Best Nicknames

The most common names of Kentucky governors are John (8), James (7) and Charles (5). The most uncommon names are Brereton, Flemon and Keen. One governor, a Confederate General during the Civil War, was named after Venezuelan revolutionary and liberator, Simon Bolivar.

There have also been some very colorful nicknames among governors of the Bluegrass State, such as Happy, Black Bob and Honest Bill from Olive Hill.

John: 8 KY Governors
John Adair (1757-1840) Term: 1820-24
John Breathitt (1786-1834) Term: 1832-34
John LaRue Helm (1802-67) Terms: 1850-51; 1867
John Jordan Crittenden (1787-1863) Term: 1848-50
John White Stevenson (1812-86) Term: 1867-71
John Young Brown (1835-1904) Term: 1891-95
John Crepps Wickliffe “J.C.W.” Beckham (1869-1940) Term: 1900-07
John Young Brown, Jr. (b. 1933) Term: 1979-83

James: 7 KY Governors
James Garrard (1749-1822) Term: 1796-1804
James Turner Morehead (1797-1854) Term: 1834-36
James Clark (1779-1839) Term: 1836-39
James Fisher Robinson (1800-82) Term: 1862-63
James Bennett McCreary (1838-1918) Terms: 1875-79, 1911-15
J(ames) Proctor Knott (1830-1911) Term: 1883-87
James Dixon Black (1849-1938) Term: 1919

William: 5 KY Governors
William Owsley (1782-1862) Term: 1844-48
William O’Connell Bradley (1847-1914) Term: 1895-99
William Sylvester Taylor (1853-1928) Term: 1899-1900
William Justus Goebel (1856-1900) Term: 1900 (assassinated)
(“Boss Bill”, “Kenton King”, “William the Conqueror”)
William Jason Fields (1874-1954) Term: 1923-27
(“Honest Bill from Olive Hill”)

Charles: 3 KY Governors
Charles Scott (1739-1813) Term: 1808-12
Charles Anderson Wickliffe (1788-1869) Term: 1839-40
Charles Slaughter Morehead (1802-1868) Term: 1855-59

Augustus: 2 KY Governors
Augustus Owsley Stanley I (1867-1958) Term: 1915-19
Augustus Everett Willson (1846-1931) Term: 1907-11

Thomas: 2 KY Governors
Thomas “Stonehammer” Metcalfe (1780-1855) Term: 1828-32
Thomas Elliott Bramlette (1817-75) Term: 1863-67

Only one:
Albert Benjamin “Happy” Chandler, Sr. (1898-1991) Terms: 1935-39, 1955-59
Beriah Magoffin (1815-1885) Term: 1859-63
Bertram Thomas “Bert” Combs Term: 1959-63
Brereton Jones (b. 1939) Term: 1991-95
Christopher Greenup (c. 1750-1818) Term: 1804-08
Earle Chester Clements (1896-1985) Term: 1947-50
Edward Thompson “Ned” Breathit (1924-2003) Term: 1963-67
Edwin Porch Morrow (1877-1935) Term: 1919-23
Ernest Lee “Ernie” Fletcher (b. 1952) Term: 2003-07
Flemon Davis “Flem” Sampson (1875-1967) Term: 1927-31
Gabriel Slaughter (1767-1830) Term: 1816-1820
George Madison (1763-1816) Term: 1816
Isaac Shelby (1750-1826) Terms: 1792-96, 1808-12
Joseph Desha (1768-1842) Term: 1824-28
Julian Morton Carroll (b. 1931) Term: 1974-79
Keen Johnson (1896-1970) Term: 1939-43
Lawrence Winchester Wetherby (1908-94) Term: 1950-55
Lazarus Whitehead Powell (1812-67) Term: 1851-55
Louie Broady Nunn (1924-2004) Term: 1967-71
Luke Pryor Blackburn (1816-87) Term: 1879-83
Martha Layne Collins (b. 1936) Term: 1983-87
Paul Edward Patton (b. 1931) Term: Term: 1995-2003
Preston Hopkins Leslie (1819-1907) Term: 1871-75
Robert “Black Bob” Letcher (1788-1861) Term: 1840-44
Ruby Laffoon (1869-1941) Term: 1931-35
Simeon Slavens Willis (1879-1965) Term: 1943-47
Simon Bolivar Buckner (1823-1914) Term: 1887-91
Steven “Steve” Beshear (b. 1944) Term: 2007 -present
Wallace Glenn Wilkinson (1941-2002) Term: 1987-91
Wendell Hampton Ford (b. 1924) Term: 1971-74