From NKAA, Notable Kentucky African Americans Database (main entry)

Monroe County is located in south-central Kentucky on the Tennessee state line and is bordered by four Kentucky counties. It was formed in 1820 from portions of Barren and Cumberland Counties and named for James Monroe, fifth president of the United States.

Tompkinsville, which became the county seat in 1820, is named for Daniel Tompkins, who was Vice President during the Monroe administration. Tompkinsville was first known as Watson's Store, founded in 1809, receiving its present name in 1819. The land for the town was owned by Thomas B. Monroe, a cousin of President James Monroe.

The 1820 county population was 723 [heads of households], according to the U.S. Federal Census, and the population increased to 7,629 by 1860, excluding the enslaved. Below are the number of slave owners, enslaved, and free Blacks and Mulattoes for 1850-1870.

1850 Slave Schedule

• 190 slave owners
• 697 Black slaves
• 134 Mulatto slaves
• 17 free Blacks [most with last names Fulkes and Howard]
• 7 free Mulattoes [last names Speakman, Page, Kingrey, Fulkes, and Bedford]

1860 Slave Schedule

• 200 slave owners
• 775 Black slaves
• 150 Mulatto slaves
• 9 free Blacks [last names Howard, one Jackson, one Taylor]
• 9 free Mulattoes [most with last name Speakman, two Howard, one Colter, one Chism]

1870 U.S. Federal Census

• 599 Blacks
• 143 Mulattoes
• About 17 U.S. Colored Troops listed Monroe County, KY as their birth location.

Freetown

• Around 1845 Freetown (or Free-town) was established for the freed enslaved of William Howard, a wealthy slave owner in Monroe County. Freetown was the first African American community in the county, established on the land that had been provided by William Howard. A roadside historical marker has been placed near the Mount Vernon Church, which also served as a school for the Freetown community. There is also a cemetery near the church.

 
For more see Monroe County in The Kentucky Encyclopedia, edited by J. E. Kleber; South Central Kentucky Vital Statistics, by M. B. Gorin; The Saga of Coe Ridge, by W. L. Montell; Black Heritage Sites, by N. C. Curtis; and the Cora Mae Howard oral history interview by James Kelly Shirley (FA 474), at Western Kentucky University, Manuscripts and Folklife Archives. See the "U.S., Colored Troops Military Service Records, 1863-1865" and other military service records in Ancestry for names and additonal information.