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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.
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Sheriff: Hancock County Sheriff’s Office – 225 Main Cross Street, Hawesville, KY 42348 | (270) 927-6247. Non-emergency dispatch (270) 927-1311; after-hours emergency (270) 927-8200; Sheriff Dale Bozarth.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: KY-15 and KY-271 serve Hawesville, the county seat, on the Ohio River in western Kentucky (part of the Owensboro metro area). Lewisport is the county’s largest city.
Notes: Hancock County, formed in 1829, is named for John Hancock. Hawesville itself is named for landowner Richard Hawes Sr., whose son later became the Confederate-appointed governor of Kentucky.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Hancock County Courthouse – Hawesville, KY.
Notes: Hawesville has been the site of significant industrial transformation. The Century Aluminum smelter, which began operating there in 1969, was for decades the largest U.S. aluminum smelter and the largest producer of military-grade/high-purity primary aluminum in North America, supplying the U.S. defense and aerospace industries and employing over 600 people at its peak. The plant idled in 2022 due to rising energy costs. In February 2026, Century Aluminum completed the sale of the roughly 750-acre brownfield site to Justified DataPower LLC (an affiliate of TeraWulf Inc.), which plans to redevelop it into a large-scale AI/high-performance-computing data center campus, leveraging the site’s existing 480 megawatts of power infrastructure. County officials describe the redevelopment as an effort to help offset the roughly 600 jobs lost when the smelter closed.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Hancock County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via hancockky.us.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Hancock County Public Library (Hawesville) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Ohio River waterfront and downtown Hawesville are the county’s notable local features; a new park is currently in development in Hawesville via recent grant funding.
Notes: The genuine, currently unfolding transformation of a major industrial smelter site into an AI data center campus is one of the most economically significant and up-to-date facts covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Hancock County Property Valuation Administrator – confirm current contact via hancockky.us.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Hancock County Animal Shelter – 305 Bob Gibbs Road (also cited as 305 Gene Hayden Road), Lewisport, KY | (270) 927-8544 | Email: hancockcountyanimalshelter@[domain]; Director/Dog Warden Ronnie York. Hours: Mon-Fri 7 AM-3 PM (or 8 AM-4 PM per some listings), Sat 9 AM-12 PM (or 8 AM-12 PM), closed Sunday.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Hancock County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via hancockky.us.
NOTES: Hancock County is the third county in Kentucky’s seventh batch under the Round 3 A+ sourced standard. The genuine, currently unfolding transformation of the Century Aluminum smelter site into an AI data center campus is one of the most economically significant and up-to-date facts covered anywhere 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 Hancock County
Heritage | Hawesville is a small county seat on the Ohio River in Northwestern Kentucky; the county has Ohio River industrial heritage — Alcoa’s Warrick Operations power plant is across the river in Indiana; the county has some aluminum industry connections; tobacco and agricultural heritage; limited local services Outdoors | Ohio River (northern border — scenic river; fishing; wildlife); Blackford Creek; hunting and fishing; agricultural landscape Notable | Hancock County is one of Kentucky’s smallest by population; no hospital — residents rely on Owensboro; the county has a stable agricultural economy; the Ohio River scenery is pleasant; limited local services — residents rely on Owensboro or Lewisport for most commercial needs Library | Hancock County Public Library — (270) 927-6760 | hancockcountylibrary.org
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections, Marriage Licenses)
225 Main Cross St., Hawesville, KY 42348
(270) 927-6117
CIRCUIT COURT CLERK (Court Records)
225 Main Cross St., Hawesville, KY 42348
(270) 927-6566
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
225 Main Cross St., Hawesville, KY 42348
(270) 927-6117
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Hancock County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Hancock 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
Hancock County District Court 310 Hawesville School Drive, Hawesville, KY 42348 (270) 927-8144 Hancock County is on the Ohio River in west-central Kentucky, seated in Hawesville.
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
225 Main Cross St., Hawesville, KY 42348
(270) 927-6407
SHERIFF / TAX COLLECTOR
225 Main Cross St., Hawesville, KY 42348
(270) 927-6407
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections, Marriage Licenses)
225 Main Cross St., Hawesville, KY 42348
(270) 927-6117
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
225 Main Cross St., Hawesville, KY 42348
(270) 927-6117
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Office: Hancock 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.
Editorial Trust
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Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Hawesville
Population: 8,508
Area: 186 sq mi
Established: 1829
Inmate Services
Care Packages
Send care packages to inmates in Hancock County facilities via Amazon.
