Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
Kentucky County
Bell County, Kentucky
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park and Middlesboro's meteor crater - from Cumberland Gap National Historical Park (the mountain pass through which Daniel Boone blazed the Wilderness Road in 1775 - over 200,000 settlers passed through Cumberland Gap into Kentucky from 1775-1810, making it the most significant passage in American westward migration history) to Middlesboro's extraordinary origin as a meteor impact crater (Middlesboro is built entirely inside an ancient meteor impact crater - the 3.7-mile wide basin was formed by a meteorite impact about 300 million years ago, making Middlesboro one of the very few cities in the world built inside a verified impact structure).
Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
What do you need to do?
Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Bell County Emergency Management – 101 Courthouse Square, Pineville, KY 40977 | (606) 337-5897.
Sheriff: Bell County Sheriff’s Office – 101 Kentucky Avenue, Pineville, KY 40977 (P.O. Box 336/448) | (606) 337-3102 | Fax (606) 337-8391; Sheriff Mitchell Williams | Email: [email protected].
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-25E and US-119 serve Pineville, the county seat, in southeastern Kentucky along the Cumberland River, with Middlesboro as the county’s largest city near the famous mountain pass.
Notes: Bell County sits at the meeting point of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Bell County Courthouse – Pineville, KY.
Notes: Bell County is home to Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, a 20,500+ acre park preserving the historic mountain pass first documented by explorer Dr. Thomas Walker in 1750 and famously blazed into the Wilderness Road by Daniel Boone in 1775. An estimated 200,000-300,000 settlers passed through the gap into Kentucky, and the National Park Service estimates roughly 47 million living Americans descend from these pioneers. The park includes the Tri-State Marker where Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia meet, the multi-level Gap Cave (formerly Cudjo’s Cave), and Hensley Settlement, a turn-of-the-century mountain community whose hand-hewn cabins survive atop Brush Mountain. Middlesboro is also the childhood hometown of actor Lee Majors, who grew up there in the 1940s-50s.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Bell County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via bellcounty.ky.gov.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Bell County Public Library – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Cumberland Gap National Historical Park (85+ miles of hiking trails, the Pinnacle Overlook, Gap Cave tours, Hensley Settlement) and Pine Mountain State Resort Park are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine Cumberland Gap/Wilderness Road heritage is one of the most nationally significant pioneer-history facts covered in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Bell County Property Valuation Administrator (PVA) – confirm current contact via bellcounty.ky.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Bell County Animal Shelter – 715 Highway 1534, Pineville, KY 40977 | (606) 337-6331 or (606) 337-7035; Pineville line (606) 337-7478, Middlesboro line (606) 248-2990. Picks up stray dogs at no charge for Bell County residents; will accept but not pick up cats.
Friends of the Bell County Animal Shelter – P.O. Box 2534, Middlesboro, KY 40965 | (606) 337-2005 | Email: [email protected]; nonprofit support partner promoting responsible pet ownership and spay/neuter.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Bell County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via bellcounty.ky.gov.
NOTES: Bell County is the seventh and final county in Kentucky’s inaugural batch under the Round 3 A+ sourced standard. The genuine Cumberland Gap/Wilderness Road heritage is one of the most nationally significant pioneer-history facts covered in this project. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Bell County
Bell County is southeastern Kentucky’s Cumberland Gap and Pine Mountain county – the legendary frontier gateway through the Appalachians where Boone led settlers west and the first Kentucky state park on the mountain ridge above Pineville define a coal country community whose historical and natural assets anchor a post-coal identity in the Cumberland Mountains.
Pineville (the county seat, population ~1,700) is Bell County’s governmental hub on the Cumberland River, a southeastern Kentucky mountain city whose Pine Mountain State Resort Park, Cumberland Gap proximity, and coal heritage anchor its community identity.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Bell County Property Valuation Administrator at 101 Courthouse Square, Pineville, KY 40977, phone 606-337-6143. KY assessed at 100% fair cash value.
Courts & Legal
Bell County Circuit Court at 101 Courthouse Square, Pineville, KY 40977, phone 606-337-6143, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections, Marriage Licenses)
101 Courthouse Square, Pineville, KY 40977
(606) 337-6143
CIRCUIT COURT CLERK (Court Records)
101 Courthouse Square, Pineville, KY 40977
(606) 337-6142
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
101 Courthouse Square, Pineville, KY 40977
(606) 337-6143
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Bell County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, near Middlesboro, is a significant local historical resource for early frontier and settlement-era research.
Local societies
No dedicated Bell County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Bell County District Court Farmer Helton Judicial Center, 101 West Park Avenue, Pineville, KY 40977 (606) 337-9900
Bell County is in southeastern Kentucky in Appalachian coal country, seated in Pineville, near Cumberland Gap National Historical Park.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Kentucky has NOT adopted the Uniform Probate Code; probate is governed by KRS Chapter 395 (Administration of Estates), handled by the District Court in the county where the decedent resided (KRS 24A.120).
Dispensing with Administration – Kentucky’s simplified small-estate procedure, governed by KRS 395.450, 395.455, and 395.470. Available when the value of the personal estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $30,000, and the petitioner is a surviving spouse, adult child, or other qualifying heir/preferred creditor. The petitioner files a Petition to Dispense with Administration (Form AOC-830) with an affidavit listing assets, debts, and proposed distribution – no personal representative or full administration is required. Real estate is generally not covered by this procedure.
Regular (Full) Administration – for larger or more complex estates, the District Court appoints a personal representative (executor if named in a will, administrator if intestate), who gathers assets, pays debts, and distributes what remains under court oversight.
Step 2: filing for formal probate
File a Petition for Probate of Will and Appointment of Executor/Administrator (Form AOC-805) with the District Court in the county of residence.
If there’s a will, the court admits it to probate; it is then recorded with the county clerk (KRS 394.140).
The personal representative files an Inventory and Appraisement (Form AOC-841) of estate assets.
Notice to creditors is published; creditors generally have 6 months from appointment to file claims.
The personal representative pays valid debts, taxes, and expenses.
A Settlement of Estate (Form AOC-846) is filed, and the court closes the estate upon approval.
What it costs
Filing fees and publication costs are collected by the clerk and vary somewhat by county.
Kentucky does not require an attorney for probate, though it is commonly recommended, especially for formal administration.
Typical timelines: full probate generally takes 6-12 months; the creditor claims period is 6 months. Dispensing with Administration can move significantly faster once the estate qualifies.
Before distribution, a surviving spouse may petition for release of up to $2,500 from the estate as an exempt charge against estate property.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
101 Courthouse Square, Pineville, KY 40977
(606) 337-2119
SHERIFF / TAX COLLECTOR
101 Courthouse Square, Pineville, KY 40977
(606) 337-2119
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections, Marriage Licenses)
101 Courthouse Square, Pineville, KY 40977
(606) 337-6143
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
101 Courthouse Square, Pineville, KY 40977
(606) 337-6143
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Bell County Health Dept
(606) 337-3792
KY CHFS — Cumberland Region
(606) 337-1977
KY Medicaid
(855) 306-8959
Middlesboro ARH Hospital
arh.org/middlesboro (quality community hospital)
Baptist Health Corbin
baptisthealthcorbin.com (adjacent Knox County)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Bell County Health Department – confirm current contact via chfs.ky.gov local health department directory.
Editorial independence: CountyOffices maintains strict editorial independence from our affiliate partners. Our content is researched from official government sources. Affiliate relationships do not influence our recommendations or the information we publish.
