Bradford Square

Hopkinsville is a city in Christian County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 31,577 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Christian County. Hopkinsville was settled in 1796 by Bartholomew and Martha Ann Wood, who came from Jonesborough, Tennessee. The Wood family settled in the vicinity of present-day West Seventh and Bethel Streets, near what would become known as the Old Rock Spring. Wood claimed 1,200 acres (5 km2) of bounty land, based on his military service in the American Revolutionary War. He built a second cabin on what is now the northeast corner of Ninth and Virginia streets, and a few years later built a home southeast of Fourteenth and Campbell streets, where he died in 1827. Wood's settlement soon attracted others, and a pioneer village emerged. Wood donated 5 acres (20,000 m2) of land and a half interest in his spring for the new county seat. The following year a log courthouse, jail, and "stray pen" were built on the public square facing Main Street. The plat for the town, first called Christian Court House, was surveyed by John Campbell and Samuel Means in 1799. In honor of Wood's eldest daughter, the town was renamed Elizabeth that same year. However, a town in Hardin County had the same name, and when the city was incorporated in 1804, the General Assembly renamed the settlement Hopkinsville, in honor of General Samuel Hopkins of Henderson County. Nearby cities include Crofton, Oak Grove, Trenton, Cadiz, and Elkton..