Henderson County, Kentucky

Henderson County
Henderson County courthouse in Henderson, Kentucky
Henderson County courthouse in Henderson, Kentucky
Map of Kentucky highlighting Henderson County
Location within the U.S. state of Kentucky
Map of the United States highlighting Kentucky
Kentucky's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 37°48′N 87°34′W / 37.8°N 87.57°W / 37.8; -87.57
Country United States
State Kentucky
Founded1798
Named forRichard Henderson
SeatHenderson
Largest cityHenderson
Area
 • Total466 sq mi (1,210 km2)
 • Land437 sq mi (1,130 km2)
 • Water30 sq mi (80 km2)  6.4%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total44,793
 • Estimate 
(2023)
44,119 Decrease
 • Density96/sq mi (37/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district1st
Websitehendersonky.us

Henderson County is a county in the U.S. state of Kentucky. The county is located in western Kentucky on the Ohio River across from Evansville, Indiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,793.[1] Its county seat is Henderson.[2]

The county was formed in 1798[3] and named for Richard Henderson[4] who purchased 17,000,000 acres (69,000 km2) of land from the Cherokee, part of which would later make up the county.

Henderson County lies within the West Kentucky Coal Field area. It is also part of the Evansville, IN-KY Metropolitan Statistical Area.

  1. ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 6, 2022.
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ^ "Henderson County". The Kentucky Encyclopedia. 2000. Archived from the original on September 4, 2015. Retrieved August 22, 2014.
  4. ^ The Register of the Kentucky State Historical Society, Volume 1. Kentucky State Historical Society. 1903. pp. 35.