[3] Greenup County is part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Located with its northern border formed by the Ohio River, Greenup County was organized by an act of the General Assembly of Kentucky on December 12, 1803, from Mason County, which included the majority of eastern Kentucky at the time.

The land in the Ohio River valley is generally flat and mostly populated by industry, commerce and residential development.

Beyond this the land gives way to a series of hills and valleys that are representative of the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains.

Among these hills, popular fishing spots can be found among the Little Sandy River, Greenbo Lake, and Tygarts Creek.

It enters Greenup County at the southeasternmost point and follows the Ohio River north along the eastern border passing through Russell, Flatwoods, Raceland, Wurtland, Greenup and South Shore.

The northern terminus of the Industrial Parkway (Kentucky Route 67) ends at U.S. Highway 23 at Wurtland.

This highway serves to connect Wurtland and the surrounding towns of Greenup, Flatwoods and the unincorporated area of Argillite to the EastPark industrial park and Interstate 64 in Carter County.

In the case of Greenup County, alcohol sales are permitted in the following areas: The sale of alcohol is prohibited in the cities of Worthington, Wurtland and in all areas of unincorporated Greenup County outside the River Bend Golf Course.