Grant County, Kentucky

Grant County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2010 census, the population was 24,662. Its county seat is Williamstown. The county was formed in 1820 and named for Colonel John Grant, who led a party of settlers in 1779 to establish Grant's Station, in today's Bourbon County, Kentucky.Grant County is included in the Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area.Grant County is a limited dry county, meaning that sale of alcohol in the county is prohibited, except in Crittenden, Corinth, Dry Ridge and Williamstown, where it is legal by the drink in restaurants seating at least 100 diners and deriving at least 70% of total sales from food. In the 19th century, Grant County contained multiple saloons.The Grant County News, established in 1906 and published in Williamstown, is preserved on microfilm by the University of Kentucky Libraries. The microfilm holdings are listed in a master negative database on the UK Libraries Preservation and Digital Programs website.HistoryGrant County was established in 1820 from land taken from Pendleton County. The present courthouse, built in 1939, replaced two earlier structures. In 1975, many residents reported seeing a UFO at Williamstown Lake.