History of Shelby County, Kentucky

Written, Compiled and Edited By George L. Willis, Sr.

Published in 1929, George Lee Willis, Sr’s History of Shelby County, Kentucky is an invaluable aid when researching and writing about the county’s beginnings. He stated, “The paramount purpose of the book is to preserve for posterity what was so rapidly fading into oblivion.” Because of his foresight, we have a 268-page book dedicated to a history that was destined to become long forgotten had it not been for Willis. The book includes biographies of pioneers in this area, information on churches and schools, towns, newspapers, jails, courthouses, Revolutionary Soldier in Shelby County, and much more.

George Lee Willis, Sr. (August 4, 1862 – August 9, 1948) was a writer, editor, and historian. In 1886 he began his newspaper career with the Louisville Times. Three years later he went to Frankfort, KY as a correspondent for the Courier-Journal for five years. He was editor of The Frankfort Capital before spending time in Washington writing a column for Kentucky newspapers. He was a writer for and Associate Editor of the Shelby Sentinel in the 1930s until his retirement, and Editor and part owner of the Shelby Record. In 1929 he published a History of Shelby County, Kentucky. The following year, he wrote a 210-page biography of geologist and historian Willard Rouse Jillson. Willis also wrote The Moneyless Man, Kentucky’s Contributions to History, and Kentucky Democracy. In 1932 he penned, Where Silent Tents are Spread, a historical sketch of Grove Hill Cemetery with additional Shelby County burial grounds. Willis married Ruth Stanton in 1892, daughter of Maj. Henry T. Stanton, a former Kentucky Poet Laureate. They had one son and three daughters.