Todd County, Kentucky: History
=== Early history ===
Todd County consists of two geographical regions known historically as the high country to the north and low country to the south. The northern highlands consist of steep-sloped sandstone terrain with forests of oak, walnut and poplar. The landscape contains steep bluffs and sharp rises and falls within the terrain. The southern lowlands consist of rolling limestone flatlands void of aquifer sinks and consist of dense but sparse forests of oak, walnut poplar and ash. The historic inhabitants of the region before European encounter were the Iroquoian language-speaking Cherokee, who had migrated centuries earlier from areas around the Great Lakes. They used the lands for hunting and gathering.
Todd County lies within what was originally considered the western portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Many of the original white settlers came when the area was still considered part of Virginia. This part of southern Kentucky was designated to be awarded to Virginia veterans of the American Revolutionary War as payment for their services.
Justinian Cartwright may have been the first settle in what is now Todd County. However, the first proven residents are Edward Shanklin Jr., Matthew and David Rolston, and John Huston and his sons James and Granville Huston. Samuel Davis, father of Jefferson Davis, and John Wilson were also early settlers of the county. Kentucky Governor Greenup made the first Kentucky land grants to veterans William Croghan, David Logan, Edward Shanklin Jr., and John Wilson, among others.
Todd County was created in response to a petition for "home government," since travel to the county seats of Logan and Christian was arduous. The petition had been written by the magisterial court, consisting of Edward Shanklin, John Gray, Robert Coleman, Henry Gorin, John Taylor, H. C. Ewing, John S Anderson, William Hopper, John Mann and Joseph Frazer, had made the request. The legislature of the Commonwealth of Kentucky accordingly passed an act creating of the county from portions of Christian and Logan counties on April 1, 1820. The new county was named for Colonel John Todd, who had been killed at the Battle of Blue Licks in 1782. …