The 115th county of Kentucky was established in 1870, and names for General Robert E. Lee. Its area comprises 200 square miles. To Form Lee County, territory was taken from four counties, Owsley, Estill, Wolfe and Breathitt.

Citizens and heads of families in the towns of Beattyville and Proctor and names of families in the county precincts in 1870 were as follows:

TOWN OF BEATTYVILLE – Samuel Beatty (for whom the town was names); Decatur Beatty (his son), a coal merchant; John Beatty, a school teacher; James Beatty, lawyer, James Blount, coal merchant; Chas. Blount, physician; George Blount, boatman; Peter Crawford, farmer; Kenaz Hargis, lawyer; James Hill, farmer; Franklin Frailey, farmer; William Boling, blacksmith; Matthias Lewis; Joseph Gale; John G. McGuire, farmer; Henry Newman; Franklin Phillips, farmer; Zachariah Phillips; Richard Phillips; Elias and David Pryse, retail merchants; Thomas Pryse, Anthony Thomas; Weber Reed, U. S. Assistant Marshall; Thomas Sewell, retail merchant; Plelix Thomas; Charles D. Tyler; John Bryant, farmer; Zachariah Martin, physician.

TOWN OF PROCTOR – Clifton Beech, shoe and boot maker; Matthew Cook, house carpenter; Henry Dickerson, Cabinet Maker; Scott Daniel, sawmill worker; William Eve, carpenter; John Hammond, farmer; Jacob Howerton, retail grocer; William Howerton, sawmill worker; Albert Howerton, coal mine worker; Robert Jameson, merchant; Stephen Pebworth, engineer; Thomas Johnson, farmer; Thomas McGuire, sawmill worker; James B. McGuire, boatman; Philip Hammond, farmer; Hiram Mahatha, farmer; Richard Lions, farmer; William Porter, farmer; Samuel Wilder, farmer; Broadus Twyman, lawyer; Francis Lutes, carpenter, Oliver Tyra, farmer.

COAL BRANCH PRECINCT – Angell, Arnold, Barnett, Bowman, Benton, Brandenburg, Bailey, Cawood, Couch, Crawford, Cole, Cooper, Critzer, Combs. Creech, Dunaway, Dunagan, France, Fields, Gabbard, Gilley, Gross, Hieronymus, Hampton, Jameson, Jones, Lane, Ledford, Lucas, Lawson, Mann, Marshall, McGuire, Miller, Palmer, Plummer, Phelps, Roos, Thomas, Stamper, Stacy, Smallwood, Strong, Tharp, Thompson, Watkins.

BEATTYVILLE PRECINCT – Akers, Asbill, Ashcraft, Beatty, Bowman, Brandenburg, Campbell, Coomer, Collins, Cox, Cole Durbin, Dunaway, Daugherty, Evans, Estes, French, Fields, Freeman, Fraley, Gray, Gilbery, Gum, Gibson, Gorley, Godfrey, Johnson, Kincaid, Ketcham, Lenicker, McGuire, McClure, Maloney, Newman, Phillips, Pitman, Quillin, Powell, Ritchie, Snowden, Stone, Smith, Steel, Smallwood, Sparks, Sebastian, Thomas, William, York.

OLD LANDING PRECINCT – Ashcraft, Barrett, Belomy, Cole, Crawford, Combs, Crabtree, Couch, Curry, Durbin, Estes, Goe, Horn, Hughes, Hamilton, Hawkins, Gillaspie, Hall, Lane, McIntire, McGuire, Puckett, Pennington, Reynolds, Smith, Stamper, Townsend, Thacker, Rogers, Wyatt, Winkle, Warner.

PROCTOR PRECINCT – Angell, Alder, Blount, Bennett, Botner, Brandenburg, Begley, Burnett, Clay, Coomer, Combs, Cole, Congleton, Damerel, Dundaway, Estes, Fields, Evans, Dunnagin, Hamilton, Hall, Hurley, Howell, Fike, Kelly, Kindrick, McGuire, McQueen, Miller, Mayes, Newton, Norman, Phillips, Ross, Rogers, Rese, Roach, Smth (Smyth or Smith), Roberts, Russell, Stamper, Shearer, Tincher, Thomas, Smallwood.

STURGEON PRECINCT – Begley, Brandenburg, Bryant, Farmer, Hall, Horn, Gray, Herd, Ingram, Johnson, Linch, Kelly, Plowman, Newman, Smith, Osborn, Stidham, Stamper, Warren, Young, Sparks, Rader.

THOMAS PRECINCT – Adams, Abner, Arnold, Baker, Bailey, Coomer, Colins, Colwell, Burkhart, Couch, Chrisman, Cockran, Damerel, Day, Deaton, Duvall, Cable, Chambers, Friar, Gum, Gilbert, Gray, Gibbs, Hyden, Hatton, Holland, Huff, Jones, Jameson, Johnson, Hyronomus, Kincaid, Lewis, Legg, Lutes, Lucas, Morris, Mills, Moore, McLemore, Noland, Picket, Olinger, Profit, Roberts, Ramsey, Saunders, Simpson, Thomas, Tharp, Spencer, Snowden, Thompson, Stamper, Shoemaker, Shackelford, Treadway, Williams, White, Young, Wright, Vanderpool, Wills.

NOTE – Records of Pioneer Families living in what is now Lee County before 1870 will be included in articles in this series on Owsley and Estill Counties.