Irvine was named in 1812 for Col. Wm. Irvine, a member from Madison Co. of the 1787 and 1788 conventions that sought separation from Va. and statehood for Ky., and a member of the Constitutional Convention in 1799. He was said to have had a strong hold on the affection of the people, and few were said to have gone to the grave more lamented.