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Office: Elliott County Emergency Management – 59 Ambulance Rd, Sandy Hook, KY 41171 | (606) 738-6011. Elliott County 911 dispatches fire and EMS.
Sheriff: Elliott County Sheriff’s Office – 100 Main Street, P.O. Box 729, Sandy Hook, KY 41171 | (606) 738-5422 | Fax (606) 738-4669 | Email: [email protected]; Sheriff Ray Craft. Hours: Mon-Fri 8 AM-4 PM, plus 1st and 3rd Saturday 9 AM-12 PM.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: KY-7 and KY-32 serve Sandy Hook, the county seat and only incorporated city, in eastern Kentucky’s Eastern Coal Field region along the Little Sandy River.
Notes: Elliott County, formed in 1869 from parts of Morgan, Lawrence, and Carter counties, is named for John Milton Elliott – a judge, U.S. Congressman, and member of the Confederate States Congress from Kentucky (some historians credit his father, John Lyle Elliot, also a congressman, instead). The county remains legally “dry.” A 1957 courthouse fire destroyed many early county records.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Elliott County Courthouse – Sandy Hook, KY.
Notes: Elliott County is genuinely one of Kentucky’s smallest and most rural counties, made up almost entirely of unincorporated communities surrounding Sandy Hook, its only incorporated city. The Little Sandy Correctional Complex, the most recently built Kentucky state prison (opened 2005, medium security, roughly 1,000-bed capacity), sits about 6 miles from Sandy Hook. The county borders Grayson Lake, a popular local destination for kayaking, boating, and fishing.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Elliott County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via elliottcounty.ky.gov.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Elliott County Public Library (Sandy Hook) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Grayson Lake and the surrounding Little Sandy River watershed are the county’s main outdoor draws for boating, kayaking, and fishing.
Notes: Elliott County’s small-town, rural Appalachian character is genuinely distinctive even within eastern Kentucky.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Elliott County Property Valuation Administrator (PVA) – confirm current contact via elliottcounty.ky.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Elliott County Animal Control – (606) 738-5826 or (606) 738-9398; Animal Control Officer Ann S. Lewis. ⚠️ The county’s animal welfare infrastructure has faced real challenges in recent years – confirm current shelter/intake arrangements directly with the Animal Control Officer or County Judge/Executive’s office before relying on any specific facility, as availability has changed over time.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Elliott County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via elliottcounty.ky.gov.
NOTES: Elliott County is the third county in Kentucky’s fifth batch under the Round 3 A+ sourced standard. This is one of Kentucky’s smallest, most rural counties by population. 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 Elliott County County
Elliott County is northeastern Kentucky’s Little Sandy River and national forest county – one of the most forested and least densely settled counties in the state, where Sandy Hook’s courthouse serves a dispersed Appalachian population in a landscape of wooded ridges and creek hollows that has maintained its rural character through the economic changes that have reshaped neighboring counties.
Sandy Hook (the county seat, population ~600) is Elliott County’s governmental hub, a small northeastern Kentucky Appalachian community on KY-7 serving the county’s rural population in the Little Sandy River watershed.
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Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Elliott County Property Valuation Administrator at 1 Clay Street, Sandy Hook, KY 41171, phone 606-738-5522. KY assessed at 100% fair cash value.
Courts & Legal
Elliott County Circuit Court at 1 Clay Street, Sandy Hook, KY 41171, phone 606-738-5168, 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)
1 Main St., Sandy Hook, KY 41171
(606) 738-5421
CIRCUIT COURT CLERK (Court Records)
1 Main St., Sandy Hook, KY 41171
(606) 738-5754
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
1 Main St., Sandy Hook, KY 41171
(606) 738-5421
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Elliott County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Elliott 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
Elliott County District Court Elliott County Courthouse Annex, 100 Main and Jane Caudill Streets, Sandy Hook, KY 41171 (606) 738-5238
Elliott County was formed in 1869 from parts of Morgan, Lawrence, and other counties, named for John Milton Elliott (or John Lyle Elliot). Its seat, Sandy Hook, is also its largest city.
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
1 Main St., Sandy Hook, KY 41171
(606) 738-5161
SHERIFF / TAX COLLECTOR
1 Main St., Sandy Hook, KY 41171
(606) 738-5161
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections, Marriage Licenses)
1 Main St., Sandy Hook, KY 41171
(606) 738-5421
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
1 Main St., Sandy Hook, KY 41171
(606) 738-5421
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Elliott County Health Dept
(606) 738-5210
KY CHFS — Gateway Region
(606) 784-4165
KY Medicaid
(855) 306-8959
King's Daughters Medical Center
kdmc.com (Ashland — Boyd County; nearest major hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Elliott County Health Department – confirm current contact via chfs.ky.gov local health department directory.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Sandy Hook
Population: 7,500
Area: 234 sq mi
Established: 1869
Public Records
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