The Great Seal of The Shelby Society is inset with the Kentucky frontiersman and the Kentucky statesman shaking hands with "United We Stand, Divided We Fall," the motto of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, encircling them.

A version of this inset has been incorporated on the State Seal of Kentucky in various forms and used by the Governors of Kentucky since 1793. While it is a depiction of two male images, it is an important acknowledgment of the diversity of Kentucky and the strength resulting from the union of that diversity.

The name "The Shelby Society," is emblazoned on a field of blue surrounding the inset. The outer edge of the seal contains the appositive "Descendants of the Governors of the Commonwealth of Kentucky," identifying the composition and substance of the society.

The seal is crowned with fifteen stars, signifying the admission of Kentucky into the Union as the fifteenth state on the 1st day of June, 1792. The Shelby Society, Incorporated, also has a corporate seal, identifying this organization as a legal, incorporated entity which is used in addition to the foregoing seal on all corporate documents.