Last week I told you that Laurel County and the City of London will celebrate our bicentenary in 2025-26. The historical society is hoping to print a book listing the county and city officials appointed and elected as a bicentenary project. We are in the initial stages of searching for the names and service dates of these public figures. Here are incomplete lists for the District Attorney, City Attorney, and Commonwealth Attorney offices. I couldn’t find a list for the last two positions, so they are absolutely inadequate. The position of district attorney was not established until 1829. Before 1829, the Commonwealth Attorney performed the duties. I have no idea when the prosecutor was established.
Laurel County’s attorneys and their approximate terms of office were:
1829-1870
1870-1874 AS Stephens
1874-1878 NB Jones
1878-1882 TJ Cannifax
1882-1886 WT Moren
1886-1887 WB Catch
1888-1890 WL Brown
1890-1894 WT Moren
1895-1897 EK Wilson
1898-1901 James Sparks
1902-1905 Walker Moren
1906-1913 Hiram J. Johnson
1914-1917 JK Lewis
1918-1921 BG Reams
1922-1925 JK Lewis
1926-1929
1930-1933 William A. Hamm
1934-1937 George S. Crawford
1938-1941 Emory Walden
1942-1945 CR Luker Sr.
1946-1949
1950-1953 William A. Hamm
1954-1957 Coleman Moberly
1958-1961
1962-1965
1966-1969
1970-1973 Fredora Pennington Lay
1974-2010 Elmer Cunnagin
Current JL Albright
The City of London attorneys and their approximate tenure were:
1922 Finley Hamilton
1928 WE Begley
? – 1957 Milton Luker
1958 – Jan. 4, 1960 CR Luker, Jr.
Jan. 04, 1960 – Gillis Colson
Jan. 2, 1975 – Jan. 3, 1978 Milton Luker
Jan. 03, 1978 – January 1980 Robert E. Cato
current Larry Bryson
The commonwealth attorneys were:
1826 Thomas Buford
Tom cell phone
Tom Weatherly (?)
Current – Jackie Steele
If you can provide additional information or corrections, please contact me at 606-864-0607 or email me at laurelcountykyhistoricalsociety@yahoo.com.
Due to COVID-19 and the age and health of the volunteers, our library is only open by appointment. Users must comply with CDC guidelines by social distancing and wearing masks correctly. To schedule an appointment, you can call us at 606-864-0607 and leave a message or contact us by email at laurelcountykyhistoricalsociety@yahoo.com. We plan to check messages regularly and hopefully answer them in a timely manner.