Lawrence County (Ohio)

Lawrence County is the southernmost county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 62,450. Its county seat is Ironton. The county was created in 1815 and later organized in 1817. It is named for James Lawrence, the naval officer famous for the line "do not give up the ship".Lawrence County is part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Charleston-Huntington-Ashland, WV-OH-KY Combined Statistical Area.HistoryThe earliest settlers, Luke Kelly, his family and May Keyser, settled at Hanging Rock, along the Ohio River in 1796. Lawrence County was formed on December 20, 1816 from parts of Gallia and Scioto Counties, with the county seat being at Burlington. In 1851 the county seat was moved from Burlington to Ironton. A new court House was built at that time but it burned in 1857. The present Lawrence County Courthouse was built in 1908.