro's main thoroughfare was named after his daughter: Frederica Street. In 1817, the legislature incorporated the town and again changed the name, this time to "Owensborough" in honor of Col. Abraham Owen, a member of Kentucky's constitutional convention. Later, the name would be changed again, when it was shortened to "Owensboro."

Settlers were attracted to the Daviess area for the healthy, well-drained hill country between Pup Creek and Blackford, especially along Indian trails such as the Elizabethtown-Shawneetown, Yelvington, and Iceland Landing trails. Primarily an agricultural area, slave labor was profitable, and by the beginning of the Civil War, slaves made up 20% of the county's population.

During the Civil War, most residents were supportive of the Confederacy due to the county's reliance upon slave labor. During the Presidential election, only seven residents voted in favor of Kentucky-native Abraham Lincoln and the Republicans.

Only one formal battle took place in Daviess County: a skirmish at Panther Creek. Because of its strategic position on the Ohio River, Owensboro was occupied early in the war by Union troops. Confederate guerillas, under the command of Captain William Davison, invaded the area in 1865 and burned the courthouse in retaliation for the Union quartering black troops there.

Source: Kentucky Encyclopedia

 

Family History and Daviess County Research Resources

Below are some resources for genealogists and researchers interested in the Fleming County area.

County Clerk records

• Agency history
• Administrator's bonds books (indexed) - 1834-1902
• Administrator's and guardian's bonds book - 1834-1852
• Executor's bonds book (indexed) - 1878-1904
• Guardian's bonds books (indexed) - 1846-1852, 1856-1867, 1871-1901
• General index to deeds - grantee - 1815-1984
• General index to deeds - grantor - 1815-1984
• Deed books - 1815-1995
• Commissioner's deed books - 1854-1937
• Oil and gas leases books - 1907-1950
• General index to marriages (bride) - 1815-1985
• General index to marriages (groom) - 1815-1985
• Marriage books (indexed) - 1852-1992
• Marriage books "colored" (indexed) - 1866-1914
• Marriage certificate book - 1815-1853
• Marriage register - 1934-1949
• Freedmen's declaration of marriage - 1855-1868
• Miscellaneous books - 1983-1984
• General index to mortgages - mortgagee - 1904-1964
• General index to mortgages - mortgagor - 1904-1964
• Mortgage books - 1846-1867, 1871-1957
• Order books (indexed) - 1837-1903
• County Judge/Executive order books - 1979-1983
• Plat books - 1969-1990
• Power of attorney books (indexed) - 1890-1974
• General index to real estate conveyances - grantee - 1815-1964
• General index to real estate conveyances - grantor - 1815-1964
• Road orders books (indexed) - 1871-1966
• Settlement books (indexed) - 1848-1864, 1867-1902
• Tax assessment books - 1815-1892
• General index to wills - 1815-1980
• Will books - 1812-1992

Circuit Court records

• Agency history
• General indexes to civil cases - defendant - 1816-1984
• General indexes to civil cases - plaintiff - 1816-1984
• General index to criminal cases - defendant - 1875-1981
• Civil case files - 1953-1977
• Criminal case files - 1816-1968
• Equity case files - 1815-1953
• Ordinary case files - 1919-1941
• Deed book (indexed) - 1818-1841
• Commissioner's deed books (indexed) - 1817-1841
• Order books (indexed) - 1815-1882
• Civil order books (indexed) - 1882-1977
• Criminal order books (indexed) - 1881-1977

Quarterly Court records

• Bonds in liquor cases books (indexed) - 1924-1930
• Execution books (indexed) - 1905-1951
• Judgment book (indexed) - 1926-1932
• Judgment by default book - 1899-1909
• Order books - 1902-1934

Criminal Court records

• Order books (indexed) - 1876-1881
• Magistrate or Justice of the Peace records
• Docket books (indexed) - 1927-1930, 1945-1964
• Criminal judgment books (indexed) - 1930-1942
• Judgment by default books (indexed) - 1929-1953
• Marriage records - 1970-1973
• Order books (indexed) - 1930-1957

Fiscal Court records

• Order books (indexed) - 1888-1988
• Minute books - 1954-1985