Bowling Green is the third-most populous city in the state of Kentucky after Louisville and Lexington, with a population of 58,067 as of the 2010 Census. It is the county seat of Warren County and the principal city of the Bowling Green, Kentucky Metropolitan Statistical Area with an estimated 2009 population of 120,595. Bowling Green was founded in 1798 after Robert and George Moore donated an additional to to the Warren County trustees. The land surrounded the plot they had donated for the construction of public buildings. Bowling Green was the provisional capital of the Confederate government of Kentucky. In 2003, Bowling Green with its surrounding communities was designated as a "metropolitan area".