Exhibit 99.1

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 21, 2009

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT JEAN R. HALE, CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT, AND C.E.O., COMMUNITY TRUST BANCORP, INC. AT (606) 437-3294

Pikeville, Kentucky:

COMMUNITY TRUST BANCORP, INC. REPORTS EARNINGS FOR THE FOURTH QUARTER AND YEAR 2008.

Earnings Summary
(in thousands except per share data)		4Q 2008			3Q 2008			4Q 2007		Year 2008			Year 2007
Net income/(loss)	$	6,485		$	(577	)	$	9,271		$	23,073		$	36,627
Earnings/(loss) per share	$	0.43		$	(0.04	)	$	0.62		$	1.54		$	2.42
Earnings/(loss) per share (diluted)	$	0.43		$	(0.04	)	$	0.61		$	1.52		$	2.38
Return on average assets		0.87	%		(0.08	)%		1.26	%		0.79	%		1.23	%
Return on average equity		8.44	%		(0.74	)%		12.22	%		7.48	%		12.45	%
Efficiency ratio		61.45	%		58.63	%		55.60	%		58.39	%		57.62	%
Dividends declared per share	$	0.30		$	0.29		$	0.29		$	1.17		$	1.10
Book value per share	$	20.46		$	20.26		$	20.03		$	20.46		$	20.03
Weighted average shares		15,065			15,011			15,042			15,017			15,150
Weighted average shares (diluted)		15,220			15,263			15,192			15,160			15,372

Community Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ-CTBI) reports earnings of $6.5 million or $0.43 per basic share for the fourth quarter 2008 and $23.1 million or $1.54 per basic share for the year 2008.  During the fourth quarter, CTBI recorded an other than temporary impairment charge of $1.1 million based upon the current market value of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae trust preferred pass-through auction rate securities.  CTBI held $14.9 million of these securities on June 30, 2008 and took an other than temporary impairment charge of $13.5 million during the third quarter of 2008.  The current market value of all auction rate securities held by CTBI is $0.5 million.  CTBI has also recorded a $1.5 million decline in the fair value of its mortgage servicing rights during 2008 and increased its provision for loan losses by $4.9 million year over year.  Additionally, current economic conditions combined with the current interest rate environment continue to put pressure on CTBI’s net interest margin and impact its asset quality contributing to lower earnings for the fourth quarter and year 2008.

CTBI maintains a significantly higher level of capital than required by regulatory authorities to be designated as well-capitalized.  On December 31, 2008, our Tier 1 Leverage Ratio of 10.37% was 537 basis points higher than the 5.00% required, our Tier 1 Risk-Based Capital Ratio of 13.05% was 705 basis points higher than the required 6.00%, and our Total Risk-Based Capital Ratio of 14.30% was 430 basis points higher than the 10.00% regulatory requirement for this designation.

Fourth Quarter and Year 2008 Highlights

v   CTBI's basic earnings per share after the impairment charges referenced earlier increased $0.47 from prior quarter which included a $13.5 million other than temporary impairment charge and decreased $0.19 from prior year fourth quarter.  Year-to-date basic earnings per share decreased $0.88 from prior year, primarily as a result of other than temporary impairment charges during the third and fourth quarters 2008 and a $4.9 million increase in our allocation to our reserve for losses on loans.

v   Pressure continued on our net interest margin due to the current interest rate environment and economic conditions.  Our net interest margin for the year ended December 31, 2008 decreased 2 basis points from prior year, and net interest income decreased $2.4 million from prior year as average earning assets decreased by $57.0 million.

v   Noninterest income for the fourth quarter was impacted by the $1.1 million other than temporary impairment charge (OTTI) for auction rate securities while year-to-date noninterest income was impacted by $14.5 million in OTTI charges.  Core noninterest income showed slight increases from prior year with increases in gains on sales of loans, deposit service charges, and trust revenue; however these increases were offset by a decrease in the fair value of mortgage servicing rights.

v   Noninterest expense controls were positive during 2008 as we experienced a decline in total noninterest expense which was driven by decreases in both personnel and occupancy expenses.

v   Nonperforming loans increased $2.9 million during the fourth quarter to $52.2 million at December 31, 2008 compared to $49.3 million at prior quarter-end and $31.9 million at prior year-end.

v   Our loan portfolio increased an annualized 5.6% during the quarter with $32.6 million in growth.  Loan growth from prior year-end was $120.8 million or 5.4%.

v   Our investment portfolio decreased $19.2 million for the quarter and $64.1 million year over year primarily resulting from the use of the liquidity in the portfolio to fund loan growth and manage the net interest margin and the OTTI charges for auction rate securities.

v   CTBI’s effective income tax rate was 26.6% for the year ended December 31, 2008, compared to 30.95% for the year ended December 31, 2007.  The reduced income tax rate was driven by the increase in the ratio of tax exempt income to total income and the adjustment of a tax deferred item in the fourth quarter 2008 which had a positive impact to earnings of $0.04 per share.

Net Interest Income

Our quarterly net interest margin declined 28 basis points from prior quarter and 33 basis points from prior year fourth quarter, and our net interest margin for the year ended December 31, 2008 decreased 2 basis points compared to the same period in 2007.  Net interest income for the quarter decreased 5.1% from prior quarter and 6.6% from prior year fourth quarter, although average earning assets increased 2.1% and 1.9%, respectively, for the same periods.  Net interest income for the year ended December 31, 2008 decreased $2.4 million from prior year as the cost of interest bearing funds decreased 108 basis points while the yield on average earning assets decreased 94 basis points and average earning assets declined $57.0 million.

Noninterest Income

The significant decline in noninterest income year over year occurred as a result of the $14.5 million other than temporary impairment charges for auction rate securities, as well as the $1.5 million decline in the fair value of mortgage servicing rights.  We experienced increases year over year in the core banking noninterest income areas of gains on sales of loans, deposit service charges, and trust revenue which were partially offset by declines in loan fees and the fair value of mortgage servicing rights.

Noninterest Expense

Noninterest expense controls were positive during 2008 as we experienced a decline in total noninterest expense which was driven by decreases in both personnel and occupancy expenses.  Commensurate with the U.S. Treasury placing Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae into conservatorship, noninterest expense for the year 2008 was impacted by a $0.8 million charge relative to trust activity for which CTBI had financial responsibility.  The decrease in expenses would have been larger except for this $0.8 million charge.  Noninterest expense for the quarter decreased 2.4% from prior quarter but increased 2.4% from prior year fourth quarter.

Balance Sheet Review

CTBI’s total assets at $3.0 billion increased an annualized 6.2% from prior quarter and 1.8% from prior year.  Loans outstanding at December 31, 2008 were $2.3 billion reflecting an annualized 5.6% growth during the quarter and a 5.4% growth from December 31, 2007.  CTBI's investment portfolio, however, decreased an annualized 24.4% from prior quarter and 18.0% from prior year as a result of the use of the liquidity in our investment portfolio to fund loan growth and the other than temporary impairment charges for auction rate securities.  Deposits, including repurchase agreements, at $2.5 billion increased an annualized 9.4% from prior quarter and 1.5% from prior year.

Shareholders’ equity at December 31, 2008 was $308.2 million compared to $305.0 million at September 30, 2008 and $301.4 at December 31, 2007.  CTBI's annualized dividend yield to shareholders as of December 31, 2008 was 3.27%.

Asset Quality

Nonperforming loans increased during the fourth quarter by $2.9 million with increases in all of our regions.  CTBI's total nonperforming loans at December 31, 2008 were $52.2 million compared to $49.3 million at September 30, 2008 and $31.9 million at December 31, 2007.  Our loan portfolio management processes focus on maintaining appropriate reserves for potential losses.

Foreclosed properties increased during the fourth quarter 2008 to $10.4 million from the $9.4 million at September 30, 2008 and the $7.9 million at December 31, 2007.  Sales of foreclosed properties during 2008 totaled $5.0 million while new foreclosed properties totaled $7.7 million.  Our nonperforming loans and foreclosed properties remain concentrated in our Central Kentucky Region.

Net loan charge-offs for the quarter of $2.6 million, or 0.45% of average loans annualized, was an increase from prior quarter's 0.36% of average loans annualized from the 0.39% for prior year fourth quarter.  Year-to-date net charge-offs increased from $6.0 million for 2007 to $8.7 million for 2008 with most losses derived from our Central Kentucky Region as we continue to work through the region’s overbuilt housing market.  Allocations to loan loss reserve were $3.6 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2008 compared to $2.9 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2008 and $2.3 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2007.  Year-to-date loan loss provision increased from $6.5 million in 2007 to $11.5 million in 2008.  Our loan loss reserve as a percentage of total loans outstanding at December 31, 2008 increased to 1.31% compared to 1.29% at September 30, 2008 and 1.26% at December 31, 2007.  The adequacy of our loan loss reserve is analyzed quarterly and adjusted as necessary.

Treasury Department's Capital Purchase Program

CTBI announced on January 16, 2009 that it has elected not to participate in the Treasury Department’s Capital Purchase Program.   CTBI had received preliminary approval on December 17, 2008 from the U. S. Department of Treasury to receive $68 million by participating in the Treasury’s Capital Purchase Program.  The Treasury’s Capital Purchase Program is a voluntary program designed to help healthy institutions build capital to support the U. S. economy.  CTBI currently maintains a capital level significantly exceeding regulatory guidelines for a well-capitalized institution and is meeting the lending needs of our customers.  Considering our current capital position and the requirements the program would impose on our business, we believe that our participation in the program would not be in the best interests of our shareholders.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain of the statements contained herein that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. CTBI’s actual results may differ materially from those included in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words or phrases such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "may increase," "may fluctuate," and similar expressions or future or conditional verbs such as "will," "should," "would," and "could." These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, economic conditions, portfolio growth, the credit performance of the portfolios, including bankruptcies, and seasonal factors; changes in general economic conditions including the performance of financial markets, the performance of coal and coal related industries, prevailing inflation and interest rates, realized gains from sales of investments, gains from asset sales, and losses on commercial lending activities; results of various investment activities; the effects of competitors’ pricing policies, of changes in laws and regulations on competition and of demographic changes on target market populations’ savings and financial planning needs; industry changes in information technology systems on which we are highly dependent; failure of acquisitions to produce revenue enhancements or cost savings at levels or within the time frames originally anticipated or unforeseen integration difficulties; the adoption by CTBI of an FFIEC policy that provides guidance on the reporting of delinquent consumer loans and the timing of associated credit charge-offs for financial institution subsidiaries; and the resolution of legal  proceedings and related matters.  In addition, the banking industry in general is subject to various monetary and fiscal policies and regulations, which include those determined by the Federal Reserve Board, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and state regulators, whose policies and regulations could affect CTBI’s results.  These statements are representative only on the date hereof, and CTBI undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made.

Community Trust Bancorp, Inc., with assets of $3.0 billion, is headquartered in Pikeville, Kentucky and has 71 banking locations across eastern, northeast, central, and south central Kentucky, six banking locations in southern West Virginia, and five trust offices across Kentucky.

Additional information follows.

Community Trust Bancorp, Inc.
Financial Summary (Unaudited)
December 31, 2008
(in thousands except per share data and # of employees)
	Three			Three			Three			Twelve			Twelve
	Months			Months			Months			Months			Months
	Ended			Ended			Ended			Ended			Ended
	December 31, 2008			September 30, 2008			December 31, 2007			December 31, 2008			December 31, 2007
Interest income	$	39,557		$	41,704		$	47,881		$	167,611		$	196,864
Interest expense		14,409			15,205			20,942			63,974			90,832
Net interest income		25,148			26,499			26,939			103,637			106,032
Loan loss provision		3,560			2,875			2,309			11,452			6,540
Gains on sales of loans		251			292			342			1,583			1,338
Deposit service charges		5,545			5,739			5,567			21,886			21,003
Trust revenue		1,180			1,260			1,240			4,929			4,859
Loan related fees		(19	)		686			702			2,045			3,196
Securities gains		(1,053	)		(13,461	)		-			(14,564	)		-
Other noninterest income		1,408			1,515			1,351			5,888			6,212
Total noninterest income		7,312			(3,969	)		9,202			21,767			36,608
Personnel expense		10,625			10,287			10,480			42,223			42,298
Occupancy and equipment		2,839			2,803			2,902			11,143			11,609
Amortization of core deposit intangible		158			159			158			634			634
Other noninterest expense		7,166			8,051			6,757			28,532			28,514
Total noninterest expense		20,788			21,300			20,297			82,532			83,055
Net income before taxes		8,112			(1,645	)		13,535			31,420			53,045
Income taxes		1,627			(1,068	)		4,264			8,347			16,418
Net income	$	6,485		$	(577	)	$	9,271		$	23,073		$	36,627
Memo: TEQ interest income	$	39,872		$	42,046		$	48,245		$	168,980		$	198,377
Average shares outstanding		15,065			15,011			15,042			15,017			15,150
Basic earnings per share	$	0.43		$	(0.04	)	$	0.62		$	1.54		$	2.42
Diluted earnings per share	$	0.43		$	(0.04	)	$	0.61		$	1.52		$	2.38
Dividends per share	$	0.30		$	0.29		$	0.29		$	1.17		$	1.10
Average balances:
Loans, net of unearned income	$	2,336,535		$	2,291,722		$	2,233,594		$	2,283,180		$	2,205,431
Earning assets		2,746,404			2,688,752			2,694,129			2,703,054			2,760,014
Total assets		2,959,249			2,909,419			2,918,398			2,921,217			2,980,713
Deposits		2,332,311			2,291,996			2,317,078			2,303,720			2,352,902
Interest bearing liabilities		2,170,691			2,112,403			2,156,633			2,140,700			2,231,347
Shareholders' equity		305,702			311,665			300,952			308,401			294,106
Performance ratios:
Return on average assets		0.87	%		(0.08	%)		1.26	%		0.79	%		1.23	%
Return on average equity		8.44	%		(0.74	%)		12.22	%		7.48	%		12.45	%
Yield on average earning assets (tax equivalent)		5.78	%		6.22	%		7.10	%		6.25	%		7.19	%
Cost of interest bearing funds (tax equivalent)		2.64	%		2.86	%		3.85	%		2.99	%		4.07	%
Net interest margin (tax equivalent)		3.69	%		3.97	%		4.02	%		3.88	%		3.90	%
Efficiency ratio (tax equivalent)		61.45	%		58.63	%		55.60	%		58.39	%		57.62	%
Loan charge-offs	$	3,414		$	2,658		$	2,627		$	11,298		$	8,432
Recoveries		(767	)		(593	)		(439	)		(2,613	)		(2,420	)
Net charge-offs	$	2,647		$	2,065		$	2,188		$	8,685		$	6,012
Market Price:
High	$	37.22		$	46.32		$	32.50		$	46.32		$	41.50
Low		23.05			15.99			26.09			15.99			26.09
Close		36.75			34.40			27.53			36.75			27.53

Community Trust Bancorp, Inc.

Financial Summary (Unaudited)

December 31, 2008

(in thousands except per share data and # of employees)

	As of			As of			As of
	December 31, 2008			September 30, 2008			December 31, 2007
Assets:
Loans, net of unearned	$	2,348,651		$	2,316,020		$	2,227,897
Loan loss reserve		(30,821	)		(29,908	)		(28,054	)
Net loans		2,317,830			2,286,112			2,199,843
Loans held for sale		623			2,175			2,334
Securities AFS		267,376			284,913			324,153
Securities HTM		25,597			27,219			32,959
Other equity investments		29,040			29,036			28,060
Other earning assets		53,253			28,790			37,689
Cash and due from banks		89,576			77,996			101,412
Premises and equipment		51,590			51,890			53,391
Goodwill and core deposit intangible		66,341			66,500			66,976
Other assets		53,305			54,297			55,867
Total Assets	$	2,954,531		$	2,908,928		$	2,902,684
Liabilities and Equity:
NOW accounts	$	21,739		$	17,780		$	18,663
Savings deposits		615,041			625,377			636,156
CD's >=$100,000		463,973			436,234			429,756
Other time deposits		780,721			757,698			758,728
Total interest bearing deposits		1,881,474			1,837,089			1,843,303
Noninterest bearing deposits		450,360			452,678			449,861
Total deposits		2,331,834			2,289,767			2,293,164
Repurchase agreements		157,422			142,238			158,980
Other interest bearing liabilities		133,560			142,285			120,611
Noninterest bearing liabilities		23,509			29,650			28,574
Total liabilities		2,646,325			2,603,940			2,601,329
Shareholders' equity		308,206			304,988			301,355
Total Liabilities and Equity	$	2,954,531		$	2,908,928		$	2,902,684
Ending shares outstanding		15,066			15,055			15,044
Memo: Market value of HTM securities	$	25,496		$	27,065		$	32,350
90 days past due loans	$	11,245		$	18,145		$	9,622
Nonaccrual loans		40,945			31,162			22,237
Restructured loans		-			-			20
Foreclosed properties		10,425			9,409			7,851
Tier 1 leverage ratio		10.37	%		10.45	%		10.32	%
Tier 1 risk based ratio		13.05	%		13.11	%		13.24	%
Total risk based ratio		14.30	%		14.36	%		14.49	%
FTE employees		986			991			1,011

Community Trust Bancorp, Inc.

Financial Summary (Unaudited)

December 31, 2008

(in thousands except per share data and # of employees)

Community Trust Bancorp, Inc. reported earnings for the three and twelve months ending December 31, 2008 and 2007 as follows:

	Three Months Ended						Twelve Months Ended
	December 31						December 31
	2008			2007			2008			2007
Net income	$	5,869		$	9,271		$	22,457		$	36,627
Basic earnings per share	$	0.39		$	0.62		$	1.50		$	2.42
Diluted earnings per share	$	0.39		$	0.61		$	1.48		$	2.38
Average shares outstanding		15,065			15,042			15,017			15,150
Total assets (end of period)	$	2,954,531		$	2,902,684
Return on average equity		7.64	%		12.22	%		7.28	%		12.45	%
Return on average assets		0.79	%		1.26	%		0.77	%		1.23	%
Provision for loan losses	$	3,560		$	2,309		$	11,452		$	6,540
Gains on sales of loans	$	251		$	342		$	1,583		$	1,338