Scottsburg: Named for a Railroad Man

Scott County was formed in eighteen twenty, but its first county seat, Lexington, sat off-center and residents pushed for a more convenient location for decades. Eventually the town of Scottsburg was platted in eighteen seventy-one on a more central site. It was named for Horace Scott, a railroad official.

The railroad was the region's economic lifeline, so honoring a railroad official in the town's name made practical sense. Scottsburg became the county seat and has held that role ever since, a small county center that owes its very existence to rail politics.