The construction of a new courthouse began at the present location, 101 North Main Street, Nicholasville. It was opened to the public in 1878. The cost of the present courthouse was $38,385, which was paid for by taxation. The County Judge was Hon. W.H. Phillips and magistrates composing the County Court were: Dudley Portwood, John J. Cobbman, E.J. Young, Charles McDavitt, Mordecai Crutchfield, Richmond Hunter, George T. Nave, R.J. Scott, Isaac Bourne and Edmund E. Horine. By 1898, it was debt free.
The limestone fence surrounding the front of the courthouse was, and still remains, a favorite gathering spot for many Jessamine Co. men, just catching up on the latest goings-on in Nicholasville and solving the problems of the world.
