The grand old Breathitt County Court House as it appeared about 1912. So much of our local history happened in and around this old building, it's a shame it wasn't restored. However, it was destroyed about 1963. J.B. Marcum was assassinated in the doorway on May 4, 1903. Jim Cockrell was shot dead from its windows in July of 1902. Hen Kilburn and a servant were lynched from its bell tower during the late 1880's. Several shootings took place in its courtroom. It was the scene of Goebel's famous speech in the 1890's. There have been several deadly gunfights in the streets around the courthouse. Also, at the back of the building, "Bad" Tom Smith was hanged in 1895. And on and on. It was, in fact, our county's third courthouse, begun in the 1880s and finally completed with clocks some thirty years later. It also had an iron fence surrounding it at the time of this photo. Note the two-story home in rear right background. Today, the Jackson Methodist Church is located here. At left are other buildings long since forgotten.