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 · Louisville Metro · #705
Bullitt County, Kentucky
South of Louisville along I-65, Bullitt County has absorbed enormous residential growth from the Louisville metro while holding Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest - 16,000 acres of managed woodland that constitute the largest privately owned forest in Kentucky - in a county navigating the familiar suburban tension between development and conservation.
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: Bullitt County Emergency Management – 238 Saltwell Road, Shepherdsville, KY 40165 | (502) 543-2000. Hours: Mon-Fri 8 AM-4 PM.
Sheriff: Bullitt County Sheriff’s Office – 300 S. Buckman Street, Shepherdsville, KY 40165 | (502) 543-2514 | Fax (502) 543-2710; Sheriff Walt Sholar. The office operates a 24/7 multi-jurisdictional E-911 Center – P.O. Box 768 | Emergency 911, non-emergency (502) 543-7074 or (502) 955-7480 – coordinating 6 police agencies, 6 fire departments, and countywide EMS for over 80,000 residents.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-65 and US-31E serve Shepherdsville, the county seat, just south of Louisville; Mount Washington is the county’s largest city.
Notes: Bullitt County, established in 1796, is named for Alexander Scott Bullitt, Kentucky’s first Lieutenant Governor. Shepherdsville, the oldest town in the county, is named for Adam Shepherd, who purchased land at the Falls of Salt River in 1793.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Bullitt County Courthouse – 300 S. Buckman St, Shepherdsville, KY.
Notes: The community of Clermont in Bullitt County is home to the James B. Beam Distilling Co. – the producer of Jim Beam, the world’s #1-selling bourbon, distilled by eight generations of the Beam family since Jacob Beam sold his first barrel in 1795. Roughly 3.1 million barrels age across the Clermont campus alone, and the site also produces Knob Creek, Basil Hayden, Booker’s, and Baker’s. Adjacent to the distillery is Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest, a 16,346-acre preserve founded in 1929 by whiskey distiller Isaac Wolfe Bernheim on land purchased for $1 an acre after it had been stripped for iron ore mining – designed in part by the Frederick Law Olmsted landscape architecture firm and today home to the popular “Forest Giants” sculptures and a Canopy Tree Walk.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Bullitt County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via bullittky.com.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Bullitt County Public Library (Shepherdsville) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: James B. Beam Distilling Co. and Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest are the county’s premier attractions, drawing visitors from across the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and beyond.
Notes: The genuine “world’s #1 bourbon” distinction and the adjacent 16,000+ acre Bernheim Forest are among the most distinctive facts covered in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Bullitt County Property Valuation Administrator (PVA) – confirm current contact via bullittky.com.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Bullitt County Animal Control & Shelter – 545 Clermont Road, Shepherdsville, KY 40165 (P.O. Box 768) | (502) 543-8686 | Email: [email protected]. Hours: Mon-Tue 9 AM-4 PM, Wed closed, Thu-Fri 9 AM-4 PM, Sat 10 AM-3 PM, closed Sunday.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Bullitt County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via bullittky.com.
NOTES: Bullitt County is the first county in Kentucky’s third batch under the Round 3 A+ sourced standard. The genuine “world’s #1 bourbon” distinction at Jim Beam and the adjacent Bernheim Forest are among the most distinctive 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 Bullitt County
Bullitt County’s growth is Louisville’s southward suburban expansion – families seeking lower housing costs than Jefferson County while maintaining I-65 access to Louisville’s employment base have made Bullitt County one of Kentucky’s fastest-growing counties over the past two decades. Shepherdsville has developed commercial infrastructure along the I-65 corridor to serve the residential population. The county’s salt lick heritage – the Bullitt Lick was one of Kentucky’s most productive salt springs in the early American period, attracting settlers and bison alike – is preserved in local historical memory.
Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest, established by whiskey distiller Isaac Wolfe Bernheim in 1929 on 16,000 acres south of Clermont, is one of the most significant privately held conservation areas in Kentucky – its forest research programs, native plant collections, and trail system are open to the public and provide outdoor recreation infrastructure of a quality unusual in suburban Louisville’s orbit.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Kentucky assesses property at 100% of fair cash value. Property owners may appeal to the Board of Assessment Appeals by May 20. Kentucky has no estate or inheritance tax.
Courts & Legal
Courts & Legal
Bullitt County District Court (Probate): 300 South Buckman Street, Shepherdsville, KY 40165 | (502) 543-2215. The District Court handles estate administration and guardianship. Bullitt County Clerk records all property instruments.
Senior Services
Barren River Area Development District – Area Agency on Aging
(Louisville metro area senior services)
Phone: (502) 564-6786
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections, Marriage Licenses)
300 S. Buckman St., Shepherdsville, KY 40165
(502) 543-7104
CIRCUIT COURT CLERK (Court Records)
300 S. Buckman St., Shepherdsville, KY 40165
(502) 543-2244
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
300 S. Buckman St., Shepherdsville, KY 40165
(502) 543-7104
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Bullitt County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Bullitt 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
Bullitt County District Court Bullitt County Judicial Center, 250 Frank E. Simon Avenue, P.O. Box 746, Shepherdsville, KY 40165 (502) 543-7104 Bullitt County is in the Louisville metro area, seated in Shepherdsville.
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
300 S. Buckman St., Shepherdsville, KY 40165
(502) 543-2514
SHERIFF / TAX COLLECTOR
300 S. Buckman St., Shepherdsville, KY 40165
(502) 543-2514
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections, Marriage Licenses)
300 S. Buckman St., Shepherdsville, KY 40165
(502) 543-7104
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
300 S. Buckman St., Shepherdsville, KY 40165
(502) 543-7104
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Bullitt County Health Dept
(502) 543-2513
KY CHFS — Louisville Region
(502) 595-4200
KY Medicaid
(855) 306-8959
UofL Health (Louisville)
uoflhealth.org (major academic medical center)
Baptist Health Louisville
baptisthealthlouisville.com
Jewish Hospital (Louisville)
jewishhospital.org
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Bullitt County Health Department – 181 Lees Valley Road, Shepherdsville, KY 40165 | (502) 543-2415 | Fax (502) 543-2998.
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.
Editorial Trust
5 official sources cited
Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Shepherdsville
Population: 85,000
Area: 300 sq mi
Established: 1796
Tier: 3
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Bullitt County residents.
