According to the United States Census Bureau, Hindman has a total area of 3.1 square miles (8.1 km2), all land.

[6] The land for the town was provided by local landowner and postmaster Peyton Duke,[7] but Hindman was named in honor of James Hindman, who was the lieutenant governor when the town was founded in 1884 to serve as the seat of government for the newly formed Knott County.

[3] Early town politics included conflicts between the early settlers of The Forks, with fights between factions led by Anderson Hays and Clabe Jones in which several people were killed, including one where Clabe and supporters were barricaded in the Hindman jail and Hays and supporters were across the street in a log house.

[6] Education in early Hindman was initially provided by George Clark from Greenup County, with the Hindman Settlement School founded in 1902, thanks to money raised by early settler Solomon Everidge (who was 80 years old at the time), and education provided by the WCTU.

[6] After the third fire, the teachers left for Lexington, but were persuaded to return, with the school reconstructed in August 1912.

[8] On July 28, 2022, historic flooding impacted Eastern Kentucky with Hindman being one of the hardest hit communities.

The mayor at the time, Tracy Neice, was quoted as saying that the flooding was the worst he had ever seen.

In Paintsville native Tyler Childers' song, "Hard Times," he makes reference to the town of Hindman in regards to work he's gotten word is available.