Kenton County
Also known as Kenton County, Kentucky, Kenton County, KY
county in Kentucky, United States
Key facts
- Country
- United States
- State
- Kentucky
- Named after
- Simon Kenton
- Seat
- Covington and Independence
- Largest city
- Covington
- Judge executive
- Kris Knochelmann (R)
- Total
- 164 sq mi (420 km )
- Land
- 160 sq mi (410 km )
- Water
- 4.1 sq mi (11 km ) 2.5%
- Estimate 2025
- 175,779
- Density
- 1,100/sq mi (410/km )
- Time zone
- UTC−5 ( Eastern )
- Summer dst
~8 min read
Article
Kenton County is a county located in the northern part of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 169,064, making it the third most populous county in Kentucky (behind Jefferson County and Fayette County). Its county seats are Covington and Independence. It was, until November 24, 2010, the only county in Kentucky to have two legally recognized county seats. The county was formed in 1840 and is named for Simon Kenton, a frontiersman notable in the early history of the state.
Kenton County, with Boone and Campbell Counties, is part of the Northern Kentucky metro area, and is included in the Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area.