[2] The county is named for Colonel John Todd, who was killed at the Battle of Blue Licks in 1782 during the American Revolution.

The northern highlands consist of steep-sloped sandstone terrain with forests of oak, walnut and poplar.

[5] The historic inhabitants of the region before European encounter were the Iroquoian language-speaking Cherokee, who had migrated centuries earlier from areas around the Great Lakes.

[6] Todd County lies within what was originally considered the western portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

This part of southern Kentucky was designated to be awarded to Virginia veterans of the American Revolutionary War as payment for their services.

The new county was named for Colonel John Todd, who had been killed at the Battle of Blue Licks in 1782.

In the early 19th century, Major John Gray established a stagecoach hub in the county with travel routes radiating to larger American cities from the central point.

His widely known Stagecoach Inn located in "Graysville," now Guthrie, Kentucky, was at the center of the travel routes.

Major Gray's stagecoach empire was highly successful, and he soon became wealthy due to its popularity in the region.

Gray designed the city, which included a town square from which hundreds of lots radiated.

He called it "Elkton" after the elk herds that watered at a spring near the town center.

After Major Gray died, the building was deemed in a state of ruin due to improper construction methods and torn down to erect a new courthouse.

The brick building, which is extant in the 21st century, stands two stories tall with tripartite windows and large Greek-Revival lintels.