Kentucky

A Major Influence in Kentucky Life

Founding Father Thomas Jefferson had a strong but little-known connection with the constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He had personal and politically motivated influence on the 1792 charter and secretly wrote some controversial state resolutions. Author Denis Fleming draws on firsthand accounts from Jefferson, John Breckinridge and the rarely used papers of George Nicholas, the brain behind Kentucky’s first constitution, to uncover a huge influence from these men. He also demonstrates that modern reforms in job creation, education and the structure of government are rooted in parts of the document favored by Jefferson but dramatically interpreted by today’s governors, legislators and judges.

African Americans have lived in Boyle County, Kentucky, since the first settlement of the area in 1775. Mostly enslaved, by the Civil War, the county had one of the largest population of free Blacks in the area with the exception of Jefferson and Fayette Counties.

Their presence in Danville, the county seat, but also in population centers scattered throughout the county resulted in a deep and broad influence, much of which was lost in the early 1900s due to out-migration, deaths, and especially urban renewal between 1963 and 1975. Within Danville, the South Second Street area was the heart of the Black community. Restaurants, groceries, pool halls, barbershops, and beauty shops were the center of commerce from the 1890s until the 1970s. The Bate School also drew students from the outlying settlements that did not have high schools of their own. Today, the majority of the African American community continues to live in the city of Danville, with small pockets in Perryville and outlying areas of Boyle County.

Michael Thomas Hughes is a native of Boyle County and grew up in a segregated society. Michael J. Denis is a retired history teacher from Maine who moved to Boyle County and immediately fell in love with its history. The photographs in this book are mostly from the Danville Boyle County African American Historical Society Inc. collection (DBCAAHS), of which the authors are charter members.

Interesting tales of beauty, progress, intrigue, and murder are chronicled in this volume on Breathitt County, Kentucky.

Settled by English and Scotch-Irish descendants who ventured ""over the mountains"" in search of adventure, land, and fortune, Breathitt County, Kentucky, has a long history. ""Bloody Breathitt"" was the site of a long series of feuds that lasted from the early days of the ""Cattle Wars"" until the 1970s and beyond. Through the years, the city of Jackson and Breathitt County have experienced booms and busts centered on its natural resources, which included salt, timber, oil, and coal. Since its establishment on April 1, 1839, the county has been a place of educational opportunity through community schools, school districts, Lees College, and a vocational school. From its rugged mountain roots filled with feuds to a community working to embrace new technology and the reemergence of timber and coal industries, Breathitt County has always been in transition, and its continued growth must be grounded in a firm understanding of its past.

Take a visual, historic tour of the world's longest known cave system with caving enthusiasts Bob and Judi Thompson.

Mammoth Cave National Park is made up of more than 53,000 acres. The region is characterized by what geologists call karst topography, a landscape dotted with sinkholes and caves. One of America's first tourist attractions, the cave was opened to the public in 1816, and was preceded in popularity only by Niagara Falls. The park was established as a national park on July 1, 1941, a World Heritage Site on October 27, 1981, and an international Biosphere Reserve on September 26, 1990.

The 200 vintage images found in Images of America: Mammoth Cave and the Kentucky Cave Region represent a look back at over 100 years of photography and tourism at Mammoth Cave and other caves that make up the Kentucky Cave Region. Rare images of early transportation, hotels, cave guides, cave tours, as well as important cave discoveries, and cave explorers such as Floyd Collins, are shown throughout the book.

Recognized as one of the best small towns in the United States, as well as the "Bourbon Capital of the World," this community has some big city renown. During the early part of the nineteenth century, Bardstown excelled in state issues, including politics, religion, education, and business. The Civil War would bring significant tensions and a decline in the town's population, but through industrial growth and the development of the lucrative distilling industry, Bardstown gained much fame. Although Prohibition proved economically devastating to many residents, Bardstown survived and grew, enjoying a strong tourist trade today with its almost 300 historic structures and the Kentucky Bourbon Festival each fall.

Concentrating on the early twentieth century, Images of America: Louisville celebrates a dynamic community and the people, both famous and everyday, who have contributed to its lasting legacy.

Since its founding at the Falls of the Ohio by George Rogers Clark in 1778, Louisville and its people have looked to the mighty Ohio River as the city's lifeblood. Louisville has counted on the river for transportation, commerce, leisure, culture, and natural beauty. Characterized by abundant opportunity-both professional and recreational-this renowned city has grown and prospered to become the business and industrial center of Kentucky.

Is Louisville the southernmost midwestern town, or is it an upper south, southern city? This identity crisis has arisen from a historical diversity of people, industries, architecture, and commerce. Louisville has been home to large populations of German, Irish, French, and other immigrants. Large multi-national corporations, such as General Electric, Brown Forman, Philip Morris, and UPS have also called Louisville home over the years. The city counts among its famous sons William Clark, who, with Merriwether Lewis, led the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1803, and sports icon Muhammad Ali. Local streets boast modern architectural treasures such as the Humana Building, designed by Michael Graves, and the American Life Building by Mies van der Rohe. Louisville is also home to Churchill Downs and the country's premier equestrian competition, the Kentucky Derby. These and many other notable facets of the city's rich heritage are illuminated in the vintage photographs within this volume.

Ercel Ellis Jr. was born into the Thoroughbred horse business and has worked in it for seventy-five years.

He has been an owner, breeder, trainer, writer and radio broadcaster. His radio show, Horse Tales, has run for twenty years. For all his work, he won the Charles W. Engelhard Award for contributions to the industry. During his life, Ercel has amassed a trove of stories on some of the biggest names in Thoroughbred racing, like Mata Hari, Spy Song and world-famous Man o' War. He also includes stories of lesser-known horses like Dark Mirage, El Chico, Blue Peter and By Jimminy. Join Ercel as he entertains with fascinating stories from more than seven decades with Thoroughbreds.

Join native Kentuckian Deborah Adams Cooper as she retells the rich history of Letcher County using vintage images.

Since 1795, when Peter Whitaker built the first known settlement on what is now Linefork Creek, Letcher Countians have demonstrated the perseverance and fortitude for which Appalachian people are known. The majesty of Pine Mountain in the south of the county or the rare beauty of old-growth forests that became Lilley Cornett Woods must have brought Daniel Boone to seek a paradise in ""Kanta-ke."" Whitesburg and Letcher County have seen their resources of timber, oil, and coal bring growth, as well as decline. With the rise of the coal industry before World War I came a steady flow of Eastern European immigrants who contributed a new and exciting perspective on life, business, and art. It was Italian stonemason John Palumbo Sr. who led other Italians to Whitesburg because the beauty of it reminded him of his home in the Campania region of Southern Italy. The churches, homes, and buildings they established stand in homage to their energy and skill.

Controlled by the heavy hand of the mob and fueled by government corruption, Newport evolved through the nineteenth and twentieth centuries into a notoriously robust center of criminal activity.

With top political and law enforcement officials often on the take, the seedy status quo became so excessive that a May 1961 issue of Time magazine declared, "Newport has developed such a gaudy brand of gambling and prostitution that it stands today as one of the nation's most blatant sin centers." Eastern Kentucky University Professors Gary Potter and Thomas Barker, both experts on organized crime, along with Jenna Meglen, offer up a captivating chronicle of Newport's criminal development, complete with thought-provoking assessments of the possible advantages that organized crime brought to the city commonly considered to be Las Vegas's predecessor.

Lake Cumberland is a premier vacation destination for millions of people each year. Before Lake Cumberland became a recreational paradise, the wild and wondrous Cumberland River ruled the land.

With its 1,255 miles of federally protected shoreline, an average depth of 90 feet, and a surface area of more than 60,000 acres, Lake Cumberland is one of the largest man-made lakes in the United States, yet visitors may not realize the storied history that lies beneath the deep water. Although plagued by spring floods, towns and communities prospered along her banks. In an effort to control the Cumberland River and reduce flooding, Wolf Creek Dam was constructed following the Flood Control Act of 1938. With the dam in place, Lake Cumberland began filling in 1951. The dam offered protection to South Central Kentucky, but it drowned or forever changed many thriving towns and communities. Images of America: Around Lake Cumberland shows what life was like along the banks of the Cumberland River before Lake Cumberland was born.

Lexington has dozens of well-restored landmarks, but unfortunately so many more are lost forever.

The famous Phoenix Hotel, a longtime stop for weary travelers and politicians alike, has risen from its own ashes numerous times over the past centuries. The works of renowned architect John McMurtry were once numerous around town, but some of the finest examples are gone. The Centrepointe block has been made and unmade so many times that its original tenants are unknown to natives now. Join local blogger, attorney and preservationist Peter Brackney as he explores the intriguing back stories of these hidden Bluegrass treasures.

Floyd Collins is perhaps the most famous person you've never heard of, but this young man's tragic death made him celebrated as "the Greatest Cave Explorer Ever Known."

Collins was a Kentucky cave explorer in the early part of the 20th century, characterized by his lack of fear when exploring the most difficult cave passages, and few people could match his persistence and endurance. In the winter of 1925, Collins became trapped for more than two weeks in a cave located within the boundaries of what is now Mammoth Cave National Park. The story of Floyd Collins becoming trapped and ultimately dying alone in a cave held a powerful grip on the hearts and minds of people the world over. The resulting media coverage put Mammoth Cave on the map and helped usher the actual designation of Mammoth Cave as a national park. His explorations laid the foundation for others to later discover the truth of Mammoth Cave, the longest cave in the world.

Lexington documents the history and evolutoin of this city nestled in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region.

Situated in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region, Lexington is known as a cultural center throughout the state. The city, with its strong sense of history, education, and commerce, has undergone dramatic change, making way for development and progress with each new decade.

Marking the ridgelines and hearts of the Appalachians during the Great Depression, packhorse librarians delivered hope, one book at a time.

When the Great Depression started, folks stumbled on hard times. Many lost their jobs and homes, and they struggled to support their families. But people craved hope for the future, and hope arrived with the packhorse librarians through Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal in 1933. Each week, children, families, and schoolhouses celebrated when their packhorse librarian arrived at their doors with books. After being handled by many cherished hands, reading materials needed to be taken out of circulation. The librarians constructed scrapbooks and filled them with beloved items—recipes, quilt patterns, pictures, and stories. Challenges awaited the librarians at every pass. From muddy creeks to snowy hillsides, the packhorse librarians delivered books and hope to their patrons. Although the program ended in 1943, the lasting effects on literacy and the communities these packhorse librarians visited can still be seen today.

Author Nicki Jacobsmeyer lives in rural Missouri, where she writes fiction and nonfiction for adults and children. She inspires others to discover and dream through reading and believes books are windows to the world.