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V. 


Commander-in-Chief,  U.  C.  V. 


A   HISTORY 


OF 


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KENTUCKY, 


FROM  ITS 


EARLIEST  SETTLEMENT  TO   1898. 


By  BENNETT  H.  YOUNG, 


President  Polytechnic  Society  ;    Member  Filson  Club  ;    Member  Constitutional 
Convention,  1890;  Author  History  of  the  Constitutions  of  Ken- 
tucky. OF  "  Battle  of  Blue  Licks,  etc.,  etc. 

S.    M.    DUNCAN,    Associate    Author. 


"Every  brave  and  gflod  life  out  of  the  past"   is  a  treasure  luhich  cannot 
be  measured  in  money,  and  should  be  f>rcserved    -,uith  faithfullest  care. 


LOUISVILLE.   KY.: 
Courier-Journal  Job  Printing  Co., 

1.S98. 


T4. 


tT^-i 


TO 

TOu  Father,  ddobrrt  ^Inuui], 


AND 


^Xu  Wotlicr,  Btosrphiuc  ^jaunii. 


I  DEDICATE  THIS  VOLUME- 


My  father  was  a  resident  of  Jessamine  County  for  sixty-five  years.  He  was 
honest,  upright,  patriotic,  public-spirited,  and  always  the  friend  of  the  poor  and 
suffering.  My  mother  God  bless  her  name  and  memory ! — had  a  heart  full  of 
human  sympathy  and  tenderness,  and  also  of  the  love  of  Christ,  whose  teachings 
she  faithfully  followed  for  sixty  years,  in  the  midst  of  the  people  of  Jessamine. 
Descended  from  Revolutionary  sires,  they  both  ardently  loved  the  freedom  of  this 
free  land  with  an  unquenchable  love,  and  taught  their  children,  as  the  noblest  aim 
of  life,  to  serve  God  and  be  true  to  the  glorious  liberty  their  ancestors  had  so  cour- 
ageously fought  to  w^in.  They  sleep  in  the  cemetery  at  Lexington,  Ky.,  and  I 
trust  they  have  a  kindly  remembrance  with  the  people  among  whom  they  lived 
and  died. 


PREFACE. 


Jessamine'  ctnnit\-  is  one  of  the  few  jj^reat  counties  of  the  state 
whose  history  remains  unwritten.  I"'or  a  long  time  after  its  be- 
ginning, it  was  overshadowed  in  many  ways  by  Lexington.  Dan- 
ville, Paris,  1  larrodsburg,  and  W'incliester.  'Die  county  had  no 
positofifice  until  1801.  Mails  were  infrequent  and  carried  by 
hand.  Lexington  was  the  great  town  south  of  the  Ohio  and  west 
of  the  Alleghenies.  Wlicn  the  county  was  organized,  Lexing- 
ton had  a  population  of  nearly  2.000.  while  Cincinnati  had  less 
than  500,  and  was  buying  its  merchandise  in  Lexington  ;  which 
was  already  the  seat  of  a  university;  it  had  churches  and  schools, 
and  was  the  great  trading  point  for  a  large  part  of  Kentucky,  and 
portion  of  Ohio.  Indiana  and  Tennessee. 

Brick  houses  had  begun  to  be  erected,  and  newspapers  had 
been  published  for  eleven  }ears,  and  being  only  twelve  miles 
from  Nicholasville.  it  was  inevitable  that  it  should  draw  to  it  a 
very  large  share  of  the  trade  of  Jessamine.  Lexington  was  then, 
and  remained  for  many  years  thereafter,  the  political,  intellectual, 
and  commercial  metropolis  of  Kentucky,  and  it  necessarily 
dwarfed  the  surrounding  towns  and  attracted  ihe  I)est  trade  from 
the  counties  within  a  radius  of  fifty  miles. 

Lexington,  too.  had  the  first  railroad  in  the  west.  The  line 
to  P'rankfort  was  finisheil  and  operated  in  December.  1835.  and 
b}-  1851.  trains  Vvcre  run  through  from  Louisville  to  Lexington. 
In  1854,  a  train  ran  from  Covington  to  Lexington,  and  from 
Lexington  to  I'aris  in  1853.  Hiese  railways  diverted  the  trade 
from  the  steamboats  on  the  Kentucky  river  and  thev  made  Lex- 
ington a  great  center. 

The  enterprise  and  courage  of  her  people  received  a  just  and 
ample  reward.  J^'ayette  county  and  Lexington  always  exhibited 
great  enterprise  as  well  as  the  highest  public  spirit,  and  in  com- 
merce as  well  as  education  they  attained  high  rank,  because  thev 
had  the  sagacity  and  tlie  enter|)rise  to  improve  the  op])ortunities 
which  presented  tliemselves. 

Jessamine  count \  liad  no  railway  until  1857.  From  that  time 
Nicholasville  assumed  a  new  importance.     Long  the  terminus  of 


8  Preface. 

the  Kentuckv  CcMitral,  tlK-rc  came  to  it  both  travel  and  trade,  and 
it  began  to  improve.  The  loss  of  slaves  and  the  destruction  of 
values ;  the  result  of  the  war  of  1861-65.  greatly  affected  both  thes 
town  and  the  county,  but  after  the  period  necessary  for  a  recu- 
peration from  these  troubles,  the  county  and  town  have  developed 
witli  steady  and  constant  growth,  and  both  are  now  taking  the 
l)t)sition  to  wliicli  their  natural  advantages  entitle  them. 

lessaniinc  county  has  never  lacked  in  pul^lic  s])irit.  She  has 
liberalh'  rcs]ionded  to  all  calls  for  ptiblic  improvement.  She 
never  re])udiated  any  of  her  obligations.  She  always  paid  what 
she  agreed  to  pay,  and  her  subscription  to  the  Kentucky  Central 
Railroad,  to  the  Cincinnati  Southern  Railroad,  to  the  improve- 
ment of  the  Kentucky  river,  and  to  the  Richmond,  Xicholasville, 
Irvine  and  Beattyville  line:  is  highest  evidence  of  her  sagacity 
and  generosit\-.  and  placed  the  county  in  the  best  possible  position 
for  the  development  of  all  its  resources. 

Looking  back  one  hundred  years,  the  people  of  Jessamine 
can  feej  a  glow  of  honest  pride  at  what  a  centtu'v  has  accomplish- 
ed. The  smallest,  except  fifteen,  of  the  one  hundred  and  nineteen 
counties  in  ihe  state,  with  an  area  of  only  158  square  miles,  it  has 
always  maintained  a  prominent  place  among  the  rich  and  large 
agricultural  ccjunties.  I'^or  its  population  it  is  surpassed  in 
wealth  b_\-  only  a  very  few  cotinties,  and  it  ranks  as  one  of  the  great 
producing  counties  of  I\entucky.  Its  land,  per  acre,  has  always, 
for  taxation,  been  valued  at  a  very  high  rate. 

In  1846  It  was  the  sixth  county  in  value  of  lands  per  acre,  and 
in  1870,  notwithstanding  the  great  cities  in  other  counties,  it  stood 
ninth  :  and  still  maintains  that  place. 

Led  by  the  guiding  liand  of  fate  to  make  mv  home  in  the 
greatest  of  all  Kentucky's  cotmties.  Jefferson,  I  have  never  lost 
my  love  for  Jessamine,  and  its  capital  citv,  Nicholasville ;  and 
oftentimes  there  creeps  into  m)'  heart  a  longing  to  spend  the 
evening  of  life  wb.ere  1  first  saw  the  light,  and  an  absence  of  thir- 
ty-seven }-ears,  has  neither  destroyed  nor  dimmed  my  love  for 
the  ]:)eople  who  juive  always  remembered  me  in  my  comings  to  the 
old  liome  i)lace,  with  such  generous  hospitalit\'  and  unchanging 
kindness. 

Xo  one  else  offering  to  write  a  history  of  the  county,  I  have 
tmdertaken  the  task.     The  work  has  been  done  hurriedlv  and 


Prefftcp.  9 

uliile  under  ilie  pressure  of  a  l)usy  professional  life;  but  it  is  a 
labor  of  love,  and  if  the  story  of  the  sacrifices,  courage,  and  patri- 
otism of  our  forefathers  who  settled  and  organized  the  county. 
shall  be  efficient  in  creating  upon  the  present  and  future  sons  and 
daughters  of  Jessamine  higher  love  (jf  their  ancestors,  great  de- 
votion to  Kentucky,  and  better  aj)prehension  of  the  cost  and  vakie 
of  the  freedom  of  our  country,  I  shall  be  more  than  repaid  for  the 
labor  and  cost  of  ])roducing  this  voliune.  It  does  not  contain  all 
that  a  history  of  the  county  should  include,  but  it  does  for  the 
first  time  \n\i  in  ])ermanent  form  ilie  leading  facts  connected  with 
the  organization  of  the  county  and  accounts  of  the  men  who  first 
cut  down  the  forests,  grubbed  the  cane  brakes  and  drove  out  the 
savages  who  (lis|mted  its  possession,  and  it  will,  at  least  be  a  help 
to  those  who  may  hereafter  desire  to  write  a  more  extended  his- 
tory of  Jessamine  and  of  its  people. 

■  Mr.  S.  M.  Duncan,  of  Xicholasville.  has  for  more  than  forty 
years  been  gathering  notes  of  the  history  of  the  people  who  have 
lived  in  Jessamine.  He  has  done  more  for  the  preservation  of  its 
history  than  any  one  man  who  ever  lived  in  the  county.  He  has 
generously  given  me  the  tise  of  all  his  facts.  1  have  bv  research 
gotten  others  and  verified  his.  and  J  have,  as  is  his  just  due, 
placed  his  name  upon  the  title  page  of  this  book  as  associate 
author.  Although  the  preparation  and  ptiblication  was  assumed 
by  me.  I  consider  it  both  a  privilege  and  a  duty  to  thus  connect 
Mr.  Duncan  with  the  first  history  of  the  couiU}-. 

I  beg  to  acknowledge  with  gratitude  the  assistance  of  Col.  R. 
T.  Dm-rett,  Mqx.  E.  O.  Guerrant.  Sanniel  1).  ^'oung.  ]\Iiss  Hen- 
rietta W.  ilrown.  .Mrs.  \  irginia  Xoland.  Robert  (i.  Wright.  Miss 
Jessie  Woodson,  Mrs.  .\nna  .Meade  Letcher.  Dr.  D.  P..  Todd.  J. 
^Villar(l  Mitchell,  I  )r.  Chas.  .Mann.  .Miss  Josephine  Mann.  John 
S.  Bronaugh,  X.  L.  lironaugh,  Henrv  Glass,  Melanctlion  Young, 
Wm.  L.  Steele.  I'..  M .  Arnett,  and  l-",mil  llhardt,  the  skillful 
photographer,  wlm  liave  spared  no  efTfort  to  lielj)  me  place  in 
durable  form  the  im])ortant  events  )ii  the  historv  of  the  cotmty. 

Bennett  H.  Young. 

Louisville.   Ky..  Sept.   l6.   1898. 


History  of  Jessamine  County, 


In  1767  joliii  ImiiIcv,  a  woodsman  and  hunter,  from  Xorth 
Carolina.  mo\ed  hy  a  spirit  of  adventure  and  a  love  for  hunting, 
entered  the  country  known  as  the  lUuegrass  region.  He  was 
the  first  white  man,  history  asserts,  that  ever  penetrated  the  wil- 
derness and  forests  of  Kentucky  sufficiently  to  see  the  central  part 
of  the  state.  A\^ho  came  with  him,  whither  they  went  and  how  long 
the  party  remained,  neither  traveler,  legend,  nor  written  storvtells. 
It  is  most  likel\-  that  they  passed  through  Jessamine  count}-  and 
were  the  first  of  their  race  to  look  upon  its  ]:)ristine  beautv  and 
glory.  Two  Acars  later,  ]-lnley  returned  witli  Daniel  Boone  to 
that  wonderful  land  he  had  descril;e(l  to  his  neighbors  and  as- 
sociates in  North  Carolina,  with  such  eloquence  and  enthusiasm 
as  to  arouse  within  them  an  inextinguishable  desire  to  visit  a  land 
which  then  was  looked  upon  as  "God's  own  country."  What  be- 
came of  him  after  this  second  visit  is  unknown.  ])ut  it  is  a  reason- 
able conchisionthat  somewhere  in  the  stillness  and  std)lime  silence 
of  the  great  forests  to  which  he  had  led  the  white  man.  the 
red  man  took  his  life  and  left  him  as  his  shroud  the  leaves  of  the 
forest  and  his  monumeiu  the  mighty  trees  which  stood  sentinel 
for  ages  over  the  fertile  and  genial  soil  of  Kentuckw 

Dr.  Thomas  Walker,  from  \  irginia,  liad  in  1750  explored  a 
])ortion  of  Kentuck)-.  hut  he  onl\-  skirted  the  lUuegrass  ami  rode 
over  the  mouiUains  of  .Southeastern  KeiUuckw  and  what  he  saw 
and  reported,  created  no  s])irit  of  ex])loration  and  no  desire  of 
emigration.  lMnle\-  was  the  man  who  saw  the  huntsman's  para- 
dise, and  whc^se  soul  was  hred  for  it^  possession,  and  into  whose 
nn'nd  was  huniecl  '.nemories  which  made  life  miserable  awa\'  from 
the  glories  of  the  new  land  into  which  he  had  hv  accident  come. 

Some  months  after  his  return,  while  wandering  along  the 
Yadkin  river  in  Xorth  Carolina,  I'inley  met  a  kindred  spirit,  one 
of  the  master  woodsmen  of  his  age.  In  the  solitude  of  the  wilder- 
ness of  Xorth  Carolina,  far  out  beyond  the  advance  of  civilization 


lli  Hlxtiinj  oj'  Jr.'<Hi(inhu'  Coioitij,  Kfntiickij. 

and  settlement,  he  found  a  rude  cabin,  in  wliich  dwelt  a  young- 
man,  not  nmch  beyond  his  majorit\'.  lly  his  side  was  a  brave 
\\()man,  who.  amid  the  dangers  ami  hardships  of  the  wild,  wild 
frontier,  shared  his  life  and  hopes  and  brightened  the  solitude  and 
drearyness  of  his  isolated  home.  By  the  humble,  Init  hosi)itable 
fireside  of  the  young  hunter,  Finley  was  weiloomed  as  a  guest,  and 
again  and  again  he  told  the  story  of  his  journey  toward  the  north, 
of  the  magnificent  region  where  there  would  be  an  eternal  feast 
for  the  hunter,  where  game  was  so  abundant  that  the  droves  of 
buft'alo  could  be  counted  like  herds  of  cattle,  where  deer  licked  the 
hand  of  the  intruder,  and  coons,  'possums,  turkeys  and  pheasants, 
were  so  plentiful  as  to  obstruct  the  path  along  which  men  would 
tread. 

P^inley  had  found  a  h.eart  which  would  respond  in  fullest  har- 
mony to  his  words,  a  harp  which  answered  his  touch,  and  each 
day  gave  back  not  only  sweetest  note,  but  varied  and  sympa- 
thetic chords  ;  a  man  whose  brave  soul  ^vas  devoid  of  all  fear  and 
who  wanted  nothing  better  for  time  or  eternitv  than  that  glorious 
and  distant  region  of  which  the  ne\\'  found  friend  spoke.  A  com- 
pact, ofifensive  and  defensive,  was  then  and  there  signed.  Boone 
had  at  last  heard  of  a  land  for  which  his  soul  sig-hed,  a  land  which 
fdled  his  ideal  of  a  ])aradise  and  to  see  it,  to  tread  its  traces  and  to 
enjoy  its  pleasmx,  he  resolved  to  give  up  his  home,  his  wife,  his 
children,  and  if  need  be  to  surrender  his  life.  To  once  see  such  a 
land  as  Finley  described,  he  felt  would  be  com])ensjtion  for  all 
that  earth  could  bestow. 

vSparse  settlements  along  the  Holston,  200  miles  away,  and  the 
forts  on  the  Ohio  at  Pittsburgh  and  the  few  houses  strung  along 
the  line  of  the  wilderness  now  were  the  closest  neighbors  to  Ken- 
tucky. 

Boone  came  in  1760.  and  brought  his  famil}'  in  1775. 

The  founding  c^f  tlie  Transylvania  ct)lon\-  by  Henderson,  in 
1775.  gave  an  armed  and  trained  force  to  meet  Indian  attack,  and 
TTarrodsburg  ar.d  St.  Asajilis.  or  Logan's  h^)rt.  formed  the  mili- 
tary triangle  about  which  and  in  which  the  new  settlers  made 
their  homes. 

The  Transy]\-ania  land  scheme  of  1775  did  not  include  Jessa- 
mine county.  Its  lines  followed  the  south  or  western  side  of  the 
Kentucky  river,  and  left  the  eastern  l)oundarv  alwavs  in  \'irginia. 


Hi<fnru  of  Jessmnine  Conntij,  Keninckij.  13 

W  lien  Ijy  act  of  the  Virginia  House  of  Ikirgesses.  in  1780, 
Kentucky  was  divided  into  three  counties,  Fayette,  Jefferson  and 
Lincohi :  Jessamine  was  comprised  within  the  Hmits  of  Fayette, 
and  so  remained  until.  December  17,  1798,  when  it  was  separated 
from  the  parent  C(nnUy,  and  became  the  thirty-sixth  countv  of  the 
state. 

The  initial  lines  of  ])ionecr  travel  did  not  traverse  Jessamine. 
The  Wilderness  road,  entering-  the  state  at  Cumberland  Gap,  di- 
vided at  Rockcastle  ri\er,  one  !)ranch  going  to  Boonesboro,  and 
the  other  by  Crab  <  )rcliard.  Danville  and  Bardstown,  to  Louis- 
.  ville. 

The  persistent  assaults  of  the  Indians  on  tlu'  settlers  in  Ken- 
tucky in  1782,  caused  the  abandonment  of  all  the  forts  in  the 
state  east  of  the  Kentucky,  except  five,  Lexington,  Bryants,  Mc- 
Connells,  ]McClellans  (Georgetown)  and  P)Oones. 

The  county  of  Kentucky  was  established  in  1775.  and  divided 
into  three  counties  in  1780;  and  ])rior  to  1792  six  more  were  add- 
ed, making,  at  the  inception  of  its  statehood,  niiu-  in  all. 

Added:  T.ourbon,  1785;  Madison.  1785;  .Mason.  1789:  fier- 
cer, 1785;  Nelson.  17S1  ;  Woodford,  1788. 

The  first  fort  and  only  fort  in  Jessamine  county  was  cstalj- 
lished  by  Levi  Todd  in  1779.  This  was  one  year  before  Lexing- 
ton was  built.  The  line  of  travel  between  Ilarrodsburg  and  the 
Fayette  county  stations,  passed  through  the  northern  and  west- 
ern parts  of  the  county,  and  on  this  trace,  near  Keene.  Todd's  sta- 
tion was  built. 

The  isolation  of  ihe  forts  and  the  constant  and  destructive  ma- 
rauds of  the  Indians,  no\\-  officered  l)\'  Englishmen  and  provided 
with  improved  arms,  terrified  the  settlers  east  of  the  KenUicky 
river.  They  were  nearest  to  the  homes  of  the  Indian >  from  the 
northwest,  who  had  now  ])ecome  the  most  dreadful  of  all  the  sav- 
ages who  invaded  the  state,  and  1780-81-82,  they  drove  in  the 
outposts,  and  with  great  difficulty  the  white  men  wore  able  to 
maintain  their  stations  at  all  in  and  aromid  Lexington.  It  was 
then  that  ])ersonal  safety  compelled  Todd  to  abandon  his  Jessa- 
mine holdings  and  take  such  help  and  protection  as  the  four  sta- 
tions around  Lexington  offered  to  tlu'  almost  hopeless  men  and 
women  who  occui)ied  the  limited  territory  in  Fayette,  which  re- 


14  Hiitory  of  Je!<x(im'nte  Coioiti/,  Kentuckt/. 

inaiiK'd  after  the  terrible  fatality  of  Ruddeirs  and  Martin's  stations 
in  June,  1780. 

'I  he  land  law  enacted  by  the  X'irginia  Legislature,  in  the  set- 
tling of  land  made  location  easy  and  popular.  The  wonderful  ac- 
counts of  the  fertilitN ,  ])eauty  and  salubrity  of  Kentucky  turned  an 
innuense  tide  of  inunigration  to  the  state.  In  1782,  the  popula- 
tion did  not  exceed  1500;  in  1790,  it  had  grown  to  61,133  white 
])eople ;  114  colored  free  people,  and  12,340  slaves;  a  total  of  jt,,- 
677,  while  ten  years  later,  in  1800.  it  had  179,873  white,  739  free 
colored,  and  40,343  slaves;  a  total  of  220,995,  an  increase  in  ten 
years  of  224  1-2  per  cent. 

Of  this  extraordinary  improvement,  Jessamine  county  re- 
ceived a  full  share.  In  1782,  it  had  not  a  single  settler,  and  vet  in 
1800,  eighteen  years  thereafter,  it  had  5.461  inhabitants.  This 
was  the  first  decade  in  which  a  censtTS  could  be  taken.  Fayette, 
from  which  Jessamine  was  entirely  taken,  had,  in  1800,  18,410  in- 
habitants, or  one-fourth  of  the  entire  population  of  the  state.  As 
a  part  of  Clark  was  included  in  this  enumeration,  and  assuming 
that  Jessamine  had  grown  in  proportion  as  other  parts  of  Fayette, 
the  county  in  1790  had  about  2,000  inhabitants. 

A  great  proportion  of  Jessamine  immigration,  came  from  \  ir- 
ginia.  The  Revohitionary  soldiers  were  ])oiu'ing  into  all  parts  of 
the  state,  and  Jessamine  received  her  full  share,  and  more  than 
one  hundred  of  these  brave  and  sturdy  settlers  found  homes  with- 
in her  borders. 

Xo  state  could  secure  nol)ler  treasure  than  were  these  Revolu- 
tionar)-  soldiers.  Their  sj^lendid  coiu-age,  exalted  patriotism, 
hard}-  natures,  and  noble  characters,  made  them  a  worthy  addition 
to  any  connutmity.  The  self-reliance,  tact  and  enterprise  engen- 
dered by  Revolutionary  service,  rendered  them  citizens  of  great 
and  unusual  worth.  Of  the  rich  store  given  by  Virginia,  Penn- 
sylvania, North  and  South  Carolina,  Jessamine  received  an  ex- 
traordinar\-  ])roportion. 

The  most  distinguished  men  of  Revolutionary  fame  who  came 
to  Jessamine,  were  George  Walker,  Joseph  Crockett,  Benjamin 
Netherland,  William  Price,  Percival  Butler,  William  McKinney 
and  John  Price. 

These  were  not  more  patriotic  or  more  loyal  to  the  American 
cause  than  the  others,  but  they  had  in  the  war  obtained  positions 


Hidory  of  Je-isamuie  County,  Kentnchj.  15 

which  made  them  more  prominent  than  their  associates  in  the 
early  liistory  of  the  county.  A  brief  sketch  of  each  is  properlv  a 
])art  of  the  history  of  Jessamine  countv. 


Benjamin  Netherland. 

One  of  the  most  uni(|ue  and  cxiraorchnar}-  cliaracters  in  the 
liistory  of  Jessamine  count}  in  its  early  da\s  was  Maj.  Benjamin 
Xetherland.  He  was  born  in  Powhattan  county.  \'irc;-inia,  in  1755. 
He  went  to  Cuba  as  the  agent  of  liis  father,  to  dispose  of  his 
tobacco  crop.  There  learning-  that  Sir  Peter  Parker  was  to  make 
an  attack  on  Charleston,  he  left  his  cargo  and  ran  the  blockade 
into  Charleston  and  helped  to  defend  Fort  Ahniltrie  against 
British  assault.  He  accompanied  La  Fayette  on  his  journey  from 
Charleston  in  1777  as  fajr  as  Mecklenburg  coirnty,  North  Carolina, 
when  the  distinguished  Frenchman  was  on  his  way  to  Philadel- 
phia, to  tender  his  services  to  Washington  in  behalf  of  American 
liberty.  He  remained  at  (Charlotte,  North  Carolina  until  1781. 
took  part  in  the  battle  of  Guilford  Courthouse,  and  shortly  after 
this  he  drifted  into  Kentucky.  In  May.  1782.  he  was  at  Estill 
station,  and  was  with  the  Kentuck\-  troops  in  the  I'Istill  defeat. 
He  took  ])art  in  nearly  all  the  Indian  battles  from  1781  to  1784. 
He  went  with  (ieorge  Rogers  Clark  on  his  expedition  in  1782  to 
punish  the  Indians  for  the  wrongs  of  Blue  Licks. 

He  was  with  General  Ilarmar  in  his  defeat,  and  with  General 
\\'aync  in  his  victory  at  Fallen  Timbers  in  1794  and  was  instru- 
mental in  ])tmishing  ilic  men  who  had  ])er])etrate(l  the  slaughter 
at  Blue  Licks.  After  se\en  \  ears'  absence  in  Kentuckv.  he  re- 
turned to  North  Carolina  in  1788  and  luarried  his  boyish  sweet- 
heart. Miss  Theodosia  I^.ramlette,  who  was  a  daughter  of  the 
distinguished  Revolutionary  fighter  Col.  I'.ramlette.  He  had 
lived  in  l-"ayette  and  Madison  counties  ])rior  tt)  his  coming  to 
Jessamine.  After  his  marriage  he  settled  on  a  farm  five  miles 
east  of  Nicholasville,  and  in  J7*)3  he  removed  to  where  Xicholas- 
ville  now  stands,  and  built  a  hotel  and  called  it  Mingo  Tavern — 
this  Ikuisc  he  kept  until  his  death  in  !8^^8.  The  house  was  torn 
down  in  1864.  The  author  has  often  seen  it  when  a  boy.  and  the 
picture  of  it  in  this  history  is  from  a  tlrawing  made  in  1820.      He 


N. 


z 


'/i 


Hidory  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky.  1 7 

was  chairman  of  tlie  IJoard  of  Trustees  of  Xicholasville,  and  was 
prominent  in  its  early  liistory,  and  his  children  were  the  first 
white  people  born  within  its  limits.  He  was  the  real  hero  of  the 
battle  of  Bltie  Licks.  Robert  W'icklifife,  of  Lexington,  whose 
second  wife  was  the  onl\-  daughter  of  Col.  Todd,  who  was  in  com- 
mand at  the  battle  at  lUue  Licks,  in  a  ])olitical  speech  in  1848  in 
Xicholasville  said  that  the  majority  of  men  who  escaped  at  iilue 
Licks  owe<l  their  preservation  to  I'enjamin  Xetherland  and  that 
Xetherland  was  a  fearless  man,  fruitful  in  resources  and  of  mag- 
nificent courage. 

Col.  Robert  Patterson,  writing  to  Xetherland  in  1836.  says.  "1 
can  not  forget  the  part  yoti  acted  in  tlic  l)attle  nf  lUue  Licks."  .\t 
the  time  of  tliis  battle  X'etherland  was  onlx'  twent_\-seven  years 
old,  and  he  went  from  Lexington  as  a  member  of  Capt.  Robert 
Patterson's  company.  In  the  disastrous  conflict  he  remained 
mounted,  and  gained  the  ford  over  Licking  in  safety  and  crossed 
the  stream  unhurt.  As  he  reached  the  west  bank  he  looked  back 
over  his  shoulder,  and  his  sotil  was  stirred  witli  deepest  emotion, 
and  his  heart  filled  ^\•ith  grandest  courage  as  he  saw  his  comrades 
struggling,  swinnning  and  plunging  in  the  river,  or  rushing  down 
the  bank  ])ursued  by  the  savage  enemy  with  unsheathed  knives 
and  uj'ilifted  tomahawks.  He  was  a  man  of  towering  form,  six 
feet  two  inches  in  height,  lie  dismounted  from  his  h(jrse.  and 
tlirowing  the  rein  o\er  liis  arm,  in  stentorian  tone  ordered  his  flee- 
ing comrades  to  halt  and  fire  upon  the  Indians  and  save  those 
who  were  still  in  the  stream.  His  bravery  and  liis  splendid 
presence  restored  the  s])irits  of  his  fear-stricken  conn-ades.  More 
tlian  a  dozen  men  instanth-  ol:)eyed  his  call,  and  facing  about  with 
Xetherland  and  standing  in  line  they  opened  a  fatal  and  deadly 
fire  upon  the  foremost  of  the  ])ursuing  savages.  The  counter 
attack  was  so  sudden  and  unexpected  that  U  checked  tlie  fierce 
pursuit  of  the  Indians  and  tliex'  instantly  fell  ])ack  from  the  o])- 
posite  bank.  Xetherland  and  Ids  men  maintainetl  their  position 
and  drove  the  Indians  to  cover,  whik'  the  wearied  and  almost 
<lespairing  footmen  were  enal)led  to  ford  and  swim  the  river  in 
safety.  nnl\-  a  few  minutes  were  necessarv  for  those  who  coidd 
reach  the  stream  or  wlio  were  in  it  to  pass  over.  Tlie  footmen 
as  they  left  the  bank  (piickly  Med  from  the  buffalo  trace  and  dis- 
appeared in  the  thickets  and  started  b\-  circuitous  routes  to  reach 


18  Histonj  of  Jessamine  Connty,  Kentucky. 

some  frieiuilv  station.  So  soon  as  these  distressed  and  ex- 
hausted or  wounded  footmen  were  enabled  to  secrete  themselves 
in  the  dense  forests,  large  nimibers  of  the  Indians  were  seen 
crossing'  botii  above  and  below,  iand  Xetherland  and  his  comrades 
mounting'  their  horses  galloped  along  the  well-worn  trace,  and 
reached  Bryan  Station  that  evening,  without  further  loss. 

Major  Xetherland  always  retained  his  old-time  dress.  He 
wore  a  cut-a-way  coat,  short  breeches  with  knee  buckles,  and 
low  shoes  with  silk  lacers  and  silver  buckles.  His  pants  ^vere  al- 
ways fastened  with  red  bands,  and  his  long  queue  was  tied  with  a 
red  ribbon.  From  his  entrance  into  Xicholasville  early  in  1791 
for  forty  years  he  was  prominent  as  a  leader  in  all  its  affairs.  He- 
was  postmaster  for  about  twenty-three  years  and  always  dis- 
pensed the  village  hospitality  with  a  lavish  hand.  Every  man 
who  had  fought  in  the  Revolutionary  A\ar  or  in  the  Indian  wars 
either  in  Kentucky  or  in  the  X^orthwest.  was  his  friend,  and  none 
ever  went  from  his  door  himgry  or  uncared  for. 

He  w'as  passionately  fond  of  horse-racing,  and  owned  some  of 
tlie  great  race-horses  of  Kentucky  in  the  early  part  of  the  century. 
He  was  a  fair  and  just  man  in  his  dealings  with  his  fellow-men. 
He  was  not  averse  to  a  "good  time."  as  people  call  it,  and  was 
always,  even  toward  the  end  of  his  life,  considered  "one  of  the 
boys."  He  opened  a  race  track  on  the  A\'illoughby  place  near 
Sulphur  \\'ell.  and  maintained  it  for  many  years. 

In  1802  there  was  a  quarter  race  on  the  track,  and  in  the  hear- 
ing of  the  crowd.  Major  Xetherland  announced  that  on  a  certain 
day  (naming  it)  there  would  be  another  race  for  a  purse  of  $50,. 
one  mile  heats,  wliicli  was  "free  for  anything  \\ith  four  legs  and 
hair  on."  j\.t  that  time  there  was  working  on  a  farm  a  young 
man  named  Michael  Arnspiger  who  had  broken  a  bull  to  the 
saddle,  which  he  rode  to  mill.  He  immediately  put  the  bull 
in  training  and  for  several  days  gave  him  turns  around  the  race 
track.  He  used  spurs  on  the  bull  and  when  these  were  dug  into 
his  sides,  he  was  accustomed  to  bellow.  On  the  day  of  the  race 
Arnspiger  appeared  on  the  ground  with  his  bull.  He  had  placed: 
a  dried  hide  of  an  ox  on  the  bull's  rump,  and  he  carried  a  tin  horn^ 
in  his  hands.  He  demanded  of  the  judges  the  right  to  enter  his. 
animal,  to  which  the  owners  of  the  horses  vehemently  objected, 
Ijut  Arnspiger  answered  by  appealing  to  Major  X^etherland   if 


Hutonj  of  Je>f!iamlne  County.  Kentta-ky.  10 

lie  had  not  said  llial  the  race  was  free  to  "anything  with  four  legs 
and  Iiair  on."  Maj.  Xctlierland  admitted  that  he  had,  and  ex- 
])hiinc'd  that  the  bull  had  a  right  to  enter.  When  the  drum  was 
taijped.  ArnsjMger  blew  his  horn,  planted  his  spurs  in  the  sides 
of  the  bull,  which  bounded  ofif  with  a  dreadful  bellow,  with  the 
o.x-hide  flapping  on  his  sides  and  presenting  a  spectacle,  combined 
w  ith  the  noise,  that  had  never  been  seen  on  the  race  track  before. 
The  horses  immediately  flew  the  track,  and  Arnspiger  galloped 
home  a  winner.  The  losers  contended  that  they  were  swindled 
out  of  thir  money;  that  Arnspiger  should  not  have  been  al- 
lowed to  blow  tlie  tin  horn,  or  use  tlie  o.x-hide,  and  that  but  for 
this  he  could  not  have  won  the  race.  Thereupon  Arnspiger  of- 
fered to  take  the  ox-hide  off  and  leave  his  tin  horn  at  the  stand 
and  run  them  from  end  to  end.  Mr.  Willoughby  and  .Mr.  Xether- 
land  were  judges  at  the  next  start.  Arns'piger  again  planted  his 
spurs  into  the  sides  of  the  bull  with  redoul)led  fury.  The  loud 
bellow  that  followed  drove  the  horses  from  the  track  despite  the 
exertioiis  of  the  riders,  and  Arnspiger  pulled  in  the  second  $50 
purse,  ^^"ith  the  money  tlnis  obtained  he  purchased  a  black- 
smithing  outfit,  working  for  nianv  A-ears  at  his  trade  near  W'il- 
mi;re,  and  died  there  in  the  sixties,  in  the  8^th  vear  of  his  age. 

Major  Xetherland  had  a  great  fondness  for  race  horses  and 
not  only  ran  his  own  horses  ])ut  went  to  see  everbody  else's 
horses  who  ran  in  the  neighborhood.  The  race  track  in  those 
early  days  was  on  the  \\"illoughl)y  farm  in  the  new  field  now 
owned  b}'  Col.  X.  13.  Miles.  Major  Xetherland  owned  a  very 
fast  horse  for  those  days,  whicli  he  called  by  the  name  of  bear- 
nought.  J  le  had  secured  this  horse  in  \'irginia  and  brought  him 
across  the  mountains.  The  horse  had  been  trained  in  X'irginia 
and  made  his  first  race  at  l'"redericksl)urg,  in  1805.  beating  Gen- 
eral Tracy's  horse.  Indian,  in  three  heals.  In  those  times  four 
mile  races  were  run.  The  time  given  ])y  .Major  Xetherland  was 
as  follows  : 

J'^irst,  8  nunutes.  29  seconds.  Second,  8  nn'nutes.  45  seconds. 
Third,  8  nnuutes,   50  seconds. 

I  hen  ])eoi)le  ])elie\e(l  in  bottom  and  horses  had  to  nm  long 
distances.  Tin's  time  was  not  up  to  that  made  by  the  great  race 
horse,  Lexington,  at  Xew  (  )rleans,  when'  he  beat  the  world's 
record  in  7  minutes,  H)  3-4  seconds,  l)ut  it  was  good  running. 


20  Uktory  of  Jet^mmine  Goimty,  Kentucky, 

]*>arnouglit  was  the  special  pride  of  Major  Xetiierland.  He 
ran  against  a  horse  called  Bald  Eagle,  who  was  owaied  by  Daniel 
Bradford,  a  son  of  John  Bradford,  the  founder  of  the  Kentucky 
Gazette,  and  w  ho  was  for  long  time  editor  of  that  paper.  The 
Alexander  Willoughby  referred  to  was  a  Revolutionary  soldier. 
He  came  early  to  Kentucky  and  settled  in  Jessamine  county  on 
the  Sulphur  Well  road.  He  was  the  father  of  Mrs.  Catherine 
Shelb}-  and  died  in  1837,  in  his  eighty-fifth  year. 

(General  Samuel  Hopkins  was  a  Re\'olutionary  soldier,  a 
native  of  Albemarle  county.  \'a.  He  was  a  distinguished  ofiticer  in 
the  Revolutionar}'  army,  and  none  performed  more  active  service 
or  enjoyed  in  a  greater  degree  the  confidence  of  Washington. 
He  caime  to  Kentuck}-  in  1797  and  settled  on  Green  river,  in 
Green  county.  He  was  a  member  of  Congress  in  1813  and  '15 
and  was  engaged  in  the  Indian  wars  in  the  west.  He  and  ]\lajor 
Netherland  were  great  friends  and  General  Hopkins  himself  had 
a  weakness  for  a  good  horse.  The  following  letter  describing 
the  race,  is  both  interesting  and  unicjue  : 

Jessamine  Count}-,  Ky.,  June  5,  1806. 
Gen.  Sam'l  Hopkins, 

Dear  Friend  :  I  take  my  seat  to  inform  you  that  Fearnought 
is  again  winner  of  a  purse  of  $100.  In  all  the  races  which  have 
previously  been  run  on  this  track,  it  has  been  a  matter  of  much 
inconvenience  to  the  judges  to  make  a  fair  decision  without  a 
fuss,  which  often  creates  unnecessary  excitement  throughout  the 
day.  r>ut  it  did  not  in  any  manner  afTect  tlie  nerve  of  Air.  \M11- 
oughl)\ ,  who  was  one  of  the  judges  who  started  the  horses.  He 
seemed  to  have  a  ]jroper  and  just  idea  of  the  necessity  of  an  even 
start,  and  nothing  else  l)ut  an  even  start  would  suit  him,  and  that 
he  gave.  I  wish  all  the  other  judges  were  as  honest  as  he  is.  At 
the  tap  of  tlic  drum  Fearnought  and  Bald  Eagle  darted  like 
tlnmderbolts,  eacli  determined  to  win  or  die.  Around  the  track 
they  sped  like  hell  cats,  not  a  shade  between  them.  Up  the  back 
stretch  they  ilew  like  doves  escaping  from  a  hawk.  At  the  half 
mile  in  40  seconds,  they  locked  around  the  turn.  They  tried  it 
again,  a  slight  ])ull  l)efore  reaching  the  home  stretch,  and  with 
renewed  vigor,  I^'earnought  in  the  lead.  Bald  Eagle  reneW'S  his 
extraordinary  power,  but  Fearnought  comes  otit  w'ith  unfalter- 


Hbitory  of  Jesmmine  County,  Kentucky.  21 

ing  step  and  the  race  is  decided  in  his  favor.     The  questi<jn  of 
championship,  \ou  will  see  at  once,  gives  Fearnought  the  palm. 


DESCRIPTION   OF  FEARNOUGHT. 

Fearnought  is  rive  years  old  last  grass ;  is  a  dark  blood  bav, 
16  hands  high,  of  superior  l)one  and  muscle,  with  fine  limbs,  loftv 
carriage  and  elastic  tread  :  a  star  in  his  forehead,  vividlv  lighting 
up  a  countenance  expressive  of  great  superiority ;  game  head, 
curved  neck ;  unusual  depth  of  chest ;  fine,  ])road  shoulder;  beau- 
tifully inclining  back,  which  gives  him  the  appearance  of  a  horse 
of  most  wonderful  strength  and  endurance.  I  expect  to  enter 
him  this  fall  for  a  purse  of  $1,000  at  Fredericksburg,  and  the  city 
of  Baltimore  and  ^^'ashington.  Raid  Fagle  is  now  the  property 
of  Daniel  Bradford,  and  was  trained  in  Maryland,  and  won  many 
races  there,  but,  I  think,  his  career  upon  the  turf  is  over. 

Your  friend. 

B.  Xetherland. 

In  another  letter,  written  to  General  liupkiiis  in  1802.  Major 
Xetherland  recites  a  most  interesting  incident.  During  that  year 
a  party  of  Cherokee  Indians  from  Xorth  Carolina  stopped  all 
night  at  the  .Mingo  Tavern,  kej)!  1)\  Major  Netherland.  In  ihe 
morning  one  of  them  was  very  sick  and  unable  to  travel  and  in  a 
few  days  died  at  the  hotel.  He  received  the  kindest  possible 
treatment  from  Major  Netherland  and  liis  familv.  In  describing 
this  incident   Major   Xetherland  says: 

"A  few  days  ago  four  Cherokee  Indians  from  Iredell  county. 
X.  C,  called  at  my  home  and  remained  over  night.  Xext  morn- 
ing one  of  them  was  too  sick  to  travel.  All  da\  his  sufferings 
were  severe  and  painful.  I  sent  for  Drs.  dale  and  Peter  Trisler, 
who  at  once  ])ronounced  his  case  liopeless.  .\fter  intense  suffer- 
ing for  four  da\s  tlie  ])oor  Indian  died.  Tlis  poor,  disconsolate 
friends  were  ])ain fully  grieved  at  the  death  of  one  of  their  num- 
ber, who  was  a  man  of  some  notoriety  among  his  people,  particu- 
larly as  an  ex])ert  lumter.  having  himself  killed  seventy-odd  deer 
while  on  the  last  ( )ctober  hunt  in  the  Cumberland  mountains. 
The  dead  body  of  the  poor  Indian  was  taken  to  the  Kentucky  river 
clififs,  eiglit  miles  south  of  Xicholasville,  and  interred  in  the  earth 


22  Hidori/  ()f  ,Jf'.<.<ii)iniir  Coiiiiiij,  Kentucky. 

after  the  Indian  custom,  but  instead  of  filling;-  the  vauh  with  earth, 
as  is  tised  witli  us,  these  poor  Indians  made  a  small  frame  work 
of  wood,  hke  a  steep  roof,  which  they  ])ut  round  the  mouth,  and 
reared  up  a  lieavy  pile  of  earth,  s^ivin^'  it  the  appearance  of  a 
potatoe  heap.  The  three  Indians  who  buried  their  comrade  ap- 
peared bowed  with  grief.  ( )ne  seated  himself  on  the  ground, 
directing  his  face  toward  sunset,  and  extending  his  voice,  made 
a  great  and  sore  lamentation.  As  much  as  I  hate  these  wild  chil- 
dren from  the  forest,  I  cotdd  not  refrain  from  shedding  tears 
when  looking  on  them  in  this  honest  grief  at  the  loss  of  one  wdio 
was  regarded  as  a  good  and  true  man.  In  four  or  frve  weeks  after 
tine  death  of  their  comrade,  the  same  party,  with  a  brother  of  the 
Indian,  who  died,  came  back  and  took  his  body  in  a  small  wagon 
to  Xorth  Carolina,  a  distance  of  more  than  300  miles,  and  rein- 
terred  his  remains  in  the  land  of  his  birth  among  his  own  people. 
1  have  been  much  among  the  Cherokees  of  North  Carolina.  I 
consider  them  among  the  best  of  our  Indian  friends.  They  have 
strange  customs.  I  w'ish  I  had  time  to  give  voti  more  correct 
idea  of  their  general  character  as  comi)ared  with  the  other  Indian 
tribes  of  otu"  country. 

"Your  (jld  crony, 

"  B.   NETHERI.AND." 

]\lajor  Xetherland  died  October  10,  1838,  and  was  buried  in 
Ills  garden,  which  is  now  the  lot  on  which  the  county  jail  is  built. 
Mr.  Jos.  Wallace,  a  remote  kinsman,  has,  with  most  commendable 
love  and  liberalit}'  and  true  sipirit  of  kinsliip,  erecte^d  a  headsitone 
over  the  grave  of  Major  Netherland  and  that  of  his  wife,  who,  in 
1 85 1,  was  laid  beside  her  husiband.  At  his  death  Major  Netherland 
was  accorded  a  magnificent  military  funeral.  The  ftuieral  sermon 
was  preached  by  Bishop  Kavanaugh,  who  was  then  the  Presiding 
Elder  of  the  district.  Gen.  Leslie  Combs,  Maj.  D.  B.  Price,  Gen. 
John  McCalla  and  Robert  Wickliffe  w-ere  his  pall-bearers,  and  all 
the  leading  military  companies  of  the  county  turned  ottt  to  do  his 
memory  honor. 

Major  Netherland's  experience  in  the  battle  of  the  Blue  Licks, 
justified  him  in  his  subsequent  love  of  horses. 

He  bred  a  great  many  fine  race  horses  in  his  day,  and  in  a  let- 
ter written  by  him  to  Gen.  John  McCalla,  in  1830,  now  in  my  pos- 


Hidorij  of  Jr.<sainiiie  County,  Kfntiukt/.  23 

session,  he  begs  liim  to  come  to  Xicholasville  on  the  following 
Sunday  to  dine  with  liini  and  promises  to  show  him  "the  damnd- 
est best  three  colts  in  the  world." 


Joseph  Crockett. 

Among-  the  large  train  of  Revolutionary  soldiers  who  followed 
the  track  of  empire  westwardly,  was  Col.  Joseph  Crockett,  of 
Albemarle  county.  \  irginia.  He  was  born  in  Albemarle  county 
in  1742.  lie  received  fairly  good  educational  advantages  for 
^hat  period,  lli.^  fatlier.  Jt)hn  Crockett,  came  to  \'irginia  in  the 
first  half  of  the  century.  He  followed  teaching  as  his  profession 
and  taught  a  high  school  near  Charlottesville.  Joseph  Crockett 
was  his  oldest  son. 

In  1774  Joseph  Crockett  went  as  a  private  soldier  with  Gen. 
Andrew  Lewis  and  was  engaged  in  the  battle  of  Point  Pleasant. 
This  was  one  of  tlie  most  important  of  all  the  l)attles  in  the  West. 
It  was  there  that  (leneral  Lewis  met  the  Indians  under  the 
celebrated  cliief  Cornstalk,  and  after  a  tight  of  nearly  a  whole 
da_\-  the  Indians  were  ]iut  to  flight. 

Jn  1775  the  county  atuhorities  of  .\lbemarle  directed  that  two 
companies  be  raised  iuv  the  defense  of  the  western  section  of 
the  state.  One  company  was  to  be  stationed  at  Point  Pleasant, 
where  the  Kanawha  and  Ohio  rivers  unite.  Gen.  William  Rus- 
sell was  a])])()inted  captain  of  one  of  these  companies  and  Joseph 
Crockett  lieutenant.  In  the  winter  of  'j^  they  were  discharged 
and  tliev  were  ordered  to  raise  two  new  conii)aiiies  for  the  Con- 
tinental arm\.  Iose])]i  Crockett  was  appointed  captain  of  one  of 
these  com])anies  and  on  the  5th  of  May.  1776,  served  in  \'irginia. 
Tn  1776  the  regiment  was  marched  to  Philadelphia.  That  year 
he  was  a])pointed  major  and  raised  two  companies  for  Gen.  Daniel 
^Morgan's  rifle  regiment.  He  took  part  in  the  battle  of  [Mon- 
mouth, fouglit  June  20.  1778.  and  after  this  battle  was  promoted 
to  the  rank  of  lieutenant-colonel,  and  so  remained  until  October. 
1780,  when,  by  resolution  of  congress  the  army  was  reorganized 
and  Colonel  Crockett  was  reduced  to  the  rank  of  captain.  He 
was  witli  r.ntes  at  the  surrender  of  I'urgoyne  in  'jj.  1  le  was  en- 
gaged in  tlie  l)attles  of  Prandvwine,  Princeton  and  Trenton,  and 


24  Hi-itory  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky. 

was  A\  itli  \\'ashiiigt()n  at  X'alley  Forge,  where  there  sprung-  up 
between  Colonel  Crockett  and  General  Washington  a  warm 
friendship,  whicli  lasted  until  the  end  of  their  lives.  He  was 
wounded  in  the  arm  at  the  siege  of  Yorktown  in  1782. 

In  1779  Colonel  Crockett  was  directed  l)\-  the  state  of  A'ir- 
ginia  to  raise  a  regiment,  of  which  he  became  lieutenant-colonel, 
to  proceed  down  the  Ohio  river  to  Kentucky  and  Illinois  to  as- 
sist George  Rogers  Clark.  He  raised  the  regiment,  which  was 
known  as  the  Illinois  or  Crockett  Regiment,  and  served  for  eigh- 
teen months  \\'ith  General  Clark.  He  was  in  many  of  the  l)attles 
with  the  Xorthwestern  Indians  on  the  ^liami  river,  and  helped 
to  destroy  Chillicothe  and  other  towns  in  the  northwestern  ter- 
ritory on  the  Wabash.  In  one  of  the  battles  in  which  he  fought 
he  had  two  horses  shot  under  him  bv  the  sharpshooters,  and  it 
was  admitted  that  he  had  been  in  as  many  fights  and  skirmishes 
as  any  officer  in  the  Revolutionarv  armv. 

In  1784  he  moved  to  Kentucky  and  settled  first  between 
Cumberland  Gap  and  Crab  Orchard.  He  remained  there  only 
a  short  time,  and  moved  to  Jessamine  county  and  settled  on  lands 
near  the  Union  Alills.  His  son,  Robert  Crockett,  built  the  Union 
Mills  and  Col.  Joseph  Crockett  built  the  old  stone  house  on  the 
banks  of  Hickman  creek,  which  is  now  standing  and  was  latelv 
occupied  by  Dr.  Jasper,  a  descendant  of  Sergeant  Jasper,  who  was 
put  to  death  at  Savannah  by  the  Ptritish. 

Colonel  Crockett  was  appointed  by  Mr.  JefTerson  as  United 
.States  Marshal  for  the  district  of  Kentucky.  He  held  this  of^ce 
for  two  terms.  When  the  applications  were  read  to  ]\Ir.  Jef- 
ferson for  this  offtce,  his  eye  dropped  upon  that  of  Joseph 
Crockett.  He  said,  "Joseph  Crockett;  honest  Joseph  Crockett; 
you  need  go  no  further,  he  shall  have  the  appointment."  Im- 
mediately after  his  removal  to  Kentucky  he  at  once  assumed  a 
prominent  place  in  the  development  and  in  the  government  of  the 
new  state.  In  1786-1790  he  represented  Fayette  in  the  Mrginia 
Legislature.  He  was  also  appointed  magistrate  of  Fayette 
county  in  1792,  along  with  Percival  Butler.  He  was  a  member 
of  the  first  legislature  from  Fayette  county,  in  1792.  "93,  '94,  and 
'()5.  Lender  the  Constitution  of  1792  he  was  elected  one  of  the 
senators.  These  senators  were  chosen  by  electors  elected  for  that 
pur])ose. 


History  of  Je.isamlne  Connti/,  Kfutuckij.  25 

In  1792  a  project  was  organized  for  the  clearing  and  improve- 
ment of  the  Wilderness  Road,  under  Col.  John  Logan  and  James 
Knox.  The  subscriptions  for  that  purpose  at  that  time  would 
probablv  be  the  highest  evidence  of  public  spirit.  Among  them 
are  the  names  of  Isaac  Shelby,  for  3  pounds;  Robert  Breckin- 
ridge, 2  pounds  8  shillings ;  George  Nicholas,  2  pounds  8  shil- 
lings;  John  Brown.  2  pounds  8  shillings;  Joseph  Crockett,  i 
pound  18  shillings;  Robert  Patterson,  i  pound  lO  shillings;  G. 
^I.  Bedinger,  18  shillings  ;  Samuel  McDowell,  i  pound  j.  shillings, 
and  a  large  number  of  other  prominent  names. 

He  represented  Fayette  county  in  the  convention  called  in 
1788  at  Danville,  to  consider  separation  from  \'irginia.  .\1- 
though  at  first  opposed  to  separation.  Colonel  Crockett  was  con- 
vinced by  the  arguments  of  John  Marshall  of  the  projiriety  of 
this  separation. 

The  question  in  this  convention  was,  whether  there  should  be 
a  violent  separation  from  \  irginia,  or  whether  the  separation 
should  be  legal  and  on  constitutional  grounds.  It  was  in  this 
convention  that  Colonel  Crockett  became  alarmed  at  the  speeches 
of  John  P'rown  and  General  Wilkinson.  He  left  his  seat  in 
tlie  convention,  hurried  to  Lexington  and  on  Saturday,  Sunday 
and  ^Monday  secured  the  signatures  of  several  hundred  citizens  of 
Fayette  county  remonstrating  against  separation  from  \'irginia 
without  her  consent,  when  he  returned  and  presented  this  petition 
to  the  convention.  After  it  was  read  (General  \\  ilkinson  saw 
that  he  was  in  opposition  to  the  wishes  of  the  people  and  vielded 
to  what  was  the  inevital)le. 

Colonel  Crockett,  being  then  United  States  Marshal,  arrested 
Aaron  Burr  in  1806,  under  jiroceedings  by  Joseph  Hamilton 
Daveiss  against  Aaron  Burr.  Colonel  Crockett's  connnission 
bore  the  signature  of  General  \Vashington  and  was  handed  to 
him  bv  La  Fayette,  and  when  La  Fayette  visited  Kentucky  in 
1825  he  threw  his  arms  around  Colonel  Crockett  at  Frankfort 
and  they  wept  with  each  other  like  children.  Col.  Joseph 
Crockett,  Col.  Anthony  Crockett  and  (ien.  I'eter  Dudley  rode 
in  a  carriage  with  La  I'ayette  from  hVankfort  to  Lexington. 
Colonel  Crockett  introduced  a  large  number  of  old  Revolutionarv 
soldiers  to  General  La  Fayette  at  the  reception  given  him  by  Mr. 
Wicklifte. 


2G  lUdonj  of  Jeii^aiuuw  Cuiiutt/,  Kentiickij. 

As  General  La  Fayette  passed  l)y  a  hotel  in  the  parade,  Maria 
Henderson,  a  little  girl  twelve  years  of  age,  a  granddaughter  of 
Colonel  Crockett,  and  from  Jessamine  county,  from  the  window 
of  the  hotel  sang,  "I  lail  to  the  Chief  Who  in  Triumph  Advances." 
The  fresh,  yotmg  voice  of  the  little  girl  had  a  wonderful  at- 
traction for  (General  La  Fayette.  He  requested  that  tne  carriage 
slioitld  be  stopped  and  as  he  listened  to  the  song  from  the  lips  of 
the  child,  tears  streamed  down  his  cheeks.  He  said  that  it  was 
the  sweetest  act  of  homage  ever  paid  him. 

Colonel  Crockett  was  pensioned  by  the  ITiited  States  Govern- 
nunt.  hi  company  Avith  other  soldiers  in  the  Revolutionary  war, 
he  received  several  thousand  acres  of  land  from  the  government 
and  shortly  before  his  death  his  pension  was  increased  to  $600  a 
year.  He  enjoyed  it  only  for  twelve  months.  When  visiting  his 
daughter,  Mrs.  Augustine  Bower,  at  Georgetown,  he  was  seized 
with  a  fatal  illness  and  died  there. 

The  following  letter  written  by  a  Revolutionary  soldier  to 
Maj.  Daniel  B.  Price,  will  be  interesting  as  it  refers  to  many 
characters  prominent  in  Jessamine  county  at  that  time. 

Near  Georgetown.  Scott  county,  Ky., 

Xov.  20.  1829. 

Dear  h'riend  :  1  was  pained  that  I  had  not  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  you  at  the  Inn-ial  of  Col.  Josej^h  Crockett,  six  weeks  ago 
in  Jessamine  count)-.  I  have  learned  from  your  letter  that  you 
were  very  sick  at  the  time  of  his  burial  and  unable  to  get  out  of 
bed.  He  died  at  the  home  of  Dr.  Bower,  his  son-in-law.  For 
three  weeks,  or  more,  previous  to  his  death,  he  re])eatedly  in- 
formed his  friends  that  he  viewed  himself  as  a  dving  man  ;  that  he 
was  not  afraid  to  meet  death  at  any  moment.  A  few  days  after 
he  was  taken  with  his  last  illness,  and  while  he  was  able  to  walk 
about  the  room,  his  eye  sight  failed  him.  He  took  the  Rev. 
Isaac  Reed  to  be  vou  and  ordered  liini  to  bring  vour  son, 
Joseph,  to  see  him.  as  he  had  not  seen  him  for  some  months. 
(  )n  my  telling  him  that  you  were  detained  in  Jessamine,  but 
would  probably  be  up  Friday,  lie  (|uietly  fell  into  a  sleep.  He  slept 
al)()iU  an  hour,  and  waked  and  had  a  severe  coughing  spell.  It 
was  at  this  time  that  he  drew  his  breath  with  great  difficulty,  and 
the  agony  he  was  in  was  so  great  that  in  two  hours  after  he  had 


Hi4orij  (if  Ji'.<.-<(iiiiiiie  Comity,  Kentucky.  27 

awakened  from  sleep  lie  died.  Capt.  William  Christy,  Maj.  John 
T.  Pratt.  Maj.  William  Johnson.  Capt.  William  Smith,  of  Bour- 
bon, and  the  Rev.  John  Hudson  and  Air.  Reed,  were  present  in 
the  room  when  he  died. 

When  he  was  dyin^  I  noticed  him  ])ut  his  head  a  little  back, 
closed  his  eyes  as  if  g'oing  to  sleep  and  expired,  at  the  ripe  age  of 
83.  His  remains  were  taken  to  his  home  in  Jessamine  and  buried 
with  the  honor  suitable  to  the  memory  of  a  brave  and  ])atriotic 
man.  who  served  his  country  l)ravely  in  the  Revolutionary  war. 
The  order  of  procession  to  the  grave  was  as  follows  : 

The  hearse  with  the  military  escort,  attended  by  music,  on 
each  flank.  The  relatives,  the  ladies,  the  citizens,  the  fine  volun- 
teer company  from  Georgetown,  commanded  by  Maj.  William 
Johnson,  with  Capt.  Thomas  Cogar's  company  from  Xicholas- 
ville.  the  whole  conducted  by  Col.  John  T.  Pratt,  marshal  of  the 
day.  At  the  grave  the  usual  ceremonies  took  place  by  the  firing 
of  thirteen  rounds  by  Captains  Graves  and  Leslie  Combs,  of 
Lexington,  who,  at  the  head  of  the  gun  squad,  tired  at  intervals 
during  the  services  at  the  grave.  There  were  present  more  than 
a  thousand  persons  with  carriages  and  horses.  Such  was  the 
good  order  and  decorum  preserved  that  not  the  slightest  accident 
occurred.  At  the  close  of  the  ceremonies  the  Rev.  John  Hudson 
delivered  a  brief  address  touching  the  high  character  of  Col. 
Crockett  as  a  citizen,  neighbor  and  friend — a  model  of  virtue  and 
morality,  cherished  in  the  affections  of  all  who  knew  him. 
Though  his  manly  form  lies  low  in  death,  his  man\  virlues.  liis 
patriotic  exam])le,  shall  continue  to  abide  in  the  memory  of  the 
living.  Such,  my  dear  friend,  is  a  brief  account  of  the  ])urial  of 
your  father-in-law.  Col.  Joseph  Crockett. 

\'er\'  truh-  vtnir  friend, 

B.  S.  Chambers. 
Daniel  P..  Price,  Xicholasville,  Ky. 

Colonel  Crockett  was  a  man  of  splendid  physique,  six  feet 
three  inches  in  height,  spare  but  muscular,  dark  hair,  sallow  com- 
plexion, with  keen.  ]iiercing.  black  eyes  :  roman  nose  and  thin,  ex- 
pressive lips.  The  many  offices  to  which  he  was  elected  in 
Fayette  and  Jessamine  counties  evince  in  what  high  esteem  he 
was  held  by  those  who  knew  him.      J  le  always  wore  a  long,  blue 


28  HiMonj  of  Jr.<f((niirne  Coimtij,  Kcntuckij. 

ciit-a-\vay  coat  with  brass  Ijiittons,  witli  knee  breeches  and  black 
silk  stockings  and  heavy  silver  shoe  l)uckles.  As  was  the  cnstom 
among-  the  gentlemen  at  that  early  ])eri()d,  he  wore  a  cue  falling 
down  his  back  between  his  shoulders,  tied  with  a  blue  ribbon. 

Colonel  Oockett  was  buried  on  his  old  home  place,  where 
had  preceded  him  to  the  tond)  his  wife  and  children.  The  brick 
house  which  he  built  in  the  early  part  of  the  century  still  stands 
near  the  grave-yard,  and  is  the  property  of  Mr.  John  Baker,  form- 
erly owned  by  Otho  Roberts.  A  few  years  since,  his  grandson, 
Col.  IJennett  H.  Young,  haid  erected  around  it  an  iron  fence. 

The  following  letter,  written  by  Maj.  Uenjamin  Netherland, 
who  was  then  a  resident  of  Xicholasville,  will  be  both  amusing 
and  interesting  : 

Nicholasville,  Ky.,  October  7.  1826. 

]\lv  Dear  h^riend  :  1  was  very  nmch  pained  on  hearing  that 
your  cut  on  the  leg  has  not  improved  since  I  was  to  see  you  in 
x-Vpril  last.  T  was  sorry  that  your  V\'ounded  leg  prevented  you 
from  being  in  Lexington  last  year,  when  the  Marquis  de  la  Fayette 
was  given  one  of  the  greatest  and  grandest  receptions  I  ever  wit- 
nessed. More  than  ten  thousand  people  marched  in  line  to  re- 
ceive on  the  big  road  leading  from  h^rankfort  to  Lexington.  He 
rode  in  a  fine  four-horse  carriage  accompanied  by  Governor 
Desiia,  Col.  Anthony  Crockett,  Col.  Joseph  Crockett,  Genl.  Peter 
Dudlev,  and  manv  other  gentlemen  who  rode  on  horseback  and 
acted  as  a  guard  of  honor  in  the  rear  of  the  carriage.  More  than 
forty-six  years  ago  I  was  in  Charleston  when  he  landed  there  in 
1777,  a  young  man  from  France  on  his  way  to  offer  his  services  to 
General  Washington  to  fight  for  the  liberties  of  the  people  of  our 
country.  In  Charleston  he  was  received  \\\\\\  becoming  respect 
and  honor,  the  people  everywhere  were  loud  in  their  praise  of  the 
_\oung  l-'rcnch  soldier — but  his  reception  was  nothing  in  com- 
parison to  the  reception  given  him  by  the  patriotic  people  of  Lex- 
ington last  Tvfay.  When  General  La  Fayette  got  into  Lexington 
the  rush  of  many  of  the  old  soldiers  was  truly  exciting.  Every- 
where his  carriage  was  stopped  by  the  surviving  veterans  wdio 
had  served  with  him  and  Washington  at  Monmouth,  Trenton, 
Brandywine  and  Little  York.  Everyone  was  anxious  to  see  La 
Fayette.  It  just  seemed  that  there  was  no  other  actor  in  the  great 
revolutionary  drama  who  had  been  so  near  to  the  heart  of  Wash- 


Hhtorij  of  Jessamine  Countij,  Kentucky.  2M 

iniiton  as  General  La  l'"a\ette.     When  tlie  S'reat  dinner  sjivcn  to 
the  general  in  the  city  limits  was  over.  1  went  to  Mr.  Wickliff's 
house  with  Cols.  Josei)h  and  Anthony  Crockett  to  pay  my  respects 
to  the  young  man,  forty-seven  years  ago.     I  introduced  to  Col. 
AN'illiam  !Moultry  w  ho  was  putting  Charleston  in  fighting  trim  to 
resist  the  Britisli  licet  which  1  learned  while  in  Cuba  was  to  sail 
from  lamaca  imder  Admiral  I'arkcr  and  h()nd)ard  Charleston.     I 
brought  this  intelligence  w  hich  1  hastened  to  give  Colonel  Moul- 
trie, who  immediately  conmienced  putting  the  town  in  a  proper 
state  for  defending  every  i)lace  along  the  harbor.     (  )n  arriving 
at  Mr.  Wickliff's    liouse    Joe    Crockett  first    introduced    me    to 
George  Washington  La  l-^ayette,  the  son  of  the  general.     His 
son  looked  like  a  man  who  had  seen  nuich  mental  trouble ;    he 
seemed  to  l)e  pleased  at  the  reception  given  to  his  father,  but  was 
not  a  man  to  talk,  was  stiff  and  I  thought  not  an  intelligent  man 
whatever,    but  a  ])roud,    weak  man.     A\'hcn    Colonel    Crockett 
brought  me  into  the  jiarlor  of  Mr.  Wickliff's  house.  General  La 
Fayette,  he  introduced  me  as  the  young  man  ""Xetherland"  who 
fortv-seven  vears  before  had  made  him  known  to  Colonel  .\b)ul- 
tr\-  who  in  1776  and  1777  had  connnand  at  Charleston.     He  re- 
membered me  introducing  him  to  Moultry  and  my  gx)ing  as  far 
as  Charlotte  with  him,  as  he  went  through  Richmond  to  Phila- 
delphia, he  received  me  very  warmly,  shedding  tears  as    he  did 
when  meeting  witli  Anthony  and  Joe  Crockett.     He  asked    my 
age,  I  told  him  T  was  just  in  my  seventieth  year;  he  then  informed 
me  he  was  69  years  of  age  and  felt  that  his  health  had  greatly  im- 
proved since  he  had  revisited  America.     When  I  ImiI  him  fare- 
well I.  in  compan\-  with  tlic  two  Crocketts  and  Robert  I'..  McAfee, 
lieutenant-governor,  all  went  and  bid  the  general  a  long  farewell. 
The  general  shed  tears  and  in  fact  every  one  who  was  present 
cried.     Dosia.  mv  wife,    kissed  the  general    and  we    separated, 
never  to  see  General  La  Fayette  again  on  earth.      Hundreds  of 
the  peo]:>le  of  Lexington  in  talking  of  La  Fayette  cried  out  aloud. 
The  ladies  especially  shed  tears  when  taking  leave  of  the  great 

friend  of  \\'ashington. 

\  er\    truly  your  friend, 

B.  Nethkrl.vnd. 

Cai^t.  Thomas  W.  Ashford, 

X'crsailles.  Kv. 


30  Hhtorij  of  ,Te>immliir  ('oKiih/,  lu-iifiirki/. 


John  Price. 

Col.  John  Price  early  settled  in  Jessamine  county  in  what  is 
known  as  the  Marble  creek  district.  He  came  to  Kentucky  in 
1788  and  was  one  of  the  l^est  educated  of  the  Revolutionary  sol- 
diers who  made  the  county  their  home.  His  letters  show  that 
he  was  man  of  fine  mind  and  good  scholarship  and  he  influenced 
a  great  many  of  his  Revolutionary  friends  to  settle  in  Jessamine, 
Fayette  and  Woodford  counties.  He  was  one  of  the  first  men  to 
respond  to  the  call  to  arms  in  the  Revolutionary  war. 

While  born  in  Maryland  he  was  descended  from  a  distin- 
guished X'irginia  family.  He  was  severely  wounded  at  the  l)at- 
tle  of  I'randywine,  September  11,  1777.  He  was  also  at  Alon- 
mouth  and  Princeton  and  at  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis,  at  York- 
town.  He  died  at  his  residence  in  Jessamine  county  on  the  loth 
of  August,  1822. 

He  started  the  agitation  for  the  creation  of  a  new  county. 
He  and  his  neighbors  had  l)een  subjected  to  what  they  termed 
petty  persecution,  on  the  part  of  the  constables  and  sherififs,  or 
their  appointees,  and  as  these  all  resided  at  Lexington  and  were 
not  elected  Ijy  the  people,  the  inhabitants  of  that  part  of  Jessa- 
mine became  aggrieved  at  the  conduct  of  these  officers  and  this 
dissatisfaction  produced  the  movement  which  finally  ended  in 
the  organization  of  a  county. 

He  was  the  first  man  to  represent  the  count}-  in  the  legisla- 
ture and  was  elected  late  in  1798.  It  must  have  been  a  special 
election  called  for  the  purj^ose  of  choosing  a  representative.  As 
the  county  was  created  on  December  Kjth.  1798,  and  as  the 
elections  for  1798  under  the  constitution,  were  in  May  of  that 
year,  he  must  either  have  been  appointed  or  elected  as  the  first 
member  from  the  county.  A  letter  which  he  wrote  to  Col. 
Joseph  Hamilton  Daveiss  on  the  28th  of  August,  1799,  explains 
much,  about  which  there  have  been  different  statements  in  the 
county,  and  shows  that  Col.  Joseph  Hamilton  Daveiss  and  others 
assisted  Colonel  Price  in  securing  the  creation  of  the  new  county. 

Colonel  Price  affiliated  with  the  Baptist  church.  He  was  a 
man  of  great  kindness  of  heart  and  li))eralitv.  He  was  a  friend 
of  all  who  needed  his  help  and  especially  of  the  old  Revolutionary 


H'lMorij  of  Ji'^inamine  County,  Kentucky.  '51 

soldiers,  llurietl  upon  llic  old  homestead,  his  grave  was  not 
marked.  The  place  is  now  owned  by  a  Mr.  Hinds  and  while  it  is 
known  in  what  enclosure  he  was  buried,  there  is  no  stone  to  desig- 
nate his  grave. 

Manv  of  liis  descendants  now  reside  in  Indiana,  Illinois.  Mis- 
souri and  in  tlie  West,  and  the  distinguished  publisher  John  1'. 
Morton,  of  Louisville,  was  a  grandson  of  Colonel  Price. 


William  Price. 

Col.  William  Price,  who  was  not  related  to  Col.  John  Price,  was 
born  in  Fredericksburg.  \'a..  in  1755.  and  came  with  his  family 
to  Jessamine  county  in  1787.  Capt.  James  C.  Price,  who  com- 
manded the  Jessamine  P.lues.  at  the  battle  of  Raisin,  on  the  23d 
of  Februarv.  1813.  was  his  oldest  son.  and  was  born  while  his 
father  was  absent  in  the  American  army. 

Col.  Wilham  Price  was  descended  from  I'.aptist  ancestry,  who 
emigrated  from  Wales  to  Virginia,  in  1720.  When  a  mere  lad, 
only  fourteen  years  of  age,  he  had  seen  Revds.  John  Waller  and 
Louis  Craig  lodged  in  the  Fredericksburg  jail  for  preaching  the 
Baptist  doctrine.  This  was  1)efore  the  passage  of  the  Statute  of 
Virginia,  granting  religious  liberty,  in  the  passage  of  which.  Thos. 
Jefferson  considered  that  he  had  achieved  one  of  the  greatest 
triumphs  of  his  long  career.  This  jiroduced  a  profound  impres- 
sion upon  his  mind,  and  he  was  never  al)le  to  eradicate  his  i)reiu- 
dice  against  the  Churcli  of  Fngland,  which  had  l)een  instrumental 
in  the  arrest  of  these  jM-eachers.  and  he  became  an  inveterate 
enemv  of  that  clnu-cli,  and  never  I)rought  himself  to  look  with 
complacenc\'  ujion  those  who  were  connected  with  it.  lie  came 
to  Kentucky  with  Louis  Craig  and  his  traveling  church,  in  1781, 
and  remained  for  three  years.  He  then  returned  to  \irginia. 
and  in  ly^y  came  l)ack  to  Kentucky,  settled  in  Jessamine  county 
and  made  it  his  i)crmanent  home. 

Colonel  Price  was  in  the  Revolutionary  war.  fnun  its  very 
conmiencement  luuil  the  end.  He  was  a  first  Lieutenant  in  the 
])attle  of  Stony  I'oint,  July  16.  1799.  and  at  the  battles  of  Brandy- 
wine,  Germantown.  Monmouth,  and  Princeton,  he  was  acting  as 
Captain.     He  rose  to  the  rank  of  Major,  and  was  at  Yorktown 


32  Hidnrji  of  Jf'.-<^aii}l)i>'  Coiiiitij,  Koititchij 

when  C\)rn\vallis  surrendered  Octo1)er  IQ,  1781.  He  married  Mary 
Cunningliam,  in  1777,  and  three  months  after  left  his  home  and 
youn^'  wife  to  fight  the  l)attles  of  freedom.  His  first  engage- 
ment was  in  the  battle  of  Ilrandywine,  Sejitember  11,  1777,  and  he 
(lid  not  return  to  his  famil\-  until  the  close  of  the  war.  The  part 
which  most  of  the  Episcopal  clergy  in  A'irginia  took  against  the 
revclution.  still  further  embittered  Colonel  Price  against  that 
denomination.  The  following  letter  of  his  to  Capt.  Edward 
Payne,  dated  December  20th,  shows  both  his  feelings  to  the 
church,  as  well  as  to  the  character  of  the  entertainments  which 
were  given  in  those  days.  A  similar  invitation  was  written  to 
Col.  Luke  Allen,  in  which  a  like  prejudice  crops  out : 

Price's  Hall,  Stafford  county,  \'a. 
December  20.  1787. 
Capt.  Edward  Payne, 

Overseer  at  Gunston  Hall : 

My  Dear  Sir — This  note  is  to  apprize  you  that  I  invite  you 
and  all  your  r)aptist  friends  to  my  house  on  Christmas  day  to 
partake  of  a  big  dinner  of  turkey  and  oysters,  and  to  conclude 
with  a  dance  at  grandmother's  in  the  evening.  Xo  Episcopalian 
has  been  invited.  Such  people  are  too  aristocratic  and  over- 
bearing. The  people  who  are  communicants  of  that  church  try 
to  imitate  their  aristocratic  brethren  of  England  in  almost  every 
act  that  they  perform.  I  have  no  patience  with  such  harpies  as 
the  clergy  of  this  estal)lishment.  Their  titles,  dignities  and  liv- 
ings are  too  nnich  like  our  late  oppressors  in  the  great  war  just 
closed.  They  must  now  consider  that  the  people  of  the  country 
now  look  chiefly  to  the  practical  and  useful  and  not  to  mere  empty 
titles  which  serve  no  good  purpose  in  a  free  country.  What  w'e 
want  in  the  church  as  well  as  in  the  state  is  plain,  practical  men, 
devoted  men,  who  know  and  mingle  with  the  people  as  one  of 
themselves.  W'e  want  no  more  English  airs,  no  arrogance  of  de- 
meanor among  neighbors.  Tell  Robert  Craig  to  bring  his  fiddle, 
as  we  e.\])ect  a  good  time  generally.  Tell  Black  Tom  to  come  by 
all  means. 

William  Price. 

Colonel  Price  must  have  borne  a  distinguished  part  in  the 
battle  of  Ston\-  Point.     The  followiuG:  letter,  which  he  wrote  to 


Hi4nrij  of  Jexmrnhw  Count i/,  Knituckij.  33 

]Maj.  janics  L'lukc,  the  day  after  this  battle,  \vill  show  that  in  that 
l)attle  lie  acted  witli  threat  courage  and  liis  conduct  was  com- 
mended by  (leneral  Wayne  himself: 

Fort  Stony  Point,  July  17,  1779. 

To.  AJaj.  janies  Chike: 

Dear  Major — 1  wish  that  God  would  heal  your  wound  and  I 
could  once  more  see  you  among  your  brave  comrades.  On  yes- 
terday evening,  July  i6th,  after  marching  over  the  roughest  coun- 
try T  ever  saw,  through  deep  swamps  and  narrow  roads,  we  got 
within  a  mile  of  thi:;  fort,  which  is  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Hudson 
river.  It  was  of  vast  importance  to  our  enemies  and  had  been 
strengthened  by  every  means  of  art  that  lay  in  their  power.  At 
night  our  heroic  commander,  Brigadier  \A'ayne,  came  among  us 
and  told  us  that  everything  depended  on  secrecy,  and,  says  he, 
"I  want  you  men  who  belong  to  the  regiments  of  Colonel  Butler 
and  Colonel  I'leury  to  march  with  unloaded  muskets  and  fixed 
bayonets  ;  1  \\\\\  lead  you  myself,"  said  he.  The  river  had  flooded 
the  swamps  ^\■aist  deep,  but  when  we  saw  our  beloved  General  go 
forward,  we  sprang  forward,  and  our  advance  of  twenty  men  at 
once  attacked  the  double  palisade.  When  one  of  the  red-coated 
sons  of  bitches  shouted  in  great  alarm,  "Here  comes  the  damned 
rebels,  shoot  them."  He  was  soon  knocked  on  the  head,  but  a  ter- 
rible fire  was  opened  on  us  as  we  advanced  through  the  swamps. 
The  guns  from  the  fort  spattered  nuid  on  us  as  well  as  dirty  water. 
Their  grape  and  canister  did  not  damage  more  than  to  spatter 
mud  and  water  on  our  clothes.  About  this  time  our  brave  Gen- 
eral was  knocked  on  the  head  in  the  right  temple  by  a  spent  ball. 
I  instantly  raised  him  u]).  "March  on.  Lieutenant  I'rice;  carry  me 
to  the  fort;  I  will  die  at  the  head  of  my  men."  We  bore  him  for- 
ward until  we  got  near  the  center  of  tlie  fort  and  both  commands 
met,  when  the  shout  of  victory  rent  the  air.  Our  victory  was 
complete ;  we  carried  everything  so  rapidly  that  our  enemies  were 
suqjrised.  We  lost  about  sixty  men.  Joseph  Campbell,  of 
Fredericksl)urg,  was  killed ;  also  Private  Clow  and  Richard 
Climer  was  killed.  He  was  from  Philadelphia,  was  a  brave 
Dutchman,  deeply  religious.  T  hope  he  is  safe  in  heaven.  Hop- 
ing that  you  will  soon  recover  from  your  wound,  T  am,  your  friend, 

Wii.i.i.'^M  Price. 


34  Hidori/  of  ./r^.-«(iitiiir  Coimtij,   I\tiifiicl<l. 

Me  died  al  his  residence,  where  he  had  settled  when  coming" 
to  Jessamine  connt\,  on  the  loth  of  (  )ctol)er,  iSo8,  at  the  age  of 
53  \ears.  He  failed  to  reach  that  longevity  which  marked  the 
lives  of  most  of  the  Re\-ohitionary  soldiers  who  were  transplanted 
to  Kentucky,  and  especially  Jessamine  connty. 

He  wa.s  a  patriot  of  the  greatest  intensity  and  earnestness. 
He  earl\-  introduced  in  Jessamine  count}-,  celehrations  of  the 
Foiu'th  of  Iul\.  He  had  such  a  celebration  at  his  house  on  the 
Fourth  of  July,  17<)4.  He  invited  a  large  number  of  his  friends. 
On  the  hfth  of  Jul\-,  1794.  he  wrote  a  letter  to  Governor  Shelby, 
and  Revolutionarv  soldiers  must  have  been  alnmdant  in  those 
daAS,  for  he  said  that  he  had  forty  at  his  table  on  that  occasion. 
The  following  is  the  communication  which  he  made  to  Governor 
Shelby  : 

Fayette  county,  Ky.,  July  5,   1794. 

To  His  Excellenc)',  Isaac  Shelby, 

Governor  of  Kentucky: 

]\rv  Fsteemed    j-'riend — 1   was  greatl\-   disappointed   by   your 
not  coming  to  my  house  on  yesterday  (July  4).     We  had  a  glori- 
ous time  and  a  big  dinner.     Forty  men  sat  down  at  my  tables.  wdiO' 
had  served  in  the  late  struggle  for  our  freedoni  and  independence. 
It  was  a  glorious  sight  to  behold,  and  I  wish  King  (leorge  HI 
and  Lord  North  could  have  witnessed  the  scene  in  the  wilds  of 
America.      ( )n   the   return  of  this  glorious  birthday  of  our  free- 
dom from  IJritish  despotism,  the  heart  of  every  patriot  in  the  late 
struggle  ma_\-  rightfully  pom'  its  highest  tribute  to  God  and  the 
great  sages  and  soldiers  who  resolved  to  stake  their  lives  and 
sacred   lionor  in  maintaining  the  Declaration  of  Independence. 
Throughout  the  limits  of  our   country,  from   Massachusetts  to 
Georgia,  the  hearts  of  a  free  and  happy  people  have  been  dedi- 
cate<l  on   \esterday  to  the  contem])lation  of  the  great  blessings 
achiexed  and  bequeathed  to  us  b\'  such  heroic  leaders  as  George 
Washington,  Israel  Putnam  and  Nathaniel  Greene.     Stich  brave 
leaders  took  their  lives  in  their  hands,  and  libert\'  or  death  was  in- 
scribed on  their  hearts.     ( iod,  in  the  plenitude  of  His  beneficence, 
has  generally  chosen  men  cjualitied  to  resist  kings  and  tvrants  in 
their  attacks  on  the  rights  of  the  ])eo])le.       The  history  of  our 
mother   country   furnished   full  ])roof  of  this  fact  and   our  own 
glorious  countr}  in  tlie  late  war  for  independence  is  a  more  brill- 


Hhitory  of  ,J(K.<niiiuie  Ctniniij,  Kiiiiuchi/.  '.\o 

iant  illustration  of  the  great  truth  th.Mi  God  hates  all  tyrants  and 
despotic  rulers,  and  sooner  or  later  overthrows  all  such  rascals  in 
causini^-  the  i)coi)le  to  rise  up  and  cut  their  heads  off. 
Trulv  th\-  old  friend. 

WiLLi.vM  Price. 

P.  S. —  1  will  lie  at    j-'rankfort  next  Monday. 

The  house  in  which  he  lived  has  been  changed  so  as  to  bear  no 
similarity  to  what  it  was  when  he  resided  in  it.  but  the  graveyard 
on  the  place  is  still  niaintainec]  in  fairly  good  order,  and  a  sub- 
stantial stone  wall  surrounds  the  spot  where  he  and  his  loved 
ones  rest.  He  had  (piite  a  number  of  children  and  some  of  his 
descendants  reside  in  [essamine  and  I-'avette  counties  now. 


George  Walker. 

Gen.  George  Walker  was  one  of  the  most  distinguished  gifts 
of  A'irginia  to  Jessamine  coimty.  He  was  the  second  man  to 
open  a  law  office  in  the  town  of  .Xicholasville.  which  he  did  in 
1799.  Samuel  H.  Woodson  having  been  the  first  man  to  open 
such  an  office,  (ieorge  Walker  owned  the  land  upon  which 
Mr.  Melanchthon  ^'om^g  now  resides,  and  was  buried  in  the  or- 
chard about  one  hundred  yards  \vnm  the  residence. 

He  was  a  man  of  great  learning  and  great  enter]-)rise.  as  well 
as  great  ct)urage.  I'oni  in  Culijcp.r:'  county.  \'a.,  in  ijb^.  he 
settled  in  Jessamine  count \".  in  1794.  He  married  Miss  Rachel! 
Coffee,  of  Xashville.  Tenn..  who  was  a  daughter  of  Gen.  John 
Coffee,  who  ])ore  a  distinguished  ])art  with  Gen.  Andrew  Jack- 
son in  the  Indian  wars  in  the  South  and  West,  as  well  as  the  war 
of  1812.  He  was  a  mere  lad  when  he  entered  the  ranks  of  the 
Rev()luti()nar\-  arm\  imder  Generals  Green  and  Morgan,  in  the 
campaigns  of  T780-S1,  and  was  at  tlie  battle  of  Cowpens.  Jan- 
uary 17.  1781.  and  Guilford  Court  House.  He  was  also  at  the 
siege  of  York  town. 

He  was  a  man  of  noble  phy.sique  and  his  appearance  in- 
dicated his  intelligence  as  well  as  his  high  character.  His  de- 
votion to  his  c(nmtry  and  its  cause  knew  no  bounds.  1  le  was  ap- 
pointed to  a  seat  in  the  United  States  Senate  by  Gov.  Isaac  Shelby, 
to  fill  a  vacancv. 


o 


6  History  of  Ji'-<s(iiiiiii('  (Joinifii,  Kriitnck/i. 


David  .Meade  was  an  uncle  of  Colonel  Walker,  his  father  hav- 
ing married  C'olcjnel  .Meade's  sister.  He  was  in  the  battle  of  New 
Orleans  with  the  Kentucky  troo])s,  where  he  attracted  the  at- 
tention of  General  Jackson  l)y  his  superb  bravery  and  his  splendid 
heroism.  He  was  also  in  the  battles  of  the  Northwest  and  was 
aide  to  (iovernor  Shelby  at  the  battle  of  the  Thames. 

He  died  in  Nicholasville  in  1819,  at  the  house  now  owned  by 
Lewis  C.  Drake.  Two  of  his  sons  emigrated  to  Texas  and  held 
distinguished  positions.  (  )ne  of  his  sons,  .\ndrew  Walker,  was 
a  great  friend  of  Quantrell.  the  celeljrated  Missouri  soldier. 

The  e.xact  location  of  the  grave  of  Colonel  Walker  is  now  un- 
known, but  in  his  day  he  was  one  of  the  most  prominent  and  re^ 
spected  citizens.  His  youngest  son.  Courtney  ]\Ieade  Walker, 
removed  to  ( )regon,  where  h.e  led  the  life  of  a  hunter.  He  died  in 
1886,  at  an  advanced  age. 

The  first  jniblic  service  rendered  by  George  Walker  was  as 
one  of  the  conuiiissioners  to  run  the  lines  between  Kentucky  and 
Tennessee,  and  the  boundar}-  was  known  as  Walker's  Line. 
Some  extracts  from  Courtney  Meade  Walker's  letters  will  be  in- 
teresting as  showing  the  condition  of  affairs  in  olden  times.  He 
says  :  'T  was  in  Nicholasville  in  .August,  1826.  Harrison  Daniels 
was  a  candidate  for  the  legislature  at  that  time.  It  was  on  the 
last  dav  of  the  election.  There  were  some  five  or  six  fist  fights  in 
the  streets.  i)ut  no  one  was  injured  or  seriously  hurt.  I  had  come 
up  fnim  Louisville,  where  I  had  been  at  school.  I  was  at  the 
burial  of  Samuel  H.  Woodson,  in  1827,  at  the  residence  near 
David  Meade's.'' 


Gen'I  Percival  Butler. 

Gen.  Percival  lUitler.  was  born  in  Carlisle.  Pa..  April 
4,  1760.  In  1778.  he  entered  the  .Vmerican  army  as  a  lieutenant. 
He  was  at  X'alley  Forge  with  Washington,  at  the  battle  of  Mon- 
mouth, and  at  the  surrender  at  Yorktown.  LaFayette  was  such  an 
admirer  of  the  young  man  that  he  presented  him  with  a  sword  as 
a  token  of  his  friendship  and  esteem.  He  married  a  Aliss  Haw- 
kins, of  A'irginia.  Col.  John  Todd,  who  fell  at  Blue  Licks,  mar- 
ried another    sister.     Tt  was   probably    through   this    connection 


tl.at  (iciKTal  lUillcr  settled  in  Kentucky.  He  came  to  Jessa- 
mine count}  in  17S4,  and  settled  at  the  mouth  of  Hickman  creek 
and  cn^au,ed  in  merchandise.  This  point  was  then  one  of  great 
importance.  1  he  Kentucky  river  w .is  the  outlet  for  a  large  pan 
of  Central  Kcntuckw  and  datboats  plied  up  and  down  the  stream, 
carrying  the  ccMumerce  of  the  country  tributary  to  it.  The  ricli 
lands  lying  in  i)n)ximity  were  already  producing  large  treasure 
w  liicli  f(  >und  markets  in  the  East  and  at  New  Orleans,  (ien.  James 
W'ilkinson  had  opened  a  large  dry  goods  store  at  Lexington  in 
1784.  wSalt  was  carried  c^ut  of  the  Salt  river  from  Mann  and  I'.ul- 
litt  Licks  in  1796  to  Xashville,  and  the  Kentucky  river  was  also 
sending  its  tide  of  wealth  to  the  outside  world. 

In  1785  a  ferry  had  been  established  at  the  mouth  of  Hick- 
man creek  1)\-  the  X'irginia  legislature,  and  in  1787  W'ilkinson 
had  pushed  his  trade  down  tlie  AIississi])pi  to  New  ()rleans.  and 
the  mouth  of  Hickman  at  once  became  a  center  of  trade. 

By  this  date  roads  were  cut  through  from  Lexington  to  Dan- 
ville. Stanford  and  Lancaster,  and  the  chartering  of  the  ferry  as 
early  as  1785  shows  that  a  large  trade  crossed  at  this  ])oint.  Prior 
to  this  date  no  other  ferry  had  been  established  by  Mrginia  ex- 
ce])t  the  one  across  the  Kentucky  river  at  r)Oonesboro  {1779). 
The  next  were  those  at  the  mouth  of  Hickman,  the  mouth  of  Jack's 
creek.  Madison  county,  at  Long  Lick,  and  two  at  Louisville,  to 
the  mouths  of  Silver  creek  and  Mill  Run. 

Gen.  Pcrcival  lUitler  remained  at  the  mouth  of  1  licknian  until 
r796,  when  he  removed  to  the  mouth  of  the  Kentucky  river,  at 
Carrollton.  Lie  was  made  adjutant-general  of  l\cntuck\-  in  1792 
and  took  part  in  tlie  war  of  1812.  and  died  in  Carroll  county,  in 
1821. 

His  eldest  son.  Thomas  L.  l^)Utlei-.  was  born  at  the  mouth  of 
Hickman,  in  1781).  lie  was  an  aide  to  General  Jackson  at  the 
battle  of  Xew  '  )rleans  in  1815,  k.eing  then  only  twenty-six  years  of 
age.  and  was  left  by  General  Jackson  in  conuuand  of  the  city,  to 
protect  it  against  outbreaks.  He  represented  Gallatin  (then  com- 
prising Carroll)  countv  in  the  legislature,  in  1826,  and  Carroll 
in   1 848,  and  died  at  Carrollton  in   1877,  aged  88  years. 

(ien.  A\"m.  <  )rlando  lUuler.  second  son  of  Gen.  Tercival  But- 
ler, was  born  at  the  mouth  of  TTickman,  April  19,  1791,  and  re- 
mained there  until  he  was  fi\e  vears  of  age:  then  went  with  hi? 


38  lUxtoi-ji  of  ,frx.-<(n}iiiif  Cnitiifji.   Knifiickii. 

father  to  CarroUtoii.  He  g-radnated  at  Transylvania  L'niversity 
at  twenty-one  years  of  age.  ami  at  once  volnnteered  as  a  private 
in  the  war  of  1812,  then  in  progress.  He  entered  the  service  as  a 
private,  in  Captain  Xathaniel  G.  Hart's  company,  the  "Lexington 
light  infantry."  Young  Butler  was  made  a  corporal.  This 
company  was  in  the  battle  of  Raisiri.  fought  January  22,  1813. 
Captain  Hart  was  wovmded  in  the  leg  in  the  tight.  A  British 
officer  named  Elliott,  who  had  l)een  nursed  1)\-  Hart's  family  dur- 
ing a  severe  spell  of  illness,  in  Lexington,  ottered  to  protect  Cap- 
tain Hart,  who  was  a  brother-in-law  of  Henry  Clay,  but  he  basely 
failed  to  redeem  his  promise,  and  Hart  was  massacred.  Li 
both  l)attles  at  Raisin.  January  18th  and  22d.  r)Utler's  conduct 
conunanded  the  highest  praise.  His  courage,  gallantry,  and  self- 
(■'criial  elicited  miiversal  praise.  He  was  wounded  and  taken 
prisi'Uer. 

His  heroic  conduct  at  Raisin  shows  that  he  has  had  no  su- 
]:>erior  in  courage  and  chivalry  in  the  world's  history,  and  one 
event  is  thus  told  by  V.  P.  P.lair,  .Sr.  : 

".\fter  the  rout  and  massacre  of  the  right  wing,  belonging 
to  the  Wells  ct)uunaud.  the  whole  force  of  the  liritish  and  Lidians 
was  concentrated  against  the  small  body  of  tr(^ops  under  Maj. 
Geo.  Madison,  that  maintained  their  ground  within  the  picketed 
gardens,  a  double  barn  commanding  the  ])lat  of  ground  on 
which  the  Kentuckians  stood — on  one  side  the  Indians,  under  the 
cover  of  an  nrchard  and  fence,  tlie  IVitish  on  the  other  side,  being 
so  posted  as  to  conmiand  the  s]iace  between  it  and  the  pickets. 
A  partv  in  the  rear  of  the  barn  were  discovered  advancing  to  take 
possession  of  it.  All  saw  the  fatal  consequences  of  the  secure 
lodgment  of  the  enemv  at  a  place  which  would  present  every  man 
within  tlu'  pickets  at  close  rifle  shot,  t-,)  the  aim  of  their  marksmen. 
Major  Madison  in(|uired  if  there  was  no  one  who  would  volunteer 
to  run  the  guntlet  ot  the  tire  of  the  IJritish  and  Indian  lines,  and 
]~)ut  a  torch  to  the  combustibles  witlu'n  the  barn,  to  save  the  rem- 
nant of  the  little  armv  from  sacrifice.  The  heroic  Butler,  without 
a  moment's  delay,  took  some  blazing  sticks  from  a  fire  at  hand, 
leaped  the  pickets,  and  running  at  his  utmost  speed,  thrust  the 
fire  into  the  straw  within  the  barn.  (  )ne  wb.o  was  an  anxious 
spectator  of  t^he  event  says  that,  although  volley  upon  volley 
was  fired  at   liim.    Butler,   after  making   some   steps   on   his  way 


ll'iMitrij  of  ,Ji'^.-<iiiiilitf  Count ij,  Kentiifhij.  39 

back,  turned  to  sec  if  the  tire  had  taken,  and,jiot  being  satisfied, 
returned  to  the  barn  and  set  it  in  a  blaze.  As  the  conflagration 
grew,  the  enem\  was  seen  retreating  from  the  rear  of  the  buiUHng, 
which  they  had  entered  in  one  end,  as  the  flames  ascended  in  tht 
other.  Soon  after  reaching  the  pickets  in  safety  amid  the  shouts 
of  his  friends,  he  was  struck  by  a  musket  Ijall  in  his  1)reast.  Be- 
heving,  from  the  i)ain  Ik-  feU,  tliat  it  had  penetrated  his  chest,  he 
turned  to  John  M.  .McCalla,  one  of  his  Lexington  comrades,  and, 
pressing  his  hand  on  the  spot,  said:  '1  fear  this  shot  is  mortal, 
l)Ut  while  I  am  able  to  move  1  will  do  my  duty.'  To  the  anxious 
inquiries  of  his  friends,  who  met  him  soon  afterward,  he  opened 
his  vest,  with  a  smile,  and  showed  them  that  the  ball  had  spent 
itself  on  the  thick  wadding  of  his  coat  and  on  his  breastbone.  He 
suffered,  however,  for  many  weeks.'' 

He  was  a  captain  in  the  battle  of  Xew  (  )rleans,  December  14, 
1814,  and  on  January  S,  1S15,  was  brevetted  Major  for  his  gallan- 
trv,  and  (ieneral  Jackson  conmiended  his  conduct  in  the  highest 
terms.  He  was  an  aide  on  the  staflf  of  General  Jackson,  in  1816 
and  1817,  but  resigned  to  study  law.  He  married  a  daughter  of 
General  Robert  Todd.  He  represented  Gallatin  county  in  the 
legislature  in  1817,  was  elected  to  Congress  in  1839,  and  served 
four  years,  refusing  a  re-election.  In  1844  he  was  the  Demo- 
cratic candidate  for  Governor  and  reduced  the  \\'hig  majority  to 
4.000. 

On  June  21;,  1846.  President  Polk  appointed  General  Butler  a 
major  general  of  volunteers,  and  on  the  same  date  Zachary  Tay- 
lor, major  general  in  the  regular  armw 

On  the  2^(1  .)t  l-'ebruary,  1847,  tlie  Kentucky  legislature  pre- 
sented him  a  .-word  for  bis  gallantry  in  ^Mexico.  He  bore  a  dis- 
tinguished ])art  in  many  of  the  battles  of  that  war.  He  was 
wounded  in  the  battle  of  ]\Ionterey  in  September.  1846.  ( )n  Feb- 
ruary t8,  1848,  he  succeeded  General  Scott  in  the  chief  com- 
mand of  the  American  army  in  ^fexico,  and  remained  in  such  ]-»o- 
sition  until  the  declaration  of  peace.  .May  29,  1848.  In  that  year 
he  was  nominated  for  \'ice-President  of  the  I'nited  States  on  the 
ticket  with  ( ien.  Cass:  but  they  were  defeated  by  Taylor  and  Fill- 
more. He  received  the  full  vote  of  his  party  for  Cnited  States 
Senator  in  1 83 1 .  l)ut  failed  of  election.  He  was  one  of  the  six  Peace 
Commissioners  from  Kentuckv  in   Tamuu-v.  1861,  and  thereafter 


40  Hixtory  of  JexxoDiliir  (oniitij^  Kcniiu-kij. 

he  remained  in  the  (luiet  sechision  of  h.is  home,  at  CarruUtuii,  and 
died  Atigust  6,  1880,  in  his  89th  year.  He  rests  in  a  sepulchre 
overlooking  the  splendid  scenery  where  the  waters  of  the  Ken- 
tuck}-  and  the  (  diio  unite — a  fit  resting-place  for  him  who  did  so 
much  to  wrest  Ohio  and  the  Northwest  from  the  savage  and  ^o 
make  still  greater,  the  renown  of  the  great  conunonwealth  which 
had  given  him  l)irth. 

He  was  a  man  of  the  highest  courage,  truest  patriotism,  noblest 
public  spirit,  thorough  culture  and  splendid  talent.  His  poem, 
"The  Boatman's  Horn,"  induced  by  the  associations  and  mem- 
ories of  his  childhood  on  the  ( )hi(),  when  listening  to  the  large 
and  sonorous  horns  the  boatmen  were  accustomed  to  blow  to 
announce  their  coming  to  the  landing  ]:)laces  on  the  river,  is  a  real 
poetic  gem  : 


The  Boat  Horn. 

(J  boatman,  wind  that  horn  again. 

For  never  did  the  list'ning  air 

Upon  its  lambent  bosom  bear 
So  wild,  so  soft,  so  sweet  a  strain. 

What  thoug^h  thy  notes  are  sad  and  few, 
l)y  every  simple  boatman  blown. 

Yet  is  each  pulse  to  nature  true 
And  melody  in  every  tone. 

How  oft  in  boyhood's  joyous  day, 
Unmindful  of  the  lapsing  hours, 

I've  loitered  on  my  homeward  way 
V>\  wild  ( )hio's  brink  of  flowers, 

While  some  lone  boatmaii  from  the  deck 
Poured  his  soft  numbers  to  that  tide. 

As  if  to  charm  from  storm  and  wreck 
The  boat  where  all  his  fortunes  ride  ! 
Delighted  nature  drank  the  sound. 
Enchanted — echo  bore  it  round 
In  whispers  soft,  and  softer  still. 
From  hill  to  plain  and  plain  to  hill, 


HUtorij  of  JesKainine  Coimtjj,  Kentuchj. 


41 


Till  e'en  the  thoughtless,  frolieking  boy, 

Elate  with  hope  and  wild  with  joy. 

Who  ganiljoled  l)y  the  river  side 

And  sported  with  the  fretting  tide. 

Feels  something  new  pervade  his  breast. 

Chain  his  light  step,  repress  his  jest. 

Bends  o'er  the  llood  his  eager  ear 

To  catch  tlie  sounds,  far  off.  yet  near — 

Drinks  the  sweet  draught,  but  knows  not  why 

The  tear  of  rapture  fills  his  eye; 

And  can  he  now,  to  manhood  grown. 

Tell  why  those  notes,  simple  and  lone. 

As  on  the  ravished  ear  they  fell. 

Bind  everv  sense  in  magic  spell  .•' 

There  is  a  tide  of  feeling  given — 

To  all  on  earth — its  fountain.  Heaven, 

Beginning  with  the  dewy  Hower 

Just  ope'd  in  Flora's  vernal  l)ower. 

Rising  creation's  orders  tlirough 

With  louder  nnuniur,  brighter  hue. 

That  tide  is  sympathy  ;  its  el)1)  and  l^ow 

Gives  life  its  hues  of  joy  and  woe  : 

Music,  the  master  spirit  that  can  move 

Its  waves  to  war,  or  lull  them  into  love  ; 

Can  cheer  the  sinking  sailor  'mid  the  wave 

And  l)id  the  soldier  on  ,  nor  fear  the  grave  ; 

Inspire  the  fainting  i)ilgrim  on  his  load, 

And  elevate  his  soul  to  claim  his  Cod. 

Then,  boatman,  wind  thai  liorn  again! 

Though  much  of  sorrow  mark  its  strain. 

Yet  are  its  notes  to  sorrow  dear. 

What  though  they  wake  fond  memory's  tear; 

Tears  are  sad  memorv's  sacred  feast, 

And  rapture  oft  her  chosen  guest. 


noATMAN'S    HORN. 


4'I  lH<t(n'ij  of  Jt--<--^aiitiiii'  (_\)iuit[i,  Kent  tick  I/. 


First  Settlers. 

Jolin  riuiitcr,  jacol)  lluntcr  an^l  Saiiuu-I  llunter  came  to 
Jessamine  coimty  in  ilie  s])rin_o-  of  1779.  Jacob  was  the  oldest 
and  was  l)orn  in  1753.  They  first  stopped  at  Hoonesboro  in  1778 
and  were  employed  by  Elias  Hite.  son  of  Abraham  Hite,  who 
was  at  that  time  engaged  in  the  snrveying  of  lands  in  Kentucky. 
Tlie  father  of  these  young  men  died  at  Boonesboro.  They  had 
two  sisters.  They  had  been  employed  by  Mr.  Hite  as  chain- 
carriers,  and  they  all  settled  close  to  each  other  on  Hickman 
creek.     The  following  letter  shows  when  they  were  dismissed: 

Thursday  April  i,  1779. 

Dear  heather:  Ivismiss  the  chain  carriers.  John  Hunter, 
."^anniel  llunter  and  Jacob  Hunter;  pay  them  six  shillings  per 
day  for  three  months"  services  on  IJoone  and  Hickman  creeks. 

Isaac  Hite. 
Tell  Mr.  Douglas  to  go  at  once  to  Boonesiboro. 

Here,  in  1780,  was  born  Joseph  Hunter,  who  was  the  first 
white  child  born  in  the  present  Ijoundary  of  Jessamine 
county.  Joseph  Hunter  lived  to  be  quite  an  old  man. 
He  died  in  !858.  The  old  home  of  these  first  settlers  em- 
braced about  000  acres  of  land,  which  has  now  l^een  in  cultivation 
120  years  and  is  still  fertile  and  jiroductive.  The  old  house  for 
a  long  time  was  the  ])ro])ert\'  of  John  I'ortwood,  who  \vas  a  son- 
in-law  of  John  llunter.  The  farm  is  situated  about  si.x  miles  east 
of  Xicholasville  on  the  pike  leading  to  Boone's  Ferry. 

\\'hen  John  Portwood  died,  Dudley  Portwood.  his  son,  sold 
a  part  of  the  farm  containing  200  acres  to  Jessamine  county  for 
the  erection  of  a  poor  house. 

The  Hunter  liomestead  was  built  (>f  l)rick  and  is  still  standing, 
and  was  erected  about  t7<;8.  (  )ne  of  the  bricks  in  the  chimneys 
has  this  date  ui)on  it. 

Jacob  Hunter  left  Jessamine  county  and  went  to  (  )wen 
county,  where  he  died  after  attaining  the  extreme  age  of  one 
hundred  }ears. 

Samuel   Hunter  settled   some    nnles  above  these  other    two 


II1.4nrii  of  Ji'.<.<a))>iii''  Count q,  Keiifuchi/ 


4:-j 


KHXTl'CKY  PIOXl'.KR'S  DKKSS. 


44  Hl<torij  of  Jc''--<iimi)ie  Coiuifij,  Kcntuckij. 

brothers,  on  HickiiKin  creek,  and  they  were  un(|uestional3ly  the 
first  white  men  who  ever  imdertcjok  a  ])ernianent  settlement  in 
Jessann'ne  conntv.  Thex'  (hd  not  l)nihl  forts  or  blockliouses,  and 
were  doubtless  drivi-n  in  alxmt  1782,  wlicn  tlie  fndians  were  so 
determined  in  their  assaults  on  the   Ixenluckv  settlers. 


Early  Settlers  on  Jessamine  Creek. 

The  earlv  settlers  on  jessamine  creek  were  mostly  German 
Protestants  who  came  in  large  part  from  Pennsylvania  and  ]\Iary- 
land.  with  a  lew  from  A'irginia.  The  following  letter  written  by 
Dr.  Peter  Trisler  to  Rev.  David  Zeisberger  in  1794,  from  Jessa- 
mine count}-,  will  prove  valuable,  historically: 

Jessamine  Creek,  September  4,  1794 
Dear  David:  I  am  exceedingly  sorry  that  you  did  not  come 
along  with  your  father  during  his  recent  visit  to  this  delightful 
country.  The  sun  shines  brighter  in  this  country,  and  the  skies 
are  more  blue,  than  the  damp,  moist  atmosphere  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Cuyahoga.  A  good  school  is  needed  among  us,  and  I  invite 
you  once  more  to  leave  that  inliospitable  countr\'  of  savages  and 
cold  winds. 

Faithfully  yours, 

Peter  Trisler. 

From  most  reliable  records  Rev.  Jacob  Rhorer  was  the  founder 
of  the  first  Moravian  church  on  Jessamine  creek,  in  1794,  and 
the  building  was  used  as  a  Aloiravian  church  by  the  Rhorer  family 
up  to  near  the  beginning  of  the  Civil  War. 

The  following  are  the  names  of  the  early  settlers  who  were  of 
German  parentage  and  belonged  to  the  Moravian  Church,  or 
"United  Brethren"  :  Arnspigers,  Alcorns,  Cormans,  Howmans, 
r.runers,  Earthenhousers.  Easleys,  Funks,  Fraziers,  Grows,  Gil- 
mans,  Goforths,  Hififners,  Howsers,  Harbaughs,  Horines,  Rit- 
ters,  Rices,  ^Nlasners,  Zikes,  Ketrons,  Waggamans,  Warmslys, 
Overstreets,  Quests.  Yosts.  Hoovers,  Trislers.  Turks,  Turpins, 
Shreves,  A'eatches.  \*antresses.  Xaves,  Cogars,  Crows.  Cooleys. 
Cawl)ys,  and  Schmidts.  Xearl}-  all  of  these  names  were  in  the 
list  of  German  settlers  in  the  western  part  of  Jessamine  county, 


ITi.<f(irii  (if  Jc^mm'nie  County,  Kentucky.  4.'! 

who  were  lars^cl}'  the  followers  of  John  Iluss.  They  were  men 
of  great  common  sense,  good  judgment,  honesty,  a  high  sense 
of  morality,  and  great  lovers  of  freedom,  and  their  descendants 
still  reside  in  that  part  of  jessamine  county  which  their  ancestors 
in  the  early  history  of  the  state  settled. 

In  1884  John  C"awl)y  had  a  Bible  which  was  printed  at  Wit- 
tenberg in  1440.  This  Bible  was  brought  from  (jermany  to 
Maryland  in  1780,  by  Peter  1>islcr,  who,  in  1794.  settled  in  the 
present  limits  of  Jessamine  count}',  where  I13  died  April  22.  1821. 
Tins  old  Jiible  was  the  |)ro])erty  of  }^Irs.  Xanc\'  llorine,  who  was 
a  grandaughter  of  Dr.  'i^ri-^ler. 

Dr.  Peter  l^risler  was  born  in  A\'ittenberg,  Germany,  in  1745. 
He  came  to  Hagerstown,  !\lar\lan(l.  when  a  very  young  man. 
and  settled  on  Jessamine  creek  in  1791.  \\'hen  he  came  from 
(jermany  he  brought  the  old  IJible  above  referred  to.  and  this 
book  contained  records  of  a  large  number  of  the  fanu'lies  above 
named.  From  tliis  stock  German  settlers  have  gone  through- 
out the  West  and  South,  and  they  usu.all}-  became  men  of  thrift, 
energy,  character  and  l)rains.  Some  now  in  Illinois  and  many  in 
Missouri  have  carried  away  with  them  the  splendid  qualities  of 
these  early  settlers,  and  in  their  new  homes  have  shown  the 
sterling  qualities  of  their  ancestors,  who  did  so  much  to  create  and 
promote  the  best  interests  of  the  new  state  they  helped  to  found 
in  the  then  wilderness  of  Kentucky. 

Xames  of  those  who  settled  in  other  parts  of  Jessamine  from 
1782  to  the  close  of  the  century: 

Archibald  llristow  ;  Manoali  Singleton;  Elder  Micliael  Rice; 
Jacob  Howser ;  i  )a\i(l  Watson,  Sr. ;  Jacob  Sedowski.  afterward 
removed  to  Bourbon  county;  James  McKinney ;  Jeremiah  King; 
Col.  Jos.  Crockett;  Abraham  Howser;  Jacob  Rhorer;  John 
Welch;  Jacob  l^runer;  James  Overstreet ;  Chris.  Mason:  Wm. 
Moss;  Jno.  Thornton;  Patrick  W^atson ;  Fielding  Pilcher;  Shad- 
rach  Pilclicr;  Sanuiel  Rice;  Minor  Young;  Rev.  Jno.  Hudson; 
Jeremiah  Dickerson  ;  A\'ni.  Fletcher:  \\'ni.  Ilowman ;  John 
i  wo  Nine  Scott;  Col.  Ilyrd  Prewitt ;  Jno.  Jolmson:  Jno.  Lowry  ; 
Utos.  Caldwell;  Col.  Geo.  Walker:  John  Lewis;  James  Duncan; 
Chas.  Duncan:  Jonas  Davenport;  James  McCabe;  Jacob  Rice; 
Rev.  Xatlianiel   Harris;  Col.  Wm.  Price:  Col.  Jno.  Price;  Maior 


■HJ  Illsfori/  of  Je.-<.-'<iiiiliir  Coniifii.   Kriiliichii. 

Xtthcrlaiul;  Benj.  Blackford;  licnj.  Adams:  Jiio.  Todd;  Robt. 
Campbell;  Abraham  Cassell;  jM-ancis  Lowers;  Thos.  Shanklin ; 
Robt.  Shanklin:  Daniel  Mitchell:  Thomas  Rowland;  Thomas 
Overstreet. 

Black's  Station. 

It  is  strange  that,  from  the  time  of  the  settlement  at  Harrods- 
burq-  in  1774  down  to  1779,  there  were  no  stations  established  in 
Jessamine  count}-.  In  Mercer,  IJoyle,  Fayette,  Woodford,  Mad- 
ison, Scott  and  I'^ranklin.  nmnerous  stations  were  erected,  but 
with  all  the  richness  of  the  land  in  Jessamine  county,  nc:»ne  came 
to  found  a  fort  within  its  midst.  'Jdiere  were  surveys  made  in  the 
county  during  this  time,  one  of  which,  the  Abram  Hite  survev  of 
2,000  acres  on  Marble  creek,  was  both  jH^rmanent  and  important, 
and  discussed  in  the  fort  at  Harrodslmrg  in  1774  and  1775.  A 
^\r.  Black  established  a  station  (^n  what  is  known  as  the  G.  B. 
Uryan  farm,  half  way  between  Xicholasville  and  Brookline  on 
the  Harrodsburg-  turnpike.  It  was  on  the  old  trace  which  led 
through  the  county  along  the  waters  of  Jessamine  creek  to  the 
waters  of  South  Elkhorn.  There  were  several  large  boiling 
springs  in  the  locality,  and  as  these  were  always  in  demand  for 
settlements.  Black  located  his  station  there.  It  was  composed  of 
several  calkins,  and  the  land  was  originall}-  part  of  what  is  known 
as  the  "Craig  Survey,"  and  was  subsequenth'  owned  bv  Archibald 
Logan.  \\ho  was  a  rich  tanner  and  had  an  establishment  in  Lex- 
ington. 

Logan  conveyed  this  land  to  his  daughter,  ^Irs.  Hord,  when 
he  left  Jessamine  cotuitv  in  i82<),  and  the  house  known  as  the 
I'atterson  House  is  where  Logan  lived.  ]Mrs.  Hord  conveyed 
the  place  to  her  daughter,  Mrs.  W'orley,  and  she  conveyed  it  to 
others,  and  it  is  now  owned  by  the  l>ryan's  heirs. 

Beginning  with  1783,  this  station  became  quite  an  important 
one,  and  was  one  of  the  stopping  places  for  those  who  followed 
the  trace  froiu  Afercer  and  Boyle  to  l-'ranklin  and  Woodford 
counties.  Idie  diffictdty  in  obtaining  water  in  this  general  section 
was  very  great,  and  Joel  W'atkins,  in  his  diary,  says  :  June  24 — 
"Forded  river  at  mouth  of  Hickman  ;  after  travelling  seven  or 
eight  miles  on  the  road  that  leads  from  the  river  to  Lexington  I 


Midorij  of  Jemniiiiir  ('ninitii,  l\(iitnckii.  IT 

luriK'd  tt)  the  left  of  said  ruad  and  crossed  a  wau-r  course  called 
East  Jessamine :  after  leaviiij;  the  said  creek,  the  land  is  very  level 
and  of  a  \er\  pretty  nnilatto  soil  and  the  growth  is  l>lack  and  white 
oak,  hickory,  and  some  walnut  and  sugar  trees,  and  the  under- 
growth ha;'v-l  nut  and  red  bud.  till  1  arri\  ed  at  West  Jessamine.  I 
proceeded  U])  sai<l  river  to  head,  the  land  altering  as  I  proceeded 
up  said  creek  until  I  came  near  the  head  springs,  the  land  there 
appearing  very  rich  till  1  struck  the  waters  of  South  Elkhorn. 
This  (lav  I  ])assed  several  good  farms,  and  especially  John  Craig's. 
badly  watered  between  the  two  Jessamines,  so  much  so  that 
people  settled  onlx'  along  the  said  creeks."  This  scarcity  of 
water  was  doubtless  one  of  the  reasons  for  establishing  the  sta- 
tion at  I 'lack's. 

W'atkins  says  August  ]8.  1889:  "Passed  Dick's  river  at  Mc- 
Guir's,  from  thence  we  proceeded  to  Curd's  l-'erry  on  Kentuckv. 
which  is  at  the  mcnith  of  Dick's  river — the  latter  we  forded — 
dierc'  the  clift's  are  of  amazing  height):  we  proceeded  towards 
Lexington  abotit  eight  tniles :  we  turned  to  the  left  of  said  road 
l>ast  lUack  Station  on  the  waters  of  Clear  creek,  proceeded  on- 
ward, the  land  King  ver)"  well,  Init  the  growth  indicating  the  rock 
being  nigh  the  surface  of  the  earth  ;  we  crossed  several  forks  of 
Clear  creek  ;  we  came  to  Captain  Woodfolk's  mentioned  on  page 
22;  from  this  ])lace  the  land  continued  very  slightly,  both  soil  and 
Growth,  to  Mr.  \\  atkins'.  at  wliich  place  we  arrived  about  dark — 
received  ver\'  kindlw" 

He  also  says.  August  24:  "Monday,  after  breakfast  with 
Mr.  W'.,  set  out  for  the  smiuIi  side  of  Kentucky  ri\er.  agreeing 
with  the  aforesaid  gentleman  at  ])arting  to  keej)  tip  a  literary  cor- 
respc^ndence.  past  I '.lack  Station  again  and  crossed  the  two 
forks  of  Jessanu'ne  and  arri\-e(l  at  Kentuck\-  river  at  the  mouth  of 
Hickman,  wliich  1  forded,  and  arrivetl  at  Mr.  Walker's  at  two 
111  itirs  bestni." 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  trace  along  b\-  1 '.lack's  Station  was  the 
read  usually  traveled  by  those  who  passed  from  Garrard  and 
fiercer  and  J.oyle  to  Woodford  and  Franklin. 

Another  station  in  Jessamine  county  was  btiilt  by  Levi  Todd 
a  little  northwest  of  Keene — its  exact  location  can  not  now  be  de- 
termiiK'il — it,  i>,  however,  laid  down  u])on  hilson's  map.  l)Ut  was 
abandoned.     This  was  a  fort.     The  road  from   Tfarrod^bnrg  to 


48  Hldory  of  JeKxainhic  CoiDity,  Ki-iifiickii. 

Lexington  doubtless  passed  l)y  Slack's  Station,  and  from 
this  on  to  Todd's  Station.  There  was  also  another  route 
by  which  they  crossed  the  river  to  the  mouth  of  Hick- 
man, Itvllowed  Hickman  for  some  distanc?,  and  then 
turned  northeast  towards  Lexington,  then  their  route  fol- 
lowed Hickman  for  several  miles,  then  struck  East  Jessamine 
and  followed  it  to  its  nead  at  Airs.  Horine's  on  the  Southern  Rail- 
road, about  a  mile  east  of  Nicholasville,  and  from  this  over  to>  the 
headwaters  of  Jessamine,  and  from  tliis  along  the  general  route 
of  the  Lexington  and  Harrodsburgh  turnpike  to  Lexington. 
This  is  shown  by  deposition  of  David  Williams,  which  was  filed 
in  the  case  of  Manson's  Executors  vs.  Craig  Williams,  in  which 
Williams  deposes  as  follows : 

"He  was  well  acquainted  with  Hickman's  creek  from  a  small 
distance  above  the  survey,  'Abram  Hite/  to  the  head  of  the  creek, 
and  that  the  east  fork  of  Jessamine  was  as  well  known  to  the  peo- 
ple of  Harrodsburg  as  Llickman's  creek  was.  The  east  fork  of 
Jessamine  lay  more  out  of  the  course  generally  taken  1)y  hunters 
in  traveling  from  Harrodsiburg  to  the  waiters  of  the  Licking;  they 
connnc^nly  fell  on  main  Jessamine  above  the  mouth  of  East  Fork-, 
thence  up  the  main  Jessamine  spring;  thence  crossing  the  waters 
of  Hickman  to  Boone's  creek,  and  over  to  the  head  of  Stroud's 
creek,  where  there  were  roads  leading  down  most  of  its  branches 
to  the  Salt  Licks.  It  was  also  connuon  to  pass  by  main  Jessa- 
mine above  the  East  Eork  and  l)y  Todd's  station  on  the  waters 
of  Hickman  to  go  to  tlie  headwaters  of  South  and  North  Elkhorn. 
This  deponent,  with  others,  fre(|uently  took  this  road  to  avoia 
large  canebrakes." 

The  Last  Indians. 

The  liigh  cliffs,  covered  with  dense  forests  of  cedar  and  other 
timlier,  along  the  Kentucky  river,  and  their  utter  inaccessibility, 
rendered  them  excellent  hiding  places  for  the  Indians  who  dis- 
turl)ed  the  settlers  as  late  as  the  end  of  1792.  No  great  incur- 
sion of  tlie  Indians  into  Kentucky  happened  after  the  battle  of  Blue 
Licks,  in  1782,  l)ut  predatory  bands,  consisting  of  four  or  five 
mej;  hers,  lioth  from  the  south  and  from  the  north,  gave  the  set- 
tlers  great    disturl)ance   and   uneasiness   and   nmrdered   a   great 


Hlstitiij  (if  .h'sstuii'uic  ('i)nittij,  Kentuchij.  4!' 

iiianv  women  and  children.  Shortly  after  the  battle  of  Blue  Licks 
the  people  abancloned  the  ft)rts  and  scattered  out  in  their  log 
cabins  over  the  state.  l->ar  of  Indian  raids  had  been  removed 
and  the  immense  tide  of  settlers  which  came  into  tlie  state  dur- 
itig-  this  period  took  up  lands  in  every  part,  but  as  late  as  1792 
many  people  were  killed  in  darrard.  Lincoln,  Aladison  and  Jessa- 
mine. On  Jul\-  6,  I7<;3.  Major  llcnjamin  Xethcrland  wrote  the 
following  letter  to  ( io\'crnor  .Sliclhw  wliich  gives  a  contemporane- 
ous account  of  these  troubles: 

"Mingo  Tavern.  I'ayette  comity.  Ky., 

"July  6,  1792. 
"To  His  Excellency.   Isaac  Shelby, 

"(iovernor  of  Kentucky: 

"Dear  Sir — \'our  letter  of  the  2c;th  of  June,  was  lianded  tcj  me 
on  yesterday  by  John  Wilson.  I  tender  to  you  my  liearty.  warm 
thanks  for  the  good  opinion  you  express  concerning  my  pt:)or 
services  in  the  defense  of  our  beloved  countr}-.  To  enjoy  your 
confidence  and  friendshi])  may  well  be  considered  a  distinguished 
honor,  and  I  shall  at  all  times  consider  it  a  jjleasure  to  be  of  serv- 
ice to  you. 

There  have  biU  few  depredations  occurred  in  these  ])arts  of  the 
count}-.  Last  year  it  was  reported  three  men  were  killed  by  a 
l)arty  of  Shawnees.  They  were  pursued,  overtaken  and  two  of 
them  \vere  killed  the  following  day  at  lioonesboro.  .\l)out  three 
month's  ago  two  Indians  crossed  tlie  Kentucky  at  the  mouth  of  tiie 
Dix  river,  and  came  an-iong  the  settlers,  as  the_\-  said,  for  trading. 
I  was  not  pleased  at  seeing  such  treacherous  enemies,  and  gave 
orders  to  Tom  Lewis  and  his  father  to  keep  a  watch  on  them. 
They  spoke  English  ver\  well  and  were  trying  to  make  the  im- 
]:)ression  that  the\-  were  our  best  friends,  ^^'hen  they  left  the 
next  morning  the\-  met  one  of  the  settlers  named  Michael  lliffner, 
who  had  been  to  see  Thomas  Rowland,  who  settled  on  a  planta- 
tion some  miles  above.  1'he  Indians  told  lliffner  he  uuist  let 
them  have  his  horse.  This  be  refused,  when  he  heard  the  snap  of 
a  gun.  He  at  once  jum])ed  front  tlie  horse  and  stal)bed  the  In- 
dian to  the  heart,  lie  then  turned  upon  the  other,  who  shot  him 
in  tlic  arm  and  r;in  off  into  the  timber.  lliffner,  being  a  good  In- 
dian fighter  and  a  ])ra\e  and  acti\e  man.  i)ursued  him,  .md  before 
4 


50  Hilary  of  JexxaiDhic  Omiifii,  Kciitiichij. 

the  Indian  could  reload  his  gun  liift'ner  caught  him  and  knocked 
his  brains  out  with  a  club,  and  threw  his  body  down  the  high 
cliffs  into  the  river.  The  body  of  the  Indian  he  stabbed  to  death 
was  buried.  A  party  of  W^andots  killed  a  man  at  the  mouth  of 
Jessamine  last  spring.  At  the  various  crossings  Indian  tracks 
have  been  discovered.  At  I'aint  Lick  two  years  ago  two  men 
were  killed  by  this  same  party  of  Indians.  It  is  my  opinion  that 
if  50  mounted  men  were  employed  to  scour  the  Kentucky  river 
cliffs  during  the  fall,  I  feel  sure  no  more  of  our  people  would  be 
ambushed  and  killed.  These  hills  and  cliffs,  Major  Whitley  says, 
are  good  hiding  places  for  Indians  to  do  us  much  injury.  I  must 
urge  yoti  to  appoint  Tom  Wilson  captain  and  lieutenant  of  this  end 
of  the  county.  He  is  young  and  active  and  can  run  like  the  wind, 
and  such  service  would  be  in  keeping  with  his  nature,  which  is 
daring  and  full  of  adventure.  I  would  seek  the  place  myself, 
but  I  have  so  long  neglected  my  private  affairs  that  it  would  be 
ruinous  for  me  to  put  my  affairs  into  the  hands  of  others,  who  seek 
their  own  interest  to  the  neglect  of  mine,  besides  I  have  now  rhe 
high  and  responsible  duties  of  husband  and  father,  which  I  can 
not  throw  aside  without  doing  great  injustice  to  the  innocent  who 
look  to  me  for  protection  as  husband  and  father. 

"Your  old  friend, 

"  B.  Netherland." 

All  sorts  of  "varmints"  were  plentiful  in  the  days  of  the  early 
settlers.  Bears  and  rattlesnakes  were  in  great  abundance.  On 
the  farm  of  INIr.  Alexander  Willoughby,  near  Sulphur  Well,  one 
of  the  great  curiosities  was  a  place  known  as  "Rattlesnake  Spring." 
When  the  land  was  first  settled  this  spring  was  a  great  resort  for 
these  snakes.  The  water  issued  from  a  large  crevice  in  a  lime- 
stone rock,  overlaid  l)y  a  l)old  bank.  Near  the  spring-  was  a 
cave.  Major  Netherland,  who  visited  the  i)lace  in  1796,  says: 
"In  the  fall  oi  the  year  they  would  crawl  from  the  cave  to  the 
spring  and  enter  the  crevice  of  the  rock,  where  they  remained 
torpid  during  the  winter.  W'hen  the  warmth  of  spring  revived 
them  they  would  emerge  from  the  crevice  and  the  cave  and  bask 
in  the  warm  sun.  At  this  season  they  fell  an  easy  prey  to  the 
destroyer.  Henry  Allsman,  who  is  now  living  on  this  portion  of 
Mr.  W'illoughbv's  land,  told  me  he  and  his  familv  have  killed 


Iflsfori/  of  J'-^^diiiiiif  (oHiifi/.  Kentuckij.  51 

Innidreds  uf  them  in  the  last  week.  \\c  woukl  pile  them  up  on  a 
log  heap  and  liurn  them.  Jly  this  wholesale  slaughter,  this  enemv 
of  (tO(1  and  man  was  extirpated,  and  in  another  season  of  spring 
and  summer  nothing  will  remain  of  that  representative  of  the 
transgression  hut  his  hateful  name." 

The  man  Allsnian  here  referred  to  was  the  father  of  the  no- 
tori'Uis  Andrew  Allsman.  who  caused  General  McXeil  to  shoot 
ten  innocent  men  at  rahinra,  Mo.  He  was  horn  (ju  tliis  farm  in 
1805  and  left  home  in  1829.  Allsman  boasted  on  the  streets  of 
Palmyra  of  causing  the  death  of  these  men.  The  next  day  after 
he  made  this  dreadful  confession  his  dead  l)od_\-  was  foimd  hung 
and  riddled  with  hullets.  He  had  been  jnit  to  death  by  Col.  Joe 
Porter's  men  in  the  neighborhood. 


The  First  Powder  Mill 

Erected  in  Jessamine  county  was  located  on  Hickman 
creek,  near  the  ol<l  Union  Mill.  The  old  powder  houses  remained 
there  as  late  as  the  vear  1850.  These  j^owder  mills  were  owned 
by  Richard  LafTcMMi,  btit  the  ])<)wder  house  was  erected  bv  Robert 
Crockett,  and  after  he  left  the  countr\-.  it  fell  into  the  hands  of 
th.e  Lafi'oons.      It  was  struck  by  lightning  and  destroyed  in  1837. 

1"hc  first  paper  mill  in  Jessamine,  was  erected  on  Jessamine 
creek  at  the  old  Class  .Mills  1)\-  Thonias  r>r\an  in  1837,  and  he 
carried  it  on  until   1848. 

The  first  btuT  mill-stones  ever  imiwrted  to  Jessamine,  came 
from  J'' ranee  in  1837.  and  were  used  b\-  P>rvan  in  what  is  known  as 
the  Henrv  Class  Mills. 


The  First  Mill. 

The  first  mill  built  in  Jessamine  county  was  constructed  by 
Meredith  Wright,  father  of  Mr.  Pobert  Wright,  who  still  lives 
in  Xicholasville  at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-one  years.  ^lere- 
dith  Wright  was  tlu'  first  nnllwright  in  the  state,  and  the  mill  he 
built  was  Haydon's  Mill,  afterwru'd  nm  by  Mr.  Gavin  Steele. 
Mr.  Wright  also  built  the  Union  Mills  and  the  Torbett  Mills. 
He  was  amon<r  the  earliest  settlers  in   Kentuckv.  and  came  from 


j4 
'■r. 

■T. 

■at 


as 


II!4(>rii  (if  Jrs.odiiliir  f'liiinfi/,  Kentiichii.  53 

Culpepcr  C'ourtliKiisc.  in  \  ir^inia.  tind  ininicdiateiy  scttk-<l  in 
Jessamine  connty.  J  lis  mills  were  used  g'enerally  1)\  the  early 
settlers,  and  the  one  used  hy  l)a\id  Trahue  in  jessamine  eounty 
was  amonq-  the  first  and  nmst  i)rimitive.  The  process  of  grind- 
in,q-  was  very  slow  ;  each  man's  or  hoy's  grist  was  ground  in  its 
turn,  and  sometimes  a  wait  of  twelve  hom-s  was  required  before 
the  flour  could  he  taken  home. 

Thomas  lierrw  hrother  of  Josejih  and  Lewis  Tlerrv,  ran  the 
paper  mill  on  jessamine  creek,  where  the  character  of  paper  made 
was  good  ior  the  opportunities  of  manufacture.  It  was  deep 
blue  and  broadl\'  lined,  hut  it  was  smooth,  with  a  good  polish, 
and  held  the  marks  distinctl\-. 

In  1825  James  \\'ilson  owned  and  ran  a  i)()wder  mill  on  Clear 
creek.  The  power  used  was  horse  power,  and  the  mortars  and 
pestles  were  oj^erated  by  this  ]^ower.  Powder  was  then  worth 
$1  a  pound. 

At  this  time  a  fine  flour  mill  was  operated  also  on  Clear  creek 
by  Air.  Campbell  Steele,  who  was  the  grandfather  of  W'm.  L. 
Steele,  of  Nicholasville,  and  Mr.  John  Steele:  and  a  hominv  mill 
was  operated  by  Samuel  RufTner  on  Clear  creek.  The  pestles 
were  operated  1)}'  horse  power. 


Early  Houses, 

House  building  in  jessamine  count}  in  early  da\s  was  not  a 
very  expensive  or  ])rotracted  work.  The  houses  were  rude  and 
simple  structures  of  hewn  logs  and  the  chinks  stop])ed  with  nuid 
or  filled  with  stone  and  then  plastered  with  mud  on  the  outside. 
l"he  roof  was  made  of  clap-boarding  about  three  feet  long  and 
four  inches  wide,  and  along  these  were  ])laced  poles  supported 
by  blocks  of  wood  and  these  were  weighted  so  as  to  hold  the  clap- 
boarding  in  ])lace.  There  was  rarely  more  than  (^ne  window, 
which  was  at  the  side  of  the  door.  In  earlv  da\s  it  had  no  elass 
but  was  closed  by  a  wooden  shutter  made  of  heavy  oak  boards. 
The  floors  were  made  of  logs  or  ]iuncheons  hewed  smooth  on  one 
side  with  an  adze.  The  logs  were  generally  split  to  a  convenient 
size  and  length,  and  then  hewed  flat.  The  doors  were  made  of 
riven  boards    fastened    together  with    w(^oden  pins    to    wooden 


Jfisfdi-i/  of  Jrssinninr  Cfniiifij,  K(ndiickij.  55 

slabs,  lliese  doors  always  had  the  latch  on  the  inside  and  a 
hole  was  Ijored  above  the  latch  about  4  inches,  through  which  a 
leathern  strin-^  passed  and  so  fastened  to  the  latch  on  the  in- 
side. When  this  string  was  taken  in  there  was  no  way  to  open 
the  dcior  from  the  outside,  in  the  morning  the  string  was  passed 
luick  from  the  inside  so  that  an\-  party  who  desired  to  enter  could 
raise  the  latch.  I'rom  this  comes  th,0  Kentucky  proclamation  of 
hospitality,  "You  will  always  find  the  latch-string  on  the  outside." 
The  chimneys  were  made  of  logs  plastered  w  ith  mud.  Tlie  back 
and  jamjjs  were  either  covered  with  nmrl  or  stones  were  placed 
on  the  inside  to  keep  the  heat  from  .setting  them  on  fire.  The 
fire  places  were  often  10  or  12  feefMd^^-and  while  they  consumed 
afi;  enormous  quantity  of  wood,  they  made  jolly  good  fires,  which 
lent  cheerfulness  and  comfort  to  the  whole  house.  W'eather- 
■boarding  was  not  used  until  al)out  1815.  Some  of  these  houses 
are  still  standing  in  tlie  county,  and  in  some  of  the  brick  houses 
v.hich  were  erected  in  early  times,  the  doors  were  made  withotit 
nails.  (  )ne  of  the  earliest  brick  houses  erected  in  Jessamine 
count V  was  that  of  William  Shreve,  which  was  built  in  1793  and  is 
now  owned  b\  .Mrs.  John  .Sinmis,  a  short  distance  west  of  the  Cin- 
cinnati Southern  depot,  and  it  is  still  in  a  good  state  of  preserv^a- 
ticn. 

The  First  Vineyard. 

b)lm  I'lances  DeFoure  was  a  native  of  \  eva\',  Switzerland, 
and  planted  the  first  viney-ard  west  of  the  .Mleghanies,  in  Jessa- 
mine count\-  in  1 7c)6.  The  land  was  ])atented  by  William  Hazel- 
rigg  in  1785.  The  ])lace  is  ten  miles  southeast  of  Xicholasville, 
and  is  the  land  on  which  Col.  I'ercival  I'utler  lived  when  Gen. 
\\'m.  (  ).  r.utier  was  born  in  1791.  Col.  I'ercival  Cutler  had 
moved  to  this  section  because  the  Indians  were  less  dangerous 
than  in  the  northwest  territory.  The  DeFoures,  purchased  the 
land  from  Colonel  Hazelrigg,  who  lived  and  died  in  r)Ourbon 
count  v.  They  afterwards  settled  in  A'evay,  Indiana,  and  named 
the  count\-  .'Switzerland.  They  were  very  successful  in  Indiana, 
and  l)ocamc  verv  wealthy.  The  deed  and  agreement  between 
the  l)cl'~oures  and  llazelrigg  is  recorded  in  Deed  Book  i.  ]')age 
34.  in  the  jessamine  count \'  clerk's  ofiice. 


Hixfcni  iif  .fi'ssiiiiiiiir  ('iiHiifii,  l\<'iiiiici:ij.  •)< 

Tlie  land  clioscn  did  not  suit  the  varieties  of  the  grape  in- 
troduced. Hybridizing-  and  crossuig  had  not  yet  developed  the 
excellent  varieties  of  grapes  which  can  now  be  grown  in  all  parts 
of  the  Tnited  States.  The  European  grapes  were  not  adapted  to 
the  soil  of  Kentucky.  All  other  fruits  in  the  early  settlement  of 
the  state,  were  produced  in  perfection.  The  cherries  from  \  ir- 
ginia  and  i'ennsyK  ania,  tlie  ai)])les  and  ])eaches  from  \irginia 
and  North  Carolina,  and  the  ])ears  from  \irginia  grew  with 
marvelous  ra])idit\-.  and  were  free  from  all  diseases,  and  in  twenty 
vears  after  the  settlement  of  Kentucky  magnificent  orchards  were 
abundant  in  all  i)arts  of  the  Commonwealth.  The  Janet  or 
Jeniton,  the  Limber  Twig,  the  Horse  apple,  the  Spice  apple,  the 
Prvor  Red.  Morton's  Tearmain,  the  suiumer  apple,  propagated 
by  slips  brought  over  the  mountains  or  produced  from  seed;  found 
in  the  virgin  soil  of  Kentucky,  a  vigor  ami  an  abundance  of 
crops  which  satisfied  the  fullest  wants  of  the  new  communities; 
but  the  grapes  found  wild  in  the  forests  of  either  X'irginia  or  Ken- 
tuck\-  were  not  utilized,  or  domesticated,  and  for  a  long  while  but 
few  grapes  were  grt)wn. 

The  Kentuckv  \'ine\ar(l  Association  was  organized  in  Lex- 
ington in  1790.  fiiHl  seven  hundred  and  tift\'  acres  of  land  "lying 
in  the  bigf  bend  of  the  Kentuckv  river  near  the  mouth  of  Hick- 
man  creek,"  were  secured  as  the  site  for  planting  the  vineyard. 
Great  expectations  were  created.  There  was  supposed  to  be  no 
limit  to  the  products  and  proiluction  of  the  state  and  if  Kuro])e 
could  grow  grapes,  it  was  coinfidently  assumed  Kentucky  could  do 
likewise  au'd  better.  The  announcement  of  the  association  de- 
clared that,  ""in  less  than  four  years,  wine  ma_\-  be  drmd<  on  the 
banks  of  the  Kentucky,  i)roduced  from  the  European  stock." 

The  cx])eriment  was  a  dismal  failure.  Down  in  the  swamps 
of  Xorth  Carolina  on  the  banks  of  the  Catawba  river  was  then 
growing  the  s])lendid  Catawlja  grape  and  on  the  islands  in  James 
river  in  the  midst  of  the  forests  and  dense  thickets  the  Norton's 
A'a.  (A'irginia  seedling)  was  yearly  producing  prolific  crops, 
either  of  which,  if  trans]:)lanted  to  Kentucky,  would  have  pro- 
duced a  vintage  which  would  have  done  all  the  promoters  of  the 
Kentuckv  A'inevard  Association  desired  and  prophesied,  but 
these  carl\-  grape  growers  went  to  Europe  rather  than  unto  the 


X 

■J 
'A 


< 
■f. 
■f. 


■r. 


O 


Hictorji  iif  ,h':<samltie  County,  Kentnckij.  5il 

forests  of  America  for  iheir  plants,  and  misfortunes  were  the 
result. 

Another  vineyard  was  started  by  some  Swiss  settlers  on  the 
banks  of  Jessamine  creek  near  the  Crozier  Mill,  but  these,  after 
some  years  of  cultivation  of  the  European  varieties,  al^andoned 
their  vines  and  homes  antl  sought  success  in  more  congenial 
climes. 

James  DeFoure,  who  was  at  tlie  head  of  the  vineyard  at 
mouth  of  Hickman  creek,  after  his  failure  there,  had  the  sagacity 
to  discover  that  the  Euro])ean  varieties  were  not  adapted  to  this 
portion  of  the  country.  Alexander,  a  gardener  for  Governor 
Penn,  had  propagated  before  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  a  grape 
now  called  \)\  liis  name,  which  was  thoug"ht  to  be  the  celebrated 
grape  jf  the  Constantia  colony  from  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope, 
l)ut  which  in  reality  was  a  native  variety.  It  was  called  also  the 
Cape  grape.  Del'^oure  planted  this  \ine  at  \  evay.  Tnd.,  and  made 
the  first  successful  attem])t  to  establish  a  vineyard  in  America. 
His  experiments  in  Jessamine  cotmty  at  least  showed  him  the 
true  i)ath  to  success  and  wealtli  at  A'evav. 


Kentucky  Pioneers. 

God  always  provides  men  for  occasions.  In  emergencies 
they  invarial)l_\'  arise  to  fill  the  meastire  of  the  liour.  .Men  are 
fashioned  by  their  surrountlings  and  they  must  l)e  judged  bv  the 
same  standard. 

The  settlement  ol  Ixentucky  and  il-  wresting  from  the  savage, 
made  an  inuisual  demand  uj)on  the  Ruler  of  the  I'niverse.  It 
required  a  man  unknown  in  tlie  past  history  of  the  human  race. 
It  nuist  ])e  a  man  devoid  of  fear,  filled  witli  love  of  a<lventtn"e, 
with  an  instinct  of  freedom  as  strong  as  that  of  the  eagle;  as  self- 
reliant  as  the  king  of  beasts,  as  hospitable  as  the  Arab — who  in 
the  mighty  desert  despises  the  yoke  of  the  oppressor  and  who  pro- 
tects  with  his  life  the  guest  who  sits  at  his  board:  as  patriotic  as 
the  Roman,  as  enterprising  as  the  Carthaginian,  as  fearless  as  the 
Saxon,  as  defiant  of  death  as  the  Turk  :  and.  with  all  these,  the 
subtle  instincts  of  tlu"  Indian  and  his  heroism  tnider  misfortune. 

The  A'irginia  cavalier,  with  his  su]H'rb  gallantrv.  ennobled  bv 


60  Hiffoi'ii  i)f'  J<--"«niniic  ('(iiiiifii,  Ki'iiiiK-kij. 

his  lofty,  gentlemanly  instincts,  wonM  not  meet  the  reciuirements. 
The  Pennsylvania  settler,  with  his  indomitable  patience  and  un- 
failing- courage,  fell  short  of  the  demands,  and  the  sturdy  Scotch- 
Irishman  of  North  Carolina,  with  his  unquenchable  love  of  free- 
dom backed  1)\  his  superl)  bravery  and  uplifted  by  bis  al)iding 
faith  in  (  lod,  was  not  ecpial  to  what  the  time  and  circumstances 
exacted  t)f  the  men  who  should  undertake  the  seemingly  impos- 
sible task  of  concpiering-  Kentucky. 

As  we  turn  backward  one  hundred  years  to  commemorate  the 
character,  lives  and  virtues  of  our  forefathers  and  to  understand 
their  sacrifices,  their  valor  and  their  splendid  achievements, 
let  us  brieri\-  jMcture  their  surroundings. 

These  Kentucky  pioneers  were  to  conquer  a  land  four  hundred 
miles  away  from  help  or    succor.     It  was  an  untrodden    forest, 
w  ith  no  roads  or  path  except  such  as  the  buffalo  in  his  migrations 
bad    trampled    through  the    canebrake,  or  beasts  of    prev    had 
traced  in  their  seach  iov  food.     It  had  no  Inunan    inhabitants, 
and  its  defense  was  by  conuiion  consent  imposed  upon  the  sav- 
age red  men,  who  claimed  as  their  lands  that  vast  country  which 
stretches  from  the  great  lakes  in  the  Northwest  to  the  waters  of 
the  Tennessee,  the  Cumberland,  (  )hio,  and   Mississippi    rivers; 
covering  an  area  of  o\-er  300,000  square  miles.     Xo  survev  had 
marked  its  lines  :  he  who  traversed  the  solitude  and  depths  of  the 
forest  nuist  rel_\-  u])on  the  stars,  or  nature's  marks  upon  the  trees, 
as  his  guide.     .\11  su])i)lies  nuist  be  carried  on  pack-horses    or 
pack-iuen  ;   powder   and  lead   were   to   be   transported   over   six 
Inmdred  miles  ;  not  a  single  l)lade  of  wheat  or  stalk  of  corn  as  vet 
had  sprung  from  its  virgin  and  fertile  soil.     He  who  entered  its 
domain  nuist  always  be  prepared  to  lueet  an  alert,  savage,  brave 
and  merciless  foe.     The  cooing  of  the  babe,  the  wail  of  defense- 
less women,    or  the    appeal  of    the  helpless    prisoner,  found    no 
sympathy  or  response  in  the  foe  who  defended  this  land.     Death 
b\-  the  tomahawk  or  at  the  stake  was  the  punishment  the  In- 
flian  meted  to  those  who  invaded  his  beloved    hunting  ground. 
As  he  asked  and  expected  no  quarter  for  himself,  he  gave  none  to 
his  white  foe.     V>\  day  and  by  night  the  merciless  warfare  was 
to  be  waged.     The  coming  of  the  morning  sun  onlv  quickened 
and  ^•italized  anew  his  barbarous  plans,  and  its  departure  at  night 


H'lMorij  of  Je-iminiur  County,  Kentuchj.  <►! 

onlv  o:ave  tinu-  for  iiiore  relentless  resolve  to  drive  out  the  in- 
truder. 

What  race,  what  country,  could  produce  men  for  such  a  task? 

The  settlement  of  Kentucky  and  its  jjossession  and  the  main- 
tenance of  the  w  hite  man's  supremacy  was  a  part  of  God's  plan  to 
make  the  colonies  free  and  t*)  form  in  America  a  republic — a 
government  of  the  people  ])\  the  people,  which  was  to  be  the  great 
beacon  light  of  freedom  and  tlie  vanguard  of  mankind  for  the 
establishment   in  the  wurld  of  true  national  liberty. 

The  thousand  pioneers  flung  out  into  the  wilds  of  Kentucky, 
Avith  their  log  stations  and  forts,  close  b}  the  homes  of  the  savages, 
whom  England  was  arming  and  teaching  to  slay  white  men  and 
^\hite  women  and  white  children — witli  their  skill  as  woodsmen, 
with  their  courage  as  soldiers,  and  witli  their  endurance  as 
frontiersmen,  and  with  tlieir  fierce  hatred  of  the  ])arl)arous  In- 
dians, were  worth  ten  thousand  men  on  the  Atlantic  under  leaders 
as  great  as  even   Washington,  Greene,  or  La  Fayette. 

These  Kentucky  pioneers  stayed  savage  invasion  ot  A'irginia 
and  Pennsylvania.  T]ie\-  kept  back  the  herd  of  marauders  and 
murderers,  which  in  the  wilds  of  Ohio.  Indiana,  and  Illinois, 
longed  for  an  opportunity  ti^  inil)rue  their  hands  in  white  men's 
blood,  and  the  savage  wrath  which  would  have  ])Oured  itself  with 
irresistible  tide  over  the  settlements  of  the  u])per  Ohio,  Monon- 
gehela  and  the  Kanawha,  turned  its  savage  and  bitter  force  upon 
the  stations  in  Kentuckv.  1  he  thotisands  of  brave  and  noble 
men,  and  still  braver  women,  who  from  1775  to  1783,  died  in  the 
Kentticky  wilderness,  surrendered  their  lives  to  protect  \  ir- 
ginia  and  Pennsvlvania  and  stood  the  red  men  at  l)ay.  while  the 
colonists  were  enabled  to  fight  and  defeat  the  I'ritish  soldiers 
along  the  Atlantic  coast. 


Creation  of  the  County  of  Jessamine. 

1 7(;8  was  the  banner  year  for  llu-  creation  of  new  counties. 
In  1792  seven  had  been  fi)rmed,  in  1793,  one;  in  1794  two,  in 
1796  six  had  been  formed,  and  in  1798  thirteen  were  made,  of 
which  Jessamine  was  one,  and  the  thirtv-sixth  in  the  state.  It 
was  carved  entirely  out  of  l-"a}ette,  and  given  one  representative 


62  I[l4i>n/  of  .J'ssitiiiiiti-  i 'oitiiti/,  Ktiducki/. 

in  the  Lt'iiislature :  wliile  Fayelte  county  retained  six  representa- 
tives, the  number  to  wliicli  it  had  l)efore  the  separation  been  en- 
titled. The  ineqiiahty  of  representation  had  not  then  been  so 
fuHy  recognized  as  afterwards.  The  whole  population  of  Fay- 
ette county  at  the  time  of  the  division  was  abotit  18,000.  Jessa- 
mine took  oft  at  least  one-fourth  of  the  population  of  Fayette  and 
was  given  one  member,  while  h^ayette.  with  only  three  times  the 
po])ulation  of  newly  made  Jessamine,  had  six,  or  twice  the  voice 
in  legislation  that  was  given  her  newl\'  sent  out  daughter. 

The  creation  of  some  counties  was  fought  for  years,  but  that 
of  Jessamine  prodticed  but  little  hivd  feeling,  h'ayette  had  al- 
\va\'s  been  generous  in  the  partition  of  territorw  W  ith  264,000 
acres,  after  some  protesting  and  legislative  discussion,  she  sur- 
rendered 101,000  of  it  to  create  another  cotmty.  Doubtless  the 
retention  of  her  six  representatives  had  something  to  do  with 
acciuiescence  in  the  division. 

The  men  in  the  Senate  those  days,  were  men  of  wide,  broad 
views.  They  were  chosen  not  b}'  districts,  but  from  the  state  at 
large  by  the  Commission  formed  for  that  purpose  under  the  terms 
of  the  Constitution  of  1792.  The  Senate  then  consisted  of  only 
eleven  members.  The  Senator  representing  Favette  was  James 
Campbell.  Tn  the  House.  Col.  Rol)t.  Patterson.  John  ?\IcDowell, 
John  Parker,  Walter  Carr.  Thos.  Caldwell,  ^McGregor, 

These  were  wide-gauge  men,  and  ]:)rivate  interest  was  subordi- 
nated to  public  interest  and  local  benefit. 

The  real  cause  leading  up  to  the  formation  of  the  county,  was 
some  friction  between  the  officers  of  Fayette  county  and  the  peo- 
ple in  the  Marble  creek  neighborhoorl. 

Xew  counties  were  already  being  rapidly  formed.  Starting 
with  nine  in  1792,  by  the  beginning  of  the  session  of  1798,  sixteen 
new  ones  had  been  created,  five  of  which — Scott,  Shelby.  Clark, 
Franklin  and  Montgomery — had  been  created  close  to  Fayette. 

Col.  Jolin  Price  was  then  a  resident  of  the  Marble  creek  dis- 
trict and  he  set  about  securing  the  formation  of  a  new  coimty. 
His  influence  with  the  Revolutionary  soldiers,  who  then  consti- 
tuted so  large  a  share  of  the  legislators,  was  very  strong.  The 
battle  over  the  act  (creating  the  new  county)  continued  from  No- 
vember 15  to  December  19,  1798. 

The  journal  of  the  House  shows  that  the  petition  for  the  act. 


HiMnrij  of  ./('■■<■<(  I  III  iiH'  ('(luiitij.  Kentnckij,  ()3 

signed  b\  the  citizens  demanding  such  an  act,  was  on  November 
9.  1798,  read  and  referred  to  the  proper  committee.  The  copy  of 
the  record  and  the  extracts  from  the  minutes  of  the  Palladium 
tell  the  story  of  the  struggle.     They  are  as  follows  : 

Journal. 

Page   24.  Thursday,  .\ovenil)er  15,  1798. 

Resohed.  tliat  tlu-  petition  of  sundry  inhal)itants  of  Fayette 
countv.  whose  names  are  thercuntv)  subscribed,  setting  forth 
that  thev  lal)or  under  great  inconveniences  from  their  detached 
situation  from  their  present  seat  of  justice;  and  praying  that  the 
said  county  may  be  divided,  agreeably  to  certain  lines  therein 
proposed,  is  reasonable. 

The  said  resolution  being  read,  was  ordered  to  lie  on  the  table. 

Pages  80-81.  Tuesday.  December   18.   1798. 

Several  petitions  from  sundry  in]ia1)itants  of  Fayette  county. 
in  opposition  to  tlic  di\ision  tliereof,  were  presented  and  ordered 
to  lie  on  the  table  until  the  end  of  the  present  session. 

The  house  then  took  up  the  bill  for  the  division  of  Fayette 
comitw 

Page  85.  Wednesday,  December  19,   1798. 

]\lr.  Slaughter,  from  the  joint  committee  of  enrollments,  re- 
ported that  the  conunittee  had  cxammed  the  enrolled  bdl  entitled 
"An  act  for  the  divis.on  of  l-'ayette  county."  and  that  the  same 
was  truly  enrolled.  \\'hereu])oii  the  speaker  signed  the  said  en~ 
rolled  l)ill. 

Ordered,  that  Mr.  Slaughter  inform  the  senate  thereof. 


Extracts  from  the  Minutes  of  the  Kentucky  Legislature 
of  1 798,  in  the  Palladium. 

Xovember  (j.  i7<;8.  A  petition  from  Fayette  ])raying  for  a 
division  of  that  coiuuy,  was  read  and  referred  to  the  proper  com- 
mittee. 

Xovember  20.  Several  reports  were  made  and  the  following 
petitions  were  read  and  referred  to  the  conunittee  on  propositions 


(14  Ilistorii  <>l  Jf--<.-«iiiiiiif  ('oiDifji,  Ki'iitiickij. 

and  i^rievances :  A  petition  iirayini^'  that  a  division  of  Fayette 
county  may  not  take  place. 

November  2t^.  The  following-  bills  were  rejiorted  and  read  a 
first  time:     .\  ImII  for  the  division  of  Fayette. 

Xovember  24.  in  committee  of  the  whole  went  through  the 
bill  for  the  division  of  Fayette,  wlTicli,  after  some  amendments,  was 
ordered  to  be  referred. 

Xovember  26.  A  bill  for  the  division  of  l-'ayette  was  read  a 
iliird  time  and  passed,     ^'eas  24,  Xa}s   15. 

December  4.  Concurred  in  the  senate's  amendments  to  the 
l)ill  for  the  division  of  h'ayette. 

December  18.  Several  petitions  from  Fayette  against  the 
division  of  that  count}-,  were  laid  on  the  table  to  the  end  of  the 
session. 

Took  up  the  bill  for  the  division  of  h'ayette  with  the  governor's 
objections,  which  were  agreed  to. 

Some  very  important  assistance  must  have  been  rendered  in 
securing  the  necessary  legislation  tor  the  creation  of  the  countv 
by  Col.  Joseph  H.  Daveiss;  for,  in  a  letter  written  to  him  eight 
months  after  the  passage  of  the  act.  Col.  John  IVice  pro- 
ceeds to  thank  Colonel  Davis  for  his  services  in  this  regard. 

At  this  time  Colonel  1  daveiss  was  a  resident  of  Frankfort  and 
later  was  Cnited  States  District  Attorney  for  Kentucky. 


Extracts  from  Acts  of  the  Legislature. 

CHAPTER  CXLIIL 

.\n  Act  for  the  T^ivision  <)i  h^ayettc  County. 

A])prove(]  Decemb'^i   k).  1798. 

Section  i.  lie  it  enacted  l)y  the  General  Assembly.  That  from 
and  after  the  first  day  of  February  next,  all  that  i)art  of  the  coun- 
ty of  Fayette,  included  in  the  following  bounds,  to  wit:  Begin- 
ning on  the  Woodford  line,  where  it  strikes  the  Kentuck}'  river, 
near  Todd's  ferry  ;  thence  along  said  hne  half  a  mile  north  of  John 
Allin's  military  survey;  thence  to  the  seven-mile  tree,  on  Curd's 
road:  thence  to  the  eight-mile  tree  on.  Tate's  creek  road:  thence 
along  said  last  mentioned  road  to  the  Kentuckv  river:  thence 


Hi4<)rij  of  Je-^mmine  County,  Kentuckij.  65 

down  the  Kentucky  river  to  the  beginning,  shall  be  one  distinct 
county,  and  called  and  known  by  the  name  of  Jessamine. 

Sec.  2.  A  court  for  tlie  said  county  shall  be  held  by  the  Jus- 
tices thereof,  on  the  fourth  Monday  in  every  month  (except  those 
in  whicli  the  court  of  quarter  sessions  are  hereafter  directed  to  be 
held)  after  said  division  shall  take  place,  in  like  manner,  as  is 
provided  by  law  in  respect  to  other  counties,  and  as  shall  be  by 
their  conmiissions  directed. 

Sec.  3.  The  Justices  to  be  namvMJ  in  the  commission  of  the 
peace  for  the  said  county  of  Jessamine,  sliall  meet  at  the  house  of 
Fisher  Rice,  in  the  said  county,  on  tiie  first  court  day  after  said 
division  shall  take  place,  and  having  taken  the  oaths  prescribed 
by  law.  and  a  sheriff  being  legally  qualified  to  act.  the  justice-> 
shall  proceed  to  appoint  and  qualify  a  clerk,  and  shall,  together 
with  the  Justices  of  the  court  of  quarter  sessions  for  said  county, 
fix  upon  a  place  for  holding  courts  therein  ;  then  the  courts  shall 
proceed  to  erect  the  public  buildings  m  such  place  ;  and  until  such 
buildings  are  completed,  shall  appoint  such  place  for  holding 
courts  as  they  may  think  proper;  provided,  always,  that  the  ap- 
])ointment  of  a  place  for  erecting  the  public  buildings  shall  not  be 
made  unless  a  majority  of  the  Justices  of  the  said  courts  conciu- 
therein. 

Sec.  4.  It  shall  l)e  lawful  for  the  sheriff  of  the  county  of  Fay- 
ette to  collect  and  make  distress  for  any  public  dues  or  ofificers' 
fees,  which  shall  remain  unpaid  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  countv 
at  the  time  of  such  division,  and  shall  be  accountable  for  the 
same  in  like  manner  as  if  tliis  act  h':id  not  been  made. 

Sec.  5.  The  cotut  of  Fayette  shall  have  jurisdiction  in  all  ac- 
tions or  suits  in  law  or  equity,  that  shr.ll  l)e  depending  therein  at 
the  time  of  such  division,  and  shall  try  and  determine  the  same, 
issue  process  ,and  award  execution  thereon. 

Sec.  6.  The  cotu't  of  cpiarter  session  for  the  said  county  of 
Jessamine,  shall  be  held,  annually,  on  the  fourth  Monday  in  Jan- 
uary, ^^ilarcli,  Jul}-  and  ( )ctober. 

Sec.  7.  'khe  said  county  of  Jessamine  shall  send  one  repre- 
sentative to  the  General  Assembly,  and  the  countv  of  Favette 
shall  retain  six  representatives. 

This  act  shall  commence  and  be  in  force  from  and  after  the 
passage  thereof. 
5 


()6  IIi<tori/  of  Jessaniiiie  Comifi/.  Ki  idiic]:ij. 

From  \  ol.  XI.  of  the  Statute  Law  of  KetUuckv.  j^rinted  at 
Frankfort  in    1810. 

CHAPTER  ecu  I. 

An  Act  to  Amcnrl  the  Act,  Entitled  "An  Act  for  the  Division  of 

Fayette  Cotmty." 

Approved  December  19,  1799. 

Whereas,  it  is  represented  to  this  General  Assembly,  that 
disputes  have  arisen  between  the  inhabitants  of  the  counties  of 
Fayette  and  Jessamine,  in  ascertaining  the  true  line  of  division:  an'.l 
also  in  the  collection  and  manner  of  appropriating  that  part  of  the 
levy  which  was  levied  by  the  County  Court  of  Fayette,  on  the  in- 
habitants now  in  the  C()unt\-  of  Jessamine;  for  remedy  whereof — 

Section  i.  lie  it  enacted  l)y  the  General  Assembly,  that  the 
dividing  line  run  bv  the  surveyor  of  Jessamine  count}',  is  hereby 
ratitied  and  contirmed. 

Sec.  2.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  that  the  County  Courts  of 
Fayette  and  Jessamine,  shall,  on  their  respective  parts,  in  the 
month  of  March,  next,  ai:)point,  each,  a  commissioner,  who  are 
herebv  authorized  to  examine  the  records  of  T^ayette  county,  and 
enquire  into  the  situation  of  levies  and  appropriations  heretofore 
made  by  the  Count}'  Court  of  Fayette  :  and  if  upon  such  examina- 
tion, it  shall  appear  to  the  said  commissioners,  that  there  is,  or 
ought  to  be,  a  deposit,  amounting  to  more  than  the  claims  given 
into  the  said  County  Court  of  Fayette,  the  said  court  of  Fayette  is 
hereby  required  to  pay  to  the  court  of  Jessamine  county,  for  the 
use  of  said  county,  their  proportion  of  said  deposit. 

This  act  shall  commence  and  be  in  force  from  and  after  the 
first  day  of  February  next. 

The  establishment  of  the  new  cotmtv  demanded  a  name. 

Up  to  this  time  the  thirt}'-five  comities  created  had  all  been 
named  for  soldiers,  pioneers,  or  a  statesman,  with  one  exception, 
and  that  was  Ohio  county,  the  thirty-fifth,  \\hich  was  named  for 
the  great  river  which  marks  the  northern  boundary  of  Kentucky 
for  700  miles  and  had  been  called  by  the  Indians,  the  Ohio.  "The 
Beautiful  River."  Ctmiberland  was  called  for  Ctmiberland  river, 
but  the  river  had  before  been  named  by  Dr.  Thos.  Walker  for  the 
Duke  of  Cumberland.     Such  names  as   JelYerson,  Favette    (La 


Historij  III  J<.<:<((iiiiiii   ('(iniitii,  h'lntucki/.  67 

Fayette).  Lincoln,  X  el  son.  Mercer,  Madison.  Mason.  Woodford. 
Washing'ton,  Scott.  .Shdhx ,  Logan.  Llark,  Hardin,  ("ireene. 
I'ranklin,  ( "ani])l)ell,  llnllitt.  Christian.  Ih'acken,  Warren.  ( iar- 
rard.  I'leniinj;'.  I'ulaski,  Tendleton,  Boone.  Henry,  (jallatin,  and 
]\luhlen])cr,n-,  represented  a  fnll  share  of  the  patriotism,  glory, 
braver\-.  wisdom  and  exploits  ni  the  people  of  the  L'nited  States 
prior  to  J7<)S,  and.  with  so  many  great  heroes  still  tnn-ewarded.  it 
re'|uircd  both  delerniinalion  and  conrage  to  l)rcak  away  from  the 
long  line  of  ])recedents  and  call  the  connty  !:))•  the  simple  and 
l^eautifnl  name  of  a  llower. 

To  Col.  John  I'rice  was  undonhledly  given  the  ])rivilege  of 
naming  the  new  nninicipalitw 

Jessamine  creek — one  hundred  \ears  ago  a  stream  of  large 
volume  and  great  beauty — rises  near  the  line  of  the  R.  X.  L  &  B. 
Railroad,  close  to  the  station  called  Xealton  and  about  half  a 
mile  from  where  the  Xich(^lasville  &  X'ersailles  turn])ike  crosses, 
and  on  the  land  now  owned  by  Pleasant  Cook.  Esq.  Along  its 
banks  grew  the  jessamine  in  richest  profusion.  This  flower  was 
found  in  great  abundance  in  many  ])arts  oi  the  territor\-  eml)raced 
by  the  new  county.  The  name  had  been  given  to  the  creek  by 
the  pioneers,  and  the  beauty  of  the  plant  and  the  beautv  of  the 
name  so  impressed  the  early  settlers  that  they  called  this  beautiftd 
stream  Jessamine  creek.  It  is  about  twenty  miles  long  and 
empties  into  the  Kentuckx'  ri\er. 

Colonel  i'rice  asketl  that  the  new  ct)unt}'  should  be  called 
Jessamine. 

The  county,  always  full  of  romance,  in  some  wa\  heard  the 
•story  of  Jes.saimine  Douglas,  which  was  to  the  efifect  that  jessa- 
mine Douglas,  the  beautiful  daughter  oi  a  Scotch  settler,  was  one 
day  sitting  ui)on  the  bank  which  overhangs  the  source  of  thi<^ 
creek,  and  wliile,  in  maidenly  contemplation,  gazing  into  the 
depths  of  the  water,  an  Indian  cautiously  and  silenllv  stole  upon 
her  and  sunk  his  tomahawk  into  her  head  and  tlien  tore  her 
beautiful  aul)urn  locks  from  her  head,  with  his  scalping  knife. 

This  story  is  given  Ihe  flavor  of  truth  by  its  insertion  in 
Collins'  History  of  Kentucky.  See  A'ol.  2,  page  399.  The  author 
goes  on  to  sa}-  that  the  land  about  the  head  of  the  creek  was 
settled  l)y  the  father  of  jessamine  Douglas.  There  is  no  founda- 
tion for  that  pathetic  and  dramatic  incident.     The    land  at    the 


68  Hidonj  of  Jr.fsumine  Counttj,  Kentiicht/. 

head  of  Jessamine  creek  was  not  settled  by  Douglas,  but  by 
Michael  Cogar,  and  tliis  historical  tradition  has  not  even  a  shad- 
ow of  foundation. 

The  letter  of  Col.  John  Price,  quoted  below,  written  within 
eight  months  of  the  legislative  creation  of  the  county,  settles, 
beyond  all  cavil,  that  the  county  was  called  from  Jessamine  creek 
and  the  flower,  and  not  from  Jessamine  Douglas.  The  story  of 
the  beautiful  Scotch  girl  and  her  tragic  end,  has  been  told  so 
often  and  has  been  so  honestly  and  faithfully  believed  by  the 
peo]:)le  of  the  county,  and  it  has  in  it  so  much  of  that  tragic  and 
bloo(l\'  character  which  marked  Kentucky's  early  history,  that 
it  is  both  ungenerous  and  ind-:ind  to  destroy  and  disrupt  the  faith 
■which  for  nearly  one  hundred  years  has  reposed  with  unfaltering 
trust  in  the  pathetic  story.     ■ 

As  Colonel  Meade  did  not  come  to  Jessamine  county  until 
1796,  and  as  1)Oth  the  East  and  West  P'orks  of  Jessamine  creek 
were  known  and  traveled  in  1774  and  1775  and  on  down  to  1790, 
and  lands  described  and  surveyed  by  the  creek,  and  its  course  and 
meandcrings  laid  down  on  T-'ilson's  and  other  maps  and  plats  long 
prior  to  1790;  it  is  impossible  for  the  creek  to  have  been  named 
for  Jessamine  Douglas,  who,  under  no  circumstances,  did  she 
come  with  Colonel  Meade,  could  have  arrived  in  Kentucky  prior 
to  I7<i6.  The  \\'illiams  deposition,  the  Watkins  journal,  and  Fil- 
son's  map  show  that  Jessamine  creek  was  a  well  known  and 
named  stream  prior  to  1789. 

The   Price  Letter  about  the  Formation  of  the  County. 

Barbour  Home,  Jessamine  county, 
November  13.  1820. 

My  Esteemed  I'riend  :  I  have  read  your  favor  of  October 
6th  with  much  pleasure.  The  county  of  Jessamine  was  surveyed 
l)v  m\-  friend,  Maj.  Erederick  Zimmerman.  I  think  he  com- 
menced his  work  in  May,  1796,  but  the  county  was  not  organized 
as  a  countv  until  February  14th.  In  August  the  next  year  I  was 
chosen  as  a  member  of  the  General  Assembly  1)\-  the  county — 
without  opposition. 

The  name  Jessamine  was  selected  from  a  flower  that  grows 
on  manv  creeks  in  the  countv. 


Hidory  of  Jessamhie  County,  Kentucky.  <J9 

The  villainy  practiced  in  the  Marble  creek  neighborhood  by 
the  constables  and  other  petty  officers  of  Fayette  county,  in- 
duced me  to  make  an  effort  to  form  a  new  county,  as  I  had  known 
for  several  years  that  it  was  becoming  impossible  for  my  neigh- 
bors to  get  along  on  peaceable  terms  with  officers  who  took 
pleasure  in  arresting  and  putting  in  prison  men  ami  women  for 
the  pitiful  sum  of  $5.  The  only  bed  of  straw,  the  only  horse,  the 
onlv  cow,  or  pig  of  a  neighbor,  was  leveyed  on  and  sold  at  Lex- 
ineton  b\-  the  sheriff,  but  we  now  have  a  new  set  of  officers  and 
they  are  nuich  better  men  than  the  others,  who  have  so  long  an- 
noyed ni}-  neighbors  with  their  villainy. 

Present  mv  compliments  to  Air.  Bowiuan  and  John  Marshall. 

Your  obedient  servant, 

John  Pric?:. 

Col.  John  Price  induced  many  of  his  A'irginia  friends  to  settle 
in  the  Marl)k'  creek  neighborhood.  The  following  letter  to 
Lewis  Tapp  will  be  extremely  interesting,  as  he  has  many  de- 
scendants in  Jessamine  count)-  : 

Lexington,  Ky.,  May  10,  1805. 

Dear  Sir  and  I'Tiend  :  I  have  received  yours  of  .\pril  2(\.  T 
take  preat  pleastu^e  in  informing  you  that  if  you  have  a  desire  to 
leave  \'irginia  and  settle  in  Kentucky  I  would  advise  you  to  ])ay 
a  visit  to  this  portion  of  Kentucky.  Jessamine  county  was  formed 
eight  vears  ago.  I  settled  in  the  limits  of  the  county  in  1788. 
The  population  is  5,400.  The  surface  of  the  land  for  the  most  part 
gently  undulating,  rising  here  and  there  into  hills  and  moderate 
elevations.  The  timber  is  white  asli.  hickory,  hackberry.  rlni, 
white  oak,  also  wliite  and  ])lack  walnut,  besides  this  variety  nl 
tini])er  in  the  count w  cedar  trees,  yellow  p()])lar,  beech  and  cherry 
is  scattered  over  vari<nis  ])arts  of  the  CDiuUy.  The  ])rincipal 
creeks  in  the  comity  are  Hickman  and  Jessamine.  There  are 
also  numerous  smaller  streams  well  distributed  throughout  the 
county.  You  can  1)U}-  good  land  in  this  town  for  $20  per  acre 
and  in  Pdkhorn  first-class  land  is  worHi  from  $10  to  $12  ]xm-  acre. 

As  I  am  just  in  the  act  of  going  to  Xashville  in  Jesse  Cogar's 
tlat-boat  at  l-'rankfort,  1  trust  _\ou  will  make  us  a  visit  soon. 

\'(  )ur  ( )ld  friend, 

JoHx  Price. 

Lewis  Ta]">]),  .^tatinton,  Augusta  countv,  \'a. 


70  HiMoiij  nj'  Jts^diidne  Comitij,  Kcntiichij. 

In  response  to  this  invitation  Lewis  Tapp  came  to  Kentucky 
and  settled  in  the  Marble  creek  neighborhood,  four  miles  from 
tiie  residence  of  Colonel  IVice.  He  raised  a  large  famih-  of  great 
respectability,  and  died  in  1822.  Tapp's  Branch  is  named  in 
memory  of  him. 

On  the  22d  day  of  April,  1799,  an  order  was  entered  fixing  the 
seat  of  justice  for  Jessamine  county  at  the  place  now  occupied  by 
the  town  of  Xicholasville.  The  following  order,  entered  by  six 
of  the  justices  of  the  peace,  determined  the  county  seat; 

■'At  a  court  began  and  held  for  the  county  of  Jessamine  at  the 
house  of  Jonas  Davenport  in  said  county,  on  Monday,  the  22d 
day  of  April,  1799, 

"Present, Le^vis,  Thos.  Caldwell.  Lial)"l  Mattison,  Geo. 

\\  alker.  Jas.  Johnson  and Price,  gentlemen  justices. 

"(Jrdered  that  the  seat  of  justice  for  Jessamine  county  be  per- 
manently fixed  on  the  lands  of  Thos.  Caldwell  and  Chefley  Gates 
on  the  Hickman  road." 

The  blank  before  the  name  of  Lewis  should  have  been  filled 
with  \Mlliam,  and  the  blank  before  the  name  of  Price  should 
have  been  filled  with  the  name  of  William. 

As  there  were  nine  justices,  it  required  five  for  a  majority. 

The  original  act  creating  Jessann'ne  county,  directed  that  the 
location  of  the  countv  seat  should  be  determined  only  by  a  ma- 
jority of  the  justices.  William  l~^cott,  llngli  ("hrisman.  and  John 
Freeman  were  not  ])resent  at  the  time  of  the  entering  of  this  order. 
Init  Thos.  Caldwell,  one  of  the  justices  who  voted,  was  joint 
owner  with  Chesley  Gates  of  the  twent}'-five  acres  which  had  l)een 
laid  out  bv  Rev.  John  Metcalf,  on  the  16th  of  Septend>er.  1798.   ■ 

The  county  had  not  been  formed  at  the  time  of  the  first  surv^ey 
of  Xicholasville,  but  was  onlv  created  on  the  i<;th  of  December, 
three  months  afterwards:  nor  had  the  town  of  Xicholasville  been 
officially  recognize<l  until  the  26th  da\'  of  .Vugust,  i79<;.  <  >n  that 
day,  proceeding  under  the  statutes  of  Kentucky  then  in  force  for 
the  establishment  of  towns,  another  order  was  entered,  on  the  mo- 
tion of  Thos.  Caldwell  and  Chesley  Gates,  which  is  as  follows  : 

At  a  court  begun  and  held  for  the  county  of  Jessamine  at  the 
court  house  thereof  on  Monday  the  zi^xh  dav  of  August.  1799. 


Hidory  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky.  71 

Present,  W  ill  Lewis,  James  Johnston,  Lieo.  Walker  and  John 
Lewis,  gentlemen,  justices. 

On  the  motion  of  Thomas  Caldwell  and  Chesley  Gates  it  is 
ordered  that  a  town  l)e  established  on  their  lands  lying  on  the 
Hickman  rcjad,  at  the  place  where  the  seat  of  justice  for  said 
countv  is  established,  to  be  called  and  known  by  the  name  of 
Nicholasville  and  bounded  as  follows  to  wit:  JJeginning  at  a 
stake  in  Caldwell's  field  running-  A\'.  12  cleg.  E.  87  poles  to  a  stake ; 
thence  S.  78  deg.  E.  36.84  poles  to  a  stake;  thence  S.  12  deg.  W. 
42  poles  to  a  stake;  thence  S.  78  deg.  E.  14  poles;  thence  .\'.  12 
deg.  E.  2  poles;  thence  S.  78  deg.  E.  3  poles;  thence  S.  12  deg. 
\V.  5  poles;  thence  X.  78  deg.  W.  17  poles;  thence  S.  12  deg.  W. 
42  poles;  thence  X.  78  poles  W.  36.84  poles  to  the  beginnmg. 
And  it  is  further  ordered  that  Joseph  Crockett.  William  Shrieve, 
Richard  Young,  James  Johnson,  Gabrl.  Madison,  William 
Robards,  Xicholas  Lewis,  James  Davenport,  Patrick  (iraw  I'hil. 
Webber  and  Chesley  Gates  be  appointed  trustees  of  the  said 
town. 

These  trustees  were  simply  appointed  for  the  benefit  of  the 
land  owners.  It  was  their  (lut\-  to  make  disposition  of  the  lots 
in  the  town  of  Xicholasville,  which  now  for  the  first  time  was 
officially  recognized  as  the  name  of  the  county  seat ;  so  that  in 
celebrating  the  centennial  of  Xicholasville  on  SeptendDer  16, 
1898,  it  is  a  celebration  of  the  centennial  of  its  stu'vey,  rather  than 
of  its  first  official  existence  and  recognition. 

The  contest  in  regard  to  the  location  of  the  seat  ui  justice  be- 
gan even  before  the  creation  of  the  count}-  by  legislative  authority. 
The  establishment  of  a  new  county  had  been  under  discussion 
throughout  the  territory  for  (|uite  a  while.  The  ])etition  which 
had  been  prei)ared  for  the  legislattire  and  the  agitation  of  the 
question  concerning  the  existence  of  a  new  count\ .  had  been  more 
or  less  discussed  by  the  ]ieoplc  within  the  limits  of  the  ]iroposed 
county.  It  was  diffictdt,  of  course,  to  determine  exactlv  where 
the  line  would  run,  but  the  tremendous  l)end  in  the  Kentucky 
river — which  forms  almost  a  horse-shoe — rendered  the  location 
of  the  county  line  very  easy,  as  it  was  onlv  necessarv  to  run  from 
the  T\eutuck\-  ri\-er  on  the  one  side,  to  the  Txentuckv  rix'er  on  the 
other  side,  in  order  to  cut  off  a  countv  of  reasonabk>  i)roportions. 


72  Hilton/  of  Jf><mmine  Coiiiifi/,  Keitttiekij. 

Quarter  Session  Judges. 

The  first  session  of  the  Court  of  Quarter  Sessions  was  held 
at  the  house  of  Fisher  Rice,  in  the  county  of  Jessamine,  on  the 
25th  (lay  of  March,  1789.  Governor  Garrard  commissioned 
Joseph  Crockett,  William  Shreve  and  Richard  Young  as  justices 
of  the  Court  of  Quarter  Sessions. 

The  Court  of  Quarter  Sessions  then  heard  all  matters  except 
criminal  matters,  and  these  were  heard  in  the  District  Court  ai 
Lexington.  Idiese  three  gentlemen  were  all  present  at  Fisher 
Rice's  on  the  said  day,  and  they  unanimously  appointed  Samuel 
H.  W'oo'dson,  clerk  of  the  Jessamine  County  and  Quarter  Session 
Court.  Mr.  Woodson  immediately  entered  upon  the  discharge 
of  his  duties,  with  Joseph  Crockett  as  his  security,  his  bond  being 
in  the  sum  of  $1,000.  Joshua  Lewis  was  on  the  same  day  ap- 
Ijointed  by  the  Court  of  Quarter  Sessions  state's  attorney  to  prose- 
cute causes  for  the  Commonwealth  within  Jessamine  county. 

The  first  lawyers  to  qualify  in  the  county  for  the  practice  of 
law  were  Joseph  Lewis,  William  McDowell,  Samuel  Venable, 
and  Melding  L.  Turner.  These  were  all  on  that  day  qualified  for 
practice  in  the  Quarter  Sessioin  Courts.  Fielding  L.  Turner 
was  the  father  of  the  Hon.  (  Kscar  Turner,  so  long  a  distinguished 
member  of  Congress  from  the  First  District  of  Kentucky.  He 
removed  from  Kentucky  to  New  (Orleans,  wdiere  his  son  Oscar 
was  l^orn  in  1829. 

(  )n  the  following  day,  ]\Iarch  26.  179c;,  the  first  session  of  the 
court  was  held,  the  members  of  the  court  having  qualified  on  the 
previous  tlay. 

The  house  of  Fisher  Rice  was  used  as  a  place  for  holding 
Quarter  Session  Courts  for  several  years.  Courts  were  alsO'  held 
at  the  house  of  Samuel  H.  Watson,  the  clerk  of  said  court,  who 
then  lived  on  the  farm  now  the  ])roperty  of  the  Shelys. 

In  those  da\s  it  was  necessary  to  a])point  commissioners  to 
value  certain  lands  taken  by  the  sherifi:'  under  execution.  John 
Hawkins,  Patrick  Gray,  Joseph  Chrisman,  John  McKinney,  and 
Jonas  Daven])ort  were  a]i]:)ointe(l  said  commissioners,  and  this 
was  tlie  first  order  ever  made  by  court  of  record  in  Jessamine 
count3\ 

The   second  grand  jury  oi  Jessamine   county  empaneled   in 


History  of  Jesmmine  Cmuity,  Kentucky.  73 

the  suiimKT  oi  ij^-j'^).  had  for  its  foreman  Alanoah  Singleton,  and 
amontf  its  members  were  l->ancis  Lowens,  Benjamin  Xetherland 
and  Samuel  Rice.  The  first  indictment  for  selling  whiskv  was 
found  at  this  term  of  court  against  William  Patterson,  and  the 
information  on  which  this  presentment  or  indictment  was  found 
was  given  h\-  t\v<j  meniljers  of  the  grand  jury.  Frances  Lowens 
and  S.  Walters. 

The  first  man  who  ever  took  out  license  to  kee])  a  tavern  in 
Jessamine  count}-  was  .Maj.  lleniamin  Xetherland.  A  free  negro. 
Bob  Speed,  was  also  a  prominent  caterer  in  those  days,  and  he 
also  took  out  a  license  to  keep  tavern,  and  some  of  the  most 
prominent  men.  especially  among  the  lawyers,  have  dined  at  Ivs 
tavern,  wliich  was  at  a  corner  on  Main  street  inmiediatelv  op- 
posite the  court  house. 


First  Court. 

The  first  court  held  in  Jessamine  count}'  was  on  the  25th  of 
k^ebruary,  J/yy.  Ihe  meml)ers  of  the  court  assembled  at  the 
house  of  Fisher  Rice,  who  lived  in  the  field  opposite  the  Kleber 
Price  place,  and  where  Mrs.  Bridget  O'Connell  ncnv  lives.  The 
record  says:  ".\t  said  time  and  place  connnissions  \\  ere  pio- 
duced  from  Governor  ( larrard.  directed  io  William  Lewis.  Ihos. 
Caldwell.  W  illiam  Scott,  (iabriel  Madison,  George  Walker,  Will- 
iam Price,  James  Johnson,  John  Lewis,  John  Berr},  Hugh  Chris- 
man  and  John  Freeman,  appointing  them  Justices  of  the  Peace  in 
and  for  the  county  of  Jessamine,  whereu])on  William  Lewis,  Escp. 
first  named  in  tliL-  connnission  aforesaid,  administered  the  se\"eral 
oaths  prescribed  ))}■  law,  to  Thonia,^  (aldwell.  William  Scott. 
Gabriel  Madison,  George  W  alker.  William  Price.  James  Johnson. 
John  Lewis.  John  Berr},  llugh  Chrisman  and  John  I-'reeman  : 
and  Thomas  Caldwell,  l\s<|.,  administered  the  said  oaths  to  Will- 
iam Lewis,  and  then  the  court  was  held  for  the  said  county." 

■"Present  the  gentlemen  within  named.  Charles  West.  Esc]., 
])roduce(l  a  commission  from  the  ( lovernor.  James  Garrard,  a])- 
pointing  him  sheriff  for  the  count}-  af(>resaid.  which,  i)eing  read, 
the  said  West  took  the  several  oaths  prescribed  b}-  law,  and,  to- 
gether with  Major  Dickenson,  !''rances  Lowens,  T\atrick  Gra\-  and 


74  JUsfiin/  of  Ji'.<s(ii}nin'  ('oinitji.  Kcninrl-ij. 

Jcihn  Scott  as  sureties,  executed  their  bund  tu  the  Governor  of 
the  Commonwealth,  in  the  penalty  of  $3,000,  conditioned  as  the 
law  directs  for  the  due  performance  of  duties." 

The  court  then  proceeded  to  the  appointment  of  a  clerk,  one 
Sanmel  Hughes  Woodson,  who  was  aj^pointcd  Clerk,  pro  tern., 
who,  thereupon,  took  the  several  oaths  prescribed  by  the  laws  of 
this  state,  and  the  Constitution  of  the  L'nited  States,  and,  to- 
g'ether  with  jose])h  Crockett  and  Andrew  Mc('iill  entered  into 
])()nd  t(i  the  (iovernor  in  the  penalty  of  $1,000,  as  the  law  directs, 
wliich  l)(>nd  was  ordered  to  be  recorded." 

"Countv  ."surveyor,  l-'rederick  Zinnnerman,  produced  in  court 
a  Cdumiission  from  (lOvernor  Garrard,  appointing  him  surveyor 
of  this  countv,  whereupon  he  executed  bond  in  the  penalty  of 
$2,000,  with  James  Curtin  and  Frances  Lowens  as  securities,  con- 
ditioned according  to  law.  He  took  the  several  oaths  jjrescribed 
]\v  the  laws  of  this  state  and  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States." 

At  this  meeting  the  first  bridge  ever  constructed  in  Jessa- 
mine county  was  ordered  to  be  let.     The  minutes  says: 

■■j(dm  Lewis  and  lienjamin  Uradshaw  are  appointed  to  let  and 
contract  for  the  ])uilding  of  a  bridge  on  Curd's  road,  near  the 
ferry,  which  c<3ntract  to  !)e  made  by  letting  to  the  highest  bidder." 
Curd's  Ferr_\-  had  been  established  at  the  mouth  of  Dick's  river 
bv  the  general  legislature  in  7786.  Daniel  Mitchell  presented  his 
conunission  as  coroner,  and  cjualified  as  such. 

The  first  lawyers  admitted  to  practice  in  the  Jessamine  County 
Court  were  Joshua  Lewis  and  Fielding  Turner,  who  separately 
])ni(luced  in  court,  on  the  above  dav,  their  license,  pro])erly  au- 
tlienticated,  as  tiie  law  clirects,  and  were,  thereupon,  admitted  to 
practice. 


First  Circuit  Court. 

The  Jessamine  Circuit  Court  was  organized  in  1803,  and  its 
first  order  was  the  a])])()intment  of  a  clerk.  Sanmel  H.  Woodson 
received  this  appointment,  and  held  tlie  of^ce  until  t8i(),  when  he 
resigned.  The  following  orders  will  show  the  Constitution  of  the 
cnnrt.  and  also  the  first  petition  filed  in  the  court: 


Hixtory  of  Jex.-'aiinnr  (Joiinty,  Kentiickt/.  To 

■"Aiiril  Circuit  Ccjurt,   1803. 

''He  it  renK'nil)crc(l  that  in  ])Ui'suance  of  an  act  of  tlie  General 
Assenihl}-,  entitled.  ".Xn  Act  io  establish  Circuit  Courts,  and  an 
act  entitled  an  act  to  amend  an  act  entitled  an  act  to  establish 
Circuit  Courts,"  the  Honorable  Samuel  McDowell,  Circuit 
Judge,  attended  at  tlie  court  house  of  the  county  of  jessamine,  on 
the  i8th  day  of  A])ril.  1803,  being-  the  third  Monda}-.  Present,  the 
Honorable  .Samuel  McDowell.  Circuit  Judge. 

"It  is  ordered  that  h'ielding  L.  Turner.  Escj.,  be  a]:)pointed 
clerk,  ])ro  tempore,  to  this  court,  who.  thereupon,  took  the  sev- 
eral t)aths  prescribed  In'  law.  and  executed  his  l)ond.  with  Samuel 
H.  Woodson  and  Joseph  Crockett  his  security  in  the  i)enalty  of 
£  1000,  conditioned  as  directed  bv  law. 

"It  is  ordered  that  Samuel  H.  Woodson  be  appointed  clerk  to 
this  court,  and  that  the  ])ro  tem])ore  ap])ointment  made  I)}'  the 
court  this  day.  l)e  discontinued,  and.  thereu])on.  the  ^aid  ."^amuel 
H.  \\'oodson  took  the  several  oaths  required  bv  law.  and  executed 
hrs  bond,  \\ith  Joseph  Crockett  and  ^^'illiam  Lewis  his  securities, 
in  the  ])enalt}'  of   £1.000. 


First  Order  Entered  in  Civil  Action. 

"At  a  Circuit  (  Ourt.  began  and  held  for  the  coimtv  of  Jessa- 
mine, at  the  courldiouse  thereof,  on  the  18th  day  of  July.  1803: 
Present,  the  iionorable  Samuel  McDowell,  Circuit  Judge,  and 
Richard  ^ Dimg,  Esq. : 

James  1  )unn. 

vs. 
Xichcjlas  Lewis. 

Debt. 

P.e  it  remendje'red  that  heretofore,  that  is  to  say.  on  the  13th 
day  of  jtnu'.  one  thousand,  eight  lumdred  and  two.  lames  Dunn, 
by  ^^  m.  .\lcl)owell.  his  atlorne\-,  ai)])lii'd  for  and  obtained  from 
the  clerk's  office  of  the  late  court  of  Quarter  Sessions  for  the 
county  aforesaid,  the  Commonwealth's  writ  of  capias  ad  respond- 
endum, which,  together  with   the  motion   of  iilaintiff.  liv  his  at- 


76  HMory  of  Je^aamhie  Count ij,  Kentucky. 

torney  aforesaid,  it  was  ordered  that  the  said  Deft,  shouhl  a[)pear 
at  the  next  rules,  enter  speeial  l)ail  and  plead  to  the  plaintiff's 
action,  or  that  judg'ment  would  be  granted  the  plaintiff  for  the 
debt  in  the  declaration  mentioned  and  what  damages  he  hath 
sttstained  in  the  premises  and  a  writ  of  enquiry  awarded  him  to 
have  the  same  assessed  by  a  jury  of  the  bystanders  at  the  next 
court." 

;!<  Ji;  ;;.-  ij:  :};  -.[j  ;|: 

"Jessamine  county.  Set. : 

"James  Dunn,  l)y  his  attorney,  complains  of  Nicholas  Lewis 
in  custody,  etc.,  of  a  plea  that  he  render  to  him  the  sum  of  seventy- 
two  pounds,  current  monev,  ctu'rent  money  of  Kentucky,  which 
he  owes  antl  unjustly  detains,  for  that,  whereas,  the  said  defendant 
on  the  thirtieth  of  Alay,  1800,  at  tlie  parish  oi  Kentuckw  and 
county  aforesaid,  by  his  certain  note,  in  writing,  sealed  with  his 
seal  and  to  the  cotirt  now  here  shown,  eighteen  months  after  the 
date  aforesaid  promised  and  (jl)ligated  himself  to  the  plaintiff 
to  pay  him  the  sum  of  thirtv-six  poimds,  for  the  payment  of 
which  said  sum  the  said  defendant  bound  himself  in  the  penal  sum 
of  seventy-two  pounds  like  monev,  yet  said  defendant  not  regard- 
ing his  obligation  hath  not  paid  the  said  sum  of  thirty-six  pounds, 
although  often  rccjuired,  by  means  whereof  an  action  hath  accrued 
to  have  and  demand  of  him  the  said  sum  of  seventy-two  pounds, 
but  the  said  defendant,  to  pay  the  same  or  any  part  thereof,  al- 
though often  recfuired  the  same  to  pay,  hath  hitherto  refused,  and 
still  doth  refuse,  wherefore  the  said  James  Dunn  savs  he  is  in- 
jured and  liath  sustained  damage  to  the  \-alue  of  yi  pounds,  and 
therefore,  he  sues,  etc.  \\m.  McDowell,  A.  V. ;  Jno.  Doe  and  R. 
Roe,  P.  P." 

(  First  Will 

\. 

The  first  will  recorded  in  jessamine  countv  was  that  of 
Charles  Weber.  It  is  only  interesting  because  the  first  of  its 
kind  ever  ]ilaced  upon  the  records: 

First  \\'ill,  recorded  August.  1779. 

"In  the  name  of  Cod,  Amen.  Charles  \\'ej)er,  of  Jessamine 
county  and  state  of  Kentucky,  l)eing  in  sound  mind,  praised  be 


History  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky.  77 

God  for  the  same,  do  give  and  dispose  of  all  my  worldly  goods 

and  estate  in  a  manner  and  form  as  follows: 

"First,  my  desire  is  that  all  my  just  debts  be  paid  by  my  ex- 
ecutors, hereafter  mentioned,  and  in  the  following  manner:  First 
1  wisli  my  mare  and  colt  to  be  converted  to  my  debts,  and  if  they 
should  not  be  sufficient.  m\'  negro  fellow,  Jjooker,  is  to  be  hired 
for  the  balance  till  ])aid,  as  m_\'  executors  think  most  expedient. 
Then  the  said  negro  to  Ijc  hired  on  till  the  profits  amount  to  sixty 
])Ounds.  The  first  forty  pounds  arising  is  to  be  delivered  to  my 
l)rother  William  Webber,  for  his  own  use  and  his  heirs  forever. 
The  other  twent}  pounds  to  be  given  ^o  my  brother,  Philip  Weber, 
for  his  own  use  and  his  heirs  during  life,  and  then  the  said  negro 
to  be  delivered  to  my  brother  John  Webber,  for  his  use  and 
his  heirs  during  the  life  of  the  said  negro,  or  the  said  Jcjhn  Webber 
or  his  attorney. 

"Api)lying  for  the  same,  T  do  also  give  and  bequeath  unto 
my  brother  Archie  Webber,  my  negro  boy  b\-  the  name  of  Bill, 
to  him  and  his  heirs  forever.  I  also  appoint  and  ordain  James 
Owens,  and  Ro])ert  Cohoun,  of  Jessamine  countv,  executors  of 
this,  mv  last  will  and  testament,  desiring  that  the  actine:  ex- 
ecutors  to  my  estate  shall,  in  lieu  of  my  expenses  to  them,  recover 
with  m\-  other  debts  that  is  t(_)  be  ]iaid,  twenty  dollars  each  for 
their  services  in  cash  out  of  mv  estate. 

"In  witness  whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and  affixed 
my  seal  this  the  seventeenth  day  of  June,  one  tliousand. 
seven  hundred  an.d  ninety-nine.  Signed,  sealed  and  published, 
and  do  declare  this  to  be  my  last  will  and  testament,  revoking  all 
other  wills  ])eforc  named  1)\-  or  for  me. 

"Charles  Webber.     (Seal.) 
"Rosin  IJrashers, 

"Jacob  Rice, 

"Peter  Akins." 


The  First  Marriage. 

Jesse  Hughes  and  Mary  Xidiolson  were  married  by  Xathan- 
iel  Harris  on  March   14,  i/^tj. 


78  Hhtonj  of  J' ■•'.■^n III  1)11'  Coinifii,  Kriitiicky. 

The  First  Baptist  Meeting-house, 

It  is  difficult  to  establish  the  exact  location  of  a  Baptist  church 
in  the  very  earliest  settlement  of  the  count v  near  Clear  creek. 
This  was  the  church  at  which  Lewis  Craig-  fretjuentlv  preached; 
it  is  near  what  is  now  known  as  the  Jack  Cuiuiin^ham  property, 
or  the  Fisher  place,  it  was  called  Mount  Moriah,  and  in  early 
times  was  a  very  important  burying-oround.  Joel  \\'atkins.  in 
his  diar}',  mentions  the  fact  of  having  attended  services  at  that 
point  several  times,  and  there  seeing  large  congregations.  It 
was  established  about  the  same  time  as  the  Ebenezer  chttrch,  bttt 
the  latter  is  undoubtedly  the  oldest  church  organization  in  Jessa- 
mine countv. 


County  Judges  under  the  Constitution  of  1849, 

Alexander  AA'ake.  served  eight  years  ;  W.  S.  Scott,  died  in 
office;  John  .\.  Willis,  appointed,  served  from  1858  to  1859; 
Henry  J.  Campbell,  elected,  and  served  four  years;  Richard  Fer- 
guson, served  one  term;  Melvin  T.  I^owrv,  served  four  ^•ears  ; 
James  (k  liruce,  served  one  term,  died  in  office;  Tucker  Wood- 
son, elected  in  1872,  died  in  office  in  1874;  A\'.  H.  Phillips,  present 
Count}'  Judge,  has  held  the  office  for  twent_\-three  vears. 

Cotinty  .Attorneys:  John  Disliman,  John  S.  llronatigh, 
A\'m.  R.  Welch.  Wm.  llyrd  Woodson,  Cieo.  R.  Pryor,  Benjamin 
P.  Campbell,  Ijenjamin  A.  Crutcher,  John  H.  Welch,  E.  B.  Hoo- 
ver, N.  L.  Bronaugh.  J.  A\'illard  Mitchell. 

Under  the  Constitution  of  Kentucky  in  i7Q<j.  the  oldest  Justice 
of  the  Peace  was  made  Sheriff.  Charles  \\'est,  first  Sherifif ;  Bar- 
tholomew Kinnard,  dc]:)Uty  ;  Tienj.  Nicholson;  Thos.  Butler,  dep- 
uty ;  Lewis  Singleton,  Andrew  McCam])bell ;  James  H.  AlcCamp- 
l)ell ;  John  Perry,  .^r. ;  James  \\'ilmor:' ;  Campbell  \Vilmore ;  Har- 
ri.son  Daniel;  \\'.  1'.  Daniel;  William  Bronaugh;  \\\  P.  Daniel  r 
Jerry  Dickerson  ;  Newton  Dickerson  ;  John  TUitler  ,  deputy  ;  AL  T. 
Lowry;  Thomas  F.  West,  his  deputy;  Geo.  T.  Chrisman. 


IliMori)  of  Je^-^iniiiiic  Conufii,  Kriifurl:!/.  ~'.\ 

Members  of  the  Kentucky  Senate  and  House  of 

Representatives. 

Senate  of  the  Comnionwealtli  of  Kentucky:  Joseph  Crock- 
ett. 1800-1804;  AX'illiani  lUcdsoe,  1806-1810;  George  Walker, 
1810-1814:  (ieorge  1.  lirown,  1829- 1834:  William  Clark,  1838- 
1842;  I'ucker  Woodson.  1842-1846.  1853-1857;  A.  L.  McAfee, 
1869-1873:  !■:.  K.  S])arks.  1882-1886;  Thos.  R.  Welch,  1896-1898. 
From  Jessamine  and  Woodford  counties,  A\'ni.  X'awter,  1808; 
Richard  C.  Graves,  1850. 

House  of  Representatives,  Commonwealth  of  Kentucky: 
Joshua  Lewis,  i/'/j,  1803.  1804 :  John  Scott,  1800;  George  Walk- 
er. 1805,  1807.  1808.  1809,  1810;  William  Price,  1801,  1802:  John 
Hawkins,  1806,  1811;  AMlliam  Caldwell.  1812,  1813,  1814,  1815, 
1816,  1818,  1820.  1822;  Wm.  Walker.  1817:  Samuel  H.  Wood- 
son, 1819-25;  James  L'larke.  1820;  Richard  E.  ]\leade.  1822; 
George  I.  r.rown.  1824.  1829,  1832,  1850:  Harrison  Daniel.  1826- 
27;  John  Cunningliani,  1828;  Courtnev  R.  Lewis.  1830;  David  ^L 
Woodson,  1831  :  Dr.  J.  W.  S.  Mitchell.  1833-34;  Tucker  Wood- 
son. 1835-36-37-40;  George  S.  Shanklm.  1838-44-61-65;  Alexan- 
der \\'ake.  1839:  George  T.  Clirisman.  1841  ;  James  McCampl^ell. 
1842-45-55-57;  Jamo  II.  Lowrw  1843;  j'>>ei)h  W.  Thompson. 
1846;  Joseph  C.  Christopher.  1847-49:  John  M.  Reynolds,  1848; 
James  C.  Wilmc^re,  1851-53:  Larkin  Fain,  1853-55:  Allen  L.  Mc- 
Afee, 1857-59;  Wm.  Fisher,  1859-61-65-67;  Thomas  T.  Cogar. 
1867-71:  James  H.  McCami)l)ell.  1871-73:  died  December  2^. 
1872,  was  succeeded  1)\  Wm.  r.n)\\ii.  1873;  X.  D.  Miles,  1874-75; 
Samuel  R.  Overstreet.  i^7S'77'-  ^-^i'-  J<'hn  (".  Welch.  1871-78-79- 
80;  J.  X.  Mattingly,  1881-82;  E.  T.  Lilian!.  1883-84;  Thomas  A. 
Davis,  1885-86:  W.  T.  Jones.  1887-88;  J.  H.  Welch.  1889-90-91- 
92;  George  W.  Crt)ode,  1893-94;  R.  S.  Perry.  1895-96;  C.  A.  Wil- 
son. 1897-98. 

Nicholasville. 

On  Saturday.  September  16.  17(;8.  Kewjohu  Metcalf  took  the 
initial  steps  to  locate  Xicholasville.  At  the  time  of  the  location  of 
tlie  town  he  called  it  after  lion.  George  X^icholas.  .\t  that  time- 
several  roads,  well-located,  converged  at  the  point.     The  settlers 


80 


Hidory  of  Jessamine  (\>i(ntii.  Kenttickij. 


from  Jessamine  and  llickman  creeks,  which  were  then  the  most 
tliickly  poinihited  parts  of  the  territory  embraced  in  Jessamine 
counts',  were  in  the  habit  of  travehng  l^etvveen  these  two  creeks, 
ddie  road  which  tlu'n  ran  to  Lexington  ran  substantially  on  the 
luie  of  tlie  turn[)ike  and  its  traces  are  still  distinctly  visible  to  the 
eye  at  various  points  along-  the  turn])ike.  This  was  true  of  the 
roads  whicli  ran  from  Xicholasville  and  what  is  known  as  Rus- 
sell's tavern.      In  the  location  <f  the  turnpike,  very  little  of  this 


\VM    ().  liUTLER. 


old  line  was  used.  This  was  ec|urdl\-  true  of  the  road  to  Sulphur 
Well,  but  tlie  roads  crossed  at  that  time  north  and  south  and  east 
and  west,  e.xacth'  where  Alain  street  and  Alaincross  street  now  in- 
tersect each  other. 

The  inducing-  causes  which  led  to  the  location  were,  first,  fou"" 
large  spring-s,  which  were  presumed  then,  to  be  never-failing. 
These  all  were  within  the  limits  of  the  twenty-five  acres  laid  out 
into  the  town,  and  second,  to  the  fact  of  the  road  passing  from 
Lexington  and  Danville,  and  from  luist  Hickman  to  Jessamine. 


Hidory  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky.  81 

crossings  at  rig'ht  aiii^les  at  the  point.  Little  Jessamine,  or  East 
Jessamine,  was  then  a  stream  of  more  importance  than  now.  Ris- 
ing about  a  mile  al)ove  and  fed  by  other  streams  along  the  line,  ii 
became  quite  a  volume  for  a  creek  by  the  time  it  passed  through 
the  borders  of  the  newly  laid  out  village. 

It  was  quite  a  while  after  the  town  was  established  before 
nuich  trade  centered  within  its  limits.  The  people  who  first  lived 
in  the  town  were  farmers  in  the  immediate  neighborhood. 

There  was  no  ])ost-office  in  Xichola^ville  for  several  years  after 
its  location.  'Jdic  mails  were  carried  on  horseback  between  Lex- 
ington and  Oanville  and  Lancaster  and  Harrodsburg.  Its  loca- 
tion was  not  made  without  clashes  of  personal  interest.  Samuel 
H.  Woodson,  who  was  then  a  lawyer,  desired  to  establish  the  town 
where  the  Shelv  ])lace  now  stands,  about  one  mile  south  of  the 
present  location,  wliile  Frederick  Zimmerman  sought  to  have  the 
town  established  about  three-ciuarters  of  a  mile  north,  on  top  of 
ilic  hill,  just  beyond  the  Duncan  farm.  It  re(|uired  several  years 
to  get  the  matter  finally  settled,  and  it  was  largely  due  to  the  great 
niHuence  as  well  as  the  persistent  efforts  of  Rev.  John  ]\Ietcalf 
that  the  town  was  laid  out  in  its  present  location. 

A  large  proporticMi  of  the  settlers  in  Xicholasvillc  were  from 
the  state  of  Mrginia.  and  a  few  from  North  and  South  Carolina. 

Nathaniel  ^McLean,  who  married  Catherine  lUackford  in 
Morris  county.  New  Jersey,  was  a  brother-in-law  of  Uenjamin 
Blackford.  McLean  luiilt  the  first  log  cabin  in  Nicholasville  on 
the  lot  now  owned  by  .Mr.  liurdine.  P>lackford  himself  had  set- 
tled on  the  farm  just  north  of  Xicholasvillc.  now  owned  l)y  his 
grandson,  lvol)ert  Duncan,  in   1783. 

John  McLean,  .\ssociatc  justice  of  the  Cniled  Stales  Su- 
preme Court,  lived  for  quite  a  while  in  his  \-outh  on  the  Duncan 
farm.  AVhen  four  years  old  his  father  moved  to  Morgantown. 
A  a.,  and  thence  came  to  Nicholasville,  Ky..  and  subsequently 
moved  to  ^^'arren  county.  Ohio.  He  remained  in  Jessamine  un- 
til he  was  about  sixteen  years  of  age.  In  1812  he  was  eected  to 
Congress  from  the  Cincinnati  district.  He  refused  the  nomina- 
tion for  the  Cniled  States  Senale  in  1815.  l)ui  was  elected  a  Judge 
of  the  Su|)reme  Court  of  Ohio,  in  1816.  In  1821  he  was  ap- 
])ointcd  postmaster  general  and  in  i82()  lie  was  a])])ointed  .As- 
sociate Justice  of  the  Cniled  States  Supreme  Court.  He  was  a 
6 


82  llixtoni  of  .Trssdillilli'  fninifl/.    Ixcilfiicl'il. 

man  of  great  ability  and  .great  force  of  character.  He  delivered  a 
dissenting  ojjinion  in  the  Dred  Scott  case,  declaring  that  slavery 
was  contrary  to  right  and  that  it  had  its  origin  in  power  alone, 
and  that  in  this  country  it  was  sustained  only  by  local  law.  He 
died  in  Cincinnati  on  the  4th  of  April,  1861. 

Within  the  memory  of  persons  living,  there  was  an  old  well 
dug"  1)\'  Judge  McLean's  father  on  the  Duncan  place.  It  was 
east  of  the  house  about  200  yards. 

The  next  settler  in  the  town  was  Maj.  Uenjamin  Xetherland. 
Shortl}-  after  the  battle  of  Blue  Licks,  in  1782.  he  ])ut  up  a  log 
cabin  on  the  lot  nmv  occupied  by  the  county  jail,  and  adjoining  it 
short  1\"  afterwards,  another  log  cabin.  This  was  subsequently  re- 
])laccd  b\  the  Mingo  tavern.  The  tavern  house  he  erected  in  1793. 
and  it  was  still  used  by  !iim  as  a  hotel  at  the  time  of  his  death,  in 
1838.  Previous  to  ( )ctober,  1801,  there  was  no  post-office  nearer 
to  Xicholasville  than  Lexington.  ( )n  the  first  of  September  of 
that  year  Major  Xetherland  wrote  to  the  postmaster  general  ttrg- 
ing  the  establishment  of  a  mail  road  from  Lexington.  Xicholas- 
ville  Lancaster  and  Harrodsburg,  and  bv  wav  of  Frankfort  and 
Richmond. 

Joseph  Hal)ersham.  of  (Georgia,  was  postmaster-general.  He 
wrote  the  following  letter  to  Alajor  Xetherland: 

"Your  letter  was  received.  Enclosed  you  have  an  advertise- 
ment, inviting  proposals  for  carrying  the  mail  from  Xicholas- 
ville to  Lexington.  Frankfort.  Lancaster  and  Richmond,  and  1 
shall  be  glad  to  receive  yours.  Mr.  Clay  has  recommended  your 
appointment  to  the  office  of  postmaster  of  Xicholasville,  and  1 
have  decided  upon  your  appointment  unless  you  decline,  and  wisli 
to  avoid  the  trouble.     I  am 

"Your  obedient  servant. 

"J.  Habersham,  P.  M.  G." 

This  letter  Major  X'^etherland  answered  as  follows  : 

"Xicholasville.   Ky..   Sept.   2T,    1801. 
"Your  favor  of  the  4th  of  August  came  to  hand  while  I  was  in 
Lexington,  with  enclosed  advertisement  for  carrying  the  mails 
from  Xicholasville  to  Lexington.  Frankfort.  Richmond.  Harrods- 
burg and  Lancaster.     Tt  is  the  earnest  wish  of  all  the  inhabitants 


Hidori/  (if  Jt'^<inii'uie  ('(niiiti/.   hciitiicki/.  S3 

of  this  c()unl\-  that  a  ])ostoffice  be  estabhshcd  in    Xioholasville, 

whiclT  is  twelve  miles  from  Lexintjton,  over  a  totorous  mud  road, 

in  winter.      !f  it  should  he  thouy:ht  expedient  to  establish  a  post- 

of^ce  in  the  village  and  my  name  annexed  to  it.  T  will  accept.     I 

am,  sir, 

'' Yovir  obedient  servant, 

"B-  Netherland." 

In  answer  to  this  Major  Xetherland  received  the  following 
letter : 

■•Washington  City.  Sept.  20,  1801. 

"Major  Benjamin  Xetherland: 

"From  information  1  have  received  1  conclude  it  will  be  agree- 
able to  vou  to  accept  the  office  of  postmaster  at  Xicholasville. 
You  will  receive  herewith  two  packers  containing  a  copy  of  a  law 
for  regtdating  postoffices.  with  forms  and  directions,  a  key  for 
unlocking  the  mail  ])ortnianteau.  a  table  of  ]«:)Stoffices.  and  the 
necessarv  blanks.  The  enclosed  bond  you  will  be  ])leased  to 
execute  with  sufficient  siu'ety  or  sureties  and  then  return  the  same 
together  with  a  note,  after  they  have  l)ein  duly  certified  by  the 
Justice  of  the  Peace,  before  whom  you  shall  take  and  subscribe 
them.  AX'hen  they  are  received  at  this  office  a  conunission  will 
be  dulv  forwarded,  ^'ou  can  commence  business  as  soon  as  your 
bond  is  executed  and  forwarded,  if  you  think  prc^jier 

^'our  obedient  servant, 

"J.    H.\HERSHAM,    P.    M.    G." 

It  is  evident  that  these  two  letters  crossed  each  other  on  the 
post  road,  between  Washington  and  Xicholasville.  .Major  Xeth- 
erland remained  ]>ostmaster  at  Xicholasville  for  more  than  twenty 
years,  and  kept  the  postoffice  in  the  Mingo  ta\ern. 

Col.  George  Nicholas  and  Rev.  John  .Metcalf  were  close 
friends.  Four  years  before  Xicholasville  was  located  he  wrote 
Colonel  Xicholas  the  follo'wing  letters: 


'!-! 


■■Januar\'   14.   1704. 
"Hon.  Geo.  Xicholas: 

"T  have  latelv  received  from  you  two  of  your  kind  letters  and 
would  have  answered  them  before  now.  l)ut   1  ha\e  taken  charge 


84  History  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky. 

of  Dctlicl  Academy,  and  have  Ik-c-ii  ^o  confined  tor  the  last  two 
weeks  in  fitting  up  suitable  places  of  al)ode  for  some  of  my  pupils 
that  I  have  greatly  neglected  my  private  affairs,  and  especially 
that  portion  of  them  which  }ou  are  attending  to  in  Lexington." 

"Jessamine  county,  Ky.,  Sept.  i6,  1798. 
"Hon.  Geo.  .Vicliolas  : 

"It  afi^orded  me  great  happiness  to  hear  that  you  had  returned 
in  safety  and  health  to  your  family  and  friends.  I  expected  to 
hear  fr()m  you  more  frequently,  but,  i  suppose,  the  mtiltiplicity  of 
care  and  busines  prevent  your  devoting  nnich  of  your  time  to  let- 
ters, save  what  you  wrote  to  me  and  Joseph  Crockett.  Ikit  now 
that  you  have  arri\-ed  at  home  I  shall  ex]:)ect  to  hear  from  vou 
soon  and  as  often  as  usual.  I  nmst  inform  you  that  I  have 
named  our  county  seat  Xicholasville  in  honor  of  you.  I  was  all 
day  laying  off  three  streets  to-day,  and  m\  nerves  are  very  much 
affected  by  the  severe  labors  in  the  wet  weather.  These  being 
the  circumstances  under  which  I  write  you  this  hasty  note,  I  fear 
it  will  have  i)Ut  poor  claims  upon  your  time,  but  I  can  not  help  it. 

"Youir  friend, 

"John  Metcalf." 

The  contest  about  the  location  of  the  county  seat  must  have 
been  carried  on  for  some  time  and  quite  vigorously.  (_)n  the  7th 
of  October,  1803,  Air.  Aletcalf  wrote  the  following  letter: 

"Charles  \Ve.st,  High  Sheriff, 

"Jessamine  comity  : 
"Mv  Dear  Sir — I  write  to  assure  you  that  we  have  succeeded. 
amid  nmch  f<^olish  opposition  from  Samuel  H.  Woodson,  Comity 
and  Circuit  Court  Clerk,  and  l\Ir.  I'^rcderick  Zimmerman,  Countv 
Survevor,  in  locating  our  count}-  seat.  Mr.  Woodson  wanted  to 
locate  the  t(^wn  near  his  residence,  one  mile  south  of  the  first  sur^ 
ve\-,  which  I  made  six  years  ago,  including  twenty-five  acres. 
VlV.  Zimmerman  wanted  the  town  to  include  the  residence  of 
Fisher  Rice,  which  is  one  mile  north.  I  am  now  convinced  that 
through  your  efforts  and  Mr.  Caldwell's  and  mine,  T  have  de- 
feated Mr.  W'oodson  and  Mr.  .Zimmerman  in  their  foolish  oppo- 
sition to  the  present  location,  which  is  more  suital)le  and  more 


History  of  Jesmmine  Coiuity,  Kentucky.  85 

convenient  to  roads  east  and  west  to  tlic  Kentucky  river.  A  sup- 
ply  of  good  water  was  anotlier  great  advantage  whicli  we  had  ovei 
the  other  two  places.  There  are  four  good  springs  of  water  that 
never  run  (h"\ .  This  convenience  to  good  water,  more  than  any 
other  consideration,  caused  me  to  select  this  location  in  preference 
to  the  other  places.  I  thank  vou  for  the  assistance  you  gave  me 
in  defeating  a  claim  as  foolish  as  it  was  selfish.  I  am  pleased  to 
learn  that  Mr.  Zimmerman,  as  'legal  surveyor,'  has  sun^eyed 
the  present  site,  which  was  legally  recorded  last  year  (1802).  We 
have  twenty  heads  of  families  erecting  houses  on  a  number  of  lots. 
Come  and  see  me  soon." 

First  Charter, 

The  first  charter  of  Xicholasville  was  passed  in  181 2,  and  is  as 
follows : 

CHAPTER  CCCCIV. 

An  act  authorizing  the  trustees  of  the  town  of  Xicholasville 
to  sell  real  property  in  said  town,  under  certain  restrictions : 

Approved  h'ebruary  8,  1812. 

Section  i.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  the 
Commonwealth  of  Kentucky,  that  the  trustees  of  the  town  of 
Nicholasville.  in  the  county  of  Jessamine,  shall  have  power  to 
levy  a  tax  on  the  real  property  in  said  town,  in  proportion  to  the 
value  of  lots,  not  exceeding  one  hundred  cents  for  every  hundred 
dollars;  and  the  trustees,  or  a  majority  of  them,  shall  have  power 
to  cause  an  assessment  to  be  made  of  the  lots  in  said  town,  in  or- 
der to  enable  them  to  tix  tlie  sum  to  he  paid  l)y  the  proprietors  or 
occupants  di  the  lots,  provided,  however,  that  a  majority  of  the 
trustees  shall  concur  in  levying  the  tax. 

Sec.  2.  .\nd  the  trtistees,  or  a  majorit\  of  them,  may  appoint 
some  fit  person  to  collect  the  tax  ;  and  shotild  the  owner  or  occu- 
pant, refuse  to  ])ay  the  ta.x  for  the  space  of  three  months  after  the 
amount  of  tlie  tax  is  fixed  as  herein  provided,  in  tliat  case  the 
collector  shall,  afttT  giving  tliirty  days'  notice  ])}•  advertisement 
at  three  of  the  most  ])ublic  ])laces  in  said  town,  expose  for  sale  the 
lot  or  lots,  or  so  nnicli  tliereof,  as  w  ill  be  sufficient  to  ])av  the  tax 
and  cost  of  sale:  bin  the  owner  or  owners  of  the  lot  or  lots,  his. 


8(5  Hidonj  of  .Ji'.-<-<((iiiiiie  County,  Kentucky. 

her  or  their  heirs,  executors  or  achninistrators.  shall  have  twelve 
months  from  the  time  of  sale  of  the  lot  or  lots,  or  parts  of  lots,  to 
redeem  the  lot  or  k)ts,  or  ])art  of  lots,  1)_\'  ])aying"  to  the  purchaser 
Uie  amount  of  the  lot  or  lots,  or  pait  of  lots  sold,  with  lOO  per 
cent  thereon  :  and  the  collector  shall  be  entitled  to  7  ])cr  cent  on 
the  auKjunt  of  the  tax  collected  under  this  act. 

Sec.  3.  And  the  trustees  of  the  town  shall  have  full  power  to 
convey  to  the  ])urchaser,  b\-  deed  or  deeds  of  conveyance,  the  lots, 
or  parts  of  lots,  sold  under  the  ])rovisions  of  this  act,  and  not  re- 
deemed within  the  time  allowed  for  redemption,  which  shall  vest 
in  the  purchaser,  his,  her  or  their  heirs,  or  assignee,  or  assigns,  all 
the  right,  title  and  interest  of  the  (nvner,  or  owners,  in  and  to  the 
lot  or  lots,  or  parts  of  lots,  saving,  however,  to  infants,  femes  co- 
vert, and  persons  of  unsoimd  minds,  a  right  to  redeem  within 
three  vears  after  their  several  disabilities  shall  ha  removed,  or 
come  of  ag'e  :  j^rovided,  however,  that  the  collector  shall  not  l)e 
allowed  to  sell  any  lot  or  part  of  a  lot  where  sufTiciency  of  personal 
estate  can  be  foimd  on  such  lot  or  lots,  or  parts  of  lots,  to  satisfy 
the  tax  due  ;  which  the  collector  is  hereby  authorized  to  seize  and 
sell. 

Second  Charter. 

The  second  charter  of  Xicholasville  was  ]^assed  in  1823.  It 
was  as  follows  : 

CHAPTER  DXLVir. 

An  Act  to  Regulate  the  Town  of  Xicholasville. 

A])proved  X'ovember   18,    1823. 

Section  I.  lie  it  enacted  1)\-  the  (ieneral  .Vssembly  of  the 
Conmionwealth  of  K'entucky,  tliat  the  free,  white  male  inhabitants 
of  the  town  of  Nicholasville,  who  shall  have  attained  the  age  of 
twenv-one  vears  and  upwards,  shall  meet  annually  in  each  year, 
at  the  court-hotise  in  said  town,  on  the  first  Alonday  in  May.  and 
elect  seven  trustees  for  said  to\vn,  which  trustees  shall  possess  the 
cpialiflcations  hereinafter  mentioned;  and  a  majority  of  them  so 
elected,  shall  be  sufificient  to  constitute  a  board,  who  sliall  be,  and 
they  are  herel)\',  authorized  to  make  such  by-laws  for  the  govern- 
ment and  regiik'ition  of  said  town  as  to  them  shall  seem  proper. 


Hlxtory  of  Jexi^ainliie  County,  Keninckij.  87 

not  inconsistent  with  the  Constitution  and  laws  of  this  state.  The 
said  trustees  shall  have  full  power  and  authority  to  impose  a  poll 
tax  annuall\-.  on  the  male  inhaljitanis  of  full  atre.  not  exceeding 
one  dollar  each. 

."^ec.  _'.  I')C  it  lunJKT  enacted,  that  the  said  trustees  shall  ap- 
point tlieir  clerk  or  any  other  officer  they  ina\-  think  pro])er,  who 
shall  continue  in  office  for  and  during-  tlie  time  for  which  the  trus- 
tees, who  a])])ointe(i  them,  shall  remain  in  office,  and  the  said 
trustees  shall  ha\-e  ])o\\er  and  authorit}'  to  renio\-e  anv  officer  bv 
them  a])])ointcd,  for  nei^lect  of  duty  or  malfeasance  in  office,  and 
appoint  any  otlier  instead  of  the  person  so  removed. 

Sec.  3.  l')e  it  further  enacted,  tliat  tlie  tru.stees  of  said  town  or 
a  majorit}'  of  them  shall  ha\e  full  power  and  authorit\-  to  lew  a 
tax  annually,  on  the  real  pro])erty  in  said  town,  in  proportion 
to  the  value  of  the  lots  in  their  imi)roved  state,  not  exceeding  one 
hundred  cents  for  ever_\-  hundred  dollars"  \-alue.  and  the  trustees 
or  a  majorit}-  ot  them,  sluill  have  power  to  cause  an  assessment  to 
he  made  of  the  value  of  the  lots  in  said  town  h\-  some  person  ot 
persons,  appointed  by  tliem,  in  order  to  enable  them  to  fix  the  sum 
to  ])e  ])aid  by  the  ])roi)rieiors  or  ()ccu])ants  of  said  lots;  provided, 
however,  that  a  majoritx-  shall  concur  in  laving  the  tax. 

Sec.  17.  lie  it  fiu-ther  enacted,  that  the  said  trustees  shall,  be- 
fore they  can.  recover  any  fine  or  fines  for  a  breach  of  their  bv- 
laws  or  ordinances.  ha\e  a  fair  copy  of  their  l)v-laws  set  u])  at 
three  of  the  most  ])ublii-  i)laces  in  said  town  at  least  three  weeks. 

Sec.  i<;.  I'-e  it  furtlier  t-nacted,  that  it  shall  be  the  dutv  of  the 
trustees,  annuall\.  at  the  August  ('oimt\-  Court  of  lessamine,  to 
make  a  settlement  with  the  C'otmty  Court  and  i)a\'  over  anv  mon- 
eys that  ma_\-  be  on  baud,  to  their  successors,  and  in  case  of  failure 
the  Count)- Court  is  hereby  aiuborized  to  summon  them  to  a])pear 
at  their  next  or  succeeding  term  to  make  a  settlement  and  to  en- 
ter up  judgment  against  them  ftjr  an_\'  sums  that  may  appear 
against  them  and  award  exectttions  thereon. 

Sec.  20.  I'.e  it  further  enacted,  that  the  first  election  under 
this  act  shall  l)e  Ik  Id  by  two  Justices  of  the  Peace,  for  the  cotmtv 
of  Jessaiuine,  and  the  Clerk  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  at  the  time 
said  election  takes  ])lace. 

Sec.  21.  r.e  it  furtln'r  enacted,  tliat  all  laws  of  a  special  na- 
tiu-e   heretofore  enacted.  a])])lying  to   NicholasvilK',  be.  and   the 


88  Hldori/  of  Jei^samine  Coimfij,  Kentucky. 

same  arc  Iicreh}'.  re])(.'alc(l  frcMii  and  after  tlie  first  i>eneral  elec- 
tion uiulcr  this  act. 

The  hrst  election  was  held  on  the  31st  of  May,  1824.  A  cer- 
tificate of  this  was  in  the  following-  words:  "We  do  certify  that 
we  have  this  day  caused  an  election  to  be  held  for  trustees  of  the 
town  of  Xicholasville,  agreeably  to  an  act  of  the  leg^islature  of  the 
state  of  Kentucky,  approved  the  18th  of  November,  1823,  when 
the  following  gentlemen  were  duly  elected  trustees  for  the  said 
town  for  the  ensuing  year,  namel\- :  !>.  Netherland,  Sr..  Har- 
rison Daniel,  Lew  L.  Todd,  W'm.  Perkins,  John  Messick,  James 
Lusk.  W'm.  Cox.  Cnven  (uider  our  hands  this  31st  day  of  May, 
1824. 

"  George  Brown,  John  Dowling, 
"Two  of  the  justices  of  the  peace  of  Jessamine  comity. 

"Attest:     H.  Daniel,  clerk  IJ.  T.  T.  X." 

A  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  town  was  held  on 
the  19th  da_\-  of  June,  1824,  at  Mingo  Tavern.  ( )n  that  da}-  the 
report  of  James  Wolmore,  Waddell  G.  T)ruce  and  Benjamin 
Netherland,  Jr.,  as  conmiissioners,  and  \V.  G.  Bruce  was  allowed 
$2  as  assessor  for  making  out  a  list  of  taxable  property  in  the 
year  1823,  and  B.  Netherland,  Jr.,  was  allowed  $105  for  services 
as  assessor  for  one  year.  The  tax  rate  was  fixed  at  30  cents  on 
each  $100  worth  of  value  on  the  valuation  fixed  b\-  the  com- 
missioners. On  the  27th  of  Septeml)er,  1824,  another  meeting 
was  held,  when  the  treasurer  was  directed  to  pay  Wm.  (  )verstreet 
$10  for  his  services  as  town  sergeant  and  market  master,  and  W'm. 
Campbell,  who  was  the  father  of  the  late  Henry  J.  Campbell, 
county  judge,  who  died  in  1866,  was  allowed  $15  for  his  services 
as  town  sergeant  for  six  months. 

An  ordinance  on  the  subject  of  dogs  was  also  passed.  Tt  was 
known  as  a  by-law  and  declared  "That  any  person  in  the  town 
of  Nicholasville  who  shall  keep  more  than  one  dog  or  bitch  shall 
be  fined  $1  for  every  twenty-four  hours  he  shall  retain  the  same 
after  the  lOth  day  of  May  next,"  and  that  it  should  be  the  duty  ol 
the  town  sergeant  to  enforce  this  l)y-la\\  on  all  alike.  It  was  also 
ordered  that    Wm.  Cox  be    allowed  $73    for  whi]:)]Mng    thirteen 


Ilistorii  of  Jcssdiiiiiic  County,  Kcntiickij. 


89 


slaves,  acconiiiii^  to  the  by-laws  of  the  town,  and  that  the  treas- 
urer be  autliorized  to  pay  tlie  same. 

In  tlie  (lavs  of  slavery  in  Kentucky  all  the  towns  and  comity 
seats  adopted  ordinances  or  b\-laws  ])re\-entini4'  negro  slaves  or 
free  negroes  from  visiting  the  towns  after  the  hours  of  lo  o'clock, 
either  in  tlie  streets  or  collecting  on  street  corners  or  at  the 
kitchens  of  others  than  their  owners.  If  they  had  a  written  per- 
mit from  tlieir  owners  stating  their  business  in  town  after  lO 
o'clock  at  nighi  tliey  were  ])ermitte(l  to  g(j  free  and  were  not  ar- 
rested and  whi])ped.  The  author  renieml)ers  when  a  boy  very 
often  to  have  tised  Ids  father's  name  to  a  great  man_\"  of  tliese  per- 
mits in  the  town  of  Xicholasville  for  his  slaves,  and  in  return  to 
have  received  numerous  ])ies  and  cakes  and  freciuently  btmdles  oi 
stick  candy,  wliich  the  grateful  recipients  of  the  order  Ijrought 
back  as  an  assurance  of  their  gratitude  and  as  the  means  of  secur- 
ing further  indulgences. 

The  following  list  (jf  property  for  the  year  1831  affords  curious 


readmg : 


The  report  of  the  Commissioneis  aiijioiiiled  to  value  the  houses  and 
lots  and  slaves  in  the  town  was  received,  adopted  and  ordered  to  he  re- 
corded, which  is  done  as  follows  : 


I  .  . 

•   $   45 

29  • 

$    800 

56  .  .  . 

$    125 

86 

•  •  f  300 

2  .  . 

45 

30  • 

300 

57    •  • 

no 

87 

.  .  .    200 

45 

31  • 

'125 

58  •  ■  • 

75 

88 

600 

4  •  • 

50 

32  • 

125 

59 

1.800 

89 

...     40 

5  •  • 

150 

-1  -» 

.10  • 

225 

60  .  .  . 

60 

90 

.  .  .    400 

6  .  . 

45 

34  • 

450 

61  .  .  . 

65 

9' 

...    800 

/  •  • 

55 

35  • 

I ,  <Soo 

62 

175 

92 

•  •  ■     75 

S  .  . 

55 

36. 

2,000 

63  .  .  . 

750 

93 

75 

9  •  • 

30 

37  • 

800 

64    .  . 

1.500 

94 

.  .  .    500 

10  .  . 

30 

38- 

1.5CO 

65  .  .  . 

750 

95 

125 

II.. 

30 

?>^'/2 

750 

66 

1,600 

96 

.  .  -    600 

12  .  . 

500 

39  • 

800 

67  &  68  . 

3.000 

97 

.  .    600 

13 

75 

40  . 

2,700 

70  .  .  . 

3.800 

98 

.  •  .    600 

14  .  . 

400 

41  . 

2,500 

71  .  .  . 

2,000 

99 

160 

15  ■  • 

800 

42  . 

2,000 

72  .  .  . 

1 ,  500 

100  < 

is:  lor  .    950 

16   . 

175 

43  • 

3.000 

73  •  •  • 

600 

102  &  103  .   2,150 

17  .  . 

70 

44  • 

2,500 

74  .  .  . 

1.500 

104 

300 

18  .  . 

60 

45  • 

900 

75  ■  •  • 

900 

105 

...     60 

19  .  . 

60 

46  . 

500 

76 

1.400 

106 

...     70 

20 

so 

47  • 

1,200 

77  .  .  . 

1,800 

107 

...     60 

21  .  . 

65 

48. 

400 

78  .  .  . 

300 

loS 

.  .  .    700 

22 

200 

49 

400 

79  •  •  • 

600 

109 

800 

23  ■  • 

24  .  . 

150 

50  . 

650 

80  .  .  . 

81  .  .  . 

600 

700 

no 

...     50 

50 

5'  • 

250 

25  •  • 

50 

52  ■ 

200 

82  .  .  . 

125 

168,065 

26  .  . 

50 

53 

750 

83  .  .  . 

ICX3 

27  •  • 

300 

54 

250 

84    .  . 

150 

28 

\30 

55 

575 

85    ■ 

250 

9U  Hidunj  of  J(:<saiiiiiic  t'oiiidi/,  Kcidd.cLij. 


NEGRO  SLAVES. 

Henry  Burch,  man  and  woman $     700 

B.  Netherlaud,  Sr.,  boy,  girl,  woman  and  child 1,050 

The  same,  administrator  of  P.  Netherland,  woman  ....  300 

James  Norvell,  woman,  child  and  2  men 600 

B.  Netherland,  Jr.,  man,  woman  and  child 900 

\Vm.  Shreve,  2  men,  2  women  and  3  children i>550 

David  Crozer,  i  woman,  2  girls 800 

Thos.  J.  Brown,  i  man,  i  boy,  3  girls,  1   woman ',905 

Robt.Yonng,  i  bo}-        350 

James  Lusk,  1  girl 300 

James  Hill,  2  women,  2  girls 900 

David  Majors,   i  girl 300 

Henry  Bali,  i  girl 200 

James  McCabe,  woman,  girl  and  l)oy 725 

Charles  M.  Davenport,  man,  woman  and  child 800 

James  L.  Peak,  i  girl 275 

John  Downing,  woman,  boy  and  girl 650 

William  Campbell,  i  boy 200 

William  White,  woman  and  2  children 600 

Alex  Wake,  2  women,  2  boys  and  girl 1,000 

George  Cunningham,  woman 250 

Henrj-  Metcalf,  woman  and  man      700 

Joseph  Carson,  girl 325 

James  C.  Wilmore,  girl 225 

Jerome   B.  Sparks,  boy 350 

James  Mars,  i  girl 225 

Richard  Reynolds,  girl 300 

Levi  L-  Todd,  woman  and  girl 350 

Jose])h  Maxwell,  2  girls 600 

Samuel  Rice,  man,  woman  and  girl 450 

$17,880 
68,065 

Total  value  lots  and  slaves $85,945 


TITHES. 

Henry  Btirch.  B.  Netherland,  Sr. ,  Robt.  McMiirtr}^,  Jame.s 
Norvell,  B-  Netherland,  Jr.,  James  Downing,  Emmanuel  Messick, 
William  Shreve,  Woodson  Dickerson,  David  Crozer,  George  W. 
EUey,  J.  M.  Spraggins,  Miller  Messenner,  Ezekiel  Burch,  George 
Davenport,  Robt.  Voting,  David  Shook,  John  W.  Bourne, 
Churchill  Fattlconer,  Wm.  Faulconer,  Charles  Gibson,  James 
Hill,  David  Majors,  James  Majors,  Henr}-  Ball,  James  McCabe, 
Jas.  E-  Peak,  Chas.  M.  Davenport,  George  B.  Nelson,  Joseph 
Rtttherford,  Henry  R.  Roland,  William  H.  Mathews,  Jas.  Eusk. 


Hhtorii  of  Je-isamiw'  County,  Kentucky. 


91 


David  Bowman,  John  Downing,  William  Campbell.  Alex.  Wake. 
George  Cnnningliam,  Henry  Metcalf,  Joseph  Carson.  James  C. 
Wilmore,  Jerome  B.  Sparks.  James  Mars,  Richard  Reynolds, 
Joseph  Maxwell,  Samuel  Burch,  vSamuel  Rice,  W^illiam  Cox, 
Joseph  Easle}',  Levi  L.  Todd.  T.  J.  Browning.     Total,  51. 


DOGS. 


No. 

H.  Burch 1 

James  Norvell 2 

B.  Xelherlaiul,  Jr i 

E.  Messick 2 

Win.  Shreve i 

Jas.  Downiujr i 

T.  J.  Brown 6 

Robt.  Young 

Frie  Fannv 

Jas.  Hill  .'  

David  Majors 

C.  M.  Davenport 2 

Sucky  East        2 

John  Downino; i 

B.  Xetherland,  Sr 4 


No. 

Win.  Campbell 2 

Alex  Wake i 

G.   Cunningham i 

Henry    Metcalt' 2 

Elizabeth  Buskett 2 

Joseph  Carson i 

JNIelcalfs  Charlotte      .....  2 

James  C.  Wilmore   ...            .    .  i 

Jerome  B.  Sparks i 

Jos.  Maxwell i 

Samuel  Burch 2 

Wm.  Faulconer i 

Samuel  Rice i 


Total  Xo.  doj^s 46 


VALUE  OF  TAXABLE  PROPERTY  IN  NICHOLASVILLE. 

185S §246,300 

1874 261,075 


1882 


536.260 


1888 566.920 

J892 799475 

1894  853,600 

1898 976,860 


\  arious  other  legislative  enactiiicnis  were  passed  from  time  to 
time,  until  1884  the  town  first  had  authority  to  choose  a  Mayor, 
together  with  a  Board  of  Councilmen.  in  that  year.  J^on.  John 
S.  Bronattgh  was  elected  first  .Mayor  of  Xicholasvillc  ;  he  served 
eight  years,  bttt  declined  re-election.  He  was  on  every  hand  re- 
garded as  a  most  valuable  oflficial.  and  brouglit  the  affairs  of  the 
town  into  splendid  condition.  lie  was  succeeded  by  Dr.  Charles 
Talbert.  who  served  two  years,  and  he  by  A\'illiaiii  T..  Steele,  the 
present  Mayor. 

Under  the  Constitution  of  Kentucky,  of  1890,  providing  for 
the  classification  of  all  the  towns  and  cities  of  the  state.  Nicholas- 


92  Hldorij  of  Jesmmine  (himty,  Kentucky. 

ville  became  a  city  of  the  fourtli  class.  It  has  now  a  population 
within  its  limits  of  over  3,000. 

At  the  close  of  its  centennial  }car,  its  Mayor  and  Councilmen 
are  as  follows : 

Mavor — William  Steele,  grandson  of  Samuel  ^IcDowell,  born 
1843.  Councilmen — Jephtha  D.  Hughes,  born  in  1852;  Charles 
Mitchell,  l)(M-n  in  1856;  Frank  Smith,  born  in  1870;  Charles  Ev- 
ans, born  in  1852  ;  Andrew  McAfee,  colored,  born  in  1861  ;  Adam 
Adcock,  born  in   1851. 

No  citv  in  Central  Kentucky  has  grown  more  rapidly  or  has 
more  beautiful  streets  or  a  better  city  government.  The  little 
village  of  1798,  with  a  few  straggling  log  houses  has  become  in 
1898  a  thrifty,  energetic  and  enterprising  city  of  3,500  people, 
with  8  miles  of  streets,  with  handsome  residences,  with  impos- 
ing public  buildings  and  with  every  comfort  and  convenience 
which  enter  into  modern  city  life. 

Upon  the  moth  anniversary  of  its  existence,  the  following  are 
the  physicians  in  Nicholasville : 

Dr.  Chas.  Mann,  Dr.  Joshua  S.  Uarnes,  Dr.  Thomas  R.  Welch, 
Dr.  Wm.  H.  Fish,  Dr.  Jos.  A.  Vanarsdale,  Dr.  D.  A.  Penick.  Dr. 
William  Fl.  Mathews. 

And  the  following  constitute  the  meml)ers  of  the  local  bar  : 

John  S.  Uronaugh,  N.  L.  Bronaugh.  James  W.  Mitchell,  John 
H.  Welch,  Cieorge  R.  Pryor,  Everet  B.  Hoover. 


George  Nicholas. 

On  the  occasion  of  a  centennial  which  Xicholasville  celebrated 
on  September  16,  1898,  the  history  of  the  man  for  whom  the  coun- 
ty seat  was  called,  becomes  profoundly  interesting. 

George  Nicholas  was  born  August  nth,  1753,  in  Williams- 
burg, \'a.  His  father  was  Robert  Carter  Nicholas,  a  prominent 
lawyer,  a  member  of  the  Mrginia  House  of  Burgesses  (Legis- 
lature), connected  with  the  Colonial  Government  of  Virginia, 
and  Colonial  Treasurer.  He  became  a  captain  in  the  Continen- 
tal army,  and  practiced  law  in  Charlottesville  after  the  war.  Of 
the  X^irginia  Convention,  called  to  consider  the  Constitution  of 
the  Cnited  States,  he  was  a  member,  and  he  ablv  and  earnestly 


HUtory  of  Je.-^samine  County,  Kentucky.  93 

advocated  its  ado])tion,  wliicli  j^revailed  by  a  vote  of  88  for  and 
yS  against,  and  that  onl}-  after  a  lengthened  and  even  acrimonious 
<liscnssion. 

Tliis  ratification  was  made  1)y  the  convention  on  June  26th, 
1788 :  A'irginia  being  the  tenth  state  to  adopt  the  instrument. 

(  )n  CJctober  24th.  1788,  Colonel  Xicholas  advertised  in  the 
Kentucky  Ciazette.  as  follows: 

"Richmond,  \'a..  ( )ct.  24th,  1788. 
"I   propose   attending  the   ( ieneral   Court   in    the   District  of 
Kentucky,  as  an  attorney,  and  shall  ])e  at  the  next  March  term,  if 
not  prevented  l)y  some  unforeseen  event." 

He  came  in  the  following  year  and  settled  in  what  is  now 
Bovle  but  was  then  ]\iercer  county.  (Boyle  county  was  not  es- 
tablished uiuil   1842.) 

As  Harrodsburg  and  Danville  were,  in  pioneer  days,  places  for 
the  most  important  conventions,  and  the  seat  of  the  count} .  it  was 
doubtless  for  the  purpose  of  being  near  the  seats  of  justice  which 
induced  Colonel  Xicholas  to  find  a  home  in  Mercer. 

The  act  admitting  Kentuckv  as  a  state  was  passed  June  ist, 
1791,  l)Ut  it  was  not  to  go  into  effect  until  June  1st,  1792. 

In  December,  1791.  a  convention  was  elected  to  meet  in 
Danville  April  3d,  1792,  to  frame  a  State  Constitution.  George 
Xicholas  w'as  one  of  the  men  elected  a  member  of  this  convention 
from  Mercer  county,  lie  was  the  greatest  lawyer  in  this  body. 
His  experience  as  a  member  of  the  Mrginia  Convention,  in  the 
discussion  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  and  his  superb 
legal  training,  comliined  with  his  logical  and  analytical  uiind, 
and  his  ])()wer  of  accurate  statement,  made  him  the  man  of  and  for 
the  occasion. 

In  his  fortieth  year,  in  the  full  tide  of  his  mental  and  ])h\sical 
powers,  and  with  a  ripe  judgment,  the  result  ol  military,  civil  and 
judicial  experience,  combined  with  a  peculiarly  ])hilosophical  and 
analytical  mind;  it  was  both  reasonable  and  [proper  that  he  should 
be  tiie  dominant  s];irit  of  the  body.  Experience  subsequentlv 
showed  that  man\-  of  the  jirovisions  of  the  Constitution  adopted 
at  his  suggestion,  were  not  adapted  to  the  conditions  surrounding 
Kentucky.  It  onh  remained  in  force  seven  \"ears.  and  was  then, 
by  almost  tlie  unanimous  will  of  tlie  people,  set  aside  in  1799. 


94  Hlxton/  of  J('.<--<iiiii'nii'  (  ninitii,  I\('iihicl:i/. 

Xo  forty-live  men  ever  assenil)le(l  together  who  were  more 
])atriotic  and  wlio  more  faithfnll}'  endeavored  to  (Hseliari;e  the 
trnst  confided  to  their  kee])ini4\  lienjamin  Logan.  Alexander 
iUilhtt,  Robert  Breckinridge,  David  Rice,  Samuel  McDoAvell,  Ca- 
leb Wallace,  were  a  part  of  that  distinguished  convention,  and  in 
that  period  of  Kentucky's  history,  they  represented  a  courage, 
fidelity,  ])atriotism  and  lo\'altA'  to  the  ])eople  which  reached  the 
highest  limit  of  Inunan  attainment. 

The  ])erfect  knowledge  Colonel  Xich-olas  had  obtained  'jf 
the  Constitution  of  the  I'nited  States  and  his  admiration  of  its 
])rovisions,  created  by  his  splendid  defense  c^f  it  in  the  X'irginia 
Con\-entiou.  were  largely  used  in  the  creation  of  Kentucky's  first 
Constitution.  His  superb  legal  attainments,  his  varied  knowl- 
edge, his  judicial  mind,  his  unbounded  patriotism,  and  his  thor- 
ough conce])tion  (jf  the  true  principles  of  government,  made  him 
an  unquestioned  leader  in  such  a  bodv. 

The  Constitution  was  framed  and  adopted  in  seventeen  days, 
and  in  thirty  days  from  the  asseuibling  of  the  convention  a  Gov- 
ernor was  elected,  and  in  sixty  days  a  Legislature  assembled  un- 
der its  provisions. 

Colonel  Nicholas  was  married  to  Mar\-  Smith,  of  Baltimore. 
One  of  her  brothers,  Sanmel  .Smith,  was  a  member  of  the  House 
of  Representatives   and   Lnited  .States   Senator  for  twenty-nine 
years,  and   another.   Robert  Smith,   was  Secretar}-  of  the   X'avy 
under  President  Jefiferson,  and  Secretary  of  .State  under  Presi- 
dent Madison.     (  )ne  of  his  sons,  S.  .S.  Xicholas,  was  one  of  the 
most  distinguished  lawyers  of  the  state.     He  was  a  Judge  of  the 
Court  of  Ap])eals,  Judge  of  the  Louisville  Chancery  Court,  and 
one  of  the  Commissioners  a])pointed  in  1850  to  revise  the  laws  of 
Kentucky.     His  youngest   daughter,   Hetty   Morrison,   was  the 
wife  of  Hon.   Ixichard  Hawes,  of  l^aris.  Ky.,  at  one  time  Provis- 
ional Governor  of  Kentuck\',  while  under  the  control  of  the  Con- 
federate States;  and  he  represented  the  Ashland  District  in  Con- 
gress. 1 837- 1 84 1 .     He  opened  a  law  school  at  his  own  house,  and 
taught  gratuitously  such  men  as  Joseph  Hamilton  Daveiss.  John 
Rowan,  Martin  D.  Hardin.  Robert  Wickliffe.  William  T.  Barry. 
Isham  Talbott,  and  John  Green.     He  moved  to  P>ath  county  in 
1794,  to  which  his  interests  in  the  old  slate  furnace,  which  was 
operated  from  1  790  to  183c),  and  was  for  nearly  50  years  one  of  the 


IT'i4()ni  of  Jf's.<(iiiiiiir  Cdiint)/.  Kciituckij.  Mo 

great  induslrics  of  the  stdte.  Later  !ie  came  to  Lexington  to  de- 
vote himself  to   the  ])ractice  of  law. 

Ill  \■J^)^)  he  was  elected  Professor  of  the  Law  Department  then 
added  to  Transylvania  University,  then  in  the  zenith  of  its  glory, 
but  he  died  shortly  afterwards,  in  July.  1799,  in  his  forty-sixth 
year. 

The  ca])ital  of  Jessamine  is  named,  as  will  be  seen,  from  one 
of  the  really  great  men  of  his  i)eriod.  It  was  called  for  Colonel 
Nicholas  through  the  partialit)  of  Rev.  John  Metcalf,  who  held  the 
highest  admiration  for  Nicholas,  and  who  had  known  him  in  \  ir~ 
trinia,  before  his  removal  to   kentuckv. 


Militia  of  Jessamine  County. 

Even  to  the  soldiers  who  particij^ated  in  great  battles  in  ]\Iex- 
ico  or  the  recent  war  there  was  never  any  military  experiencewhich 
left  so  charming  memories  as  that  of  service  in  the  old  state  mili- 
tia, commonly  known  as  the  "Corn  Stalk  Militia. ""  It  was  called 
the  Corn  Stalk  .Militia  because  there  were  no  arms  for  the  troops 
and  verv  IreciueiUly  the\-  used  corn  stalks  in  the  j^lace  of  guns. 
The  state  militia  grew  U])  with  the  early  settlement  of  Kentucky. 
In  those  times  every  man  was  a  soldier  and  was  ready  to  respond 
to  such  call  as  might  be  made  in  defense  of  his  home  or  in  i)un- 
ishment  of  the   Indians,  who  had  invaded  the  state. 

From  1775  down  to  1793.  every  able-lxxlied  man  was  of  neces- 
sitv  connected  with  some  military  connnand.  A  while  after  the 
Indian  peace  of  1794,  the  militia  organization  slackened  a  little, 
vet  it  never  died  out  as  a  state  institution  until  after  the  C'onsti- 
tution  of  1849-50  was  enacted. 

U])  to  that  time  ever\'  male  citizen  from  the  age  of  twenty-c^ne 
to  fort\-h\'e  was  to  rejiort  for  (lut\-  at  all  drills,  in  default  ot  which 
a  fine  was  adjtidged. 

Jessamine  comU\  had  two  regiments,  fornnjil  in  different  ])arts 
of  the  comity,  and  they  wt're  recptired  to  assemble  in  ih.e  spring 
for  battalion  drill.  In  September  they  had  what  was  called  a 
"big  muster,"  which  was  a  brigade  drill,  called  in  that  da\  "The 
E\(>lution  of  the  Line." 

Xicholasville,  the  countv  seat,  as  the  central  point,  was  selected 
for  this  arm\-  mo\-enienl.  The  uniform  of  the  officers,  from  briga- 


r 


ATTENTION ! ! 

3th  Regiment  M.  Jfl. 


-^ 


COMPANY    ORDERS. 

1832. 


Jiff*. 


SIR:     You  are  hereby  notified  to  attend 
the  following  Musters  in  the  present  year, 


z: 


REGIMENTAL  MUSTER  on  the  lOth 
of  October,  at  Nicholasville,  10  o'clock. 

BATTALLION  MUSTER  on  theM  of 
May,  at  Nicholasville,  10  o'clock. 

C  OMPANY  MUSTER  on  the  2d  Satar-, 
day  in  April,  at  2  o'clock,  P.  M,    Parade  iu 

_ the  Academy  Lot,  Nicholasville, 

Court  of  Assessment,  the  last  Monday  in  October  af 
N  icholasville. 

No  guns  required.        By  order  of 

JAS.  SWITE2:EN,  0,  Sergeant.        ' 


MILITIA  NOTICE,   1S32. 


Hidorij  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky.  97 

dier-general  down,  consisted  of  epaulets,  sword,  red  sash,  high  hats 
with  plumes  tipped  with  white,  and  a  black  cockade  on  one  side. 
The  great  day  in  the  county  was  the  big  muster,  and  from  all  parts 
of  the  county,  not  only  the  soldiers  but  the  citizens  came  to 
Nicholasville,  and  these  military  oflficers  were  as  proud  and  well 
satisfied  with  tlieir  appearance  as  any  army  officer  equipped  wath 
gold  and  tinsel,  under  the  forms  prescribed  by  General  Miles  of 
the  present  day. 

The  drills  were  great  occasions  and  were  especially  attractive 
to  the  boys,  who  would  post  themselves  along  the  roads  and  watch 
the  incoming  of  the  officers.  Standing  on  the  fences  and  on  high 
steps  they  would  wait  with  keen  zest  for  the  uniformed  men, 
and  as  thty  \vould  see  an  officer  coming  up  in  his  splendid  attire, 
tlicy  would  yell  out  with  delight  and  enthusiasm:  "Here  comes  a 
muster  man."  The  band  was  not  composed  of  scientific  musi- 
cians or  many  pieces ;  it  included  a  tenor  and  bass  drum  and  a 
fife,  all  of  'vbich  were  played  by  the  negroes. 

The  band  v\-ould  begin  the  march  around  town  playing  martial 
airs,  early  in  the  morning,  and  they  would  marcli  u])  and  down 
the  streets  and  thrill  the  crowds  with  their  soul-stirring  strains. 
First,  the  musicians,  then  the  companies  would  fall  in. 

After  marching  around  the  town,  the  musicians  would  halt  at 
the  court  house  the  music  would  cease  and  the  orders  would  be 
given  : 

"Fall  in,  Captain  Crozier's  Company;  fall  in.  Captain  Hoo- 
ver's Company;  fall  in  Captain  Rohrer's  Company.'' 

And  so  on,  until  all  the  companies  of  the  regiment  had  been 
called  and  had  taken  their  j)laces  in  the  line. 

When  the  line  had  been  formed,  the  captain  would  go  up 
and  down  and  dress  the  men  with  his  sword  or  cane.  After  the 
alignment  of  the  companies,  they  would  form  in  regiments  and 
move  in  column  to  a  field  or  pasture  near  the  town.  .\t  the  head 
of  this  cavalcade  would  march  Brigadier-General  Horine.  The 
troops  would  move  along  without  keeping  step,  some  with  um- 
brellas raised,  some  with  coats,  some  without  coats,  and  many 
smoking,  and  the  brigadier-general  commanding  would  have  his 
cob  pipe  in  his  mouth — thus  imconscious  of  his  military  position 
and  unconscious  of  his  military  bearing,  as  he  sat  on  his  horse 
with  his  back  bent  and  his  head  inclined  forward. 
7 


ITi^fiini  of  Ji'.<.-'<iiiiiiii   (oKiifii,  l\'iifiicl:ii.  I'O 

(  )n  rcarhiiii;-  the  licld.  the  i^reat  ami  sirikini;-  maneuver  wtjukl 
be  to  form  a  liollow  scjiiare.  The  use  of  this  Ijy  the  J  British 
troops  had  inijjressed  it  u])()n  the  sokHers'  minds  as  a  most  im- 
]jonant  acromphslimenl.  1 1  look  a  k)n^'  time  to  get  the  S(|uare 
formed  and  sometimes  took  a  still  lom^'er  time  to  unform.  After 
s(|narinj:;"  and  uns(|narinL;',  the  command  would  come  to  ])arade 
rest  and  then  would  he  extended  an  ()])|)ortnnity  for  notices  to  be 
,2:iven  by  th.e  farmers — stich  as  "farms  for  sale  or  rent,  stock  for 
sale,  or  lost  li\e  stock."  After  this  the  S(|uare  would  be  formed 
ag-ain  and  from  this  a  battle  line  would  be  stretciied;  then  a 
coimter-march  would  be  ordered. 

(  )n  one  (occasion  (jeneral  Ijorine  had  his  conun.uid  in  line 
of  battle,  but  not  remembering'  to  reverse  or  about  face  wheri 
they  had  almost  reached  a  high  worm  fence  which  enclosed  a 
thirt\-acre  held,  lie  called  out:  'd'ull  the  fence  down  or  climb 
it."  As.  under  tlie  orders  of  the  conunan.ding  general,  it  had 
bee!T  left  discretionarx  with  them  what  cotU"se  to  i)tn"sue.  they 
])ulled  the  fence  down. 

After  two  or  three  hotirs  of  drilling  the_\'  would  march  Ijack 
to  town  and  were  dismissed. 

Small  boys  and  all  the  idlers  al>oin  town  moved  u])  and  down 
with  the  line  and  ])ecamc  as  profountlly  interested  in  the  evolu- 
tions as  the  soldiers  themselves. 

These  occasions  were  alwa\s  splendid  oi)portunities  for  great 
profit  of  the  \endors  of  watermelons,  ginger  cake,  and  sweet 
cider,      l-'ew  jessamine  men   of  that  da\-  will   forget  Aunt    .Milly 

Howard  an>l  AmU    l-'annie  Mason    as  the\-  sal  at  their  tables  and 

dis])ensed   such  ginger  cake  and  fried  chicken  and  lne(l  ham  as 
the  world  has  nevt'r  sur])assed. 

Xotwithstanding  the  slackness  of  the   Corn   ."^talk    .Militia   in 
Jessamine  countx.  there  were  organizations  of  special  companies 

w1ii(di  ac(|uired  great  i)rohcienc\-  in  drilling  and  were  not    only 

efficient   brU  beatuifulK'  uniformecl. 

( )ne  of  these  com])anies.  raised  1)\'  ("ajU.  George  .'^.  .Shanklin. 

attained    great  skill   and    was   thoroughl}-    drilled,    as    much    so 

as  any  modern  militia. 

("apt.  Thom])son  ^^'orle\■  had  a  cavalry  company  which  wa«v 

perfectb-  trained.     The    men    had    good    horses,    took  pride    in 

them,  and  while  the\-  had  nothing  but  sabres  and  flintlock  pistols. 

the\-  perfornuMl  ca\a]r\-  exolutions  in   a  most  creditable  manner. 


100  History  of  Je-^mmlne  County,  Kentucky. 

Capt.  William  R.  Kean  organized  an  infantry  company  known 
as  the  Jessamine  Grays.  This  command  for  a  long  time  had 
great  celebrity.  The  uniform  was  of  gray  cloth,  with  frock  coat, 
the  breast  of  which  was  ornamented  with  silver  braid,  and  had 
silver  stripes  down  the  sides  of  the  trousers.  The  hat  was  of 
black  leather  with  a  drooping  red  and  white  plume. 

Capt.  J.  D.  Hill  was  in  command  of  this  company  for  many 
vears.  He  was  succeeded  by  Capt.  Tucker  Olds,  of  Nicholasville. 
The  company  was  long  the  pride  of  the  citizens  of  the  county 
and  it  was  not  disbanded  until  near  the  beginning  of  the  late  war. 


Patriotic  Celebrations. 

The  early  settlers  on  the  Fourth  of  July  were  accustomed  to 
have  patriotic  celebrations.  They  invited  each  other  to  their 
homes  and  in  sumptuous  repasts  and  neighborly  communion  cele- 
brated the  important  events,  not  only  in  their  own  history,  but  in 
the  history  of  their  country.  Tn  1794  Col.  William  Price  had 
such  celebrations  at  his  house.  As  early  as  1802  formal  meetings 
uere  held  to  glorify  the  Fourth  of  July.  There  are  in  existence 
now  the  minutes  of  a  meeting  called  on  the  12th  of  June,  1802, 
to  take  formal  action  upon  the  celebration  of  the  Fourth  of  July 
for  that  year.  The  following  co]iy  of  the  doings  of  that  meeting 
Avill  show  the  character  and  nature  of  the  ceremony  : 

At  a  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  Nicholasville  on  the  12th  of 
June,  1802,  Maj.  Benjamin  Netherland  in  the  chair,  Col.  John 
Price,  secretary,  it  was  resolved,  that  the  26th  anniversary  of  the 
Independence  of  our  beloved  country  be  celebrated  on  the  Fourth 
of  July  next  in  Nicholasville.  Thereupon,  a  committee  of  ar- 
rangements was  appointed,  who,  in  accordance  with  the  resolu- 
tions of  the  meeting,  present  the  following  as  the  order  of  the  day : 


s 


Procession. 

I  St.  The  Military  Jessamine  Blues,  under  Capt.  James  Price 
and  T^ieutenant  Caldwell,  will  be  drawn  up  between  the  residence 
of  the  Rev.  John  Metcalf  and  Mrs.  Dillard's  gate,  in  double  file, 
with  music  on  their  right,  will  move  down  Main  street,  when  the 


Ilidori/  of  Jexxamine  County,  KentHcki/.  K'l 

procession  will  be  formed  by  each  class,  or  division,  falling  in  the 
rear  of  its  preceding  class,  or  division,  according  to  the  subse- 
quent arrangement,  the  front  class  falling  in  the  rear  of  the  mili- 
tary. 

2nd.  Rev.  Mr.  ^letcalf's  school  children  in  the  following  or- 
der: No.  I,  at  the  r^lethodist  Episcopal  church.  Rev.  John  Met- 
calf,  marshal ;  Xo.  2,  at  the  quarter  session  court  house.  Col.  John 
Price,  marshal :  drawn  up  in  front  of  the  school  room  of  ]\Irs. 
Xancv  Lafevers,  with  their  right  on  Main  street. 

4th.  The  ladies  dressed  in  white,  at  Downing  &  Evans'  store, 
■with  their  right  on  Main  street.  Michael  Horine,  marshal. 

5th.  Ladies  of  the  town  and  vicinity,  citizens  and  farmers  of 
the  county,  in  double  file,  at  Mr.  Metcalfs  corner,  witli  right  on 
Main  street,  near  Mr.  Xetherland's  stable  lot,  Benjamin  Hughes, 
Stephen  Frost,  Col.  John  Mosley,  marshals. 

The  procession  will  move  off  at  slow  time  at  nine  o'clock,  a. 
m.,  to  the  woodland  east  of  the  town  where  the  ceremonies  of  the 
day  will  proceed  in  the  following  order : 

First.     Prayer  by  the  Rev.  John  ]\Ietcalf. 

Second.     Music. 

Third.     An  address  by  the  Rev.  John  P.  Campbell. 

Fotirth.     Alusic. 

Fifth.  Reading  Declaration  of  Independence  by  Samuel  H. 
Woodson. 

Sixth.     An  oration  by  Rev.  Robert  Stewart. 

Seventh.     Pra}er  ]^y  Rev.  John  Shackelford. 

The  procession  will  again  form  in  the  same  order  and  return 
to  town  dispersing  at  the  ])oints  where  they  joined  the  proces- 
sion in  the  morning  and  in  the  same  order. 

Michael  Horine,  Col.  John  Trice  and  William  Caldwell  are 
appc^inted  marshals. 

The  ladies  and  gentlemen  of  Jessamine  county  are  most  re- 
spectftilly  and  earnestly  invited  to  celebrate  our  Independence 
like  patriotic  men  whose  fathers  were  engaged  in  a  bloody  civil 
war  for  seven  years. 

Many  of  the  old  soldiers  who  served  their  country  in  the 
armies  of  \\'ashington  and  Greene  are  among  us  and  w  ill  be  pres- 


Hidory  of  Jexxamine  (hunty.  Kentucky.  lo:! 

flit  and  participate  in  celebrating-  the  26th  anniversary  'vi'  the  free 
doni  and  indepenrlence  of  nur  country. 

John   i'rice, 

C'oL  W'ni.  i'rice. 

Huorh  Chrisman, 

Michael   Horine, 

John  Metcalf. 

Joseph  Crockett, 

Robert   Crockett, 

Caleb  McDowell, 
Connnittee  of  Arrangements,  Jtnie   12.   1802. 

The  ]\Iichael  Horine  referred  to  in  these  proceedings,  was  an 
uncle  of  the  late  Henry  Horine  and  John  Horine.  Michael  Hor- 
ine married  a  sister  of  (jeneral  Muhlenberg,  a  Revolutionary 
soldier,  and  for  whom  MuJilenberg  count}  ,  in  this  state,  is  named. 
He  settled  in  Jessamine  county  in  1799  and  afterwards  moved  to 
Ohio,  in  1808,  Avhere  he  became  ])rincii)al  of  a  female  school. 

riie  Hugh  Chrisman  mentioned  is  the  ancestor  of  the  large 
Chrisman  familv  in  lessamine  county.  He  was  born  in  Rock- 
ingham county,  \'a.,  in  1761),  and  died  in  1849.  ^i^  son.  General 
Htnry  Chrisman,  long  li^•ed  in  Jessamine  as  one  of  its  most  dis- 
tinguished citizens  and  died  in  1876.  He  lived  on  Hickman 
creek,  a  few  miles  from  .Xicholasville. 


Men  in  Indian  Wars  Antedating  1812. 

James  Ilenipliill,  an  uncle  of  Andrew  Hem])hill,  served  under 
General  \\'a\ne  in  the  campaign  agamst  the  Indians,  and  was  in 
the  battle  of  the  l^'allen  Timbers,  August  20,  1794:  Terrence  Mc- 
(  Irath.  who  was  the  father  of  the  late  horseman.  Price  McGrath. 
lived  in  Jessamine  county,  and  was  also  in  tliat  campaign.  In 
tins  battle  General  Wayne  relied  upon  the  charge  of  the  Kentucky 
nioimted  infantry  to  draw  the  tire  of  tlie  Indians,  and  then  sent  in 
his  foot  men,  with  tlie  l)ayonet.  before  which  the  Red  Men  precip- 
itately fled.  The  l)l(nv  inflicted  secured  ]:)eace  and  forever  stopped 
Indian  incursions  into   Kentucky. 

I'rice  .Mc(lratli,  the  son  of  Terrence  McCirath.  was  born  in 
Xicholas\ille,  and  in  his  bo\hood  learned  the  tailor's  trade.     He 


104  Hl4orij  of  Jessamine  Gcninty,  Kentucky. 

subsequently  moved  to  Louisville,  and  while  there  he  became  in- 
terested in  the  horse  business,  which  he  so  successfully  man- 
aged, and  afterward  founded  his  splendid  breeding  establishment 
for  race  horses  in  Fayette  county,  near  Lexington. 


Soldiers  in  the  War  of  1812. 

Jessamine  county  sent  soldiers  to  the  war  of  1812,  commanded 
by  the  following  captains  :  Capt.  Jas.  C.  Price,  Capt.  Mason  Sin- 
gleton, Capt.  Richard  Hightower,  Capt.  Patrick  Gray,  Capt.  Thos. 
Lewis.  Capt.  Robt.  Crockett.  Capt.  Augustine  Bower.  Quite  a 
large  number  of  Captain  Price's  company  were  killed  at  the  bat- 
tle of  the  River  Raisin,  while  Capt.  Thos.  Lewis'  company  w^as  in 
Dudley's  defeat  at  Fort  Meigs,  May  15,  1813,  and  there  lost  a 
large  number  of  its  members,  who  were  either  killed  during  the 
fight  or  murdered  by  the  Indians  after  the  surrender. 

The  following  letter,  written  by  a  member  of  Captain  Bow- 
ers' company  in  the  battle  of  the  Thames,  will  be  of  mterest  to 
those  whose  ancestors  were  engaged  in  that  fight.  It  was  written 
by  Nathaniel  Adams,  who  died  some  years  since  in  Pulaski  county, 
and  was  the  maternal  uncle  of  S.  M.  Duncan.  There  are  parts 
of  it  that  relate  to  purely  personal  matters,  which  are  omitted 
from  the  text  as  published : 

MR.  ADAMS*  LETTER  TO  MISS  NANCY  STINSON. 

Put-In-Bay,  on  the  Shore  of  the  Great  Lake. 

Oct.  15,  1813. 
My  Dearest  Nancy : 

I  reached  this  muddie  den  of  a  village  on  Monday,  the  nth. 
I  was  in  the  battle  on  Tuesday,  October  5th,  and  was  not  hurt  by 
the  bullets  of  the  British  and  Indians,  though  I  was  in  very  great 
danger,  as  the  company  I  was  in  formed  the  second  line  when 
Colonel  Johnson  made  his  men  charge  the  enemy.  The  Indians 
raised  a  loud  yell  and  opened  a  severe  fire  on  our  advance. 
About  seventy  or  eighty  red-coated  British  soldiers  and  an  equal 
number  of  Indians  opened  a  heavy  lire  on  us  again,  emptying 
eighteen  saddles,  killing  twelve  and  wounding  more  than  thirty 
of  our  men  in  the  front  line.  Captain  Bowers  rushed  up  in  a 
moment  and  ordered  our  company  to  advance  instantly.     Our 


Hktory  of  Je><mmine  County,  Ktndnckij.  105 

men  rushed  forward  in  a  rapid  gallop  over  the  front  line  of  the 
British,  who  stood  their  ground  like  men  who  preferred  being 
shot  down  rather  than  surrender.  Our  company  killed  several 
British  soldiers  who  had  surrendered,  and  who  attempted  to  es- 
cape. \\'hen  we  dispersed  their  army  in  die  charge,  we  cap- 
tured over  ti\  e  hundred  prisoners.  I  saw  a  large  Indian  wander- 
ing along  the  ri\er  with  two  guns  and  a  bag  of  fried  fish.  I 
called  the  attention  of  Captain  Bowers  to  the  Indian,  who,  to  all 
appearances,  was  going  to  steal  a  horse  that  belonged  to  one  of 
Colonel  Trotter's  men.  Captain  Bower  ordered  three  of  the  men 
to  catch  him.  All  three  of  us  dashed  at  him.  He  raised  one  of 
the  guns  and  fired;  the  ball  came  very  close  to  my  left  ear.  In- 
stantly John  Doolin  shot  him  dead.  He  had  fried  fish  in  a  dirty 
bag,  and  six  scalps  were  in  the  bag,  separated  from  his  dinner  of 
fish  by  a  dirtv,  old  towel,  which  was  marked  by  stains  of  blood. 
We  scalped  him  and  left  him  lying  on  his  l)ack.  John  Doolin 
wanted  to  cut  a  razor  strap  from  his  thigh.  l)Ut  I  objected  to  this 
and  as  we  were  picking  up  our  wounded  and  sending  them 
across  the  lake,  I  saw  no  more  of  the  Indian. 

War  of  1812-1815, 

The  War  of  1812  was  one  in  which  Kentucky  figured  more 
prominently  than  any  other  state.  The  warlike  spirit  had  been  un- 
daunted by  Indian  aggressions  on  the  frontier  from  1783  down 
to  tStt,  ^^•hen  llic  men  of  Kentucky  fouglit  at  Tippecanoe,  and 
where  the  lirilliant  and  ])()pular  Joseph  Hamilton  Daveiss  and 
other  gallant  Kcniuikians  gave  their  blood  for  the  defense  and 
preservation  of  the  Xorthwestern  territory.  Kentucky,  ofY  and 
on,  had  in  this  war  oxer  25,000  soldiers,  .^lie  gave  some  of  her 
noblest  blood  in  tlie  l)attles  it  ])ro(luced  and  manifested  a  ])atriot- 
ism  and  N-alor  wliich  gave  her  increased  renown.  To  this  war 
Jessamine  county  sent,  first  and  last,  600  soldiers. 

England  had  nc\cr  accepted  gracefully  the  result  of  the 
Revolutionary  \\"ar.  The  X^orthwestern  Indians  were  fed  and 
maintained  by  the  ilritisli  officials  in  Canada.  They  wore 
British  clothes,  used  British  guns  and  knives  and  traded  with  and 
for  I'Jritish  gold.  Tlie  war  was  l)r(night  al)out  by  a  series  ol 
events,  l)nt  tlirrc  were  two  princi])al  causes: 


HlMtinj  of  Jt'^'^iiiitlac  Conntij,  KentHc-}:ij.  ](i7 

First.  Eno;lan(l  claimed  the  rii^ht  to  sto])  and  examine,  any- 
uliere  on  the  high  seas,  American  vessels  engaged  in  commerce, 
and  to  take  from  such  vessels  all   llritish  subjects. 

"(  )nce  a  subject,  always  a  subject,"  a  faNorite  maxim  of  John 
Hull,  was  interpreted  in  the  most  offensive  sense  and  any  man 
whi:  was  supposed  to  Ijc  an  Irishman,  Scc^tchman,  etc.,  was  taken 
and  forced  to  ser\e  in  ihc  I'.ritish  navy,  even  though  he  was  avi 
.\merican  citizen.  I  )i|)l()niat-\ ,  alwavs  slow  to  redress  wrongs, 
was  in  these  cases  extremel\  tanU,  and  thousands  of  American 
citizens  were  thus  relentlessly  forced  to  serve  a  country  whose 
allegiance  the\-  repudiated.  The  necessities  of  the  English 
government  were  verv  great.  Us  navv.  greath'  increased  1)\'  the 
\var  with  the  P'rench  people  led  b\  Xapoleon,  cotild  only  be  main- 
tained by  impressment,  and  these  -Vmerican  ships  were  most  at- 
tractive places  for  that  sort  of  w(;rk.  It  took  the  news  of  these 
seizures  a  long  time  to  reach  home,  and  then  a  long  time  to  get 
to  the  State  Department,  and  then  there  was  a  long  corres])ond- 
ence  before  even  a  hearing  couhl  be  obtained.  In  the  mean  time, 
the  men  were  in  the  navy  and  dri\'en  b\-  the  lash  or  other  more 
dreadful  |)unishment  to  this  hateful  service. 

Second:  The  Tnited  States,  in  the  thirty  years  that  had 
passed  since  the  Revolutionary  War,  had  built  u])  a  large  ocean 
carrying  trade.  England,  through  the  blockade  of  luiropean 
])orts,  claimed  the  right  to  seize  all  Amei'ican  shi])S  and  cargoes 
bound  |i  r  any  bl,  ckaded  port  in  Euro]ie  (and  they  were  nearly  all 
blockaded)  unless  these  slii])s.  going  to  or  returning  from  such 
]-iorts.  fir.st  entered  an  E,nglish  ])ort  and  registered  and  obtained 
license  to  prosecute  their  voyage. 

With  such  claims  on  the  ])art  of  any  government,  war  could 
not  long  be  ax'oidcd,  and  ^o  on  the  i8th  of  Inne,  1S12,  Cdngress 
declared  war. 

As  soon  as  the  news  of  the  war  reached  Kentucky  ;uid  before 
the  President's  recjuisition  came  to  the  (iovernor,  volunteer  com- 
l^anies  all  over  the  state  rushed  to  offer  themselves  to  the  Gov- 
ernor. Kentucky's  (|Uota  was  5,500  of  the  100.000  called  for. 
Weeks  before  the  acttial  declaration  of  war  had  been  made,  re- 
cruiting offices  had  been  oi)eued  and  war  meetings  throughout 
the  state  gave  asstirance  that  however  lukewarm    Xew    England 


108  H'idonj  of  Je.s>iamine  County,  Kentucky. 

might  be,  Kentucky  would  give  the  g-overnnient  the  heartiest 
support. 

By  August  the  14th,  the  Iventuck}-  quota  was  ready.  Jes- 
samine sent  two  full  companies  and  scattering  soldiers  into  other 
commands. 

One  of  these  companies  was  commanded  by  Capt.  James  C. 
Price,  a  son  of  Col.  William  Price.  The  other  was  commanded 
by  Capt.  Patrick  Gray.  The  roster  of  these  two  companies  was 
as  follows : 


Roll  of  Capt.  James  C.  Price^s  Company. 

Lewis'  regiment,  Kentucky  \'olunteers.     War  of  1812. 

Captain — James  C.  Price.  Lieutenant — William  Caldwell. 
Ensign — Daniel  Bourne.  Sergeants — William  E.  Price,  David 
Richardson,  John  Shanklin,  John  Scott.  Corporals — Nathaniel 
H.  Caldwell,  John  Ficklin,  Solomon  Smith,  Elisha  Williams. 

Privates — Barkleye,  William  :  Barr,  George  ;  Bennett,  James  \ 
Brice,  John  T. ;  Brown,  Thomas  ;  Carlton.  Isaac  ;  Carlton,  Noah  ; 
Carlton,  George ;  Callender,  Jacob ;  Conner,  Rice ;  Daugherty, 
John  ;  Dedman,  James  ;  Easley,  Pleasant ;  Edwards,  Thos. ;  Elkin, 
Benj.;  East,  Elijah;  F'inney,  James;  Forset,  James;  Forsee, 
Stephen  ;  Farrow,  John  ;  Goin,  John  ;  Haggard,  John  ;  Hicks, 
James;  Hews.  Charles,  Hushman,  Matthew;  Kindred,  Edward; 
Krickbaum,  John  ;  Lewis,  Wm.  A. ;  AIoss,  Pleasant ;  ]Morgan,  W. ; 
McGrath,  Terrance;  McConnell.  M.  G. ;  Neal,  George;  Nether- 
land,  John  ;  Overstreet,  W. ;  Rice,  Josepli ;  Rice,  •  Geo.  W. ; 
Richards,  Alexander ;  Ramsey,  John  ;  Richr.rJ.jon,  Robt. ;  Scott, 
Joseph  ;  Scott.  Joseph  ;  Simmons,  David  ;  Skeene,  William  ;  Tay- 
lor, John  ;  Underwood,  Edward ;  Woodson,  Obediah  ;  Wilson, 
Thos.;  Ward.  \\'illiam  ;  Webber,  Benj.;  Walker,  James;  Ward, 
Geo.  S. ;  Young,  Joel ;  Young,  Richard. 


Roll  of  Capt.  Patrick  Gray's  Company. 

Lewis'  regiment,  Kentucky  Wolunteers.     War  of  1812. 
Captain — Patrick      Gray.         Lieutenant — James      Fletcher. 
Ensign — James  Clark.     Sergeants — William  Sechrest,    Thomas 


HUtorij  of  Jessamine  County,  KentKckij.  lOii 

Reed,    John    Batts,    Geo.    Chrisnian.     Corporals — Robt.    Dun- 
widdie,  Sam'l  Huckstep,  James  Norrel. 

Privates — Anderson,  Oliver ;  Armstrong,  Livy  ;  Arnett,  John  ; 
Bagwell,  Gary;  Bishop,  John;  Brown,  Samuel;  Bradshaw-, 
Smith;  Burk,  Benj.;  Gampbell.  James;  Gardwell,  Sam'l;  Gard- 
well,  James;  Gary,  Melford ;  Glark,  Geo.  W. ;  Groslin,  Benj.; 
Downes,  Penore  P. ;  Dickerson.  Wm. ;  Dickerson,  David ;  El- 
more, Edward;  Howard,  Achilles;  Hopkins,  Thos. ;  Hutcherson, 
Sam'l ;  Hunter,  Ghas. ;  Jeter,  Henry ;  Jimerson,  David  ;  Jimerson, 
Wm.:  Jimerson,  John;  Johnson,  John;  Kennady,  W'ni.;  Lana, 
Henry;  Leon,  Moses:  Lusk,  James;  Marshall,  James;  Marshall, 
A\'m.:  }klay,  Lindsay;  ^lessick,  Xathan  ;  Morris,  Henry;  Myers, 
John;  Miller,  Francis;  McGlure,  Martin;  Nevens,  Henry;  New^al, 
Armstrong ;  Patterson,  John  ;  Pilcher,  Louis  ;  Read,  Peter ;  Rob- 
inson, ]vlichael ;  Rusk,  Robert ;  Sales,  Thos.  P. ;  Spencer,  Ab- 
salom ;  Spiers,  Greenbery  ;  Summers,  James  ;  Summers,  Thos. ; 
Smith,  Peter ;  Stype,  John  ;  Shelton,  Thos. ;  Thompson,  Pitman ; 
Venable,  Hamden  S. ;  Waters,  Lewis;  \A^allace,  James;  Whorton, 
Joseph;  Wallace.  Abraham;  Welsh,  Alexander;  Willis,  John; 
Willis,  William ;  W^ager,  Absalom. 

These  companies  were  part  of  the  5th  Kentucky  Regiment, 
commanded  by  Lieut.-Gol.  William  Lewis  and  Majors  Joseph 
Robb  and  Benjamin  Graves.  The  other  companies  constituting 
the  regiment  were  those  of  Gaptains  Hart,  Hamilton  and  Me- 
gowan  from  Fayette,  Gaptain  W'illiams,  from  }*Iontgomerv,  and 
Gaptains  Martin  and  llrassfield  from  Glark.  Thev  were  ordered 
to  assemble  in  Lexington  on  the  14th  of  August.  They  were  en- 
listed on  the  15th  at  Georgetown. 

An  immense  concourse,  estimated  at  20.000,  greeted  the 
soldiers  of  this  regiment  at  Lexington.  Revolutionarv  sires, 
hoary  with  age.  wives  whose  hearts  were  filled  with  apprehension 
and  dread,  sweethearts  whose  trustful  and  tearful  eves  told  the 
story  of  love  for  men  in  the  ranks,  children  who  looked  with 
strange  wonder  upon  the  brilliant  scene  of  these  uniformed 
soldiers  passing  in  review  before  the  vast  and  sympathetic 
crowd,  came  from  far  and  near  to  say  good-bye  and  god-speed  to 
the  country's  defenders.  Each  company  paraded  in  its  own 
uniform,  and  each  vied  with  tlie  other    in  evolution  and    manlv 


li'i^orij  of  Jcssitiiiiiie  Coiiiittj,  Kentnckij.  Ill 

XoiK'  sur])asse(l  the  J  L-ssaniinc  I  Uik-^  under  Ca[)taiii 
I'ricc  and  tlic  otlier  Jessamine  company  under  Captain  Gray,  and 
tlie  vast  crowds  of  iheir  fellow  citizens  felt  a  just  pride  at  their 
splentlid  ai)pearance  as  they  marched  so  promptly  at  their 
country's  call. 

Thev  formed  on  W  aier  street  in  Lexing-ton  and  then  marched 
into  Main  street  and  from  thence  out  to  the  Georgetown  road. 
'Jdiev  marched  oidy  about  four  miles  and  then  camped  for  the 
night  and  next  da}'  went  into  camp  at  (ieorgetown.  The  Lewis. 
Regiment  was  reinforced  l^y  those  of  L"ol.  John  M.  Scott  and  Col. 
John  Allen,  and  tluy  were  formed  into  a  brigade  under  Gen. 
John  i'ayne. 

(  )n  the  following  Simda\  the  brigade  was  reviewed  b\'  (_io\  . 
Charles  Scott  and  (ienerals  John  Payne  and  James  W'incheste; 
After  tlie  review  the  soldiers  and  the  crowd  assembled  and  listened 
to  an  address  from  Henr\-  Cla\  and  a  sermon  from  the  eloquent 
])r.  James  I'.Kthe,  who  was  then  president  of  Transylvania.  Mr. 
Clav  re\ieued  the  causes  of  the  war  and  set  forth  the  many  and 
unbearable  grievances  which  had  forced  the  government  to  de- 
clare war.  and  closed  with  an  a]:)peal  to  the  troops  io  remembei 
that  i\entuck\'  was  renowned  for  the  bra\ery  of  her  ])eo])le  and 
that  the\-  nmst  remember  that  the\'  had  both  the  glor_\'  and  the 
prestige  of  .Vmericans  and  Kentuckians  to  maintain.  The  vast 
crowxl  departed  aftc'r  these  patriotic,  soul-stirring  words  and  the 
soldiers  went  into  cam]),  and  a  few  davs  after  marched  to  Xew- 
port  to  recei\e  their  arms  and  e(pii])ment.  Ilie  most  of  the 
march  was  made  in  drenching  rains,  which  were  ominous  of  the 
hardships  and  mistorttuies  which  awaited  them  in  the  campaigns 
upon  which  tliex'  had  entered. 


Dudley's  Defeat. 

A  part  of  the  Jessamine  troops  were  in  what  was  known  as 
Dudley's  defeat,  which  was  fought  on  May  5.  1813.  on  the  kit 
bank  of  the  .Manuiee  ri\er.  o])])osite  to  Fort  Meigs,  a  few  nnles 
south  of  d'oledo,  Ohio.  .  . 

Col.  William  Dudley's  regiment  was  part  of  Gen.  Green  Clay's 
brigade  of    Ken1ucd<\-  vohintccrs.      .\fter  leaving    XcAiiort .   thev 


112  Hidory  of  Jetfmmhie  (hinity,  Kentucky. 

had  a  fatiguing  march  for  men  and  ammunition,  and  they  found 
these  on  approaching  the  open  boats  lodged  on  the  left  bank  of 
the  Maiimee  river,  within  hearing  of  the  cannon  of  Fort  Meigs, 
where  General  Harrison  was  then  besieged  by  the  British  and  a 
large  force  of  Indians. 

At  twelve  o'clock  on  the  night  of  May  4th,  when  General  Har- 
rison was  informed  of  General  Clay's  approach,  he  directed  Gen- 
eral Clay  to  land  700  men  on  the  west  side  where  the  British  were, 
charge  their  batteries,  spike  their  cannon,  and  immediately  re- 
turn to  their  boats  and  cross  over  to  the  American  fort.  The 
remainder  of  Clay's  troops  were  to  land  on  the  east  bank  and  force 
their  way  into  the  fort  by  sorties  from  the  garrison.  Dudley's 
regiment  was  ordered  to  perform  the  first  service.  They  were 
successful  in  the  beginning,  but  the  bravery  of  the  Kentuckians 
and  a  misunderstanding  of  orders  drew  them  into  an  ambuscade 
where  they  were  cut  ofif  and  surroimded  Ijy  overwhelming  num- 
bers, and  the  apparent  victory  was  turned  into  dreadful  defeat. 

When  the  Kentuckians  landed  they  marched  at  once  toward 
the  battery.  This  battery  was  taken  without  a  struggle.  It  was 
left  in  possession  of  two  companies,  but  it  was  shortly  after  taken 
by  the  British  and  forced  to  retreat  to  their  boats  and  cross  the 
river,  when  they  reached  Fort  Meigs  in  safety. 

The  Kentuckians  advanced  and  charged  the  Indians,  and  after 
seeing  that  they  were  outnumbered  they  attempted  to  retreat  to 
the  battery.  They  found  this  no  longer  in  possession  of  their 
friends,  but  manned  by  British  soldiers  in  large  mmibers,  who 
opened  fire  upon  them.  Arriving  without  order  and  being  taken 
completely  by  surprise,  they  were  compelled  to  surrender  or  be 
shot  down.  They  surrendered.  They  were  robbed  by  the  In- 
dians, who  inflicted  blows  upon  the  prisoners  at  their  pleasure. 
Most  of  the  Americans  were  stripped  of  their  clothes,  and  they 
were  told  l)y  the  British  soldiers  that  the  Indians  intended  to 
make  them  run  the  gauntlet,  and  just  before  the  Americans 
reached  the  fort,  the  Indians  taking  advantage  of  their  helpless 
condition,  whipped  and  bruised  and  killed  them  as  they  pleased. 
A  large  nimiber  of  them  were  shot  down  and  scalped.  One  In- 
dian shot  four  prisoners  and  scalped  them  in  the  presence  of  their 
comrades,  and  in  the  presence  of  the  British  ofificers  these  Ken- 
tucky troops  were  subjected  to  all  sorts  of  indignities,  and  even 


History  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky.  113 

murdered.     Captain  Lewis  was  killed  in  the  battle,  together  with 
a  number  of  the  men  from  Jessamine  county. 


Battle  of  the  Thames. 

The  blundering  and  misfortunes  and  the  disasters  which  at- 
tended the  War  of  1812  in  the  Northwest,  in  the  end  took  a  turn. 
The  American  arms  were  at  last  to  receive  some  reward.  The 
great  naval  battle  fought  on  Lake  Erie,  on  the  loth  of  September. 
1813.  had  destroyed  the  British  fleet  under  Captain  Barclay;  not 
a  single  ship  escaped.  The  gallant  Perry  had  grandly  ac- 
complished his  task  and  told  his  own  story  of  the  victory  and 
success  in  those  glorious  words,  "We  have  met  the  enemy  and 
they  are  ours." 

More  than  a  lumdred  Kentuckians  who  knew  nothing  of  ships 
and  had  never  sailed  on  any  water  but  rivers,  volunteered  to  serve 
on  the  vessels  under  Perry,  and  they  deserved  part  of  the  credit 
for  that  superb  victory. 

(ieneral  Proctor  and  his  Indian  allies  under  Tecumseh,  after 
the  destruction  of  the  British  fleet, ,  were  safelv  shut  in  noon 
English  soil.  General  Harrison  was  not  slow  to  avail  himself 
of  the  effect  this  naval  victory  had  secured,  and  he  at  once 
crossed  into  Canada  and  commenced  his  pursuit  of  Proctor  and 
Tecumseh. 

The  horses  of  the  Kentucky  troops  were  corralled  on  the 
Michigan  shore;  they  were  surrounded  by  l)rush  and  trees  cut 
down  and  pickets  driven  so  as  to  make  a  complete  ench^sure. 
When  the  pursuit  was  determined  upon  it  was  impossible  to  se- 
cure guards  for  the  horses  and  camps  other  than  by  draft.  Xo 
man  was  willing  to  accept  such  inglorious  service  unless  by  com- 
pulsion. 

The  capture  of  the  llritish  vessels  enabled  General  Harrison 
to  make  an  immediate  crossing  and  with  five  brigades  of  Ken- 
tuckians and  120  L^nited  States  regulars,  he  landed  on  the  Canada 
side  on  the  27th  of  September. 

Col.  Richard  M.  Johnson's  Kentucky  mounted  infantry  was 
the  only  cavalry  in  the  invading  army.      It  was  a  splendid  regi- 
ment of  thirteen    companies    and  contained    nearly     1,400    men. 
8 


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III.<lin-;i  of  Jr.-iftamins  C'oimtij,  Kentucky.  1 1 5 

\\\\\\  this  re.^'inicnt  was  detailed  one  oi  the  Jessamine  companies 
under  Captain  JJower. 

The  river  Thames  is  a  small  stream  rising  in  Canada  east  of 
Detroit  and  cini)t\in<:^-  into  Lake  St.  Clair.  About  forty  miles  ea?t 
of  Detroit  there  was  a  small  Moravian  settlement,  and  after  a 
dreadful  and  tiring  march  of  a  week,  late  in  the  afternoon  of  Oc- 
tober 5.  1813.  tlie  .American  army  was  in  such  close  i)ursuit  that 
Proctor  and  Tecumseli  were  forced  to  offer  l)attle. 

]'roct(M-  liad  600  liritish  regulars  and  Tecumseh  had  1,500 
Indiaiis.  Th.ey  were  formed  along  the  river  bottom,  with  Tecum- 
seh on  the  left,  and  tliere  awaited  the  approach  of  the  American 
ami}-,  which  was  composed  almost  entirely  of  Kentuckians. 
Governor  Shelby  had  abandoned  his  duties  as  governor  and  as- 
sumed the  place  of  conuuander-in-chief  of  the  Kentucky  forces. 
Both  he  and  General  1  larrison  had  uijon  their  stafTs  some  of  the 
most  brilliant  men  of  the  state — Geo.  AValker,  William  T.  Barry, 
John  Speed  .Smith.  (Jen.  John  Adair.  J.  J.  Crittenden  and  I'ercival 
Butler. 

Colonel  Johnson  had  during  the  ])revious  months  trained  his 
regiment  \o  charge  on  horseback,  and  so  soon  as  General  Har- 
rison learned  that  the  Uritisli  were  formed  in  o])en  order  he  di- 
rected Colonel  Johnson  to  charge  with  his  regiment  mounted. 

Colonel  Johnson  discovered  that  the  front  of  the  British 
regulars  was  too  narrow  for  tlie  use  of  all  his  men.  He  divided 
his  regiment,  gave  lialf  of  it  to  liis  brother.  James  Johnson.  Lieut.- 
Colonel.  Colonel  Johnson  called  for  an  adxance  guard  of 
twenty  men  to  nio\-e  in  advance  of  the  troops.  He  had  ])romised 
the  \\ives  and  mothers  and  sweethearts  and  friends  of  his  troops, 
when  they  asscnilded  at  Stamping  Ground  to  start  for  the  war,  that 
he  would  in  ex'ery  way  protect  their  lives  in  the  campaign  on  which 
the\'  iiad  entered  witli  him.  He  conceived  the  idea  that  if  he  could 
draw  the  fire  of  the  Indians  upon  an  advance  guard,  that  the  main 
force  could  charge  and  ride  tiver  the  enemy's  line  before  it  could 
reload,  and  that,  though  lie  might  sacrifice  the  twenty  men  ho 
would  save  heavy  mortality  among  the  remainder  of  his  force. 

It  was  a  heroic  thought,  and  it  was  carried  out  in  a  heroic 
way.  Xineteen  men  gallantl}-  volunteered  to  ride  willi  Colonel 
Johnson  in  ad\'ance  on  the  enemv  :  oi  these  onh  ten  are  known. 


116  Hii'tovij  of  Je.f><amine  Cmmty,  Kentucky. 

The  advance  was  placed  under  the  command  of  Col.  William 
AN'hitley,  who  was  a  private  in  Captain  Davidson's  company.  Of 
the  members  only  the  following  names  are  known :  Lieut. 
Samuel  Logan,  Coleman's  company ;  L.  L.  INIansfield,  Stucker's 
company;  Benjamin  Chambers,  quartermaster;  Robert  Payne, 
Stucker's  company;  Dr.  Samuel  Theobald,  Coleman's  company; 
William  Webb,  Stucker's  company;  Garrett  Wall,  forage  major; 
Eli  Short,  forage  master. 

Lieut.-Col.  Johnson  at  once  charged  the  British  regulars. 
He  passed  through  their  line,  then  turned  and  fired  upon  them 
in  the  rear.  They  immediately  surrendered.  Col.  Richard  M. 
Johnson,  with  half  the  regiment,  with  the  advance  guard  in  front, 
charged  the  Indians  who  at  once  poured  in  a  deadly  fire  upon  the 
advance  guard,  all  of  whom  were  either  killed,  wounded,  or  had 
their  horses  shot  under  them,  except  Dr.  Samuel  Theobald,  of 
Lexington.  The  brave  and  heroic  William  W'hitley  was  killed 
at  the  first  fire  on  the  advance  guard. 

In  these  later  days,  when  acts  of  heroism  are  applauded  with 
such  vigor  and  enthusiasm,  it  is  v.ell  to  remind  the  world  of  such 
deeds  as  those  of  Gen.  W^ill::.m  O.  Butler  and  Johnson's  advance 
guard  at  the  river  Thames.  These  lose  nothing  in  comparison 
Avith  the  conduct  and  courage  cf  any  men  of  any  age. 

Proctor's  regulars  were  all  captured,  the  Indians  were  routed, 
Tecumseh  was  killed,  his  force  was  scattered,  and  peace  in  the 
Northwest  was  at  once  assured.  Proctor  himself  abandoned  his 
men,  his  carriage  and  baggage,  and  fled  precipitately  from  the 
field.  His  guilty  conscience  smote  him  as  he  heard  the  Ken- 
tuck}-  hosts  on  entering  the  battle,  with  mighty  shout  cry  out, 
"Remember  the  Raisin."  He  knew  that  his  perfidy  and  bar- 
barity deserved  the  death  that  the  comrades  of  the  murdered 
h.eroes  of  Raisin  would  inflict  upon  him,  and  like  a  coward  he  fled 
from  the  just  wrath  of  the  American  soldiers. 

In  this  splendid  battle  a  large  number  of  the  men  from  Jessa- 
mine participated,  and  part  of  its  glory  belongs  to  those  who  com- 
posed the  Jessamine  troops. 

The  accompanying  letter  written  by  a  Jessamine  man  who 
participated  in  this  conflict  will  be  Doth  interesting  and  historical : 


Hidorij  of  Jessamine  Ccninty,  Kentncky.  117 

"Bass  Island,  Lake  Erie,  October  lo,  1813. 

"My  Dear  Father :     T  have  only  time  to  inform  you   and  my 
friends  that  I  am  now  confined  to  my  bed- with  severe  rheumatism 
in  my  legs.     I  am  unable  to   walk,   but  am  very  kindly    treated 
Frenchman  who  served  in  our  armies  under  General  Washington 
and  received  a  severe  shot  in  the  left  liip  joint    at  the  battle  of 
Princeton,  he  has  lived    in  tliis  dreary  country  thirty   years  en- 
gaged in  fishing   on    the    lake.  .  Our   company    under    Captain 
Bowen  was  in  the    battle  of  Thames  river  on  the  5th.     A  cannon 
ball  killed  Captain  Bowen's  horse  in  the  beginning  of  the  battle, 
but  he  soon  got  another  one  much  stronger  and  active  than  the 
horse  he  brought  from  home.     After  Commander  Perrie  gained 
the  victory  on  the  lake,  the    Barbarian    Proctor  abandoned    the 
post  at  ]\lalden  and  took  a  position  on  the  river  Thames.     His 
rapid  movements,  we  have  learned  since  the  battle,  was  very  an- 
noying and  displeasing  to  his  Indian  allies.     This  morning  Cap- 
tain Bowen  called  to  see  me  in  company  with  Captain  Danfield 
of  the  Britisli  army.     I  heard  Captain  Danfield  say  that  the  In- 
dian chief  Tecumsey  was  very  mad  at  General  Proctor  for  leaving 
his  Indian  brethren  exposed  to   the  vengeance  of    our    soldiers. 
Danfield  said  that  he  heard  the  Indian  chief   address  Proctor  in 
very  severe  language  about  his  leaving  Maidens.     It    was    also 
stated  by  the  English  officer  that  Proctor  was  fairly  outgeneraled 
by  Harrison  and  was  mial)le  to  escape  with  all  his  baggage,  be- 
ing hard  pressed  l)y  liim  in  ever}-  move  up  the  Thames.     After 
a  great  deal  of  heavy  marching  and  loss  of  sleep  both  armies  met 
in  the  vicinity  of  a  Dunkard  settlement  called    Moravian  town, 
which  was  deserted,  not  a  lumian  neing  in  it  when  the  fight  took 
place  October  5th.     The  battle  did  not  last  very  long,  but  it  was 
fierce  and  savage.     The    Indians    imder  their    Chief    Tecumsey 
were  in  possession  of  a  thick  woods,    who.  w  ith  the    British  in- 
fantrv  had  formed  their  line  of  battle  on  ground  which  gave  them 
some  advantage  over  our  troops.     When  the  fight  opened  I  saw 
Gen.  Harrison  with  Commodore  Perrie  who  was  in  the  battle  and 
was  acting  as  aid.  he  and  Captain  Butler,  Colonel  Cass  wlio  was 
a  very  large    man  liad    the  i)OSt  of   honor  and  led  the    front  line. 
Colonel  Johnson,  of  Scott  comUy.  witli  tlie  mounted  men  was  or- 
dered to  charge    at  full    speed,  and    break  their   line.     Johnson 


w 
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o 


A 
o 
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Hidoi'y  of  JesmmuK'  County,  Kentucky.  119 

rushed  along  tlic  line  hat  off  and  gave  command  in  a  loud  voice 
that  now  was  the  time  to  fight,  and  m  an  instant  his  mounted  men 
inckuling  Captain  JJowen's  company  were  rushing  on  the  lines 
of  the  enemy.  At  first  our  horses  recoiled  on  receiving  the  heavy 
fire  from  the  liritish  and  Indians,  yet  it  w-as  only  momentarily,  the 
voice  of  Colcjnel  Cass  and  our  Colonel  Trotter  was  heard  amid  the 
roaring  of  nuisketr\ ,  tlic  enemy  run  in  every  direction,  we  were 
completel}'  victorious.  Governor  Shclljy  whose  presence  on  the 
field  was  greeted  1^\'  thousands.  The  Indian  chief  Tecumsey 
was  killed,  over  500  of  the  eneni}-  were  taken  in  by  our  men.  80 
of  the  English  were  killed  and  over  100  Indians  were  left  on  the 
field.  Come  to  Newport  after  me  and  bring  three  feather  beds  in 
the  wagon,  as  I  can  not  bear  jolting.  Your  son, 

"George  T.  Chkisman. 
"Hugh  Chrisman,  Jessamine  Co.,  K}." 

The  following  extracts  from  a  letter,  written  by  John  Xether- 
land,  who  was  a  son  of  Maj.  Benjamin  Netherland.  will  i)rove  in^ 
teresting  and  show  how  the  men  from  Jessamine  acted  in  the 
battle  of  the  Thames : 

■■(  )n  the  Thames,  October  7,  1813. 

/'j\Iy  Dear  Parents:  I  never  w^anted  to  see  you  so  badly  in 
my  life.  After  the  massacre  of  so  many  of  the  company  of  the 
brave  Captain  Price  at  the  river  Raisin,  I  succeeded  in  making 
my  escape,  after  running  seventeen  miles  in  snow  over  tw(_i  feet 
deep.  T  joined  the  main  1)0(1\-  of  the  army  under  ( ieneral  Har- 
rison and  served  with  Colonel  Johnson  in  the  battle  which  took 
place  day  before  yesterday.  I  stood  on  the  shore  of  lake  ICrie  on 
Sunday,  the  loth  of  Sej^tember.  and  saw  Captain  Terry  whip  hell 
out  of  the  British  lleet  on  the  lake.  As  soon  as  they  were  whipi)e(l 
on  the  water,  (ieneral  Harrison  made  us  all  get  on  board  of  the 
ships  of  Captain  Perry  and  sailed  to  Canada.  When  the  army 
landed  we  marched  in  pursuit  of  the  d — d  murderers  and  cut- 
throats. We  came  u])  with  them  at  the  river  Thames  on  the  5th 
of  October,  gave  the  devils  a  sound  thrashing  and  took  over  seven 
hundrt'd  jirisoners  aud  shot  to  death  five  Indians  for  breaking 
their  paroles  five  days  before  the  battle.  It  took  old  Governor 
Shelby  a  loug  lime  to  kee])  our  c(im])any  from  scalping    twenty 


120  History  of  Jefxamhie  Coimfii,  Kentxu'ky. 

.  English  soldiers  for  giving  rum  to  the  Indians  and  furnishing 
them  with  guns  and  powder  to  murder  our  people.  We  are  now 
burying  the  dead  and  will  leave  here  as  soon  as  we  can  hunt  up 
all  who  are  wounded  and  unable  to  get  home.  When  I  come 
home  I  can  tell  you  of  as  much  suffering  in  this  army  as  you  ever 
sufifered  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  I  must  say  that  every  man 
and  officer  from  Jessamine  was  game  and  did  his  duty  without 
fear  or  favor.  Billy  Caldwell  and  Lieut.  Ebenezer  I'ricc,  brother 
of  Captain  Price,  was  like  a  mad  bull  in  battle.  He 
was  brave  on  all  occasions  and  he  and  Billy  Caldwell 
could  hallo  louder  than  any  men  in  the  army.  They 
were  ever  ready  to  fight.  I  send  you  this  letter  by  Noah  Carlton, 
who  goes  to  Newport  and  who  will  send  it  to  you  from  Lexington. 
Don't  let  brother  Ben  go  frollicking  about  on  my  horses.  Be- 
fore I  left  home  he  was  in  the  habit  of  letting  the  young  women 
have  my  horses  to  hunt  grapes  and  persimmons  on  Hickman 
creek.     I  will  be  at  home  in  five  weeks. 

"Your  oldest  son, 

"John  Netherland." 

Jessamine  County  Soldiers  who  Battled  at  Thames. 

Jessamine  county  had  two  companies  in  the  battle  of  the 
Thames,  fought  June  13,  1813.  The  two  companies  were 
mounted  men  and  were  in  Col.  George  Trotter's  regiment.  Capt. 
Gustavus  Bower  commanded  one  of  these  companies.  He  was 
born  near  Frederickslnu-g,  Va.,  in  1786  and  settled  in  Nicholas- 
ville  in  1810,  as  a  physician.  When  the  War  of  1812  was  de- 
clared he  raised  the  following  company,  which  was  in  the  battle 
of  the  Thames: 

Captain — Gustavus  Bower.  Lieutenant — Bartholomew  Kin- 
dred. Ensign — Smith  Bradshaw.  Sergeants — Joshua  High- 
tower  I  St,  R.  Michael  Bower  2d,  Peter  Withers  3d,  Robt.  D. 
Overstreet  4th.  Corporals — Geo.  T.  Chrisman  ist,  Reuben 
Bennett.  2d,  Wm.  Wilson    3d,  Benj.  Bradshaw.  Jr.,  4th. 

Privates — Allison,  Jno. ;  Bird,  Jno. ;  Bourne,  Daniel;  Brad- 
shaw, Benj.;  Bustard,  David;  Campbell.  Jno.;  Campbell,  Wm.', 
Carroll,  Jno.;  Cobb,  Thos. ;  Connor,  Rice;  Connor,  Wm.  R.; 
Corr.  Jas. ;    Casbv,    Chas. ;    Casbv,    James ;    Crockett,  Jno.    W. ; 


Hidorij  (if  Jrammine  County,  Kentucky.  121 

Crutcher,  James;  Davenport,  Jno.  F. ;  Davidson,  Richard;  Davis, 
James;  DelVIoss,  Asa;  Dickerson,  Fontaine;  Dickerson,  James; 
Dougherty,  James;  J.)uncan,  James;  FZast,  James;  Fitzgerald, 
Francis;  F'assee,  John;  Gihnan,  James;  Gray,  David;  Haggard, 
Jno. ;  Hawkins,  Thos. ;  Higbee,  James  H. ;  Higginbotham,  Jesse ; 
Flunter,  Davidson ;  Johnson,  John  G. ;  Lewis,  Daniel ;  McCarly, 
Dennis;  McConnell,  Andrew;  AlcCune,  Jno.  L.  P.;  AlcDaniel, 
Thos.;  Aliles,  Benj.;  Miles,  James;  Mtirrain,  Wm.;  Pennington, 
Saml.;  ]\loss,  W'ni.;  Powers,  Samuel;  Reynolds,  Wm. ;  Rice, 
Thos.  N. ;  Richards,  Alexander;  Robertson,  Michael;  Scott, 
James;  Shaw,  John  ;  .Shearer,  Caleb;  Shelton,  \\"ni. ;  Sike,  David; 
Smith,  Adam  ;  Smith,  Alexander ;  Stipe,  David  ;  Stipe,  Henry ; 
Stipe,  Jacob ;  Taylor,  Samuel ;  Taylor,  William ;  Thompson, 
Alex.;  Thornton,  Elijah;  Trister,  Peter;  Turner,  Robt. ;  Walker, 
Reuben ;  \\'allace,  Thomas ;  Walters,  Thomas ;  Ward,  Geo.  S. ; 
Welch,  Alexander;  Willis,  Drury ;  Wilson,  W.  \l.  S. ;  Wood's, 
James;  Zinuncrman,  John. 


Capt.  Mason  Singleton,  of  the  Keene  neighborhood,  also 
raised  a  company  which  was  in  Trotter's  regiment.  Hie  follow- 
ing is  a  list  of  the  company  : 

Ca]ot.  Mason  Singleton's  Companv. 

Captain — INIason  Singleton.  Lieutenant — Penj.  Williams. 
Ensign — Thomas  Haydon.  Sergeants — Joel  Turnham  ist, 
Wm.  Scott  2d,  Jesse  Hayden    _:;(1. 

Privates — Sallee,  lulward  ;  Ihu'ton,  Thos.;  Conklin,  Hugh; 
Ellison,  1'hos. ;  Evans,  Andrew;  Ficklin,  Thomas;  Frost,  pio. ; 
Gatewood,  Gabriel;  PTani])t()n,  Stephen;  llaydon,  Ezekiel ;  llav- 
don,  Jno.;  Holloway,  Samuel;  llughes,  Chas. ;  Huuflley,  Jno.; 
Lambkins,  Daniel ;  McA'ey.  Jno. ;  Moore.  Joel  P. ;  Morrow,  Jno. ; 
Moseley,  Ewd. ;  Neal,  Jno.;  Proctor,  Isaiah;  Proctoi ,  Thos.; 
Reed,  Philli]) ;  Reynolds,  Drake:  Rice,  Richard;  Richardson, 
Jesse;  Poper,  Jesse;  Schofield,  Samuel:  Sharewood,  Wm. ; 
Singleton.  Lewis;  Sniitli,  James;  Smith,  Wm.;  Starr,  Henry; 
Steel,  Darbey  G. ;  Webster.  Christopher;  Wells,  Jacob  ;  Williams, 
Elijah  ;  A\'illiams,  Thos. ;  Willis,  Lewis  ;  Wilson,  Nathan  ;  AA'ilson. 
Alex.;  Woods,  Richard;  Woods,  Christopher;  Young,  Lewis; 
Fizer,  Jacob;  Jenldns.  FliMirv. 


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H'ldonj  (if  .1 1 ■<■•'< t mine  County^  Kentuckij.  \'--'> 

These  captains,  as  well  as  their  men,  all  acted  a  courageous 
and  handsome  part  in  the  battle.  Captain  I'.ower,  after  the  war, 
married  a  daughter  of  Col.  Joseph  Crockett,  and  went  to  George- 
town to  practice  medicine.  He  subsecpiently  removed  to  Pal- 
mvra.  Mo.,  where  lie  died  in    l86y. 

The  following  is  also  the  list  of  the  company  of  Capt.  Richard 
II.  Hightower.  in  ijih  Cnited  States,  engaged  in  the  War  of  1812: 

Captain — ]\icliard  Hightower.  J  st  Lieutenant — Thomas  C. 
Craves.  Sergeants — Lucius  C.  Pleasants  1st,  Benj.  Segar  2d, 
Jesse  Denilhess.  3d. 

Privates — Acton.  Win.;  Alison.  Jno.;  Andrews,  Robt.-  Bar- 
ton, Karswell :  Bates.  Alfred  :  lUack.  Beverly  A. ;  IMythc,  W'illiani : 
]5vron.  Ino. ;  Camp.  Win.:  Carter.  Jno.;  Casey,  Joshua;  Cesgar. 
Thos.;  Childers.    Thos. ;  Cooly.  Jno.;    Cook,  Matthew;    Craig, 
Walter;    Davis.    William;    Delaney.  Willis ;    Denore,    Baldwin, 
Dobbs,  Jno.;  Dyne.  Andrew;  Emmerson.  Wm.;  l^^arrow.  Isham  ; 
Fisher.  Jno.;  Fowler.  James;  Fowler.  Thos.;  Gentry,  Zebedee; 
Gohagen.  Wm. ;  Goodlett,  Wm. ;  GrindstafT,  Lsaac  ;  Ingsley,  Jas. ; 
Hanley.  Thos.  H.;  liobson.  r.ennett;  Hope,  Geo.;  James,  Saml.; 
Johnson.  Wm. ;  Lane,  Jno.;  McCarty.  David;  McDaniel.  Wm.. 
McKenzie.  Jno.;  .Martin,  Jas.;  ?\fathews.  I'hilip;  Maxwell.  Jno. 
Mayfield.  Sutherland  :  Morgan,  J. ;  Murphy.  David  ;  Murrane.  J. 
Murrane.  ?klark. ;  .Murrane.  Tom  ;  Pagget.  James  ;  Pagget,  Thos. 
Pogue.  Jno.;   J'rewitt.   Fdnuind;     Price.  Jno.;    Ralston,    Alex. 
Reed.  Adam  ;  Reed.  Robt. ;  Scroggins.  Win. ;  Shaw.  Jno. ;  Shimp. 
Geo.;  Shover.  Simon;  Smith.  Richard;  vStewart.    Rice;  Sumer- 
field.   F.])hraim  ;  Thoinijson.  James;  Tiller.  Jno.;   Walker.  Jere- 
miah; Webb.  Adam;  White.  Chas. ;  Williams.  Silas;  Winchester. 
Peter;  A\'ood.  Tno. 


Roll  of  Capt.  Robert  Crockett's  Company. 

Roll  of  Capt.  Robert  Crockett's  Company,  Kentucky  Mounted 
A'^olunteer  Militia — Conmianded  by  Lieut. -Col.  James  Allen. 
War  of  T  81 2. 

Captain — Rol>ert  C"rockett.  Lieutenant — John  C.  IVlorrison. 
Ensign — PTenry  T>indsey.  Sergeants — Jonathan  Robinson.  1st, 
Alexander  Logan.  2d.  William  Mead.  3d.  John  Lawny.  4th. 


124  Hlxtonj  of  Jt'!<!<((iii!iif  Couiifij,  Kentucky. 

Privates— Armstrong-,  Samuel;  Bank,  Ephraim ;  Baxter, 
Samuel;  Birownlee,  John;  Bobb,  William;  Butler,  Samuel;  Bond, 
Corntliris;  Crockett,  John  W. ;  Crockett,  Samuel  C. ;  Carr, 
Thomas;  Cloud,  Sam"l  G. ;  Decreet,  Joseph;  Duncan,  James; 
Dougherty,  James;  Fracher,  Charles;  Fink,  John;  Fracher, 
John;  (launt,  William;  Harrison,  Jos.  C. ;  Jewet,  Matthew; 
Logan,  Samuel ;  Moore,  Angus ;  Messock,  Isaac ;  McCall,  Will- 
iam; McCornell,  William;  Parmer,  James;  Rankin,  Adam; 
Roberts,  John;  Ramsey,  Robert;  Royall,  William;  Smith,  John; 
Tadloer,  Andrew ;  Talbot,  Jonathan ;  Venable,  James ;  Villers, 
George  ;  Wardlow,  John  ;  Walker,  Matthew  ;  Yotmg,  Leavin. 

Roll  of  Capt.  Thomas  Lewis^  Company. 

Roll  of  Capt.  Thomas  Lewis'  company  of  infantry  of  the  Ken- 
tucky Militia,  detached — Commanded  by  Lieut.-Col.  William 
Dudley.     War  of  1812. 

Captain — Thomas  Lewis.  Lieutenant — George  S.  Herndon. 
Ensign— William  Sally.  Sergeants — William  Moss  ist,  Henry 
King,  2d,  William  Roach,  3d,  Newton  PL  Tapp,  4th.  Corporals 
- — William  Dunn,  ist,  Thomas  Payne,  2tl,  Eliphalet  Roan,  3d, 
George  Doxen,  4th. 

Privates — Acres,  Larkin ;  Aldridge,  Joshua ;  Anderson, 
James;  Attsman,  Henry;  Baker,  Lewis;  Ball,  Henry;  Baxter, 
James  ;  Bourne,  John  ;  Bowman,  John  ;  Brockman,  Aaron ; 
Brooner,  Davis ;  Brown,  Samuel ;  Buskitt,  David ;  Busley,  Wil- 
liam; Butler,  Wm.  W. ;  Castle,  John;  Clark,  James;  Cromwell, 
Oliver;  Davis,  Jarred;  Dunnegan,  David;  Easley,  Obediah; 
Fisher,  James;  Frazier,  Jeremiah;  George,  Ellis;  Green,  James; 
Green,  John  ;  Hampton,  Thos. ;  Hendricks,  Michael ;  Hitt,  Elias  ; 
Houser,  Isaac ;  Hughes,  Thomas ;  liunter,  John ;  Hynes,  Alex- 
ander R. ;  Keen,  John;  Lewis,  Adam;  Lockhart,  Silas;  Master- 
son,  Moses;  May,  Solomon;  McAtee,  Abednego;  McCune, 
Samuel;  McDaniel,  Alexander;  McDougal,  James;  Mifford, 
Joseph  ;  Moon,  Zachariah  ;  Morris,  Jesse  ;  Morrow,  James  ;  Moss, 
Pleasant ;  Myers,  Jacob ;  Mutter,  William ;  Ritter,  Michael ; 
Romans,  John  ;  Ronyan,  Francis  ;  Rutherford,  Archibald  ;  Ruth- 
erford, Jesse ;  Rynolds,  Samuel ;  Sandusky,  Jacob ;  Scanlan, 
Travis;  Scott,  Matthew  T. ;  Sergeant,  Wm.  B.;  Shannon,  Jacob; 


Hldory  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky.  125 

Slirewsberry,  Nathaniel ;  Simpson,  Nathaniel ;  Skevvens,  Clay- 
ton ;  vSpencer,  Charles ;  Starr,  Christopher ;  Starr.  John  ;  Ateward, 
John ;  Tapp.  Nelson ;  Taylor,  Conrad ;  Twindle,  Alexander ; 
Triplett,  Fielding ;  True,  John  ;  Truit,  John  ;  Ungles,  Hillery ; 
Wallace.  Thomas ;  Waters.  John  ;  Williams,  Lewis ;  Williamson, 
Richard;  Wilson,  James;  Wilson,  William. 

The  subjoined  names  were  taken  from  recent  transcripts  fur- 
nished by  the  War  Department : 

Baum.  Whitfield;  Baines.  Zachariah  ;  Beeler,  Henry;  Brown, 
Joel ;  Bunds,  Geo.  S. ;  Burchum,  Jos. ;  Corn,  James  ;  Corn.  Hiram  ; 
Davis.  James  ;  Damele.  Spencer  ;  Dixon.  Geo. ;  Dornell,  William  ; 
Erwin,  Stephen ;  Fitzjarrell.  Silas ;  Fizer.  Jacol) ;  Gardner. 
Francis  ;  Hanes.  Simeon  ;  Jack,  Andrew  :  Kendrick,  Michael ; 
Lee.  Achilles,  musician;  Lowry,  Stephen;  McClain,  James;  AIc- 
Alillen.  William;  MofTford.  James;  Overtums,  Garland;  Parish, 
Price;  Pierson.  Allen;  Paxton,  Joseph;  Pilcher,  Shadrach ; 
Rankins,  John;  Right,  Jonathan;  Singleton,  Daniel;  Smith, 
John ;  Stewart,  Gehew ;  Stewart.  William ;  Walker.  David  T. ; 
sergeant;  Walker,  Matthew;  Wallace,  Robert;  Wallem,  John; 
Wilsom,  Gabriel. 

River  Raisin. 

General  Hull,  in  conunand  of  the  Ohio  troops,  on  the  i6th  of 
August,  1 812,  surrendered  at  Detroit.  His  army  composing  the 
army  of  the  northwest,  together  with  Detroit,  had  been  turned 
over  to  the  British.  Hiis  conduct  aroused  the  keenest  indigna- 
tion. No  sooner  liad  the  news  reached  Kentucky  than  all  the 
volunteers  that  the  state  and  government  desired  pressed  forward 
at  once  and  offered  themselves  for  the  purpose  of  wi])ing  out  the 
disgrace  wdiich  General  Hull  had  inflicted  upon  the  American 
army. 

The  two  troops  from  Jessamine  county  in  ilu-  regiment  of 
Colonel  Lewis,  marched  from  Cinciiuiati  towards  Detroit  and 
finally  reached  Fort  Winchester.  Here  their  baggage  was  trans- 
ferred to  canoes  upon  tlie  Maumee  river.  The  road  was  difificult 
and  Ic^ng.  The  troops,  starting-  from  home  with  their  simimer 
clothes,  had  not  yet  been  ])rovided  with  their  winter  outfit,  and  this 
amid  the  fierce  climate  of  the  northwest  presented  most  serious 


COURT  HOUSK,  NICHOLASVILLE. 


Ilistori/  I  if  Jt'smmine  County,  Kentucky.  127 

difficulties.  In  a  little  while  the  provisions  failed  and  for  fourteen 
days  the  Kenluck)'  troops  subsisted  on  hickory  roots,  elm  bark 
and  the  beef  of  a  few  cattle,  which  were  killed  in  a  half-starved 
state.  In  the  midst  of  the  winter  a  sui)])ly  of  warm  cl(jthin_Q;'  was 
received,  and  this  ^ave  the  troojis  new  courage  and  animation. 

A  small  force  of  regulars  had  been  united  with  the  Kentucki- 
ans  in  tins  march.  The  Kentuckians  received  their  winter 
clothing  first,  and  it  was  (|uite  a  while  before  tlu'  regulars  were 
supplied,  and,  with  the  chi\alr\-  and  generosity  wliicli  marked  men 
of  that  |)erio(l.  tliese  gallant  Kentuckians  demanded  that  the  regu- 
lars shtnild  l)e  c\em])ted  from  camp  dutv,  and  all  military  serv- 
ice required  should  be  performed   bv  them. 

(  )n  the  Stii  of  January  they  were  ordered  to  march  to  the 
rapids.  Upon  reaching  this  point  the  officers  were  informed  that 
in  the  village  called  French  Town,  the  inhabitants  were  terrified 
at  the  approach  of  the  English  and  the  Indians.  French  Towi^ 
is  on  the  River  Raisin,  a  small  stream  emptying  its  waters  in 
Lake  Erie.  (ieneral  Winchester  promi)tl}-  sent  forward  Col- 
onels Lewis  and  Allen,  with  six  hundred  men.  The}'  reached 
the  River  Raisin  on  the  i8th  of  January,  1813,  and  met  the  com- 
bined English  and  Indian  force.  aI)out  500  strong,  under  Majoi 
Reynolds,  of  the  Canadian  militia,  and  drove  them  from  the  place. 
The  people  of  hVench  Town  were  delighted  witli  tlie  result.  A 
few  day.5  before  they  had  feared  the  tomahawk  of  the  Indian,  and 
now  they  rejoiced  at  the  presence  of  their  Kentucky  defenders. 
Those  who  hafl  been  assigned  to  marcli  with  Colonel  Lewis's  regi- 
ment were  delighted  that  glory  was  placed  in  their  grasp,  while 
those  who  remained  behind  felt  as  if  a  great  sorrow  had  come  into 
their  lives. 

On  the  21st  of  |anuar\-,  1813.  (ieneral  Winchester  moved  for- 
ward and  reinforced  Colonels  Lewis  and  Allen.  This  reinforce- 
ment consisted  of  300  regtilars,  conunanded  by  Colonel  Wells. 
Colonel  Lewis,  who  was  an  experienced  officer  in  Indian  serv- 
ice, had  posted  his  troops  in  an  enclosed  garden,  with  an  oi)en 
field  on  his  right.  Colonel  Wells  outranked  Lewis  as  an  officer 
of  the  regular  army,  as  Lewis  was  only  a  vtdunteer.  and  he  de- 
manded the  position  on  liis  right.  This  jilaced  (  olonel  Wells  in 
the  open  field,  wliiK-  Lewis  and  All'-n  still  remained  in  the  en- 
closed garden,  with   a  |)icket  fence  as  tlieir  ])rotection.     Colonel 


128  History  of  Je!fsamine  Countij,  Kentucky. 

Lewis  strongly  insisted  that  Colonel  Wells  should  be  placed  in 
the  same  garden  on  his  left,  but  General  Winchester,  yielding  to 
the  exactions  of  the  regular  army  officer,  ordered  that  Colonel 
Wells  be  placed  in  the  open  field  on  the  right. 

General  Proctor,  who  was  in  command  of  the  British  at  Mai- 
den, pushed  forward  with  all  his  force.  He  prepared  for  an  as- 
sault on  the  dawn  of  the  22d.  It  was  hardly  light,  when,  with 
his  artillery  covering  his  right,  and  both  his  flanks  protected  by 
Indian  marksmen,  he  advanced  upon  the  Americans.  But  no 
sooner  had  he  reached  within  musket  shot  of  the  Kentuckians, 
than  he  was  met  by  such  galling  and  incessant  a  fire  tliat  part  of 
his  army  fell  in  confusion.  Discovering  the  exposed  position  of 
the  army  under  Wells,  the  British  general  rushed  forward  all  his 
force  against  him.  A'olley  after  volley  of  musketry  broke  the 
stillness  of  the  morning  air.  and  the  whoop  of  the  Indians  and  the 
cheers  of  the  Kentuckians  sounded  on  every  side.  But  the  300 
regulars  could  not  withstand  the  assault  of  the  entire  British  force. 
After  the  battle  had  lasted  twenty  minutes.  General  Winchester 
saw  ill  at  he  iriust  relieve  W^ells  and  place  him  within  the  en- 
closure occupied  by  General  Lewis.  The  moment  an  order  was 
give!!  for  this  purpose  the  British  and  Indians  redoubled  their 
forces  and  pressed  the  Americans  so  hard  that  the  line  fell  in  dis- 
order. A  panic  seized  the  regulars  and  they  rushed  towards  the 
river  to  cross  the  rapids,  where  the  remainder  of  the  Kentucky 
army  was  in  camp.  The  British  and  Indians  pursued  them,  toma- 
haw  king  and  scalping  all  who  came  in  their  way. 

General  W'inchester.  although  incompetent,  was  brave.  He 
endeavored  to  reform  his  men.  Colonels  Lewis  and  Allen  each 
took  a  company  of  fifty  men.  rushed  out  of  their  enclosures, 
and  did  their  best  to  check  the  defeat  and  rout.  Nothing  would 
avail ;  nothing  could  prevent  the  disaster.  Colonel  Allen  was 
killed  and  General  W^inchester  and  Colonel  Lewis  taken  prison- 
ers. The  two  Kentucky  companies  that  had  come  with  the  regu- 
lars were  swept  away.  It  was  here  that  the  Jessamine  troops  in- 
terposed \\\xh  superb  courage  and  bravery.  Captain  Price  was 
killed,  together  with  a  large  number  of  his  company.  Some  fell 
by  rifle  balls,  some  were  scalped,  others  were  left  to  perish  in  the 
cold. 

In  the  fight  tlms  far  Proctor  had  lost  one-fourth  of  his  force. 


Ilidory  of  JeKfamlne  County,  Kentucky.  129 

Init  he  was  delighted  to  know  tliat  General  Winchester  was 
among  the  prisoners.  Sending  for  General  W'incliester  he  re- 
counted the  savageness  of  the  Indians,  and  the  difficulty  which 
he  would  have  in  restraining  theni  if  tlie  l)attle  was  continued. 
He  said  that  he  could  set  fire  to  every  house  in  the  village  and  this 
he  would  probably  have  to  do  and  that  as  a  result  the  innocent 
women  and  children  would  be  massacred  by  the  Indians.  He 
then  asked  General  Winchester  to  direct  his  men  to  surrender. 
Genj^ral  Winchester  consented  to  advise  surrender.  l)ut  when 
the  message  was  carried  to  the  Kenttickians  and  handed  to  Major 
Madison,  who  was  the  ranking  officer  after  the  capture  of  Colonel 
Lewis,  informing  him  that  he  and  tlie  Kentuckians  with  him 
had  been  surrendered  by  General  Winchester,  ^Vlajor  Madison 
refused  to  recognize  General  Winchester's  authority  to  conuiiand 
his  surrender  while  a  jiriscjner.  and  declared  his  determinaiion  to 
die  witli  the  Kentuckians  unless  favorable  terms  of  stirrender 
were  given. 

At  last  General  Proctc^r  entered  into  an  agreement  that  all 
])rivate  j^roj^erty  should  be  respected,  tliat  sleds  should  be  sent  the 
next  morning  to  remove  the  sick  and  v.ounded  to  Amherstburg, 
that  the  prisoners  should  be  guarded  from  the  savages  and  thai 
the  side  arms  of  the  officers  should  be  restored  to  them  next 
morning.  ]\Iajor  Madison  finally  did  reluctantly  surrender.  He 
Avas  induced  to  do  this  by  the  failure  of  annuunition. 

That  night  the  ])risoners,  600  in  number,  were  carried  to  Am- 
herstburg. They  were  put  in  a  wood-yard,  exposed  to  a  pelting 
rain,  without  sheds  or  blaid'cets  or  fire.  Instead  of  the  sleds, 
V.  hich  were  to  come  for  the  wounded,  came  200  savages,  who 
rushed  in  the  liouses  where  the  wx)unded  lay  and  killed  them, 
scalped  them  and  set  the  houses  on  fire.  In  the  smouldering 
ashes  the  jjunes  of  64  men  were  consumed. 

The  bodies  of  the  Americans  were  denied  sepulture  and  were 
left  a  prey  to  the  animals  cjf  the  village.  Afterwards  thev  were 
])laced  in.  the  ground  and  the  following  sunnner,  when  the  Ameri- 
can army  passed  the  same  way,  their  bones  were  again  ex])osed. 
Thev  were  l)uried  once  more,  but  there  went  u])  from  the  heart 
of  every  Kentuckian  tlie  stirring  cry  of  "Remember  the  Raisin." 

The  night  beft)re  this  awful  battle  Ca])tain  Price  had  written 
to  his  father-in-law  .     1  le  had  a  i)remonition  of  his  death. 
9 


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History  of  Jessa) nine  County,  Kentucky.  l.'U 

Capt.  James  C.  Price  was  the  father  of  the  late  Kleber  F. 
Price,  of  Jessamine  county,  \vh(3  died  at  liis  residence,  above  Xich- 
olasville,  in  i<S64.  The  accompanyins^'  letter  of  Captain  Price  was 
addressed  to  his  wife,  and  was,  doubtless,  the  last  letter  he  ever 
wrote  to  his  family,  lie  was  killed  in  the  battle  of  Raisin,  January 
22,  1813.  He  was  a  eallant  and  chivalrous  soldier  and  a  man  ot 
noble  and  ur^nerous  impulses.  His  body  was  never  recog'nized 
and  liis  remains,  with  those  of  his  compatriots,  wiio  died  in  that 
dreadful  conflict,  rest  in  unmarked  graves,  in  the  soil  of  the  state 
they  died  to  redeem  and  defend.  He  command'ed  the  Jessamine 
Pdues.  which  was  one  of  the  nrost  noted  uiilitarA-  companies  in 
its  day.  The  uniform  was  blue,  with  light  facings,  and  was  con- 
sidered, in  those  days,  a  marvel  of  beauty. 

"In  Camp,  near  Raisin  Riv^er, 
"Jan.  16,  1813. 

"Dear  Susan:  I  have  only  time  to  infonu  you  that  we  e.x- 
"pect  to  have  a  battle  tomorrow  with  the  llritish  and  Indians. 
"On  the  eve  of  battle  I  have  believed  it  proper  to  address  you 
"these  lines.  As  you  are  aware  that  the  object  nearest  to  my 
"heart  is  your  welfare  and  that  of  my  children,  and  so  far  as  I 
"have  been  able  1  have  provided  everything  in  my  power  for 
"your  comfort  and  that  of  my  children.     I  feel  in  no  unhappv  # 

"mood  about  my  girl  children;  J  know  they  are  in  your  coni- 
"pany  at  all  hours  of  the  day.  You  know  where  they  visit  and 
"who  are  their  associates.  My  only  son.  1  feel  a  great  interest 
"in  his  future  life  and  welfare.  ICarly  impressions  are  lasting 
"and  often.  ])erha])s  always,  tend  to  give  a  permanent  cast  to  the 
"leading  principles  of  the  heart,  and  to  the  general  character  of 
"the  luind.  Teach  n\\  boy  to  love  tnuh.  tt)  speak  truth  at  all 
"times.  He  nuist  not  be  allowed  to  associate  with  children  or 
"other  persons  who  indulge  in  swearing  or  misrepresentations. 
"He  nuist  be  tatight  to  bear  in  mind  that  'an  lionest  man  is  the 
"noblest  work  of  God;"  he_  nuist  l)e  rigidly  lionest  in  his  dealings. 
"He  must  be  taught  to  attend  cliurcli  every  Sabbath.  Xever 
"allrjw  liini  to  run  about  on  Sabbath  days,  fishing.  Teach  my  son 
"the  habits  of  industry.  Industry  and  virtue  are  twin  brothers, 
"but  indolence  and  vice  are  closely  connected.  Tndolence  leads  to 
"everv  vice  and  everv  other  evil.     Tndustrv  leads  to  virtue  and 


132  Hidory  of  Jei^mmine  Countij,  Kentnckij. 

"every  other  g-ood.  Not  a  day  must  be  lost  in  teaching  him  how 
"to  work,  and  tlie  great  princijjles  of  our  holy  religion  must  be 
"on  all  occasions  impressed  on  his  mind.  It  mav  be  possible  I 
"may  fall  in  battle  and  my  only  boy  nuist  know  that  his  father, 
"next  to  Tiod.  l:)ves  his  country,  and  is  now  risking  his  life  in  de- 
"fending  that  country  against  a  barbarous  and  cruel  enemy.  Be 
"sure  and  teach  my  son.  w^ith  Pope,  to  say  and  feel  that — 

"\'ice  is  a  monster  of  such  frightful  mien 
"As  to  be  hated   needs  but  to  be  seen. 
"Yet  seen,  too  oft,  familiar  with  her  face, 
"W'e  first  endure,  then  pity,  then  embrace. 

"Teach  him  tliese  lin"es  of  the  great  poet;  they  will  do  him 
"good  when  he  grows  older.  Pray  for  me  that  vou  mav  be  with 
"me  once  more. 

"Your  affectionate  husband. 

"James  C.  Price. 

^'Susanah  Price, 

"Near  Nicholasville.  Ky. 

"Post  Script. — The  snow  is  two  feet  deep,  the  crust  is  very 
"hard  and  we  walk  over  it  and  ride  upon  it  on  horseback.  We 
"often  sleep  under  such  deep  snow,  we  cover  tip  in  our  blankets 
"and  we  sleep  warm  during  the  night.  Eb.  has  been  sick,  btit  is 
"now  on  dut}-.  "J.  C.  P." 

In  Camp.  Near  Newport,  Ky. 
February  20,  1813. 
?\frs.  ?\lar\-  Price  : 

^'ou  will,  long  before  this  reaches  you,  have  received  the  pain- 
ful intelligence  c^f  the  death  of  your  brave  and  gallant  son,  Capt. 
James  C.  Price,  who  was  killed  and  scalped  by  the  Indians  on 
the  morning  of  January  22(1.  Pie  had  been  engaged  in  a 
severe  skirmish  early  on  the  morning  of  the  17th.  At  ten  o'clock 
he  was  ordered  by  General  Winchester  to  bring  in  all  the  wounded 
men  and  carr\-  them  in  all  the  sleds  beyond  the  reach  of  the  In- 
dians. In  the  discharge  of  this  duty  Captain  Price  and  myself,  at 
the  head  of  fifty  men  of  our  company,  w^ere  attacked  by  a  large 
bod\'  of  Indians,  who  had  concealed  themselves  in  the  timber,  on 
the  river  bank.     The  Indians  had  succeeded  in  breakimj  the  crust 


History  of  JooiamUie  Coiintt/,  Kentuckij.  133 

of  the  deep  snow  a  mile  al)ove  our  camp,  on  the  river,  which  was 
the  only  road  through   wliicli   we   could   reach  the  command  of 
General  Winchester,  who  had  retreated  about  three  miles,  and 
was  awaiting  the  arrival  of  General  Harrison.     As  soon  as  the 
Indians  opened  a  heavy  fire  on  us  we  returned  their  fire  and  con- 
tinued a  rapid  retreat  to  the  main  arm\-,  under  General  W'inches- 
ter.  over  the  only  road  on  whicli  the  Indians,  under  their  chief.  Te- 
cumseh,  had  early  on  the  morning  of  the  i8th  succeeded  in  break- 
ing the  thick  crust  of  the  snow,  which  was  two  feet  deep.      In 
this  trap  we  were  caught.      In  getting  away  from  the  river  nianv 
of  our  men   were  killed,  and  scalped  before  we  got  out  of  the 
deep  snow.     Captain  Price  was  shot  in  ilie  right  shoulder  by  a 
nuisket  ball,  which  disabled  his  right  arm:  he  was  attacked  by 
three  Indians:  he  ran  his  sword  through  the  heart  <jf  one  of  them. 
])ut  was  soon  overpowered,  killed  and   scaljjed.     Eight    of    our 
company,  besides  Captain  Price,  were  brutally  massacred:  more 
than  tliirty  got  away  and  reached  the  conunand  of  General  Win- 
chester in  safety.     1  had  five  bullet  holes  in  my  hat  and  clothing. 
The  force  of  General  Winchester  was  350  and  we  were  attacked 
again  early  on  the  morning  of  January  22<\  by  a  large  force  of 
British  and  Indians.     We  were  completely  routed  and  all  of  our 
army  taken  prisoners.     General  Proctor,  the  British  conmiander, 
suffered  the  savages  to  kill  and  scalp  more  than  twenty  of  our  sol- 
diers after  we  had  surrendered.     .Vbout  twelve  o'clock  we  were 
marched  off.     Dr.  Todd  and  Dr.  Augustine  Bower  of  our  regi- 
ment were  left  with  the  sick  and  wounded.     About  sunrise  the 
next  day,  instead  of  sleds  coming  to  convey  the  sick  and  wounded 
to  Maiden,  a  large  body  of  Indians  niade  their  appearance,  paint- 
ed black  and  red.  The\-  began  to  ])lun(ler,  and  the  sick  and  wound- 
ed were  scalped.   (  )ne  Indian  had  the  seal]:)  of  Captain  I'rice.    1.  be- 
ing next  in  conunand  of  the  company  from  Jessamine,  the  sav- 
age showed  the  scalp  to  me.  but  1  knew  he  was  lying  for  Captain 
Price  was  very  baldheaded  on  the  top  of  his  head.     Tlie  few  who 
were  able  to  be  sent  to  Maiden  were  saved,  but  all  who  gave  out 
were  killed  on  the  way  and  were  Ictt  lying  on  the   road  in  the 
deep  snow.     General  Proctor,  after  he  had  ])roniised  us  protec- 
tion bef(M-e  our  surrender,  nexer  named,  nor  did  he  ])ay  any  atten- 
tion to  our  sick  and  helpless  soldiers.     General  Wincliester  and 
Major  Madison  repeatedly  told  liim  of  it.  but  he  ])aid  no  atten- 


if 


I  i 


NICHOLASVILLE  CHRISTIAN  CHURCH. 


HiMory  of  Jessamine  County,  Keniachii  135 

tion  to  them  whatever.  Capt.  ElHott,  a  cowardly  British  officer, 
said  to  Major  Madison  and  Winchester,  in  my  licaring,  that  "the 
Indians  were  very  excellent  siirj^eons  and  ought  to  kill  all  the 
officers  and  men."  I  have,  as  you  well  know,  passed  through  a 
terrible  winter  in  suffering  for  our  country.  We  have  all  been 
exchanged,  and  will  be  at  our  homes  the  tenth  of  March.  I  re- 
joice that  we  have  done  our  duty  to  God  and  our  country,  l^be- 
nezer  is  now  lieutenant  in  my  place.     Look  for  us  on  the  tenth. 

Your  friend  and  neighbor. 

William  Caldwell, 
Acting  Captain  of  the  Blues. 


Conduct  of  the  Kentuckians  at  Raisin. 

The  conduct  of  the  Kentucky  trooi)s  under  their  own  officers 
evinced  the  highest  order  of  courage  and  gallantry.  They  were 
worthy  of  the  state  whence  they  came  and  worth\-  of  all  the  ex- 
pectations of  those  who  had  sent  them  to  this  war. 

General  Winchester,  in  speaking  of  the  Kentucky  troops,  said  : 

"On  them  too  much  praise  can  not  be  bestowed.  Assailed 
1)y  numbers  greatly  superior,  supported  l)y  >ix  ]:)ieces  of  artillery 
constantly  employed,  tiey  gallantly  defended  themselves  with 
small  arms  alone  for  over  four  hours  of  constant  battle.  No 
troops  ever  behaved  with  more  cool  and  determined  bravery,  from 
the  commanding  officer  (Idwu  to  the  connnon  soldier.  There  was 
scarcely  a  single  abandonment  of  dutw  .\t  last,  when  their 
ammunition  was  nearh'  exhausted  and  tliey  were  siuToimded  bv 
the  enemy,  greatlx'  sn])eri()r  in  nunil)ers  and  the  means  of  war, 
they  surrendered  witli  a  reluctance  rt>rel\-  to  be  found  on  similar 
occasions." 

T  lad  llie  regulars  tmder  Colonel  Wells  sustained  themselves  as 
did  the  \-olunteers  under  Lewis  and  Allen,  the  awful  tragedy  of 
the  Raisin  A\ould  lia\e  been  avoided,  and  instead  of  defeat  and 
massacre  and  broken  faith,  there  woidd  have  been  a  glorious 
victory.  The  Kentuckians  beat  t)ff  I'rocliM'  and  his  Lidians. 
"At  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning."  sa\s  Ibitler,  in  his  historv, 
"Proctor,  finding  it  useless  to  sacrifice  his  men  in  a  vain  attempt 
to  dislodge  this  little  band  of  heroes,  withdrew  his  forces  to  the 
heights,  intending  to  abandon  the  contest  or  to  await  the  rettn-n 


136  History  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky. 

of  the  Indians  wlio  had  pnrsned  the  retreating'  party,  'idle  loss 
sustained  1)\'  our  men  was  inconsiderable  and  when  I'roctor  with- 
drew they  employed  the  leisure  it  afforded  them  to  take  breakfast 
at  their  posts." 

Their  surrender  was  only  obtained  by  Proctor  taking  ad- 
vantage of  ( jeneral  Winchester's  capture  and  by  basel\'  misrepre- 
senting a  message  which  he  had  sent  t(j  these  Kentucky  troops 
within  the  enclosure. 


Civil  War. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  Civil  War,  the  people  of  Jessa- 
mine count\  were  divided  in  sentiment,  and  many  of  its  citizens 
took  up  arms  both  in  the  h^deral  and  Confederate  armies. 

Companv  K.  of  the  20th  Regiment,  Kentucky  Infantry,  com- 
manded by  Col.  Sanders  I5ruce,  was  almost  altogether  composed 
of  Jessamine  county  men,  and  thev  were  in  the  service  three 
years. 

Andrew  AIcCam])bell,  captain,  resigned  June,  1862:  Charles 
R.  \\'est  was  elected  captain  May  24,  1863,  served  three  years; 
George  W.  IJaker,  first  lieutenant,  resigned  in  1862;  Ben  Thorn- 
burg,  Joseph  Lewis,  afterward  A\'illiam  L.  Steele;  Samuel  M. 
Anderson  was  made  first  lieutenant  September  29,  1862;  Allen  A. 
Rurton  and  S.  T.  Corn,  now  of  Corlinville,  111.,  were  first  and 
second  lieutenants  ;  W^illiam  Plumblee,  first  sergeant :  Levi  Rey- 
nolds, second  sergeant ;  C)liver  Davis,  first  corporal ;  Jonathan 
White,  second  corporal. 

Xames  of   Men  of  the  Company: 
x\lbertson,  Adam;  IJailey.  E.  Hayden  ;  l^)ailey,  Robt. ;  Baker, 
Benedict;    liarnes,  J3avid ;    Barnes,   (ieo.  \\  . ;     Ih-ennan,  John 
Bright.  I'enj.;  I'.rown,  S.  S. ;  r>rumtield,  James;  Bruner,  Tilford 
B>runer,  M  ;   Burch,  James;  Burgess,  W'm.;  Coleman,  h>ancis 
Courtney,  Jno.  F. ;  Crow,  Zebedee  ;  Dean,  Win.;  Dobson,  Elias 
Dobson,  Pleasant ;  Easley,  Jno.  T. ;  English,  W.  T. ;  h^ain,  jno.  K. 
Foster,   Frank;  Foster,  James;  (jifford,  Jabez;  Gilride,    Thos. 
Creen,  Corydon  B.;  Henderson,  S.  \I.;  House,  Benj.;  Hocker- 
smith,  Edward;  Howard,  James  W. ;  Hunter.  Jos.  A\'. ,    Hersey 
Tno. ;    Land,     James;    Land,   Robt.;    Letcher,  Alex.;    IMcKane 


Hi'^for/i  of  Jeasainine  Comilif.  Kentucky.  137 

James;  .McMiirt\,  Ixobl.  T..;  Masters,  Frank:  Masters.  Henry 
W.;  :\Iur])hy,  tluis.;  I'liillips,  T)r.  II.  H.;  i'lunibly.  Wiley; 
Preston,  Alfred;  PreslDn,  Samuel;  Ramsey,  Samuel;  Ramsey, 
Jno.  V.\  Reynolds.  llenr\-;  Reynolds,  James;  Reynolds,  W.  H.; 
Rhorer,  Hardin;  Riiey.  Henr}' ;  Sharp,  Thos. ;  Short.  James  M.; 
Thornhro,  Rohi.;  Trcdway,  David;  Tredway,  Wm.;  Turpin, 
Jno.;  Walters.   lUulord;  Walters.  ( ieo. ;   W'oods,  Jess. 

riie  followiui^-  is  a  list  of  tlie  colored  soldiers  who  served  in 
the  United  States  Army  in  Company  L.  l^fth  Cavalry,  Capt.  J. 
S.  Caldwell,   liowen's  Regiment,  J.  S.   I'>risl)iu's   brigade: 

Allen.  Dudley;  Anderson,  JefTerson  ;    Kallard,   Wilson;   Bal- 
ard.  (ieo. ;  Berry.  Chas. ;  Rowen,  James;   liaggs.  Geo.;    Burley, 
]'^-ank  ;     llerrx-,     T'^^dmund  ;     Bell,    A.    Travis;     lirown.     Richard 
B>rc)wn.   I  )avi<I  ;    lirown,  Sidney-;    lirown,  Sand\- ;     Howies.  Jack 
Blackburn.  Chas.;     Hush,  Jos.;     lUack,    Jacob;    Brown.    Perry 
lir\ant,  (ireen;    lUirnside.  Jno.;  Camj)bell.  Alexander;    Carter 
Jos.;  Carson.  W'm.;  Clay,  .Ambrose;    Clay,  Henson ;    Coleman 
-Samuel;  Davis,   David;   Dennw    lien;     Douglas,   Xed.  ;    Favors 
Tos.;,Frv.  Louis;  j-'rench,  fohn  :  ( iable.  (ireen;  (irodon,  Marion 
Dr.  Garnett ;  ( latewood,  Thos.;  ( leorge.  Lewis;  Garvin,  Henry 
(icss.  Frank;    Flamilton,     llenr\-;   Hamilt(Mi,   Perry ;.  Hamilton. 
Sanford  ;  Hanson.  Robt.;   Howard.  Adam,  (died    1882.  99  years 
old);  Hood,  Daniel ;  Htmt.  Jack;  Jackson.  .\le\.;  King,  Hiram; 
King.     Milo;     Kyle,     (  )range ;     McConnell.     (jeo.;     McDowell. 
Bacchus;  Mason,  Robt.;  Massie.  Jos.;  Martin,  lulward  ;  Moran. 
Anderson;  (  )l(lhani,    Thos.;  Overstreet,   Burd  ;  (hvsley,  T^)ranch  ; 
Peniston,  James;  I'riest,  Ste])hen  :  Ridgele\ ,  Dick  :  .Seott.  .\lfred  ; 
Scott.  Charles;  .Scott.  King;  .Sniitli,  Jos.;  .Smith,  Win.;  Si)illman. 
-Vlex.;  .Stout.  Isaac;  .Sttiart,  Jolui  ;  Tliouias,  James;  Thoniitson, 
Frank;  Walker.  Fdnumd  :   Walker.  Whittield. 


Confederate  Monument. 

riie  handsomest  public  moniunent  in  Jessamine  county  is 
that  erected  b\-  tlie  Jessamine  Confederate  AU'Uiorial  .\ssocia- 
tion.  to  the  Confederates  bm-ied  in  .\ia])le  Grove  cemeterx".  Xich- 
olasville.  This  nionument  reflects  great  credit  on  the  Confed- 
erate soldiers  and  friends  wlio  built   it.      The   work   was  started 


CONFEDERATK  MONTMHNT. 


H'ldory  of  Jesaamine  Coinity,  Kent  nek;/.  13!i 

in  1880:  the  niommient  was  dedicated  on  the  i3tli  of  June.  1896, 
and  stands  in  the  court-house  yard.  The  platform  was  erected 
in  tlie  court-house  yard  as  the  ])lace  for  the  decHcatory  ceremo- 
nies. Special  trains  were  run  on  all  the  roads  entering  the  city,  and 
the  delegation  from  Louisville,  headed  by  Col.  Bennett  H.  Young, 
brought  the  largest  number  of  persons.  The  city  of  Xicholas- 
ville  royally  entertained  all  those  who  came  to  unite  in  the  cere- 
monies. At  one  o'clock  they  began.  Dr.  Charles  Mann,  presi- 
dent of  the  association.  ])resided.  Ca])t.  John  11.  Leathers  and 
Col.  Bennett  H.  Young,  of  Louisville,  were  the  orators  of  the  day. 
The  monument  was  unvailed  b\'  Miss  Josephine  Mann  and  Master 
Lawson  ( )xle}',  of  Cynthiana,  son  of  Jefferson  ()xle\-,  the  first 
president  of  the  association.  The  exercises  were  opened  with 
pfayer  by  Rev.  F.  W.  Noland,  a  member  of  the  Eighth  Kentucky 
Confederate  Cavalry,  and  the  Confederate  Glee  Club  of  Louis- 
ville, sang  a  beautiful  and  appro]>riate  selection  ;  the  closing  song, 
"Tread  Lightly,  Ye  Comrades,"  produced  a  profound  impres- 
sion upon  the  audience.  The  history  of  the  work  of  the  asso- 
ciation, in  ccjnnection  with  the  monument,  was  read  by  I'rof.  A. 
X.  (iordon.  its  secretary  and  treasurer. 

In  1862.  Dr.  Charles  Mann,  then  a  surgeon  in  the  Confed- 
erate Army,  was  ordered  l>y  Gen.  Kirby  Smith,  to  gather  and  care 
for  the  sick  and  woimded  who  had  been  left  about  Camp  Dick 
Kobinson.  Alxjut  eighty  of  these,  he  brought  in  ]^n'vate  convey- 
ances to  Xicliolasville.  where  they  were  nursed  and  cared  for  bv 
the  ladies  of  the  conminnit\  :  lliose  who  died  there  were  buried  in 
the  Xicholas\-ille  cemetery.  After  the  war.  Dr.  .Mann,  with  the 
aid  of  James  S.  AU  Kenzie  and  Charles  (  )l(lhani,  gathered  otlier 
Confederate  dead,  including  those  who  had  l)een  l)uried  in  tlie 
Federal  cemetery  at  Camp  Xelson.  and  brought  them  to  the 
cemetery  at  Xicholasville,  where  a  lot  had  been  gfenerously  do- 
nated  by  the  Cemetery  Company  for  that  ])ur])ose.  .  .   .  .   .  . 

The  original  headboards,  liaving  rotted  down,  were  replaced 
by  Col.  liennett  1  I ,  \<)ung.  and  these,  in  turn,  by  beautiful  granite 
tablets,  whirli  now  mark  tlu-ni 

Jefterson  (  )xley,  long  a  leading  niercliant  in  .Xicliolasville, 
and  as  true,  hra\e  and  chi\alrons  a  soldier  as  ever  wore  the  gray, 
did  as  much  as,  if  not  more  than,  any  one  man  to  secure  the  funds 
necessary  to  construct   the  nionumi-nt.      lie  died   when   success 


14U  Hidorij  (if  Jt:<.'«(in'uie  Coioify,  Kodiirkij. 

was  in  sight,  but  before  he  saw  the  work  acconipHshed.  His 
comrades,  and  those  whose  dead  the  nionnnient  commemorates, 
will  l()n<^  keep  green  his  memorw 

I  )r.  Chas.  Mann,  the  president,  was  the  surgeon  of  the  Fifth 
Kentucky  Confederate  Infantry,  and  rendered  distinguished  serv- 
ices in  the  Arm\-  of  Tennessee.  He  was  frequently  detailed  to 
important  positions,  and  returned  from  the  war  with  highest  com- 
mendations of  his  skill  and  efficiency  as  a  surgeon  and  man,  since 
which  time  he  has  practiced  his  profession  in  Jessamine  countv. 

Prof.  A.  X.  (iordon,  a  moving  spirit  in  the  erection  of  the 
monument,  was  a  brave  and  gallant  soldier  in  the  Confederacy, 
for  many  years  the  brilliant  leader  of  educational  work  in  the 
county,  as  princi])al  of  Dethel  Academy,  and  now  principal  of 
Allegan  Academy  for  IJoys,  near  Lexington. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  Confederate  dead  buried  in  the 
cemetery,  in  whose  honor  the  monument  was  erected  : 

John  ^lartin,  30th  Alabama  ;  A.  L.  Hale,  39th  North  Carolina  ; 
Henry  Rice,  420!  Georgia;  W.  H.  Wallace,  6th  Florida;  J.  E.  D. 
2^Iorris,  6th  Florida ;  W.  J.  Hale,  40th  (jeorgia ;  \V.  K.  Carter,  9th 
Georgia;  Peter  Guin,  C.  S.  A.;  W.  L.  Cooley.  2d  Kentucky;  B. 
F.  Kernan,  6th  Kentucky ;  Eugene  Dickson,  42d  Georgia ;  Capt. 
Sanmel  Scott,  Louisiana;  C.  R.  Richardson,  C.  S.  A.;  \\\  H. 
Yarbrough,  ist  Alabama;  J.  W.  W'asham,  j/th  ^^lississippi ;  W. 
E.  Copeland,  3rd  Alabama;  John  A.  Bass,  C.  S.  A.;  .S.  J\L  Wil- 
son, 53d  Georgia;  D.  Campbell,  63d  A'irginia  ;  J.  R.  Cox,  59th 
Georgia;  J.  Brock,  18th  Georgia;  W.  AL  Boge,  r6th  Georgia;  O. 
W.  White.  41st  Alal)ama  ;  L.  Johnson,  6th  Georgia  ;  J.  A.  P)Owles. 
59th  Georgia;  J.  B.  Hale,  2d  Georgia;  E.  Willoughby,  1st 
Georgia;  Geo.  W.  Tral)ue,  C.  S.  A.;  H.  Owenby,  39th  North 
Carolina. 

The  peroration  of  Colonel  Young's  dedicatory  address,  was 
as  follows  ; 

"Nor  can  I  close  this  address  without  some  reference  to  the 
Vv'omen  of  Jessamine  countw  who.  with  such  patience,  such  in- 
dustry, such  zeal  and  such  unselfishness,  have  labored  so  long" 
to  erect  this  monument  to  our  beloved  dead.  Many  who  helpeo 
at  the  inception  of  the  undertaking  have  been  denied  the  happi 
ness  of  seeing  its  fulfillment,  but  we  feel  the  sweet  presence  of 
their  spirits,  though  they  passed  over  the  river  before  success  had 


Hidori)  of  Je>^mm'uie  County,  Kent iifky.  141 

crowned  the  la1)ors  of  the  association.  If  they  are  not  here,  we 
shall,  at  least,  in  love  and  gratitude,  remember  them  and  their 
work  for  this  cause,  and  their  absence  alone  mars  the  complete- 
ness of  this  occasion.  The  noblest  and  highest  of  the  war's  de- 
mands was  to  be  \vorthy  of  the  faith  and  trust  of  the  Southern 
women,  and  it  mitigated  the  anguish  and  bitterness  of  defeat  to  be 
al>le  through  manly  tears  to  look  down  into  the  tear-dimmed 
eves  of  the  women  of  the  w^outli  and  tell  them  that  in  the  suffer- 
ings, sacrifices  and  ])rivati()ns  of  all  that  weary  struggle,  there  had 
been  nothing  done  or  left  undone  which  rendered  the  men  of  the 
Confederacy,-  unworthy  of  what  was  required  by  its  women,  and 
now.  after  the  lapse  of  long  years,  we  find  the  same  gentle,  loving, 
beautiful,  brave,  and  unselfish  women,  with  all  the  enthusiasm  of 
their  nobler  nature,  rearing  these  memorials  to  those  of  our  com- 
rades who  went  down  amid  the  storms  of  war,  and  thus  keeping 
the  record  of  those  heroes  who  gave  their  Ijlood  as  a  seal  of  their 
loyalty  to  the  land  of  their  love  and  of  their  troth.  We  utter 
benediction  for  sucli  women.  May  the  angels  of  blessing  and 
j^eace  hover  over  and  around  them  in  this  life  and  at  its  end  bring 
them  peacefully  to  that  place  where  there  will  be  no  wars,  where 
monuments  are  not  rc(|uired,  where  death  and  sorrow  never 
come.  With  reverent  homage  we  stand  by  these  graves  of  our 
heroes.  The}-  are  hallowed  in  (jur  hearts  and  souls,  and  we  will 
honor  and  adore  them  forever.  These  are  the  men  who  fought 
with  tile  Johnstons.  I.ee,  Jackson.  ISreckinridge,  Morgan  and 
Polk,  and  liraggand  Hardee  and  Hood,  and  Forrest  and  1  lill.  and 
Cheatham  and  Cleburne,  and  hosts  of  immortal  heroes.  These 
are  the  ])artakers  of  the  sublime  glor\'  of  the  Confederate  armies, 
and  we  come  in  tenderness  and  devotion  and  afYection  to  mark, 
beautify  and  bless  the  soil  that  garners  their  dust,  and  to  declare 
by  this  monument,  which  we  trust  will  remain  forever,  that  the 
memories  of  the  virtues,  of  the  courage,  of  the  chivalry,  and  of  the 
bra\ery,  of  the  sacrifices,  of  the  sufferings,  of  the  reiKwvn  of  our 
departed  conu'ades  shall  be  as  deathless,  as  their  deeds  were  illus- 
trious. 

■■|')\'  fair\  hamls  their  knell  is  riuig 

li\  forms  unseen  their  dirge  is  sung. 
Here  honor  comes — a  pilgrim  gray — 
To  bless  the  tiu-f  that  wra])s  their  clay. 
And  Freedom  doth  a  while  re])air. 
To  dwell,  a  weeping  hermit,  there." 


142  Histori/  of  Ji'--'<(iiiiinc  Comtf;/,  Kciitiirkij. 

Ca])!.  James  White,  a  son  of  Elder  \\'il]iani  \\'liitc,  in  1862, 
wlien  (ieneral  Ilrai^g"  invaded  Kentucky,  recruited  a  company  of 
infantrs .  which  was  in  the  Fifth  Kentucky  Regiment  Confederate 
Infantry,  conmianded  !:>}•  CoL  Ifiram  Hawkins.  Tart  of  the  men 
in  tliis  company  were  recruited  from  Grant  count}  and  were  in 
all  the  great  battles  of  the  Atlanta  campaign,  and  surrendered  at 
( ireensborough,  X.  C.  in  1865.  The  following  is  a  list  of  the 
members  from  jessamine  count}-,  in  Captain  White's  company, 
and  in  Company  ]>,  Capt.  Wm.  Lewis,  Eighth  Kentucky  Cavalry ,. 
conmianded  by  Col.  Roy  S.  Cluke  : 

Adams,  Thos. ;  .\rnspiger,  Geo.;  Blackford,  lienj.;  Bowman, 
Sanford;  Bowman,  Robt.;  Bowen,  Harrison;  Brewer,  Edw.  A.; 
I'.rown,  Samuel  M.;  Burch,  Courtney  L. ;  Campbell,  Fernando 
Wood;  Campbell,  Peter;  Campbell,  Richard;  Campbell.  Stephen; 
Chrisman,  Benj. ;  Cleveland.  John  ;  Cogar.  John  ;  Cook.  John  W. ; 
Cook,  T.  1').;  Cooley.  W.  L. ;  Corman,  Geo.;  Corman,  Grattan  ; 
Daniel,  W.  H.:  Davis,  James;  Davis,  John  P.;  Davis.  William; 
Deboe.  Wesley;  Drake,  John;  Elgin,  Jno.  S. ;  Elmore.  Fletcher  ;^^ 
Foster.  Dr.  T.  W. ;  h^unk,  Henry,  killed  at  Chickamauga;  Gooch, 
James ;  Gordon,  Prof.  A.  N. ;  Gregg.  S.  S. ;  (iwuyn.  Edw. ;  Hanly, 
Samuel ;  Harris.  J.  W. ;  Hawkins,  Jno.  T. ;  Hayden,  W.  A. ;  Hoi- 
loway.  Dr.  Jno. ;  Hollway.  Wm. ;  Jones.  Jonathan,  at  that  time  62, 
died  in  '01  ;  Jones.  A.  D. ;  Jones.  James  B. ;  Jones.  C).  A. ;  Knight, 
Campbell ;  Lampkins.  Jno.  I). ;  Lear.  John  T. ;  Lear.  Jos.  R. ;  Lear.. 
Wm.;  Lee.  Melvin  ;  Livingston,  James;  Lindsey.  Jos.;  Lowrv, 
David;  Lowry,  Sanuiel ;  McAfee,  Maj.  Allin  L. ;  McAfee,  Capt. 
jno.  J. ;  McBrayer,  J<"rank  ;  McDavitt.  Chas. ;  McKinzie,  Edw.  O. ; 
McKenzie,  James;  McKenzie.  jno.  H. ;  Mann,  Dr.  Chas.;  Met- 
calf,  Geo.  W. ;  Musselman,  Henry  ;  Myers,  W.  E. ;  Nave.  Samuel ; 
Nave.  Tilford ;  Noe,  James ;  Nolan.  Rev.  Wm. ;  Patten.  Wm. ; 
Phelps.  Edw.:  Price.  Louis  S. ;  Reynolds.  Geo.;  Robinson,  Jacob 
Creath  ;  Roberts,  Rankin  ;  Roberts,  Jas.  A. ;  Rowland,  (i.  T. ;  Rue, 
Allen;  Rue.  l-"rank  ;  Sandusky,  Jacob;  Sandusky,  L.  E. ;  Scott, 
Robt..  killed  at  .Strawberry  Plains;  Scott.  Sanmel ;  Sparks, 
Moreau  ;  Stine,  Jno.  G. ;  Soper.  David;  Spears.  Christopher,  died 
from  wounds  in  Camp  Douglas  ;  Steele,  Atlas  ;  Vantries,  Emanuel, 
killed  at  Chickamauga;  Walls,  Newbold  C;  Walls,  Benj.  J.; 
\\'arner.  \\'m.;  \\'elch.  James  ]M.;  Woods.  Thos.  J.;  Young,. 
Bennett  H. 


Hlxtorij  of  Ji'^^iininic  ('niiitfii.  Kiiituckij.  143 

Scenery. 

lessamine  county  has  some  remarkable  natural  scenery-.  The 
Hudson  and  the  Rhine  have  nothing-  so  beautiful,  majestic  or 
grand  as  the  clififs  along  the  Kentucky  and  Dix  rivers.  If  they 
had  been  open  so  as  to  have  been  accessible,  they  would  have 
made  Jessamine  county  famous;  but  for  many  years  the\-  could 
not  be  reached  by  railroad  and  orly  a  part  of  them  were  within 
the  limits  of  navigation  on  the  Kentucky  river,  and  the  small 
boats  and  the  slow  time  rendered  the  iovu-ue\  unattractive  to  the 
traveling  public.  \\  ith  swift  l^oats  operated  upon  the  river  now 
that  it  is  locked  and  danuned  to  the  extreme  limits  of  jessamine 
county,  a  great  tide  of  visitors  will  flow  in  to  see  these  wonderful 
natural  curiosities.  The  first  complete  .\merican  geography, 
written  by  Jedediah  Morse  and  ])ublishe(l  in  1781;  at  l^lizabeth- 
town,  New  Jersey,  gave  a  description  of  the  scenery.     It  says: 

"The  banks  or  rather  the  precipices  of  the  Kentucky  and  Dix 
rivers  are  to  be  reckoned  among  the  natural  curiosities  of  this 
county.  Here  the  astonished  eye  beholds  three  or  four  lumdred 
feet  of  solid  perpendicular  rocks,  in  some  parts  of  the  limestone 
kind  and  in  others  of  fine  white  marble  curiously  checked  with 
strata  of  astonishing  regularity.  These  rivers  have  the  appear- 
ance of  deep,  artificial  canals.  J  heir  high.  rock\-  banks  are  cov- 
ered with  red  cedar  groves.  The  accounts  of  the  fertility  of  the 
soil  have  in  some  instances  exceeded  belief  and  probably  been  ex- 
aggerated. The  high  grounds  of  Kentucky  are  remarkably  good. 
The  lands  of  the  first  rate  are  too  rich  for  wheat.  l)ut  will  produce 
fifty  to  sixty,  and  in  some  instances  one  lumdred.  l)ushels  and  even 
more  of  good  corn  an  acre.  In  conuuon  the  land  will  produce 
thirty  bushels  of  wheat  or  rye  to  the  acre.  ISarlew  oats,  cotton. 
hemp.  flax,  and  vegetables  of  all  kinds  couunon  in  this  climate 
yield  abundantly.  The  old  X'irginia  i)lanters  say.  if  the  climate 
does  not  prove  too  moist,  few  soils  known  will  \ield  more  or  bet- 
ter tobacco.'' 

Dr.  ChristO])her  Ciraham  ])re])ared  for  Collins'  llistory  a 
description  of  some  of  these  curiosities  in  Jessamine  county,  and 
described  them  in  a  most  effective  and  attractive  way.     He  says: 

"After  nuich  vexation  and  annoyance,  occasioned  by  the  dif- 
ficulties of  the  road,  we  arrived  near  the  (ibject  of  om-  visit,  and 


METHODIST  CHURCH,  SOUTH. 


Histoi'i/  of  Je^Kiinine  County,  Kentuckxj.  145 

(juilling  our  horses,  proceeded  on  foot.  Upon  approaching  the 
break  of  the  precipice,  under  the  direction  of  our  guide,  we  sud- 
denly found  ourselves  standing  on  the  verge  of  a  yawning  chasm, 
and  immediately  beyond,  bottomeil  in  darkness,  the  Devil's 
Pulpit  was  seen  rearing  its  black,  gigantic  form,  from  amid  the 
obscurity  of  the  deep  and  silent  valley-  The  background  to  this 
gloomv  object  presented  a  scene  of  unrelieved  desolation.  ClifY 
rose  on  cliff  and  crag  surmounted  crag,  sweeping  ofif  on  either 
hand  in  huge  semicircles,  until  the  wearied  eye  became  unable  to 
follow  the  countless  and  billowy-like  mazes  of  that  strange  and 
■A\\ii\\  scene.  The  prevailing  character  of  the  whole  was  that  of 
savage  grandeur  and  gloom.  A  profound  silence  broods  over  the 
place,  broken  only  by  the  muffled  rushing  of  the  stream  far  down 
in  its  narrow  passage,  cleaving  its  way  to  its  home  in  the  ocean. 
Descending  In-  a  zigzag  path  to  the  shore  of  the  river,  while  our 
companions  were  making  preparations  to  cross.  I  strayed  through 
the  valley.  The  air  was  cool,  refreshing  and  fragrant,  and  vocal 
with  the  voices  of  many  birds.  The  bending  trees,  the  winding 
stream  with  its  clear  and  crystal  waters,  the  flowering  slrrul)s,  and 
clustering  vines  walled  in  by  these  adamantine  rami)arls — which 
seem  to  tower  to  the  skies — make  this  a  place  of  rare  and  pictu- 
resque beauty.  The  dew  drops  still  hung  glittering  on  the  leaves, 
the  whispering  winds  played  with  soft  music  through  the  rust- 
ling foliage,  and  the  sun])eams  struggling  through  the  overhang- 
ing forest  kissed  the  opening  flowers,  and  all  combined  made  up 
a  scene  of  rural  loveliness  and  romance,  which  excited  emotions 
of  unmingled  delight.  The  boat  having  arrived,  the  ri\er  was 
crossed  without  difificultv,  and  we  commenced  the  ascent,  and  after 
measuring  up  two  hundred  and  seventy  feet,  arrived  at  the  base 
of  the  'Pulpit.'  Fifty  ])aces  from  this  point,  and  parallel  with  it. 
in  tlie  solid  ledge  of  the  cliff,  is  a  cave  of  consi(leral)le  extent.  At 
its  termination  there  passes  out  like  the  neck  of  a  fumiel.  an 
opening,  not  larger  than  a  hogshead,  l^pon  pitching  rocks  into 
this  cave,  a  runil)ling  was  heard  at  an  innnense  distance  below  the 
earth.  Some  are  of  the  opinion  that  this  cave  contains  a  bottom- 
less pit.  A\'e  now  ascended  the  cliffs  some  fifty  feet  further, 
clanil)enng  up  tln-ough  a  fissure  in  the  rocks,  having  the  Pulpit 
on  our  right,  and  a  range  of  cliffs  on  our  left.  To  look  up  here 
makes  the  head  dizzy.  Muge  and  dark  masses  roll  up  above  you, 
10 


146  Hidory  of  Jexmmine  County,  Kentucky. 

upon  whose  giddy  heights  vast  crags  jut  out  and  overhang  the 
valley,  threatening  destruction  to  all  below.  The  floating  clouds 
give  these  crags  the  appearance  of  swimming  in  mid  air.  The 
ascent  of  these  rocks,  though  somewhat  laborious,  is  perfectly 
safe,  being  protected  by  natural  walls  on  either  side,  and  form- 
ing a  perfect  stairway,  with  steps  from  eigfht  to  ten  feet  thick.  At 
the  head  of  this  passage,  there  is  a  hole  through  the  river  side  of 
the  wall,  large  enough  to  admit  the  body,  and  through  which  one 
may  crawl,  and  look  down  upon  the  rushing  stream  below.  At 
the  foot  of  the  stairway  stands  the  Pulpit,  rising  froin  the  very 
brink  of  the  main  ledge,  at  more  than  two  hundred  fe^t:  of  an 
elevation  above  the  river,  but  separated  from  the  portion  which 
towers  up  to  the  extreme  heights.  The  space  is  twelve  feet  at 
bottom,  and  as  the  clifif  retreats  slightly  at  this  point,  the  gap  is 
perhaps  thirty  feet  at  the  top.  The  best  idea  that  can  be  formed 
of  this  rock  is  to  suppose  it  to  be  a  single  column,  standing  in  front 
of  the  continuous  wall  of  some  vast  building,  or  ruin,  the  shaft 
standing  as  colonnades  are  frequently  built  upon  an  elevated 
platform.  From  the  platform  to  the  capital  of  the  shaft  is  not 
less  than  one  hundred  feet,  making  the  whole  elevation  of  the 
'Devil's  Pulpit'  three  hundred  feet.  It  is  called  by  some  the 
inverted  candlestick,  to  which  it  has  a  striking  resemblance. 
There  are  two  swells,  which  form  the  base  moulding  and  occupy 
about  forty  feet  of  the  shaft.  It  then  narrows  to  an  oblong  of 
about  three  feet  by  six.  at  which  point  there  are  fifteen  distinct 
projections.  This  narrow  neck  continues  with  some  irregularity 
for  eight  or  ten  feet,  winding  ofi^  at  an  angle  of  more  than  one 
degree  from  the  line  of  gravity.  Then  commences  the  increased 
swell,  and  craggy  offsets,  first  overhanging  one  side,  and  then  the 
other,  till  they  reach  the  top  or  cap  rock,  which  is  not  so  wide  as 
the  one  below  it,  l)ut  is  still  fifteen  feet  across." 

Miss  Jessaaiiine  Woodson,  a  descendant  of  distinguished  Jessa- 
mine ancestors,  and  w^ho  was  named  for  the  county,  prepared  for 
the  Acme  Club  a  history  of  the  county,  and  some  of  her  descrip- 
tions are  so  vivid  and  so  exquisitely  penned  that  they  deserve  pres- 
ervation, in  more  permanent  fonu  than  newspaper  columns;  and 
the  author  can  not  refrain  fron]  inserting  two  paragraphs : 

Beautiful  and  highly  favored  for  situation,  and  beautiful  and 


Hidory  of  Je-^mmine  Comity,  Ketiiucky.  il47 

symmetrical  in  form,  bounded  on  three  sides  by  the  Kentucky 
river,  making-  a  liorseshoe,  which  is  for  hick  as  well  as  beauty,  we 
i:>ehold  beautiful  and  highly  iniprovctl  farms,  well  watered  and 
drained  by  three  ])rt-tty  creeks  and  intersected  by  130  miles  of 
smooth,  well-kept  turnpikes  made  of  the  blue  limestone,  which 
can  not  be  found  (^f  the  same  hard  (|uality  anywhere  else  in  the 
world,  and  these  roads,  with  ihe  tl-.or()Ugh])rcd  horses,  the  product 
of  the  bluegrass  and  limestone  water,  is  the  most  attractive  feat- 
ure of  this  regiori.  jessamine  is  better  sup])lied  with  these  roads 
than  her  neighbors.  We  also  see  her  important  railways  cross- 
ing each  other  in  tht-  center  of  the  comity  and  diverging  to  the 
four  points  of  the  comi:)ass.  fifteen  or  more  churches  and  schools, 
sixteen  postoftices  and  country  stores,  seven  railway  stations, 
three  or  fotu"  villages,  besides  the  county  seat,  and  nian\  a  neat, 
comfortable  farm  house,  and  a  number  of  large  and  elegant  coun- 
try seats,  some  of  tnem  dating  back  to  ante-bellum  days.  We  see 
waving  fields  of  grain,  hem])  and  tobacco  and  woodland  ])astures, 
carpeted  with  green,  velvety  grass,  and  trees  that  are  tall  and 
straight  and  of  great  variet\-  and  of  wondrous  Ijeaut}-',  and  luider 
these  and  in  tlie  meadows  are  groups  of  fat  sheej).  Jerseys  and 
Shorthorns,  thoroughbred  horses,  Berkshire  pigs  and  Southdown 
sheep.  Thrift}-  fruit  orchards  we  see,  too,  and  green  hedges  of 
osage  orange,  and  stone  fences  and  barn -yards  with  all  sorts  of 
pretty  domestic  fowls. 

Our  Ijluegrass  pasture  lands  are  our  special  ])ri(lc.  (irass  as 
soft  as  velvet,  and  with  l)Iades  often  a  vard  long,  and  as  fine  as  a 
siken  cord,  witlioul  a  weed,  growing  close  to  the  verv  trunks  of 
the  tall,  wide-spreading  elms,  walnut,  oak  and  maple  trees.  Here 
is  the  home  (jf  the  dr\a(ls  and  wood  nymphs,  and  here  the  poet 
must  have  been  ins])ircd  I0  write,  "Tlie  GnSves  were  God's  Mrst 
Temples,"  and  these  actuall\  were  to  the  noble  armv  of  pioneers 
who  first  set  up  "The  Banner  of  the  Cross"  while  building  their 
log  cabins  with  rides  in  their  liands.  The  country  is  gentl\-  un- 
dulating, witli  hill  and  dale,  meadow  and  wood,  giving  variety 
and  sparing  tlie  eye  from  niouotonx-  until  vou  approach  the  river, 
when  it  l)cciinu'x  more  rugged,  but  always  grander  and  more 
wonderful  in  beauty  and  sublimity.  It  is  well  and  beautiful- 
ly watered,  everywhere  unfailing  springs  of  clear,  cool  water, 
gushing  out  froiu  rocky  ledges  or  bubbling  out  of  a  mysterious 


148  History  of  Jc^min'inc  County,  Kentucky. 

cave.  overtoiDped  with  waving  elm,  beach  or  sugar  maple  trees. 
A  most  welcome  sight  these  were  to  the  pioneers  who  knew  noth- 
ing of  cisterns  and  microbes,  and  they  invariably  decided  the 
site  of  the  homestead.  Near  many  of  these  are  still  to  be  seen 
the  old.  moss-covered  spring-house,  so  suggestive  of  cool,  rich 
cream  and  firm,  golden  butter,  and  of  primitive  arcadian  life. 
Such  a  spring  is  Jessamine,  the  source  of  the  creek  of  the  same 
name,  and  of  Hickman  and  Sinking  creek,  which  Mr.  Collins  tells 
us  is  a  remarkable  natural  curiosity.  It  rises  near  the  Fayette 
line,  about  a  mile  north  of  Providence  church,  runs  west  through 
the  beautiful  I.afon,  JUackford  and  Sandusky  farms,  and  unites 
with  a  smaller.  Sinking  creek,  from  the  north  in  Woodford,  form- 
ing Clear  creek.  It  sinks  four  times,  running  under  grotmd  from 
one  (|uarter  to  a  mile  each  time.  At  times  in  the  winter  and 
spring,  when  the  water  can  not  sink  as  fast  as  it  falls,  it  is  fifty 
feet  deep  and  a  mile  wide.  There  are  many  wonders  and  curiosi- 
ties under  ground  besides  these  streams. 

Jessamine  Creek. 

Jessamine  creek  rises  in  the  northern  part  of  Jessamine  county 
and  flows  in  a  southern  direction  emptying  into  the  Kentucky 
river  a  few  miles  al)Ove  High  Bridge.  It  rises  about  two  and  a 
half  miles  above  Keene,  on  the  farm  now  belonging  to  Mr.  Pleas- 
ant Cook,  widch  was  early  settled  by  the  Singletons  and  Chown- 
ings.  There  are  two  large  springs  fiom  which  the  water  comes 
f       up.  but  both  of  these  have  been  very  nmch  changed  in  later  years. 

One  of  the  recent  owners  of  the  land  on  which  is  the  creek 
head,  finding  the  sources  of  the  stream  practically  bottomless,  and 
that  his  stock  would  sometimes  fall  ir.  between  the  ledges,  which 
created  a  sort  of  chasm  from  which  the  water  rose,  hauled  four 
or  five  hundred  loads  of  loose  stones  and  threw  them  into  this 
ojiening,  thus  endeavoring  to  make  it  safe,  so  that  stock  might 
w^alk  over  it.  The  result  has  been  that  when  heavy  rains  fall,  the 
water  boils  up  on  both  sides  within  twenty  or  thirty  feet  of  the 
spring  itself.  It  has  never  been  known  to  go  dry.  It  comes  out  of 
the  side  of  the  hill,  the  rocks  of  which  overhang  the  spring  about 
ten  feet  high.  Two  large  oak  trees  grow  immediately  over  the 
spring,  and  rise  out  of  the  cliff  overhanging  it.     A\'hile  the  stream 


Hldory  of  Je-^samine  County,  Kentucky.  14!» 

has  never  gone  dry  within  tlie  memory  of  the  yotrng  men.  the 
current  of  water  has  ver}-  much  decreased  in  the  last  fifty  years. 

The  headwaters  of  Jessamine  creek  are  in  the  midst  of  one  of 
the  most  fertile  portions  of  Jessamine  county.  The  Singletons,  the 
Cokers,  the  Sanduskys,  the  Chownings.  and  the  Barclays  settled 
in  this  neighborhood.  Jereniiali  Singleton,  one  of  the  earliest 
settlers  on  Jessamine  creek.  Ijuilt  a  mill  ahuut  lialf  a  mile  below 
the  mouth  of  tlie  creek.  It  was  used  both  as  a  saw  and  a  grist 
mill.  The  dam  was  built  first  of  stone,  and  afterwards  lined  with 
brick  laid  in  cement.  The  mill  itself  was  built  of  stone.  Steam 
with  its  accommodating  powers,  which  could  be  located  on  roads 
or  in  cities,  superseded  these  old  mills,  and.  about  fifteen  years 
ago,  the  mill  was  torn  down  and  the  bricks  in  the  dam  removed 
and  used  for  other  purposes. 

Beginning  at  its  very  mouth,  the  creek  passes  throtigh  some 
of  the  finest  land  in  Kentucky,  which  is  admirably  adapted  for 
corn,  but  princi])ally  for  hemp.  Beautiful  farms  with  elegant 
and  tasteful  residences  are  seen  on  every  side,  and  the  great  fall 
which  it  is  necessary  for  the  stream  to  make  in  order  to  reach 
down  to  the  bottom  of  the  tremendous  clififs  on  the  Kentucky 
river,  furnishes  magnificent  mill  sites,  and  there  were  no  less  than 
six  mills  along  this  stream,  'khat  i)art  of  the  stream  called  the 
"Narrows."  near  Glass'  mill,  has  some  most  beautiful  and  pictti- 
resque  scenery. 

The  creek  makes  a  horseshue  bend,  the  points  of  the  shoe 
being  very  close  together.  Between  these  the  earth  rises  several 
hundred  feet  higli.  and.  standing  on  either  side,  you  can  look  far 
down  below  tipon  the  stream  wiuduig  its  way  in  silence  and 
grandeur  to  its  resting  place  in  the  bosom  of  the  l\entuc]<\-  River. 
High  up  on  the  clifTs  on  the  west  side  of  the  stream  near  the 
"Narrows"  is  the  famous  Chrisman  Cave.  This  cave  extends  a 
great  distruice  back  from  the  entrance,  running  in  a  northwestern 
course,  and  it  is  a  neighborliood  wonder  and  attracts  manv 
visitors  from  all  ])arts  of  the  C()untr\'. 

A  short  distance  below  Spark's  Ford  is  a  natural  curiositv. 
known  as  the  "Little  Mountain."  Tt  is  a  mound  standing  out 
separate  and  single  and  ]ia\ing  no  connection  with  the  cliffs. 
There  by  the  action  of  the  water,  or  by  some  upheaval  of  nature, 
it  has  cut  loose  from  all  sm-roundings.  and  stands  out  alone  and 
independent. 


^•>>f5^  IJ 


Hidory  of  Jesxamine  Countif,  Kentucky.  151 

The  creek  was  given  its  name  prior  to  1774,  and  prior  to  that 
time  it  had  been  mentioned  at  Harrodsburg.  There  are  two 
branches  of  the  creek  known  as  "Main  Jessamine"  and  "East 
Jessamine."  The  East  Jessanune  rises  about  three-fourths  of  a 
mile  above  Xicholasville,  between  the  Cincinnati  Southern  and 
tlie  R.  X.  I.  &  Jl.  R.  R.,  on  wliat  is  known  as  the  Horine  Place. 
It  passes  through  the  town  of  Xicholasville,  and,  keeping  to  the 
east  of  the  Danville  Turnpike,  enters  the  main  branch  about  three 
miles  below  Xicholasville. 

The  stone  mill,  known  now  as  "Glass'  Mill,"  three  miles  from 
the  Kentucky  ri\er,  is  certainly  over  one  hundred  and  ten  (iio) 
years  old.  It  is  supposed  to  have  been  laid  out  as  a  mill-site 
as  early  as  1782.  It  was  subsequentl}  turned  into  a  paper  mill 
which  was  operated  as  late  as  1849.  The  rag-house  and  olifice 
still  stand  in  a  perfect  state  of  preservation.  Subsecjuently  it  was 
turned  into  a  distillery,  run  Ijy  a  gentleman  named  J!ryan,  and  is 
now  owned  by  Mr.  Henry  Glass.  It  has  water  power  sufficient  to 
operate  the  mill  seven  months  in  tlie  year,  and  yields  72-horse 
power.  It  is  a  most  admirable  site,  and  is  as  picturescpie  and 
beautiful  as  it  is  useful. 

Jessamine  creek  is  about  thirty  miles  in  length. 

Hickman  Creek. 

Hickman  creek  rises  in  Favette  countv  not  far  from  Lexine- 
ton,  and  after  running  through  Fayette  and  the  eastern  half  of 
Jessamine  county.  em])ties  into  ilie  Kentucky  river  near  what  is 
known  as  "I'oone's  Knol)."  It  is  a  larger  stream  than  Jessamine 
creek,  and  was  named  for  Rev.  John  llickman.  a  pioneer  Baptist 
preacher.  It  has  an  east  and  west  branch,  and  each  of  these  has 
numerous  tributaries,  whicli  pass  through  high  clififs  and  ridges, 
rivaling  at  times  tlie  cliffs  on  tlie  Kentucky  river  itself.  The 
country  'between  the  two  branches  of  llickman  creek  is  one  of 
the  most  fertile  in  Jessamine  county.  The  section  drained  bv 
Hickman  creek  is  well  timbered,  and  lias  still  a  superb  growth  of 
oak,  hackberry,  ash,  and  hickory,  with  a  sprinkling  of  maple. 
•  Along  this  creek  the  earliest  settlements  of  Jessamine  county  were 
made,  and  some  of  the  best  citizens  who  ever  came  to  Jessamine, 
made  their  homes  in  tliis  locality.     ^Ir.  I"*hilip  Swigert.  who  was 


152  Ilidori/  of  Jessamine  Coniiftj,  Kentucky. 

born  September  27,  1798,  came  from  this  neighborhood.  When 
quite  a  young  man  he  became  a  deputy  in  the  Woodford  Circuit 
Court  Clerk's  office,  under  John  McKinncy,  who  formerly  re- 
sided in  Jessamine.  He  afterwards  removed  to  Frankfort  and 
died  in  1871,  in  the  74th  year  of  his  age.  He  was  one  of  the  most 
distinguished  Masons  in  the  state,  a  self-made  man.  and  by  his 
native  force,  great  good  sense,  and  indomitable  perseverance,  ac- 
quired a  large  fortune  and  also  secured  a  high  standing  with  the 
best  men  of  the  state.  He  was  born  on  the  old  farm  near  Marble 
Creek  schoolhouse,  once  the  property  of  A.  P.  Davis. 

Jas.  Rutherford,  Sr..  was  another  of  the  early  settlers.  He 
was  a  man  of  native  force,  strong  friendships,  great  will,  and  a 
large  number  of  his  descendants  still  live  in  that  portion  of  the 
county. 

Abram  Vince.  who  was  born  in  Pennsylvania,  in  1784,  and 
died  January  17,  1874,  was  also  one  of  the  settlers  in  this  district. 
He  came  to  Jessamine  in  1803  ;  he  was  a  descendant  of  the  Swiss 
emigrants  who  settled  in  Bucks  county,  Pennsylvania,  the  first 
half  of  the  eighteenth  century.  He  was  a  man  of  high  character, 
great  industry,  and  has  left  for  himself  and  those  who  bore  his 
name  a  goodly  heritage. 

Harrison  Daniel  also  owned  propert}'  in  this  section,  and  long 
bore  honorable  and  honored  part  in  tlie  government  of  Jessamine 
county.  He  was  sheriff  of  Jessamine  county  under  the  Consti- 
tution of  1799,  as  also  a  Justice  of  the  Peace.  He  was  a  man  of 
good  education  and  strong  mind.  He  was  a  member  of  the  legis- 
lature in   1836  and  '27- 

The  Bridge  at  the  Mouth  of  Hickman. 

The  bridge  at  the  mouth  of  Hickman  was  long  considered  one 
of  the  engineering  wonders  of  Kentucky.  It  was  part  of  the 
structure  of  the  turnpike  between  Lexington,  Nicholasville  and 
Lancaster.  It  was  projected  when  the  state  was  interested  in  in- 
ternal im])rovements,  and  was  lending  its  credit  and  its  money  to 
the  construction  of  railroads,  canals  and  turnpikes.  It  cost 
$30,000.  The  length  of  a  span  was  270  feet,  which  was  unusual 
for  a  wooden  bridge.  Garrard  count}'  i^aid  a  part  of  the  cost  of 
the    structure.     It    required    six   months  to  build    it,   and    about 


Hidorij  of  Jesmmine  County,  Kcntnchy.  153 

eighteen  workmen  were  employed  upon  it — a  large  proportion  of 
these  were  unskilled  and  received  a  dollar  a  day.  It  was  erected 
in  1838  by  Lewis  W.  Wernwag,  a  native  of  Pennsylvania;  he  died 
in  Lexington,  Alo..  in  1874,  aged  seventy-six  years.  For  the 
time  and  with  the  materials  at  hand,  it  is  a  wonderful  structure. 
It  has  now  remained  intact  for  more  than  sixty  years  ;  it  has  car- 
ried all  the  traffic  required  on  a  great  thoroughfare,  and  during 
the  war  it  was  considered  so  important  that  a  regiment  was  sta- 
tioned on  either  side  to  protect  it  from  destruction.  It  ;s  not  only 
a  unique  piece  of  engineering,  but,  in  view  of  the  advances  in  en- 
gineering since  tliat  time,  was  a  signal  triumj)!!  ;  and,  while  it  has 
long  been  one  of  the  curiosities  of  Jessamine,  it  also  stands  as 
a  monument  to  the  engineering  skill,  enterprise  and  courage  of  its 
constructors.  It  was  built  some  distance  above  the  site  and 
floated  down  the  river  on  rafts  in  sections,  and  when  put  to- 
gether in  position  it  was  so  accurately  constructed  that  not  even 
a  hammer  was  required  to  adjust  its  parts. 

High  Bridge. 

One  of  ihe  most  noted  of  the  engineering  feats  in  the  past 
thirty  years,  is  the  celebrated  High  Bridge,  across  the  Kentucky 
river,  at  the  mouth  of  Dick's  river.  It  was  built  in  1876.  The 
railway  approaches  the  span  from  either  direction  along  a  ledge 
of  rocks  several  htmdrefl  feet  above  the  river,  and  the  perpendic- 
ular cliffs  run  from  tlic  track  to  the  water's  edge  for  a  mile  on 
either  side.  Where  the  bridge  crosses  the  Kentuck\-  river  it  has  aii 
elevation  of  276  feet  above  the  river  bed.  At  one  time  it  was  the 
highest  bridge  on  the  continent,  and  at  the  period  of  its  con- 
struction was  a  marvel  of  ingenuitx'.  A  great  man\-  distinguished 
engineers  of  the  country  i)ronounce(l  the  work  an  impossibilitv. 
It  was  necessary  to  Iniild  the  structure  without  trestling,  and  for 
that  reason  the  cantilever  ]irinci])le  was  introduced.  By  this 
])rinciple  one  s])an  is  erected,  and  from  the  end  of  this  span  is 
built  out  into  space  i)art  of  another  sjian.  The  length  to  which 
such  spans  may  be  extended  out  int*^  the  air  without  sujijiort  is 
fixed  by  the  weight  of  the  span  from  which  it  is  built,  and  these 
•spans  from  A\hich  the  cantilevers  are  extended  are  generallv 
weighted  so  that  thev  carr\-  tremendous  burdens.     Manv  dis- 


154  H'ldorij  of  Jrs!<aiiitne  County,  Kentucktj. 

tinguislied  engineers  of  America  pronounced  the  plan  of  C. 
Shaler  Smith,  who  constructed  this  l:)ridge,  visionary,  and  de- 
ci<led  that  it  was  not  feasil)le  in  this  way  to  construct  a  bridge  at 
this  point;  but  Mr.  Smith  \\as  a  skilled,  learned  and  i)ractical 
bridge  engineer. 

At  this  point  the  Kentucky  river  with  its  channel  had  cut 
down  through  the  stone  cliffs  to  a  depth  of  about  290  feet.  It 
was  necessary  to  construct  the  bridge  without  trestles,  and  this 
Mr.  Smith  undertook  to  do.  He  assumed  the  responsibility  of 
the  construction  personally,  and  in  the  end  his  designs  and  his 
calculations  were  found  to  be  correct.  The  great  cantilever 
arms  stretched  out  from  the  piers  on  either  side,  reaching  the 
middle  of  the  channel,  and  when  the  last  bolt,  which  was  to  hold 
them  in  place,  was  dri^■cn,  it  was  said  that  they  did  not  vary  i-ioo 
of  an  inch  from  the  calculations  which  this  man  had  made  one  day 
in  his  ofifice  in  Baltimore.  He  immediately  sprang  into  prom- 
inence as  one  of  the  great  bridge  engineers  of  the  world,  and  since 
then  others  liave  followed  his  ideas  and  adopted  his  plans. 

The  bridge  known  as  Young's  High  Bridge,  named  in  honor 
of  Col.  Bennett  H.  Young,  over  the  Kentucky  river  at  Tyrone, 
has  a  s])an  200  feet  longer  than  the  one  constructed  at  the  mouth 
of  Dick's  river.  It  is  ])uilt  upon  the  same  principle,  and  thus  over 
the  Kentuck}-  river  are  two  of  the  great  cantilever  bridges  of 
.America. 

At  the  time  the  Lexington  &  Danville  Railroad  w^as  to  be 
built,  a  susjjension  briclge  was  designed  to  cross  this  chasm,  but 
the  railway  company  failed  after  the  ])iers  had  been  erected,  and 
these  tow^ers  stand  as  a  niDnument  to  the  genius  of  John  A. 
Roebling,  who  had  the  contract  from  the  president  of  the  Lex- 
ington &  Danville  Railroad,  Gen.  Leslie  Combs,  to  build  a 
suspension  bridge,  and  about  $100,000  were  spent  in  the  erection 
of  the  towers  and  anchorage  for  the  construction  of  the  suspen- 
sion bridge  which  it  ])ecame  necessary  to  abandon  because  of  the 
lack  of  financial  support.  On  one  of  the  towers  is  this  inscrip- 
tion :  "Gen.  Leslie  Combs,  born  in  Clark  county,  Kentucky, 
November  28,  1793." 

The  old  Cincinnati  Railroad  from  Cincinnati  to  the  South,  was 
at  first  proposed  as  an  outlet  from  the  Ohio  \  alley  to  the  south- 


Hidorij  of  Jensam'uie  County,  Kentacky.  155 

eastern  seaboard.  The  enormous  cost  of  constructing  the  rail- 
road through  the  mountains  of  Kentucky  and  Tennessee,  de- 
terred private  means  from  undertaking  such  a  task,  and  the  city 
of  Cincinnati,  after  full  investigation,  in  the  summer  of  1869,  un- 
dertook t(j  build  a  trunk  line  of  railroad  from  Cincinnati  to  Chat- 
tanooga, in  order  to  give  Cincinnati  proper  connections  with  all 
the  southern  railway  systems  which  centered  at  Chattanooga, 
and  also  to  open  up  to  the  Cincinnati  markets  ]:)ortions  of  Ten- 
nessee and  Kentucky. 

This  line  passes  through  Jessamine  county  for  17  miles,  and 
is  now  one  of  the  great  American  railway  thoroughfares.  To 
build  it,  Cincinnati  paid  out  $20,000,000,  but  it  has  proven  a  good 
investment,  and  though  it  will  ])ass  from  under  the  control  of  the 
city  which  l)uilt  it  the  cost  has  been  amply  returned  in  the  bene- 
fits it  has  bestowed. 

Kentucky  River  Improvements. 

The  Kentuck}'  river  flows  through  Jessamine  county  for 
nearly  twenty-live  miles.  It  bounds  the  countv  on  almost  one- 
half  of  its  border  lines.  The  state  undertook  to  improve  the 
Kentucky  river,  but  it  abandoned  the  work,  and  the  locks  never 
reached  farther  than  Frankfort. 

In  1865  the  Kentucky  Iviver  Navigation  Company  was  incor- 
porated by  the  Legislature,  for  the  purpose  of  building  new  locks 
and  dams,  anfl  extending  the  navigation  of  the  river  through 
Jessamine  county.  .\t  the  September  term  of  the  Jessamine 
County  Court,  in  1865,  John  S.  lironaugli  was  a])pointe(l  a  com- 
mission to  subscribe  for  $35,000  of  stock  in  the  Kentucky  Rivet 
Navigation  Company,  and  in  November,  1867,  he  was  further 
directed  to  subscribe  for  $65,000  additional  stock  in  the  com- 
])any.  The  conii)an\  failed  and  its  creditors  attached  these  sub- 
scriptions. Their  validity  was  attacked.  The  courts  relieved 
^^fercer  and  (iarrard  counties  of  their  subscriptions,  but  Jessa- 
mine county  was  held  for  a  large  proportion  of  hers  and  com- 
pelled to  pay  it. 

The  river  has  been  ceded  to  the  United  States  .The  old  locks 
have  been  enlarged  and  repaired  and  new  ones  built.  Naviga- 
tion is  now  assined  to  the  mouth  of  Hickman  all  the  vear  round. 


Hixforij  of  Jessamme  County,  Kentucky.  1 5T 

Another  lock  in  process  of  construction  will  give  navigation 
throuehout  the  entire  river  border  of  the  countv  and  in  a  few 
years  the  system  of  locks  will  reach  the  coal  fields  on  the  North 
P'ork  of  the  Kentucky  and  secure  to  Jessamine  county  the  ad- 
vantage of  river  transit  for  the  entire  year  from  the  coal  fields  to 
the  mouth  of  the  river  at  CarroUton. 

Turnpikes. 

Few  counties  in  the  state  are  better  supplied  with  turnpikes 
than  Jessamine.  They  are  l)uilt  partly  by  private  subscriptions 
and  ])artlv  bv  county  aid.  There  are  about  175  miles  of  turnpike 
in  the  countv,  and  when  it  is  remembered  that  it  only  has  158 
square  miles,  it  will  l)e  seen  that  the  county  is  most  thoroughly 
supplied  with  first-class  roadways.  At  this  time  there  are  not 
ten  miles  of  leading  roads  in  the  county  that  are  not  macadamized. 
The  county  has  bought  the  turnpikes  and  hereafter  they  will  be 
free. 

Ferries. 

Two  of  the  earliest  ferries  established  in  Kentucky  were  with- 
in the  limits  of  Jessamine  county. 

The  first  ferry  in  Kentucky  was  across  the  Kentucky  river  at 
Boonesboro.  authorized  in  October,  1779,  by  the  Legislature  of 
\'irginia,  on  the  farm  of  Col.  Richard  Callowax-.  while  the  second 
ferrv  established  b\-  legislative  authorit\-  in  Kentucky  was  at  the 
mouth  of  Hickman  creek  in  1785.     'ihe  act  was  as  follows: 

"Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Asseml)ly,  that  public  ferries 
shall  be  constantly  ke])t  at  the  following  places  and  the  rates  for 
jKissing  the  same  be  as  followeth,  that  is  to  say :  from  the  land  of 
James  Hogan  in  the  county  of  Lincoln  across  the  Kentucky  river 
at  the  mouth  of  1  lickman's  creek  to  his  land  on  the  opposite  shore 
in  the  county  of  kayelte.  for  a  man  four  ])ence,  and  for  a  horse  the 
same." 

Up  to  1786,  (  miy  the  ferries  had  been  established  in  Kentucky  ; 
two  across  the  Ohio  river  and  three  across  the  Kentucky  river. 
Tn  1786,  two  more  were  established,  one  of  which  was  the  ferry  at 
the  mouth   of  Dick's  river,  the  legislative  act  for  which  was  as 

follows: 


158  Historij  of  Jessmnine  Comity,  Kentucky. 

"Section  I.  Whereas,  it  has  l)eeii  represented  to  this  present 
General  Assenil)ly  that  it  wouhl  be  of  pubHc  utiHty  to  estabhsh 
a  warehouse  for  tlie  reception  and  inspection  of  tobacco  on  the 
land  of  John  C'urd  in  the  county  of  Mercer; 

"Sec.  II.  He  it  therefore  enacted  that  an  inspection  of  to- 
bacco shall  be  and  same  is  hereby  established  on  the  land  of  John 
Curd  l_\inj;-  at  tlie  mouth  of  Dick's  river  in  the  county  of  Mercer, 
to  be  called  and  known  l)y  the  name  of  Curd's  warehouse. 

"Sec.  V.  Be  it  further  enacted  that  a  public  ferry  shall  l)e  con- 
stantl\-  Icept  at  the  folh^wing  places  and  the  rates  for  passing  the 
same  as  followeth,  that  is  to  say:  Upon  the  land  of  the  said  John 
Curd  in  tlie  count}'  of  Mercer  across  the  Kentucky  river  to  the 
opposite  shore,  for  a  man  four  pence,  and  for  a  horse  the  same, 
and  for  the  transportation  of  wheeled  carriages,  tobacco,  cattle 
and  other  beasts  at  the  place  aforesaid,  the  ferry  keeper  mav  de- 
mand and  take  the  same  rates  as  are  !)}•  law  allowed  at  other  fer- 
ries. If  the  ferry  keeper  shall  demand  or  keep  from  any  person 
or  persons  whatsoever  any  greater  rates  than  are  hereby  allowed, 
he  shall  for  every  ofifense  forfeit  and  pay  to  the  party  aggrieved 
the  ferriage  demanded  or  received  and  ten  shillings,  to  l)e  awarded 
with  costs  before  the  justice  of  the  peace  of  the  county  where  the 
offense  shall  be  committed." 

The  Largest  Corn  Crop. 

Jessamine  county,  it  is  claimed,  has  produced  the  largest  yield 
of  corn  ever  known. 

In  1840,  Gen.  James  Shelby,  of  Fayette  county,  received  from 
the  Agricultural  Society  a  premium  for  the  most  productive  five 
acres  of  corn.  The  five  acres  yielded  550  bushels,  or  tig  bushels 
per  acre ;  but  in  the  same  year  Walter  C.  Young,  of  Jessamine 
county,  who  then  lived  in  the  eastern  ])art  of  it,  gathered,  by  dis- 
interested parties,  from  two  acres  of  a  field  of  corn,  the  enormous 
yield  of  195  and  198  \-2  bushels,  respectively,  which  stands,  so 
far  as  known,  as  the  largest  yield  ever  obtained  from  a  similar 
area. 

Hemp  Manufacture, 

The  manufacture  of  hemp  begun  in  Kentucky  as  early  as  1796. 
and  was  introduced  by  Nathan  Bm-rows,  of  Lexington,  who  after- 


lIlMoni  of  Jemtminr  Cniinf>i,  Knifuclnj. 


159 


wards  produced  lUirrows"  mustard,  whicli  received  the  i)remiuni 
for  excellence  at  llie  World's  Fair  in  I'.n^land  in  1851. 

The  growth  of  lienip  commenced  with  tlie  earliest  days  of  the 
settlement  of  Kentuck\-.  It  came  wiili  the  corn  and  flax,  among 
the  first  products  of  the  state.  The  soil  of  Jessamine  county 
has  always  been  extremely  favorable  to  the  ])rodtiction  of  this 
plant.     The  black  loam,  so  general  throughout   many   parts  of 


GEORGE  BROWX. 


the  county.  ])ro(hices  liemp  of  very  heavy  and  excellent  fibre,  and 
Jessamine  county  stands  among  the  greatest  ]icm]i-])rodiicing 
counties  of  Kentucky.  Per  acre,  no  count\-  in  the  state  jjroduces 
a  larger  yield. 

Melanchtlion  Young,  who  resides  about  a  mile  from  Xicholas- 
ville,  on  the  Harr()dsbtn-g  ]^ikc,  lias  betMi  one  of  the  great  hemp 


160 


Hixtorii  of  Jt's-'<(tmlne  Count ij,  Kentucky. 


growers  of  the  county  and  in  the  last  quarter  of  a  century  has 
rarely  failed  to  secure  fine  crops.  The  introduction  of  Chinese 
hemp  seed  thirty  years  ago  stimulated  hemp  product.  As  show- 
ing the  extreme  fertility  of  Jessamine  county  soil,  the  land  upon 
which  Mr.  Yoimg  has  been  growing  his  hemp,  a  portion  of  it  at 
least,  has  been  in  cultivation  for  more  than  one  hundred  years, 


MELANCHTHON  YOUNG. 


and  the  yield,  after  a  century  of  use,  of  the  ground  is  greater  than 
when  the  crop  was  first  planted  in  the  virgin  soil. 

Jessamine  count}'  has  always  been  one  of  the  great  hemp  coun- 
ties of  the  state.  Clark,  Fayette,  Scott,  Bourbon,  Woodford 
and  Jessamine;  grow  the  bulk  of  the  h.emp  crop  raised  in  Ken- 
tucky, and  in  the  earlier  period  of  manufacture  in  the  state  this 
stai)le  produced  great  ]irofits  and  brought  large  gains  to  those 


H'ldonj  of  Je-iKamine  County ^  Kentuchj.  161 

who  were  engaged  in  it.  Among  the  pioneer  manufacturers  of 
bagging  and  rope  were  George  I.  Brown,  Moreau  Brown,  George 
J?rown,  Henrx  Aletcah",  A\'illiam  Scott  and  Col.  Oliver  Anderson. 
Mr.  Cleveland,  in  Keene,  also  manufactured  rope  and  bagging. 
'\losi  of  the  people  engaged  in  this  business  amassed  large  for^ 
tunes.  The  bagging  was  used  at  tliat  time  in  baling  cotton 
throughout  the  Southern  States,  and  there  was  no  other  substi- 
tute, prior  to  the  fifties,  for  the  Kentucky  bag-g-ing. 

This  bagging  was  generally  carried  to  the  Kentucky  river  and 
shipped  by  steamboat  to  Louisville,  and  thence  distributed 
throughout  the  South.  \'ery  few  white  men  were  ever  employed 
in  this  manufacture.  !Most  of  those  who  operated  the  factories, 
owned  in  large  ])art  the  negroes  necessary  to  carry  on  the  busi- 
ness, and  where  tliey  did  not  have  sufficient  hnnds,  they  hired 
them  from  the  surrounding  farmers,  by  the  year. 

The  hacking  of  the  hemp  was  done  in  open  sheds,  and  the 
dust,  which  has,  in  close  factories,  been  so  detrimental  to  health, 
was  not  considered  injurious  by  those  engaged  in  the  manu- 
facture in  Jessamine  cotmty. 

The  hemp  crop  in  Jessamine  was  not  sufficient  to  supply  all 
the  factories  operated,  and  much  of  the  staple  was  purchased  and 
bought  in  parts  of  Garrard,  Mercer  and  Woodford  and  hauled  to 
Nicholasville  and  there  manufactured.  Geo.  I.  Brown  was  prob- 
ably the  pioneer  of  hemp  manufacture  in  Jessamine.  He  was  a 
man  of  fine  personality  and  a  strong  intellect.  He  repre- 
sented Jessamine  county  in  the  Senate  in  1829  and  1834.  and  in 
the  House  of  Representatives  in  i82(j  and  1832. 

Robert  Crockett,  a  son  of  Col.  Joseph  Crockett,  built  what 
is  now  known  as  the  Union  Mills,  five  miles  northeast  from  Nich- 
olasville on  Tlickman  creek.  The  buildings  were  constructed 
about  1803.  and  ccjmprised  a  grist  mill,  a  saw  mill  and  a  powder 
mill.  This  mill  has  continued  in  operation  down  to  the  present 
day.  The  old  stone  house  near  it.  which  was  erected  at  the  same. 
time,  is  still  one  of  the  most  substantial  houses  in  the  county. 

Nicholasville  Beginnings. 

]\Iaj.  Anderson  ^Miller,  in  1805.  made  up  a  large  lot  of  gun- 
powder, at  his  father's  residence  in  the  northern  part  of  Jessa- 
11 


Hldofij  of  ,J('--<-<(xin'uu'  (Jouidij,  Keidackij.  163 

mine;  he  hauled  it  by  wagons  to  Loitisville,  bought  flatboats  and 
shipped  it  to  New  Orleans.  The  venture  was  largely  remimera- 
tive. 

In  July,  1824,  a  capillary  steam  engine,  invented  by  Dr.  Joseph 
Buchanan,  was  used  in  working  Jackson's  cotton  factory  in 
Nicholasville. 

In  early  days  cotton  was  grown  quite  extensively  in  Ken- 
tucky, in  sufificient  (|uantit\-  to  meet  all  the  wants  for  family  use. 

Dr.  Joseph  Buchanan  was  a  professor  in  Transylvania  Uni- 
versity, and  this  engine  was  a  remarkable  piece  of  work.  It  was 
claimed  for  it  that  it  was  perfectly  safe  and  that  one  cord  of  wood 
would  sustain  a  seven-horse  power  for  twenty-four  hours.  In- 
ducements were  offered  to  owners  of  steamboats  to  avail  them- 
selves of  this  capillary  arrangement,  because  of  its  great  power  in 
proportion  to  its  weight,  to  enable  boats  to  outrun  all  competi- 
tors by  changing  the  boiler  for  a  generator,  thus  converting  the 
boilers  then  in  use  into  capillary  engines. 

The  first  shoemakers  in  Nicholasville  were  Samuel  Peake, 
Thomas  Dunbar  and  a  colored  man  named  Martin.  Also  James 
Lusk,  who  carried  on  the  business  until  1837. 

The  first  saddle  and  harness-maker  in  Nicholasville  came  in 
1812,  and  was  named  Ednumd  Phipps.  David  Majors  was  an- 
other person,  who  carried  on  a  saddlery  and  harness  bttsiness 
three-quarters  of  a  century  ago. 

Early  in  the  twenties  iMlnunid  I-".nianuel  ITart  established  a 
cabinet-making  shop  and  his  son.  josc])li  liart,  settled  in  Nich- 
olasville as  a  cabinet-maker  in   1834. 

The  first  liat-makers  were  Thomas  Foley  and  Stephen  Guy, 
and  thcv  made  wool  hats  in  a  house  on  the  lot  now  occupied  by 
the  hemp  factory  of  E.  R.  Sparks,  and  on  the  corner  lot  of  Dr. 
Talbert,  John  l>itzlen  carried  on  the  making  of  silk  and  fur 
hats.  It  was  with  him  that  Robert  Young  learned  this  business 
of  manufacturing  silk  and  fur  hats  and  opened  a  factory  in  Nich- 
olasville, in  1825. 

John  La  h'evers,  of  French  Ilugtienot  extraction,  had  a  pot- 
tery establishment  on  the  lot  of  the  late  Mrs.  Eve.  His  daughter, 
Nancy  La  Fevers,  was  the  first  person  to  open  a  school  m  Nicho- 
lasville, in  1802. 

Miles  Greenwood,  of  Cincinnati,  who  was  a  dav  laborer  on  the 


lf)4  Hl^iirij  nj  Jesmmine  Oiiiitti/,  Kentucky. 

Lexington  and  Danville  turnpike  in  1831  and  '32,  helped  to  dig" 
the  land  down  oti  a  level  with  the  pike  where  the  court  house  now 
stands.  He  worked  with  James  Gooch,  who  had  undertaken  to 
build  a  section  of  the  pike  running  through  Nicholasville.  two 
miles  each  way  from  the  town.  Air.  Greenwood  afterwards  be- 
came one  of  the  most  distinguished  men  in  the  business  world  at 
Cincinnati. 

Postmasters  of  Nicholasville. 

The  postmasters  of  Nicholasville  have,  some  of  them,  held 
unusually  long  terms.  Benjamin  Netherland  held  the  office 
from  1801  to  1822;  Dr.  Archibald  Yoimg  from  1822  to  1826,  and 
^^'m.  Rainey.  from  1826  to  1835.  He  was  succeeded  by  Jas. 
Lusk;  he  by  James  A.  Welch,  he  by  David  P.  Watson,  and  he  by 
Jas.  A.  A\'elch.  In  1848  D.  P.  \\'atson  was  again  appointed  post- 
master, and  was  succeeded  by  R.  A.  Gibney,  who  held  the  office 
until  1856,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  Joseph  Fritzeen.  After 
him,  Thos.  Payton  held  the  office  for  eight  years,  then  H.  C.  Ro- 
denbaugh,  who  remained  postmaster  for  eight  years.  Then  fol- 
lowed W.  J.  Denman  ;  he  was  succeeded  by  Samuel  AI.  Anderson 
who  held  the  office  for  eight  years,  and  was  succeeded  by  John 
B.  Smithers,  who  held  it  for  four  years,  and  he  gave  place  to  W. 
L.  Buford,  who  now  holds  the  place. 

Court  House  in  Nicholasville. 

The  first  court  liouse  erected  in  X'icholasville  was  Ijuilt  in  1823. 
In  earliest  times  the  (|uarter  session  judges  who  represented  the 
Circuit  Cotu"t  held  their  sessions  in  sheds  or  stables,  or  in  par- 
lors of  their  private  homes.  Judge  ^^'illiam  Shreve.  the  last  of 
the  (juarter  session  judges,  often  held  court  in  a  shed  attached 
to  a  large  stable  on  the  ground  where  the  Jessamine  Female  In- 
stitute is  now  built.  The  court  house  of  1823  was  a  lirick  build- 
ing and  was  used  until  1878.  It  had  thus  served  the  people  fifty- 
five  years.  It  was  erected  by  Thompson  Howard,  who  removed 
to  AJissouri,  and  died  there  in  1836.  It  was  inconvenient  and  un- 
comfortable, but  it  served  well  in  its  day,  and  the  men  of  the 
present  generation  have  many  delightful  and  pleasing  memories 


Hisiory  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky.  1G5 

connected  w  ith  the  old  red  brick  edifice  in  which  they  have  often 
listened  to  the  great  men  who  made  Kentucky  liistory,  for  the 
half-century  following  1820. 

The  first  work  on  the  present  court  house  was  done  Septem- 
ber 5,  1878.  The  new  Iniilding  cost  $38,385,  and  is  a  superb 
structure  of  modern  st}le.  The  magistrates  composing  the 
County  Court,  when  the  question  of  either  repairing  the  old  court 
house  or  putting  up  a  new  one  was  first  advocated  by  Hon.  W. 
H.  Phillips,  the  present  County  Judge,  were  :  Dudley  Portwood, 
John  J.  Cobbman,  E.  J.  Young,  Charles  McDavitt.  Mordecai 
Crutchfield,  Richmond  Plunter,  George  T.  Nave,  K.  j.  Scott, 
Isaac  Pourne  and  Ednnmd  E.  Horine.  A  commission  had  been 
appointed,  consisting  of  G.  B.  Bryant,  J.  L.  Logan  and  W.  G. 
Woods,  to  examine  the  old  court  house.  They  reported  that  it 
could  not  l)e  repaired.  Thereupon  the  construction  of  a  new 
•court  house  was  undertaken.  It  may  stand  for  a  hundred  years 
as  a  monument  to  the  public  spirit  and  wisdom  of  the  officers  wdio 
laid  before  the  people  the  necessity  and  the  advantages  of  a  new 
structure,  which  in  all  its  appointments  is  credital)le  to  a  great 
■county. 

It  has  all  modern  appliances  and  conveniences.  Jt  was  pro- 
vided for  by  taxation  and  the  obligations  of  the  county  have 
long  since  been  paid  off.  It  was  opened  for  the  public  in  1878. 
The  ministers  resident  ttf  the  town  of  Xicholasville.  were  invited 
Ijy  County  Judge  Phillips  to  dedicate  the  structure  with  re- 
ligious ceremonies,  which  occurred  at  nine  o'clock  on  Monday 
morning.  The  following  ministers  were  present  :  Rev.  A.  D. 
Rash,  Baptist;  W.  F.  Taylor,  Methodist  Episco])al,  vSouth  :  T.  F. 
Farrell,  Methodist  l'4)iscopal ;  Rev.  Russell  Cecil.  Presl)yterian ; 
also  the  venerable  John  T.  Hendricks,  of  Paducah,  who  died  only 
a  few  months  since  in  Texas. 

Judge  I'hillips  first  spoke  in  the  new  building.  1  le  announced 
the  purpose  of  the  meeting.  After  the  reading  of  scripture.  Dr. 
Hendricks  took  the  ten  commandments  as  the  basis  of  his  ad- 
dress on  "The  Law  Which  Should  Govern  Men  and  States."  The 
members  of  the  bar  at  the  opening  of  the  court  liouse  in  1878 
were:  George  S.  Shanklin.  Penj.  P.  Campl)ell,  J.  S.  I'.ronaugh, 
H.  A.  Anderson,  T.  I  \  Wood,  M.  T.  Lowry,  A.  L.  McAfee,  W.  S. 
Holloway,  George  R.  Pryor,  L.  1).  Baldwin.  P  C.  Wickliffe.  W. 


HUtonj  of  Je.'fmmine  County,  Kentucky.  167 

H.  Crow,  G.  Ij.  Letcher,  Benjamin  A.  Crutcher.  On  the  same 
dav  Circuit  Court  met.  Honorable  Joseph  D.  Hunt.  Judge  of 
the  court,  arrived  at  noon  and  at  one  o'clock  opened  court,  with 
Charles  J.  iJronston,  Connnonwealth  Attorney,  who  had  been 
recently  elected  to  that  position. 

Of  the  sixteen  i^rand  jurors  who  were  than  empaneled  only 
five  remain  ;  Lee  Reynolds,  G.  W.  Goodc,  W.  J.  Dennan  and 
G.  S.  Moseley. 

Hotels. 

Xicholasville  in  its  earliest  days  had  distinguislied  men  as  pro- 
prietors of  its  hotels.  In  those  times  keeping-  hotel  was  a  much 
more  important  Imsiness  than  in  later  years,  hnmediately  after 
the  cessation  of  the  Indian  raids  in  Kentucky,  there  was  such  a 
tremendous  influx  of  travelers  that  almost  everv  gentleman  took 
out  tavern  license.  The  prices  were  not  very  extravagant,  but 
it  was  more  to  accommodate  friends  and  to  sho\\'  hospitality  than 
to  make  profits.  The  uniform  ]:)rice  was,  for  each  meal  of  victuals, 
25  cents  :  for  lodging  and  a  l)ed  at  night.  12  1-2  cents  :  horse.  121-2 
cents  ;  horse  with  corn  and  fodder  at  night.  18  3-4  cents.  Whisky 
and  brandy  were  plentiful,  as  tlie  ])rices  show  at  this  time.  The 
price  was,  for  whisky  or  peach  brandy.  t8  3-4  cents  per  pint,  apple 
brandy  and  cherr\-  botmce,  4  pence  a  drink. 

Joshua  Brown  was  a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  war.  He 
married  Margaret  r^Iansel.  He  was  in  the  siege  of  Yorktown, 
and  served  for  six  months  tmder  the  innnediate  supervision  of 
General  \\'ashingti)n.  lie  came  from  Baltimore,  Marylaml,  and 
landed  in  Lexington,  Kentucky,  in  1789.  He  had  four 
sons:  C»)l.  W'ashington  Brown,  Preston  Brown,  Samuel 
Brown,  ami  Col.  Thomas  Jefferson  Brown.  The  twi:)  latter 
were  both  graduates  of  the  Transylvania  Cniversit}-.  Wash- 
ington studied  and  i)racticcd  law.  He  married  Gen.  Hugh 
Chrisman's  daughter  .Matilda;  (  leneral  Chrisman  then  lived  on 
Hickman  creek,  at  the  old  stone  house,  the  last  building  erected 
by  Gov.  Thomas  Mett'alf  in  tlie  count \.  Col.  Geo.  W.  Brown 
settled  in  .Xicholasville  in  1825.  1  Ic  twice  represented  the  county 
in  the  legislature.  He  was  an  enterprising  citizen  and  a  suc- 
cessful niainn'acturer  of  heni]).      He  left  Kentucky  in   1837  and 


1(>8  Hidory  of  Jesmvtiiir  CoKiity,  Kentucky. 

moved  to  Charleston,  South  CaroHna,  where  he  died  in  1862. 
Alexander  Campbell  said  of  him  that  he  was  the  most  perfect  and 
courtly  gentleman  that  he  had  ever  met.  The  names  of  these  two 
sons,  Washington  and  Thomas  Jefferson,  evinced  a  high  degree 
of  patriotism ;  one  being  named  for  George  Washington  and  the 
other  for  Thomas  Jefferson. 

Thomas  Jefferson  Brown  came  to  Nicholasville  and  took  charge 
of  the  hotel  in  1836.  He  was  a  man  of  splendid  appearance,  six  feet 
two  inches  in  height,  and  on  count}-  militia  days,  in  his  fine  uni- 
form, and  on  his  thoroughbred  horse,  in  a  suit  of  blue,  with  a  red 
silk  sash  and  golden  epaulets,  he  impressed  all  who  saw  him 
with  his  superb  physique.  He  studied  medicine,  but  did  not 
practice.  He  married  ]\Iiss  Mary  J.  Wallace,  of  Jessamine,  and 
settled  in  Xich()las\'ille,  taking  charge  of  the  Central  Hotel,  where 
he  died  in  1849.  He  was  reckoned  as  one  of  the  most  courteous 
men  of  the  county.  His  kindly  heart  prompted  him  to  many 
generous  deeds  and  his  helpfulness  to  the  struggling  and  de- 
serving left  him  manv  grateful  and  sincere  mourners.  He  first 
urged  the  necessity  of  a  public  cemetery  in  Nicholasville,  helped 
to  lay  off  Maple  Grove  cemetery,  and  was  the  first  person  buried 
there.  He  and  his  Avife  dispensed  kindly  hospitality.  They 
were  charitable  and  humane,  and  created  pleasing  impressions 
on  all  who  visited  Nicholasville.  They  left  a  family  wdio  have  al- 
ways been  prominent  in  county  affairs.  ^Nliss  Henrietta  Brown, 
Mrs.  Virginia  Noland,  and  Mrs.  Victoria  Mitchell  were  daugh- 
ters of  Col.  Brown. 


Public  WelL 

The  P'ublic  Well  on  the  corner  of  Main  and  Maincross 
streets  in  Nicholasville  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable  in  Ken- 
tucky. Twice  during  the  Civil  War  and  in  very  dry  seasons  it 
had  its  capacity  tested  to  the  fullest  extent.  The  Ninth  Army 
Corps,  commanded  by  General  Burnside,  encamped  for  three 
wrecks  around  the  town  and  the  entire  division  used  the  w^ater 
from  this  well  night  and  day.  Several  thousand  of  General 
Bragg's  armv  also  encamped  near  Nicholasville  and  used  water 
from  the  well  in  Septeml)er.  1862.  and  even  these  were  unable  to 
reduce  the  strength  and  power  of  its  flow.     This  well  is  iBo  feet 


HlMortj  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentuckij.  169 

deep  and  was  bored  by  John  W.  Charlotter,  a  blind  man.  The 
well  was  put  down  in  the  year  1846,  and  after  blasting-  down  to 
the  unusual  dei)lh  c^f  180  feet  a  stream  of  water  was  struck.  It 
gushed  up  ten  feet  high  and  from  that  time  to  this  has  furnished 
all  who  demanded  of  it,  clear,  cool,  refreshing  drink.  No  drouth 
and  no  call  upon  its  resources  has  ever  lessened  its  flow,  and 
after  more  than  half  a  century  of  usefulness  it  is  yet  the  pride  and 
comfort  of  the  citizens  of  the  town. 


Bethel  Academy. 

The  Legislature  of  A'irginia  in  1780  set  apart  8.000  acres  of 
land  for  the  establishment  of  schools  in  Kentucky.  The  Ken- 
tucky Methodists  early  took  measures  to  secure  part  of  the  land 
appropriated  to  this  purpose.  Bishops  Coke  and  Asbury  attend- 
ed a  conference  held  at  AIcKnight's,  on  the  Yadkin  river,  North 
Carolina,  in  1789.  Here  the  Kentucky  Methodists,  by  letter  and 
messenger,  requested  direction.  The  response  to  this  petition 
was  that  during  the  next  year  Bishop  Asbury  would  visit  Ken- 
tucky, .and  if  the  petitioners  could  secure  a  grant  of  5,000  acres  of 
land  from  the  state  or  individuals,  a  college  shoidd  be  completed 
within  ten  years.  Early  the  next  spring  Bishop  Asbury.  accom- 
panied by  his  friend,  Richard  Whatcoat,  who  was  himself  after- 
wards made  a  liisho]).  came  through  from  X'irginia  on  horseback 
to  Kentuck}'.  1'hey  sto])ped  on  their  \va_\-  in  Southwestern  \'ir- 
ginia,  and  tliere  waited  for  an  escort  from  the  friends  in  Ken- 
tucky. The  Kentucky  guards  did  not  appear  as  soon  as  had  been 
expected.  l)ut  en  a  certain  Afonday  morning  Bishop  Asbury  re- 
lated to  Mr.  Whatcoat  ilial  the  night  before  in  a  dream  he  had 
seen  the  friends  f(^r  whom  they  had  been  waiting.  After  break- 
fast they  retired  to  the  banks  of  a  small  stream  nearby  for  prayet 
and  meditation.  W  liile  engaged  in  these  services  he  saw  ap- 
proaching over  the  hills  two  men.  He  felt  at  once  that  these  were 
the  Kentuckians  coming  for  him.  This  proved  to  be  the  fact. 
These  men  were  Peter  Massie,  afterwards  known  in  Kentucky  as 
the  "Weeping  Prophet,"  and  John  Clark.  They  delivered  the 
Bishops  their  credentials  and  told  them  that  they  had  left  a  guard 
of  eight  men  in  the  vallev  below,  rcadv  to  start  for  Kentucky,  as 


Hidorij  (if  J('.-o<amm£  County,  Kentucky.  1~1 

soon  as  was  his  pleasure  to  beg-in  the  journey.  The  following 
is  the  entry  that  T'ishop  Asbury  made  in  his  journal : 

"After  reading-  the  letters  and  asking-  counsel  of  God.  I  con- 
cluded to  go  with  thcni." 

They  left  Southwestern  A'irginia  early  in  May,  1790.  with  six- 
teen men  and  thirteen  g-uns.  They  were  to  make  a  journey  of 
more  than  200  miles  through  a  wilderness  constantly  waylaid 
with  savages.  Three  times  a  day  they  halted  to  feed  and  refresh 
themselves,  and  each  lime  they  sought  God's  protection  and  guid- 
ance in  prayer.  The  first  day  they  rode  35  miles,  the  second  45 
and  the  third  50.  This  rapid  travel  proved  a  little  inconvenient 
to  the  Bishop,  who  complained  that  he  could  neither  sleep  nor  eat. 
He  says :  "While  in  camp  some  were  on  guard,  while  others 
rested."  They  frequently  passed  the  graves  of  those  who  had 
been  slain  by  the  savages.     In  one  camp  he  saw  24  graves. 

They  arrived  in  Lexington  on  the  T2th  of  May.  On  that  day 
the  Bishop  preached  and  then  held  a  conference  in  the  house  of 
Richard  Masterson.  Constant  services  were  held  ;  ministers  were 
ordained.  Francis  Poythress.  the  Bishop  declared,  was  much 
alive  to  God,  and  they  arranged  for  a  school  to  be  known  a& 
Bethel  Academy. 

They  rode  to  the  land  of  Thomas  Lewis,  at  the  bend  of  the 
Kentucky  river,  near  High  Bridge,  and  ]Mr.  Lewis  there  offered 
the  Bishop  a  hundred  acres  of  land  as  a  site  for  Bethel  Academy. 
The  Bishop  remained  in  the  vicinity  nearly  two  weeks.  i)reaching 
ever\-  dav,  making  accpiaintances  and  many  friends  for  the  pro- 
jected scheme. 

His  ])rincipal  asislants  in  estaljHshing  I'.elhcl  Academy  were 
Rev.  Francis  Poythress  and  Rev.  John  Metcalf.  .\  brief  sketch 
of  Mr.  Poythress  will  not  l)e  out  of  place. 

He  belonged  to  an  old  and  distinguished  family  of  \'irginia. 
He  sought  tlie  instructions  of  a  minister  of  the  church  of  T*".ng> 
land,  and  in  1773  lie  was  led  to  the  Saviour  and  connected  him- 
self with  the  ^Methodist  chm\-li. 

In  North  Carolina.  .Maryland,  Tennessee  and  \'irginia  he  did 
splendid  work  for  tlic  clun-cli  to  which  lie  liad  made  his  allegiance. 
Whenever  there  was  danger  he  was  always  ready  to  go  where 
duty  called.  \\'lu'nc\er  tliere  was  a  difticult  commission  he 
would  sav  :     "llere  am  I,  send  me."     He  traveled  over  a  large 


172  Jlidorij  of  Jei<!<amme  County,  Kentuchj. 

part  of  these  states,  preaching  under  tlie  trees  and  hi  cabins,  en- 
during- all  the  hardships  of  the  settlers  in  their  wilderness  homes. 
A  man  of  some  scholarshi]^,  he  was  easily  enlisted  in  the  work  of 
building  Bethel  Academy,  in  which  he  was  not  altogether  suc- 
cessful and  was  unjustly  censured.  His  health  failed  and  his 
mind  gave  w-ay.  He  removed  from  Kentucky  afterwards  to 
North  Carcjlina.  He  never  entirely  recovered  either  his  spirits 
or  his  health  or  his  energy.  He  returned  to  Kentucky  in  1801, 
but  no  work  was  assigned  to  him.  He  made  his  home  in  Nich- 
olasville.  Tn  1810  Bishop  Asbury  saw  him  and  was  deeply  dis- 
tressed at  liis  condition. 

Tn  I7Q2  Bishop  Asbury  made  his  second  visit  to  Kentucky 
and  he  entered  in  his  journal:  "I  wrote  an  address  on  behalf  of 
Bethel  School,"  and  later  on  he  says,  "I  find  it  necessary  to 
change  the  plan  of  the  house  to  make  it  more  comfortable  for  the 
scholars."  Rev.  Thomas  Hinde.  a  contemporary  of  Bishop  As- 
bury, makes  this  entry:  "Bethel  Academy.  Our  conference  for 
T7g7  was  held  at  Bethel  School,  a  large  three-story  building 
erected  by  Mr.  Poythress  on  the  bank  of  the  Kentucky  river,  in 
Jessamine  county." 

The  work  of  Iniilding  had  progressed  so  that  in  the  year  1794 
a  school  was  opened.  The  following  letter  from  Rev.  Jno.  Met- 
calf.  will  be  interesting: 

Nicholasville.  Jessamine  Co.,  Ky. 
June  13,  1794. 
lion.  George  Nicholas: 

I  have  lately  received  from  you  two  of  your  kind  letters  and 
would  have  answered  them  before  now,  but  I  have  taken  charge 
of  Bethel  Academy  and  I  have  been  so  confined  for  the  last  two 
weeks  in  fitting  up  suitable  places  of  abode  for  some  of  my  pupils 
that  T  have  greatly  neglected  my  private  affairs,  especially  that 
portion  of  it  which  you  are  attending  to  in  Lexington. 

Your  friend, 

John  Metcalf. 

The  Kentucky  conference  of  the  Methodist  church  in  1797 
met  in  Bethel  Academy.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Metcalf  was  principal 
until    1803.       For  a  while  Bethel  School     was  a  competitor  of 


History  of  Jessamine  Coimfi/,  Knitucky.  17':i 

Transylvania  Academy,  at  Lexing^ton.  tlicn  under  control  of  Pres- 
byterians. The  orip^inal  site  oi  Bethel  Academy  was  chosen  for 
its  wonderful  lieauty  and  ior  its  adaptability  for  a  village.  The 
lines  of  travel  and  lines  of  settlement  could  not  then  be  deter- 
mined. It  oui^ht  naturally  to  have  been  the  county  seat  of  the 
count}-. 

In  J7(J9  Rev.  X'alentinc  Cook  took  charge  of  the  literary  de- 
partment with  Rev.  Francis  Poythress  as  assistant.  Mr.  Cook 
was  a  man  of  scholarly  attainments  aud  ^\■as  a  distinguished  grad- 
uate of  Cokesburg  College,  at  Abbington,  Md.  He  remained 
with  the  school  one  year.  His  anti-slavery  views  induced  his  re- 
moval. 

In  1803  Rev.  John  Aletcalf  moved  to  Xicholasville  and  open- 
ed in  his  own  house  a  school  which  he  called  Bethel  .Academy, 
Mr.  Harris  maintaining  Bethel  School  on  the  Kentucky  river  as 
a  neighborhood  school  until  1805.  In  1798  Mr.  ^yletcalf  pur- 
chased several  lots  in  the  village  of  Nicholasville  and  erected  a 
good  log  house,  which  still  stands  and  is  the  property  of  his 
grandson,  John  Metcalf.  At  this  house  Bethel  Academy  was 
continued  until  1820.  when  a  new  brick  building  was  built  and  the 
school  was  continued  in  it  under  the  name  of  Bethel  Academ\-. 

About  this  time  Mr.  [Nletcalf  died,  in  the  sixty-third  year  of 
his  age. 

In  T7(;8  the  I-egislature  of  Kentucky  passed  an  act  incorporat- 
ing Bethel  Academy.     The  first  section  of  the  act  is  as  follows: 

CHAP.  XXXI. 

An   Act  Establishing  liethel   Academy,   aud    Incorporating  the 

Trustees  Thereof. 

A])|)roved  b^eb.  10.  1798. 

I.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  Ceneral  Assein])ly.  thai  llie  Rever- 
end iM-ancis  Poythress,  John  Knobler,  Xathaniel  Harris.  John 
Metcalf,  Barnabas  McHenry,  James  Crutcher,  James  Hord  and 
Richard  Masterson,  shall  l)e,  and  the\  are  hereby,  constituted  a 
body  politic  and  corporate,  to  I>e  known  by  the  name  of  trustees 
of  Bethel  Academy,  and  by  that  name  shall  have  perpetual  suc- 
cession, and  a  conunon  seal,  with  i)ower  to  change  the  same  at 


Hidory  of  Jesminine  County,  Kentucky.  175 

pleasure :  and  as  such  shall  be  authorized  to  execute  all  powers 
and  ])rivile_2:es  tliat  are  enjoyed  l)y  trustees,  governors  or  visitors 
of  any  college  or  university  within  this  state,  not  herein  limited 
or  otherwise  directed. 

Section  6  provides  as  follows  : 

"The  President  of  said  academy  sliall  be  a  man  of  most  ap- 
proved al)ility  in  literature." 

For  five  \ears  from  1841  Professor  A.  R.  Xurthup,  .\.  M..  a 
graduate  of  the  Wesleyan  L'niversit}-,  was  at  its  head,  lie  was 
succeeded  by  Charles  F.  Smith.  In  the  early  part  of  the  century 
a  grant  of  6.000  acres  of  land  was  made  by  the  state  of  Kentucky 
to  Bethel  Academy.  In  1876  l^rofessor  A.  ]M.  Gordon  was 
elected  principal.  He  was  the  ablest  teacher  ever  in  charge  of 
tlie  school.  In  1877  the  ])roperty  of  the  academy  was  leased  to 
Professor  Gordon  for  ten  years.  Professor  (Gordon  introducing 
the  condition  that  five  indigent,  sprightly  boys  should  attend  the 
academv  each  vear  free  of  charge  for  tuition. 

Under  the  direction  of  Professor  Gordon  Bethel  Academy 
attained  high  rank  as  a  school.  The  buildings  as  uiodernized 
are  in  the  middle  of  five  acres  of  ground,  and  they  are  large  and 
elegant,  and  were  erected  in  1878  at  a  cost  of  $7,000.  After  the 
abandonment  of  the  site  on  the  Kentucky  river  the  one  hundred 
acres  of  land  given  b\-  Mr.  Lewis  re\erte(l  to  his  estate,  but  por- 
tions of  the  material  of  the  building  were  taken  to  Xicholasville 
and  used  in  erecting  a  school  building  there.  At  the  end  of  105 
years  Bethel  .Academ\-  has  been  turned  over  to  Xicholasville.  and 
is  now  a  graded  school,  it  is  used  for  the  public  benefit.  It  ha^ 
lost  its  denominational  control,  and  is  part  of  the  great  system  of 
the  general  education  of  the  masses  in  the  State  of  Kentucky. 

The  first  site  of  Bethel  Academy  is  still  easily  found.  ( )n  the 
splendid  eminence  overlooking  tlie  mighty  banks  of  the  Ken- 
tucky, one  can  stand  on  the  ruins  of  the  ancient  building,  in  which 
was  begun  tlie  life  of  this  school,  and  for  miles  around  can  see 
what  a  hun(h"ed  years  of  cultivation  and  growth  have  wrought. 
The  school  is  gone.  The  structure,  then  palatial  as  an  educa- 
lional  home,  has  cruml)led  and  decayed,  but  as  tlie  e_\c  takes  in 
the  ])icttu'esque  and  charming  landscape,  covering  parts  of  Gar- 
rard. Jessamine,  Woodford  and  Mercer  counties,  with  fertile 
farms,  happy  homes,  large  families,  loyal   and  true  citizens,  all 


176  Hi^orii  of  Jr^mni'uic  (hiiuty,  Kentiivhij. 

contented  in  their  abiding  places  and  all  busy  and  satisfied  with 
tlieir  places  in  life,  the  saddening-  memoiries  of  the  old  school,  are 
hushed  by  admiration  for  the  prosperity,  peace  and  industry 
which  rise  up  to  tell  that  the  work  of  a  century  is  not  lost,  but 
that  the  grandsons  and  great-grandsons  of  these  educational  pio- 
neers are  not  unworthy  of  the  founders  of  this  ancient  school,  in 
which  were  centered  the  hopes  and  aims  of  the  brave  and  liberal 
men  who  gave  it  a  name  and  being  in  the  wilds  of  a  wilderness. 


Jessamine  Female  Institute. 

One  of  the  most  important  and  successful  of  all  the  enterprises 
in  the  county  has  l^een  Jessamine  Female  Institute.  In  1854  an 
act  of  the  Legislature  was  passed  allowing  the  organization  of  a 
company  for  the  purpose  of  conducting  a  female  school  of  a  high 
character ;  such  as  would  attract  patronage  from  abroad,  as  w^ell 
as  give  the  highest  facility  for  education  in  the  town.  The  capital 
stoick  was  fixed  at  $2,500  in  shares  of  $100  each.  The  articles  of 
incorporation  under  this  act  were  signed  by  Alexander  Lyle, 
Thos.  E.  West,  L.  H.  Chrisman.  J.  D.  Hili,  R.  E.  Woodson,  Her- 
vey  Scott,  Robt.  Young,  D.  B.  IVice,  J.  A.  Scrogin,  J.  P.  Letcher, 
\\'.  C.  Letcher,  M.  T.  Lowry,  G.  ]\I.  Barkley,  Isaac  Barkley,  J. 
I'\  Barkley,  C.  F.  Smith,  A.  L.  McAfee,  M.  T.  Young.  Samuel 
AIcDowell.  \\m.  McDowell,  Jas.  H.  .AlcCampbeU. 

After  this,  in  1855,  the  school  was  reorganized,  and  Rev.  ^l. 
Branch  Price,  a  Presbyterian  minister,  was  elected  principal. 
After  some  years  of  successful  administration  he  was  removed  by 
death,  and  was  succeeded  by  Mrs.  Jj;Cob  I'rice,  wife  of  the  Rev. 
Jacob  Price,  a  Presbyterian  minister.  In  1857  she  was  succeeded 
l:)y  Rev.  Mr.  Frazee,  a  Presbyterian  divine,  and  he  in  turn,  bv 
Mrs.  Browning,  who  presided  one  year. 

In  i860  Rev.  Joseph  McDowell  Matthews,  of  Hillsboro.  Ohio, 
rented  the  ground  and  building  and  conducted  the  school  under 
the  name  of  the  Jessamine  Female  College.  The  incorporators 
of  this  collge  were  J.  C.  Wilmore,  Henry  M.  Chrisman,  J.  B. 
Cook,  T.  J.  Cas'seil,  Moreau  Brown,  S.  S.  Mizner,  J.  S.  Bronaugh, 
J.  W.  Olds,  R.  M.  Messick,  John  ^IcMurtry,  P.  H.  Smith,  ^^^  R. 
\\'elch,  Wva.  Brown,  Thos.  B.  Crutcher  and  J.  S.  Mitchell. 

At  the  end  of  the  term  of  1862  Dr.  Matthews  returned  to  Ohio. 


Ilishirij  of  Jr.-isamine  County,  Kentucky.  177 

111  1863-64  Rev.  J.  E.  Spilman,  then  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian 
church,  conducted  tlie  school  for  several  years. 

In  February,  1866,  tlie  Legislature  of  Kentucky  granted  a 
charter  for  the  Jessamine  County  Female  Institute,  with  the  fol- 
lowing incorporators:  Robert  Young,  George  Brown,  Dr. 
Joseph  P.  Letcher,  T.  B.  Crutcher  and  J.  S.  Bronaugh.  Under 
this  charter  the  school  was  to  be  non-sectarian.  In  1881  the 
school  was  closed  for  want  of  patronage  and  in  September  of  that 
year  Miss  AI.  F.  Hewitt  took  charge  of  it  as  principal.  Under 
her  management  it  was  highly  successful  for  twelve  years.  In 
the  very  beginning  of  her  administration  the  number  of  pupils 
was  largely  increased,  and  it  became  necessary  to  erect  new  and 
more  commodious  buildings. 

In  1 881  the  Board  of  Trustees  determined  to  erect  the  present 
building,  at  a  cost  of  $20,000.  This  money  was  almost  altogether 
subscribed  by  the  citizens  of  the  town  and  county. 

There  have  l^een  a  large  number  of  graduates  from  the  school ; 
several  hundred,  all  of  whom  occupy  either  as  teachers  or  in  so- 
ciety, most  prominent  and  distinguished  positions. 

Miss  Hewitt  was  compelled  to  resign  her  position  as  principal 
by  reason  of  declining  health,  and  in  1893  Mrs.  B.  W.  Vineyard, 
the  present  principal,  assumed  control  of  the  institution.  Under 
lier  conduct  the  reputation  of  the  school  has  not  declined  and  the 
condition  of  the  l)uildings  has  been  greatly  improved.  It  now 
stands  as  one  of  the  leading  institutions  in  the  state,  has  a  large 
patronage  from  all  parts  of  Kentuck\  and  tlie  .'-^onth.  Tlie  curri- 
culum is  wide  enough  and  broad  enough  for  all  ])Urposes  and 
the  patronage  has  met  tlie  expectations  of  all  connected  with  the 
management  and  control  of  the  institution. 

Newspapers. 

Ihere  are  two  ncwsjiapers  published  in  Jessamine  countv; 
the  Jessamine  jounial  and  the  Xicholasville  Democrat.  The 
Jessamine  Journal  was  founded  by  J.  M.  Parish,  who  came  from 
Mt.  vSterling  in  1872.  and  was  its  editor  and  owner.  For  several 
years  it  was  printed  on  a  Washington  liand-press  and  had  a  hard 
struggle  for  its  existence.  It  changed  owners  seven  or  eight 
times,  and  the  office  was  destroyed  by  fire  in  1886.  At  the  time  of 
12 


Hixtorij  of  Je!<sainin('  Count ij.  Kentucky. 


179 


this  fire  it  was  well  equipped  with  a  large  power  press  and  a  first- 
class  outfit  of  type.  J.  M.  Kerr,  who  |)urchase(l  the  plant  from 
C.  W.  Metcalf  after  the  fire.  i<in  it  on  a  small  scale  for  a  short 
time  and  in  1887  sold  it  to  Col.  II.  M.  McCarty,  who  was  one  of 
the  most  successful  and  distinguished  journalists  in  Kentucky. 
He  was  secretary  of  state  un<lcr  Tiovernor  Knott,  and  held  other 


I.OriS  I'lI.CHHK. 

positions  of  distinction.  1  larry  McCarty,  one  of  the  edit^>rs.  was 
the  junior  mend)er  of  the  company. 

-\t  this  time  its  editorials  were  (juoted  ver\-  largely  throughout 
the  state.  At  the  death  of  Col.  AlcCarty  in  1891  his  interest  was 
sold  to  T.  11.  Morris,  who  was  connected  with  the  paper  until 
1894,  wiien  he  disposed  of  his  interest  to  J.   W.  Stears. 

The  pa])er  is  now  edited  by  .Mr.  Harry  McCarty  and  Mr. 
Stears.      It  lias  a  wide  circulation,  democratic  in  its  politics. 


180  History  of  Jrs.-<(iiiiiiic  County,  Kentucky 

The  Nicholasville  Democrat,  an  eig-ht  column  folio,  was  estab- 
lished in  June.  1888.  At  that  time  it  was  the  property  of  Louis 
Pilcher,  the  present  editor  and  proprietor,  and  his  brother  Thomas 
Fielding-  Pilcher.  After  a  short  time  a  job  printing-  plant  was 
established.  For  eight  years  its  office  was  in  the  old  historic 
building  erected  l)y  Judge  Wake. 

Thomas  F.  Pilcher  and  his  brother,  Louis  Pilcher,  assumed 
the  management  of  the  paper.  The  former  assisted  in  establish- 
ing the  Lexington  Argonaut.  Tie  did  his  first  newspaper  work 
on  the  Lyceum  Debater,  afterward  on  the  Central  Courier,  and 
was  for  five  years  the  correspondent  of  the  Cincinnati  and  Louis- 
ville dailies.  He  was  one  of  the  promoters  of  the  Lexington 
Advertiser.  Later  he  edited  the  Nichola.sville  Star.  In  1895  he 
established  "The  Coming  Nation,"  which  absorbed  the  Illustrated 
Kentuckian.  and  these  two  were  merged  into  the  Argonaut.  He 
afterward  founded  the  Plue  Grass  World  and  then  returned  to  his 
present  position  as  editor  and  proprietor  of  the  Nicholasville 
Democrat. 

Mr.  Pilcher  has  had  a  wide  experience  as  a  newspaper  man. 
In  the  Cleveland  campaign,  he  did  work  on  the  Louisville  Courier- 
Journal,  paragraphing  and  producing  comic  articles  wdth  Donald 
Padman.  He  was  born  in  Nicholasville,  July  11,  1855,  opposite 
where  the  newspaper  office  now  stands. 

The  first  paper  published  in  Nicholasville  of  political  char- 
acter was  the  Nicholasville  Democrat,  in  1857  to  i860.  It  was 
stronglv  anti-slavery,  and  the  office  was  raided  and  the  type  pied 
and  dumped  in  the  streets.  Samuel  Leffingwell  and  the  late  Dr. 
Jno.  C.  Welch  were  its  editors.  For  a  while,  from  1871  to  1875. 
Nicholasville  was  without  a  paper.  The  Central  Courier  was 
established  l)y  Samuel  (  )wens  in  1875  and  subsequently  con- 
solidated with  the  Jessamine  Journal,  and  was  known  as  the 
Journal-Courier.  In  1875  the  late  L.  D.  lialdwin  purchased  a 
plant  in  Frankfort  and  edited  a  i)aper  for  one  week.  He  sold  it 
to  W.  T.  Jones,  who  never  printed  an  issue.  At  this  time  Col. 
McCartv  came  to  Nicholasville  and  secured  the  necessary  meana 
to  establish  the  Jessamine  Journal. 

In  1895  the  third  paper  was  staiied.  with  Al.  E.  Wilhoit  as 
editor.  It  was  printed  in  Lexington.  This  paper  passed  into 
the  hands  of  T-  T.  Farrow  and  shortlv  afterward  suspended.     The 


Hl-^tori/  of  Jr.<!<niniur  Comitij   Kentuckij.  181 

Xicholasville  News  was  published  in  1878  b\  A.  W.  lluggins 
for  a  brief  ])eriod.  The  first  paper  ever  pubhshed  in  Xicholas- 
\ille  was  a  reh^ions  ])iibHcation  under  Presbyterian  auspices  and 
was  founded  in  early  years,  it  is  said.  ( )thers  deny  the  whole 
story. 

Sulphur  Well. 

Sulphur  W  ell.  about  h\c  miles  from  Xicholasville  in  the  south- 
•eastern  part  of  the  county,  was  for  many  years  a  prosperous  vil- 
lage. The  discovery  of  a  well  of  sulphtir  water  gave  this  town  its 
name.  For  a  long  time  many  persons  fre(|uente(l  the  ])lace  to 
have  the  benefit  of  the  waters,  which  were  supposed  to  have 
medicinal  value.  It  is  on  the  main  road  from  Xicholasville  to 
Hickman  creek.  The  first  settler  in  the  village  was  John  Walters, 
a  l>aptist  minister,  and  he  succeeded  in  having  a  Baptist  church 
built  there  in  18 [3.  Mr.  Walters  and  Robert  Ashurst  preached 
to  the  church  for  several  years. 

Of  late  years,  the  village  has  had  its  name  changed  to  Am- 
brose. It  is  imj -roved  very  nuicli,  and  the  buildings  in  the  village 
are  neat  and  tasteful,  and  the  people  kmd  and  hospitable. 


Wilmore. 

The  following  liistory  of  the  ambitious  and  thriving  citv  of 
Wilmore  was  prepared  by  A\'m.  (i.  AV'ilhite,  and  it  is  inserted  as 
\vritten  by  him : 

The  village  of  Wilmore,  the  second  in  population  in  Tessa- 
mine  county,  is  situated  on  the  Cincinnati  Southern  railwav,  five 
uiiles  southwest  of  Xicholasville  and  about  the  saiue  distance 
north  of  the  celebrated  High  Uridge,  where  the  railway  crosses 
the  Ketitucky  river.  276  feet  above  the  water.  Although  bui 
eight  years  old,  it  contains  a  population  of  aboitt  600,  and  is  proib- 
abl}'  growing  more  rapidly  than  any  little  town  in  Central  Ken- 
tucky. A  steady  and  constant  increase,  without  any  inflation 
or  boom  methods,  lias  made  a  stable  j)opulation  of  healthy  growth. 
There  is  not  a  vacant  house  in  the  town  today,  and  as  fast  as  built 
a  house  is  occupied.  Its  existence  practically  began  with  the 
foundation  of  Asbury  College,  which  started  September  2,  1890, 


182  Hidonj  of  .Jt'mamine  (\nnitij,  Kentucky. 

in  four  rooms,  with  two  teachers  and  eleven  pupils..  Tts  growth 
has  been,  to  a  large  extent,  coexistent  with  the  growth  of  this  col- 
lege, both  in  1)uilding  and  increase  of  faculty  and  students. 

In  the  first  year  there  were  enrolled  70  pupils.  In  the  second 
year,  120.  The  highest  number  enrolled  in  any  year  was  160. 
In  the  eight  years  of  its  existence  there  have  been  over  1,000 
students  enrolled  and  25  graduates.  Sixty  ministers  of  the  gos- 
pel have  also  been  sent  out  from  this  school  to  various  parts  of 
the  country  in  this  time.  Students  from  20  states  and  from  Can- 
ada, England,  Japan  and  Persia  have  attended  here,  and  its  in- 
fluence has  been  widespread  and  is  growing. 

Organized  just  100  years  after  the  founding  of  Bethel  Acad- 
emy, the  second  chartered  institution  of  American  Methodism,  and 
within  four  miles  of  the  original  site;  it  has  renewed  the  work  of 
its  venerable  predecessor  with  vigor  and  grown  into  a  power. 

There  are  now  six  buildings,  with  the  president's  house,  and 
a  large  cliapel,  on  six  acres  of  campus.  The  co'llege  has  a  capac- 
ity for  teaching  300  students  and  boarding  100,  w^ith  a  faculty  of 
eight  teachers. 

This  remarkable  growth  is  due  in  a  large  measure  to  the  en- 
ergy, ability,  and  foresight  of  Rev.  [.  \\\  Hughes,  the  founder 
and  president  since  its  organization,  whose  constant  labors  have 
made  Asbury  College  a  strong  and  worthy  monument  to  him- 
self, and  a  power  for  good  in  the  conmumity  and  abroad.     *     * 

BUSINESS. 

Its  nine  business  houses,  carrying  almost  everything  in  stock 
that  is  needed  or  used,  draw  a  trade  far  beyond  its  limits,  and  frorri 
three  counties.  Two  drug  stores  and  three  doctors,  insure  the 
continuance  of  a  healthy  coimnnniity:  three  l)lacksmith  and  car- 
riage repair  shops,  find  profitable  employment ;  one  leather  and 
harness  shop  is  kept  busy  supplying  everything  in  its  line,  from 
a  buckle  to  a  buggy  top  ;  two  butcher  shops,  and  three  large 
stores  of  clothing,  dry  goods,  general  merchandise  and  hardware 
supply  the  general  needs  of  the  outer  and  inner  man. 

The  Glass  ^Milling  Company  was  established  here  on  July  1, 
T891.  Its  mill,  wliicli  ground  60,000  bushels  of  wheat  last  year, 
with  a  capacity  of  sixty  l)arrels  of  flour  per  day,  is  one  mile  from 
the   railwav   station.     Its   offices    and   warehouses,    in   Wilmore,, 


Hidorij  (if  .Ji-:<siiiiiiiie  County,  Kentucky.  183 

were  l)uilt  I'cbruary,  I'f^^)'/,  and  since  then  all  its  business  has  been 
transacted  from  this  point.  This  company  also  deals  in  coal  and 
lumber,  and  since  its  establishment,  in  the  town,  has  handled 
over  2,000  tons  of  coal. 

Tlu.  Saegerser  iNlill  Company  has  a  grist  mill  in  the  town, 
run  bv  a  gasoline  engine,  and  does  general  grinding,  and  deals  in 
meal.  fccfl-stufTs,  etc. 

A  good  livery  stable,  well-patronixed.  is  one  of  the  conveni- 
ences. 

Wilmorc  is  an  important  shipping  point  (^n  the  railwa}',  as 
evidenced  \)\  the  amount  of  freight  received  and  forwarded.  The 
receipts  to  the  railway  companies  amount  to  about  $25,000  per 
annum  for  freight  and  about  $3,000  for  passengers.  Large 
aiUMaiits  of  grain,  cattle,  hogs,  produce,  etc.,  are  both  shipped 
from  and  received  here,  in  addition  to  merchandise,  coal,  lumber 
and  articles  of  domestic  consumption. 

It  is  essentially  a  moral  and  religious  community,  and  the  in- 
fluence of  its  churches  and  missionary  work  is  felt  widely  beyond 
the  limits  of  Jessamine  county. 

The  Presbyterian  church,  with  a  handsome  place  of  worship, 
and  a  membership  of  150,  presided  over  by  Rev.  Dr.  E.  O.  Guer- 
rant,  himself  a  noted  preacher  and  evangelist,  in  addition  to  hand- 
somely supporting  itself  and  him.  keeps  at  its  own  expense,  five 
missionary  ministers  in  the  mountains  of  Kentucky,  a  record  not 
equalled  by  any  church  in  Central  Kentucky.  In  addition  it  has 
educated  two  young  men  for  the  ministry,  keeps  up  a  penna- 
nent  contribution  to  an  orphan  asylum  in  South  Carolina,  and 
giv  's  largely  ^o  charity  and  foreign  and  home  missions.  Its  record 
for  liberality  and  quick  response  to  worthy  appeals  is  noted  in 
its  presbytery.  Its  pastor  is  a  man  celebrated  throughout  the 
South  and  East  as  a  powerful  and  successful  evangelist,  both  in 
the  large  cities  and  in  the  most  remote  mountains. 

The  .Mctiiodist  church  adjoins  Asbury  College.  It  is  also  a 
commodious  and  handsome  building.  Its  history  and  work  is 
almost  coexistent  with  that  of  Asbury,  and  much  that  has  been 
said  of  the  college  in  a  former  paragraph,  applies  also  to  the 
church.  It  was  founded  fifteen  years  ago.  and  is  the  oldest  and 
also  the  largest  congregation  in  Wilmore,  with  a  membership  of 
225.     This  church  is  also  in  connection  with   Asbury  College, 


184  Hidory  of  Je.-<m)nine  Count y,  Kentacki/. 

noted  for  its  evangelistic  work  and  spreads  its  intiuence  through 
and  beyond  the  state.  The  Rev.  E.  S.  Savage,  who  has  hitely 
succeeded  Rev.  J.  A.  Sawyer,  is  the  regular  pastor,  wdiose  hands 
are  worthily  upheld  bv  his  congregation. 

The  Christian  church,  though  the  youngest  (founded  in  1888), 
is  second  in  membership,  having  150  communicants.  The  church 
has  probably  the  handsomest  interior  of  all.  Rev.  Air.  Robinson, 
lately  appointed  minister,  is  popular  \\  ith  his  congregation. 

A  colored  church,  with  forty  members,  completes  the  list  of 
liouses  of  worship  in  the  town,  though  two  miles  east  is  the  thriv- 
ing and  steady  Mt.  Freedom  Baptist  church.  It  is  the  oldest  of 
the  churches  in  the  immediate  neighborhood  and  numbers  its 
members  a  generation  back. 

With  a  well-conducted  public  school  of  seventy-five  pupils,  in 
a  new  anc'  comnjodions  schoolhouse;  with  handsome,  modern 
dwellings,,  and  with  social  and  educational  advantages  unex« 
■celled  anywhere  in  the  state,  it  is  not  necessarv  to  "boom"  Wil- 
more,  as  a  desirable  place  to  reside  or  do  business  in,  and  we  can, 
therefore,  rest  on  the  statement  on  which  the  Declaration  of  In- 
dependence was  founded:  "Let  facts  be  submitted  to  a  candid 
TV  o  rid." 


Church  Land. 

Judge  Tucker  Woodson's  place  was  for  a  long  time  known 
as  "Church  Land,"  and  the  origin  of  the  name  was  interesting. 
An  English  gentleman  of  finished  education  and  culture,  of 
scientific  tastes  and  talents,  was  a  guest  at  Chaunfiere,  and  be- 
came in  time  almost  a  part  of  the  household.  His  name  was 
("hurch.  He  had  been  with  Robert  Fulton  experimenting  with 
■steam,  and  came  from  Pittsburgh  down  the  Ohio  river  to 
Maysville  on  the  first  steamboat  that  ever  ran  on  the  river. 
From  Maysville  he  came  to  Lexington,  and  thence  to  Mavsville, 
and  made  many  experiments  in  his  endeavors  to  perfect  this 
wonderful  invention  and  its  a])plication  to  the  movement  of 
vessels.  He  finally  returned  to  England,  married  and  brought 
his  wife  to  Jessamine  county  to  be  near  Colonel  Aleade  and  familv. 
He  was  a  man  of  independent  means  and  built  a  quaint  English 


Hidorij  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky.  185 

cottage  on  the  \\'oodson  estate  in  the  place  now  occupied  by  Mr. 
Jesse  Bryan  and  hvcd  there  some  years,  and  from  this  circum- 
stance the  place  was  always  called  Church  Land.  After  some 
rears  Mr.  Church  removed  to  Lexington  and  died  there. 


Camp  Nelson. 

Camp  Nelson  has  become  quite  an  important  village  in  the 
last  few  }-ears.  It  is  at  the  mouth  of  Hickman  creek,  near  the 
wooden  bridge,  that  spans  the  Kentucky  river,  on  the  line  of  the 
Lexington  and  Danville  turnpike.  It  was  established  in  1863, 
and  was  tlie  ])rincipal  point  for  the  concentration  of  Federal  forces 
and  munitions  of  war  on  the  line  of  the  Cumberland  river.  It  was 
named  in  honor  of  Gen.  William  Nelson,  who  was  born  in  ?^lason 
count}-,  was  a  distinguished  soldier,  and  Avas  killed  in  Louis vdlle 
by  Gen.  Jefiferson  C.  Davis,  whom  he  had  grossly  insulted. 

It  remained  a  militar}-  camp  until  the  close  of  the  war.  and  has 
a  fortified  circumference  of  about  ten  miles  formed,  in  large  part, 
by  the  high  hills  and  cliffs  of  the  Kentucky  river,  and  partly  b} 
breastworks  thrown  up,  that  yet  remain.  On  the  land  has  been 
established  a  L'nited  States  militar\-  cemeter}-,  in  wliicli  are  in- 
terred over  5,000  Federal  soldiers.  The  population  of  the  village 
is.  at  this  time,  al)out  200,  mostly  colored  people,  who  have  set- 
tled on  the  cliffs  and  hills  near  the  Kentucky  river. 

Ariel  College  is  located  at  Camp  Nelson.  Tliis  is  an  institu- 
tion for  the  education  of  colored  men  and  women.  It  is  officered 
l>v  white  teachers,  and  has  been  the  source  of  great  good  and 
help  to  the  colored  people. 

Rev.  John  C.  Randolph  was  the  first  native  Kentuckian  who 
enlisted  negro  soldiers  in  Jessamine  county.  A  copv  of  the  fol- 
lowing letter  written  by  him  to  Gen.  Burbridge  is  interesting, 
historically  : 

Nicholasville.  Ky.,  June  9.  1864. 
Gen.  S.  G.  T'urbridge. 

Conmiander.  Department  of  Kentucky: 
Sir — There    is    a    slave    in    the    connt\'    jail    here,    confined 
for  no  civil  crime,  but  because  his  master  feared  he  would  run  oflf. 
The  l)o\'  has  told  me  he  wishes  to  volunteer  as  a  soldier.       Have 


fSs^^<I^^v^"*'•'^-^^''i%r*::  ■ 


^.^■^ 


■••  0tV-. 


COLORED  BAPTIST  CHURCH. 


H'tstort/  of  Jesmmine  Coiintji,  Kentucky  1 H7 

I  the  right  to  take  him  from  the  county  jail  and  let  him  come  into 
the  army  in  the  state?     Most  respectfully, 

J.  C.  Randolph. 
Deputy  Marshal  and   Superintendent  ui  Colored  Enlistment  at 
Camp  Nelson. 

Another  letter  w  ritten  about  this  time  frcjin  Nicholasville  will 
prove  interesting.  It  was  sent  to  the  postmaster  at  Keene,  and  is 
as  follows : 

Office  Provost  Marshal, 
Xicholasville,  Ky..  July   i8.  1863. 
To  the  Postmaster  oi  Keene,  Ky.: 

I  am  informed  that  the  Cincinna*^^i  Enquirer  is  distributed  at 
vour  office.  Militar\'  authorities  forljid  its  circulation  at  }our 
office.  You  will  stop  it  at  once,  or  you  will  be  arrested  by  the 
military  authorities. 

John  Pendleton, 
Captain  and  Provost  Marshal. 

Keene. 

This  village  is  about  six  miles  northwest  from  Xicholasville, 
on  the  A'ersailles  turnpike.  It  was  laid  out  in  1813  and  called 
North  Pil)ert\,  l)ut  its  name  was  changed  to  "Keene."  in  1848, 
throug"h  tlie  influence  n\  Tlmmas  Jones,  a  hatter,  who  came  and 
settled  in  the  xillage  about  the  vear  T845.  His  native  town  in 
New  Jlam])shire  was  Keene,  and  through  his  influence  X\)rth 
Liberty  was  ])lotted  ont,  and  Keene  was  established.  About  the 
time  of  the  change  of  the  name,  in  boring  for  a  well  a  fine  stream 
of  sulphur  water  was  found.  In  those  days,  sulphur  water, 
wherever  found,  was  su])])Osed  to  have  valuable  medicinal  prop- 
erties, and,  during  the  prevalence  of  cholera,  in  Lexington,  about 
this  time,  a  large  number  of  people  came  to  Keene  and  lived  dur- 
ing the  panic,  fKcasioned  l)y  this  disease  in  Lexington  and  sur- 
rounding towns.  Ixcene  liad  several  stores  and  a  very  nice  hotel  •. 
and  its  stores  do  a  first-class  local  business.  It  is  within  sight  of 
the  ^It.  Pleasant  P)a])tist  church. 

The  neighborhood  surrounding  Keene  was  settled  bv  some 
of  the  best  men  who  in  earlv  times  came  to   Jessamine  countv. 


lob  liisfor^/  nf  Jes^diiilii)'  ( 'iiinitij    Ke)itiickii. 

There  is  an  old  stone-mill  at  Keene,  which  was  built  in  1794.  In 
the  last  few  years  it  has  fallen  into  decay.  This  mill  was  provided 
wilh  a  combination  of  horse  and  water  power,  and  was  erected  by 
Aianuah  Singleton. 

The  Singletons  were  among-  the  best  people  who  came  to 
Jessamine,  and  \\-ere  good  farmers  and  enterprising  men,  and  they 
Ijuilt  this  stone  mill,  which  was  a  fine  structure  in  its  day.  It  has 
been  operated  until  within  the  last  twenty  years.  It  relied  for  its 
water  power  upon  a  large  spring,  which  was  located  about  a 
mile  and  a  half  away,  upon  a  place  formerly  owned  by  ^Ir.  Robert 
Young,  and  sold  by  him  to  Air.  Andrew  Hampton.  This  spring 
rises  up  in  the  valley,  and  runs  down  into  a  large  cave,  which  was 
a  habitation  for  the  Indians  before  the  advent  of  the  white  man  in 
this  section  of  Kentuck}-.  This  spring  reappears  some  distance 
from  Keene,  and  this  and  the  water  that  flowed  from  other  small 
streams  in  the  neighborhood,  supplied  the  power  for  the  opera- 
tion of  the  mill  at  Keene. 

In  the  early  days,  when  steam  was  unknown,  mill-sites  were 
very  valuable.  \\'hen  the  hunters  and  pioneers  first  came  to 
Kentucky,  in  crossing  streams  they  would  mark  mill-sites,  and 
in  their  notes  state  that  at  such  and  such  a  place  was  a  good  mill- 
site,  and  the  lands  that  were  contiguous  to  such  sites  were  always 
considered  of  great  value,  and  were  promptly  taken  up  by  the 
settlers,  or  by  their  representatives. 

Survevors  in  these  days  would  laugh  at  the  preservation  of 
the  water  and  its  use  in  the  operation  of  these  mills,  but  in  the 
days  of  our  forefathers,  it  was  either  water  power  or  horse  power, 
and  horse  power  was  extremely  slow  and  inefifectual.  and,  as  it 
sometimes  required  a  mill-race  to  run  a  mile  and  a  half  to  get 
the  proper  fall,  opportunities  were  promptly  and  energetically 
seized  wherever  a  proper  fall  of  water  could  be  secured  bv  dams 
to  operate  these  country  mills. 


Mt.  Pleasant  Baptist  Church, 

One  of  the  oldest  churches  in  Jessamine  countv  is  ~S.lt.  Pleas- 
ant baptist  church,  near  Keene.  It  is  located  in  a  flue  neighbor- 
hood, in  the  midst  of  rich  lands,  which  were  settled  about  1790 


Hiatonj  <)f  ,Jc.<i(iiiiiiif:  Cntudij,  Kentnckij.  189 

by  some  of  tlic  most  enterprisin.e,-  and  1)est-educated  people  who 
came  to  Jessamine  count}-  at  that  period  of  its  history.  From 
time  to  time  there  had  been  preaching;  in  this  locaHty  by  the  Bap- 
tists who  were  connected  with  the  South  Elkhorn  church,  which 
was  over  the  F'ayette  Hne,  but  in  1801  at  the  request  of  one  hun- 
dred members  of  the  South  Elkhorn  church  who  were  living  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Mt.  Pleasant,  application  was  made  to  or- 
ganize a  new  congregation,  and  Rev.  John  Shackleford,  Absalom 
Bainbridge,  and  John  Kellar  were  authorized  to  investigate  and 
constitute  a  church  at  this  point.  The  South  Elkhorn  church 
still  exists,  but  is  not  so  prosperous  as  its  daughter,  ]^It.  Pleasant. 

The  rules  of  the  church  which  were  adopted  at  this  tmie  were 
very  peculiar,  and  were  headed,  "Rules  of  the  Church  \\'hile  Sit- 
■ting  on  Business" : 

1st.  It  is  agreed  that  no  motion  l^e  attended  to  withotit  the 
person  making  such  motion  addresses  the  Moderator  standing, 
and  this  proposition  be  seconded. 

2nd.  That  no  member  speak  while  the  church  is  on  business 
except  to  the  Moderator,  and  then  in  a  mild  and  Christian  man- 
ner. 

3rd.  That  no  member  speak  in  church  meeting  to  the  same 
matter  more  than  twice  without  leave  of  the  Moderator. 

4th.     That  no  member  leave  his  seat  in  time  of  l)usiness. 

5tli.  The  Moderator  sihall  call  to  order,  whenever  these  rules 
are  violated.  Ary  memlx'r  called  to  order  lias  a  riglii  to  a  voice 
of  the  church,  it  he  chooses. 

Among  the  first  members  were  the  \\'illiam?es,  the  Woods, 
the  Hugheses,  the  Smiths,  the  Singletons,  the  Haydons,  the 
Hamptons,  the  Sales,  tlie  .Mosbys,  the  Barclays,  the  Holloways 
and  the  Proctors. 

From  its  commencement  Mt.  Pleasant  has  always  been  one 
of  the  most  prosperous  of  the  liaptist  churches  in  the  BUtegrass 
section.  The  neighborhood,  settled  b\'  Uaptists,  has  been  domi- 
nated and  controlled  1)y  I  baptists  from  the  time  of  the  organization 
of  this  church  down  to  tlie  ]M'esent.  Tt  is  an  evidence  of  the  per- 
sistence of  the  religious  denomination  in  any  conununity  wliere 
once  fairly  planted. 

The  first  ]:)astor  was  Rev.  George  Stokes  Smith.  He  was  a 
man  of  strong  indi\iduality,  great  talent,  and  was  a  member  of 


I'.Hi  H'lxtorij  of  Jesmminc  Coimtij,  KentKckij. 

tlie  convention  wliich  framed  the  Constitution  of  1792,  and 
R; presented  F'ayette  county  in  that  body.  He  was  prominent  and 
mrinential,  and  was  pastor  of  the  churcli  from  1803  down  to  1810. 
In  lliat  year  Edmund  Wallef-,  a  nephew  of  Rev.  G.  S.  Smith,  was 
called  as  pastor  of  the  church,  and  remained  with  it  until  June, 
1843.  He  was  a  man  of  i;reat  power,  great  earnestness,  and 
oreat  consecration,  and  built  up  a  very  large  congregation.  The 
church  book  shows  that  the  deacons  in  memory  of  Mr.  Waller 
draped  the  pulpit  in  mourning  for  him  who  had  been  the  true  and 
faithful  pastor  of  the  church  for  thirty-two  years,  and  the  first 
Sabbath  of  July  in  that  year  was  directed  to  be  set  apart  as  a  day 
of  fasting  and  prayer.  Edmund  Waller,  who  was  the  father  of 
John  L.  Waller,  was  born  at  Spottsylvania  Court  House, 
\'a.,  in  1775.  He  was  the  son  of  Wm.  E.  Wallei 
and  l)rother  of  Wm.  Smith  Waller,  the  Lexington  banker.  His 
motlier  was  a  sister  of  George  Stokes  Smith. 

He  was  buried  a  few  miles  from  Mt.  Pleasant  in  one  direction, 
while  his  uncle  Smith  is  bin-ied  three  miles  south.  He  served  the 
church  longer  than  any  other  pastor.  The  church  has  had  twen- 
ty-one pastors,  the  minister  being  the  Rev.  E.  W.  Argabrite,  and 
under  his  ministration  the  church  bids  fair  to  have  many  years  of 
continued  usefulness. 

Nicholasville  Presbyterian  Church. 

The  Nicholasville  I'resbyterian  church  was  organized  June  12, 
1820,  by  Rev.  John  Lyle.  Alex.  McFeeters,  Samuel  Rice  and 
James  Ewing  were  chosen  the  Elders.  Previous  to  this  the 
Presbyterian  preaching  place  had  been  established  about  one  and 
a  half  miles  from  Nicholasville  on  the  farm  of  Samuel  McDowell, 
which  is  now  owned  by  his  son,  William  ^McDowell. 

The  first  member  to  connect  herself  with  the  church  was  Mrs. 
Jane  Meaux.  She  was  always  one  of  its  most  faithful  and  liberal 
sup]K)rters.  She  donated  to  the  church  the  ground  on  which  the 
present  church  edifice  and  parsonage  are  situated.  Rev.  John 
E.  Coons  supplied  the  church  from  1839  to  1852. 

The  first  church  was  erected  when  Rev.  John  Hudson  was 
pastor.  It  was  on  the  corner  diagonally  opposite  the  Jessamine 
Female  Institute,  occupied  quite  a  large  space,  and  had  in  con- 


Hidorij  of  JcsMtiiiiiie  CoKidij,  Kentuchij.  I'.M 

iiection  with  it,  a  l)urving-g"round.  The  l)uilding  was  completed 
in  1825,  but  not  dedicated  until  October  7,  \'!^2~.  At  this  time  a 
jM'otracted  meeting  was  held,  and  the  church  received  a  great 
out-pouring,  and  more  than  sixty  persons  were  added  to  the  mem- 
bership. 

This  church  has  sent  into  the  ministry  an  unusually  large 
number  of  men.  among  whom  may  I)e  mentioned  Rev.  John  T. 
Hendrick.  Ke\-.  W'm.  (i.  Rice,  Rev.  Charles  Sturtevant,  Rev.  M. 
B.  Price,  Rev.  Thomas  R.  Welch,  ]:>.  D..  Rev.  Daniel  P.  Young, 
Rev.  Chas.  \\  .  Price,  Rev.  J.  E.  Spilman,  Rev.  Robert  Mann  and 
Rev.  Jas.  Priest,  who  was  a  slave  of  Airs.  Aleau.x,  and  wlio,  aftei 
his  emigration  to  Liberia,  was  vice-president  of  that  republic, 
having  gone  there  as  a  missionary. 

The  present  clun-ch  building  was  dedicated  on  tiie  3rd  of 
January,  1851,  by  Rev.  R.  J.  Preckinridge,  D.  D.  The  present 
pastor  is  Rev.  R.  E.  Douglass.  The  gentlemen  who  have  served 
as  its  elders  have  l)een  among  the  most  prominent  citizens  oi 
Jessamine  during  the  ])ast  seventy-five  years,  in  addition  to 
those  already  named,  Ephraim  Tanner,  Dr.  Archibald  Young, 
Maj.  Daniel  15.  Price,  Reuben  B.  Berry,  W'm.  II.  Rainey,  ( )liver 
Anderson,  Jas.  Clement,  Jas.  McKee,  John  L.  Price,  ( )tho  Rob- 
erts, Thos.  E.  West,  Jas.  Anderson,  Wm.  S.  Scott,  Chas.  ]•".  Smith, 
John  .\.  Scroggan,  W'm.  M.  Todd,  Robt.  '\\)img.  John  A.  Willis. 
^Vm.  Clark,  W.  I),  ^'oung.  Harvey  Scott.  W.  C,  Woods,  S.  D. 
Young,  A.  X.  (iordon,  Thomas  Butler  and  Jolm  Steele. 

Maj.  D.  1).  Price  was  Clerk  (if  the  Session  for  thirt\-two  \ears, 
while  John  A.  Willis  has  acted  in  the  same  capacity  for  thirty- 
eight  years. 

This  church  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  most  liberal  of  the 
Presbyterian  churches  in  Kentuck}-.  Its  donations  to  Center 
College,  Central  Cniversity,  Danville  Theological  Seminary,  and 
to  all  the  causes  of  the  chm-ch  have  been  extremely  generous,  and 
give  the  church  a  high  standing  among  all  Presbyterians.  This 
church  is  tlie  mother  of  the  church  at  ^^'i1more,  the  church  there 
having  been  snp])orted  and  maintained  1)\-  the  Xicholasville 
clnu-eh  until  it  became  self-supporting. 


-^  a:  a  aiaSfe' 


COLORED  CHRISTIAN  CHURCH. 


Hidorij  of  Jpf.-'amine  County,  Kentucky.  1 9:-{ 

Clear  Creek  Presbyterian  Church. 

One  of  tlic  most  interesting  of  the  ancient  structures  in  Jessa- 
mine county,  is  Clear  Creek  Presbyterian  churcli.  It  was  erected 
about  1829,  and  was  organized  by  Rev.  Nathan  H.  Hall.  Among 
the  names  of  the  founders  are  those  of  Dr.  Archibald  Young, 
James  Carrothers.  Ephraim  Carter,  David  AlcKee.  and  Archi- 
bald Logan.  Tliis  old  clnnx"h  is  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from 
Wilmore  on  the  Xicholasville  turnpike.  It  was  abandoned  some 
years  since,  and  sold  to  the  colored  people,  who  now  use  it  as  a 
house  of  worshi]).  .At  one  time  it  was  a  very  important 
congregation,  and  a  large  and  prosperous  church.  Its  first  pastor 
was  Rev.  Simeon  H.  Crane,  who  served  tlie  church  for  one-third 
of  his  lune  for  $150  per  annum. 

It  was  Ijuilt  entirely  of  stone,  and  the  old  seats  and  floors  and 
pulpit  are  still  intact. 

In  a  little  cemetery  across  the  road  slee]xs  the  dust  of  manv 
pious  members,  whose  faith  found  expression  in  song  and  prayer 
in  this  old  church. 


St.  Luke's  Catholic  Church. 

The  only  Catholic  churcli  in  Jessamine  county  is  that  of  St. 
Luke,  in  Xicholasville,  Jw.  It  was  erected  in  1866  on  ground 
deeded  for  that  pur])ose  by  Moreau  Rrown.  It  was  dedicated  to 
the  service  of  Cod  in  1866  l)y  Rev.  Father  \\'illie.  and  in  this  the 
Centennial  year  of  Xicholasville   has  156  members. 


Bethany  Christian  Church. 

One  of  tlie  most  interesting  churclies  in  Jessamine  counlv  is 
] Bethany  Christian  church.  Jt  was  organized  on  the  first  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1845.  through  the  ministration  of  Jacob  Creath,  Samuel 
J.  I'inkerton  and  James  Simms.  For  a  long  time  it  was  one  of 
llie  most  prosperous  and  successful  of  the  cluu-ches  of  that  de- 
nomination in  tlu'  count} .  l)ut  has  recently  been  reduced.  It  had 
sucli  members  as  Dr.  James  J.  Burch,  Samuel  Muir,  George  S. 
P.ryant,  r.enjann'n  Robinson,  Dr.  Jolui  Bryant,  ^\'illiam  IT. 
13 


1!'4  Midofij  of  Ji'--'!<(Uiiine  (Jounttj,  Keiifuckij 

Daniel.  I'enj.  J.  Mitchell,  and  other  responsible  and  prominent 
citizens. 

The  Northern  Methodist  Church 

^^'as  erected  in  Xich.olasville  in  1875.  it  is  one  of  the  hand- 
some church  edifices  of  the  town,  and  was  Iniilt  almost  altogether 
through  the  efforts  of  Moreau  Brown,  Esq.,  who  was  so  long  a 
resident  of  Nicholasville,  and  one  ot  its  most  successful  and 
prominent  members,  and  who  died  in  1886. 

The  present  pastor  of  tliis  church  is  the  Rev.  \'.  T.  Willis. 

The  Nicholasville  Christian  Church 

Was  organized  in  the  spring  of  1828  by  Elder  George  W.  Elley, 
Mr.  Ellc}-  had  a  religious  debate  with  George  \\'.  Sturtivant,  a 
young  Presbyterian  minister  and  was  engaged  in  the  boot  and 
shoe  business  in  Nicholasville  in  1826,  removing  from  there  to 
Lexington  in  1829,  where  for  20  years  he  was  engaged  in  bus- 
iness and  was  a  leading  member  of  the  Christian  church. 

The  records  of  this  church  have  been  burned,  and  it  is  im- 
possible to  get  all  the  data  concerning  its  organization.  Elder 
Jacob  Creath,  in  a  letter  written  some  years  ago,  says  :  "Brother 
Campbell  and  nuself  went  to  Kentuckv  from  Guyandotte, 
Western  \'irginia,  which  was  in  1828.  In  January,  1829,  I  was 
invited  by  my  deceased  uncle,  J.  E.  Creath.  Sr..  to  hold  a  meeting 
in  Nicholasville  with  Brother  AA'illiam  Morton.  We  held  the 
meeting  in  the  Presbyterian  meeting  house  which  was  located  in 
the  west  end  of  the  town.  Diu'ing  the  meeting  it  rained  very  hard 
all  day.  I  jireached  from  John  xx,  30  and  3  r .  'Many  other  signs 
truly  did  Jesus  in  the  presence  of  his  disciples,  which  are  not  Avrit- 
ten  in  this  Ijook.'  "' 

The  first  church  building  of  this  congregation  was  erected  in 
1830.  ^\'illiam  Shreve  and  John  Wallace  were  chosen  elders 
and  James  Sinuns  and  James  Sale  deacons.  W'illiam  White, 
James  Simms  and  Closes  Hawkins  were  long  leading  and  faithful 
mcml)crs  of  the  church.  The  present  handsome  edifice  was  erected 
in  1874  and  is  one  of  the  most  comfortable  and  convenient  church 
structures  in  the  city.  The  congregation  has  a  numerous  mem- 
])ership  and  has  a  most  influen.tial  position  in  the  countv. 


Midori)  of  Jr.-'saiulne  Coantij,  Kentucky.  1'J5 

First  Baptist  Church. 

This  church  was  organized  on  tlie  loth  of  I'ebruary,  1849, 
by  a  commission  coni])ose'l  of  Rev.  R.  T.  Dillard,  Joseph  R.  Bar- 
bee  and  E.  Darnaby.  I'liere  were  only  seventeen  members  then 
present.  Stephen  P.  Waller  was  chosen  clerk  and  Jonathan  Baker 
and  E.  A.  Waller  were  chosen  the  first  deacons.  Its  first  pastor 
was  Rev.  Thomas  J.  Drane.  It  has  had  a  line  of  distinguished 
ministers  through  the  fifty  years  of  its  existence,  and,  while  not 
a  very  large  congregation,  has  always  been  an  extremely  faithful 
and  earnest  one.  The  present  pastor  is  Rev.  \\'illiam  D.  Xow- 
lin.  'Ihe  edifice  in  which  the  c(jngregation  worships  was  built  in 
the  \ear  1852. 

Ebenezer  Church. 

Ebenezer  rresb\terian  church  was  organized  by  the  Rev. 
Adam  Rankin,  somewhere  between  1785  and  1790.  He  came  to 
Kentucky  from  \'irginia  in  October,  1784.  This  church  is  on 
Clear  creek  close  to  the  town  of  Trc^y.  Change  of  roads  and 
lines  of  travel  have  rendered  the  location  unsuitable.  The  first 
church  was  1)uilt  of  logs,  raid  the  stone  chtirch,  which  was 
abandoned  in  1876,  was  begun  in  1805.  and  was  used  continuously 
for  nearly  a  century  bv  the  descendants  oi  the  people  who  or- 
ganized this  congregation  Among  the  first  members  were  Wm. 
Evans  and  wife.  Thcs.  Woods  and  wife.  \\"m.  Garrard  and  wife. 
Robt.  Gwin  and  wife,  l^jhraim  Tanner  and  wife,  Thos.  Read  and 
wife,  Robt.  P.lack  and  \\iie.  Jas.  lUack  and  wife.  Hugh  Garrett, 
Robt.  Lo\\re\-.  Mrs.  Xancy  Drake,  and  the  Lambkins,  Beattys, 
Longs,  Scanlands,  l^camers.  Hedges,  I^hillipses  and  Logans. 

The  descendants  of  many  of  chese  gtjdly  people  remain  in  the 
neighborhood  and  still  sui)port  the  church  of  their  fathers.  One 
of  the  most  useful  and  honored  of  all  the  ministers  of  Ebenezer 
churcli  \\as  Rev.  X'eal  Gordon,  who  came  from  Georgia  and  sup- 
|ilied  tlie  church  for  thirtv  vears.  He  was  a  most  zealous  and 
self-denying  servant  of  Christ.  His  grave  is  close  by  the  door  of 
the  old  stone  church.  Tn  this  old  building  are  the  straight 
benches  and  the  wh.ite  ]jainted  pul])it  which  were  used  for  more 
tlian  fift\-  vears.     Around  its  deserted  walls  rests  the  dust  of  its 


lyG  HUlorij  of  Jesxaniiiie  Lhimfij,  Kcntuckij. 

failhlul  supporters  for  one  hundred  years;  in  silence  and  solitude 
these  i^raves  still  speak  of  the  faithfulness  and  consecration  of  the 
people  of  this  church. 

The  nienihers  of  the  Ebenezer  and  the  Clear  Creek  churches 
united  in  1870  and  formed  the  Troy  Presbyterian  church,  and 
while  Troy  church  is  just  over  the  Woodford  line,  (juite  a  large 
l)roportion  of  its  menibershi])  resides  in  Jessamine.  Rev.  E.  O. 
( "luerrant.  D.  1).,  was  called  as  pastor  of  the  Troy  church  in  1886. 
He  infused  new  life  and  energy  into  the  organization.  He  has 
since  resigned  the  pastorate  and  taken  charge  of  the  church  at 
W'ilmore,  which  by  a  large  increase  in  membership  demands  the 
whole  time  (^f  the  ])astor. 


Methodist  Episcopal  Churchy  South. 

The  first  church  building  erected  in  Xicholasville  was  bv  the 
members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church  in  1799.  The  frame 
church  which  stood  on  the  same  lot  some  twenty  steps  from  the 
present  fine  building  was  erected  through  the  labors  of  the  Rev. 
Ji»hn  Metcalf  aud  the  Rev.  Nathaniel  Harris.  The  house  was 
56x36  and  had  a  room  for  the  colored  people  30  x  15. 

One  of  the  ablest  ministers  who  preached  in  this  church  was 
the  Rev.  Chas.  Watson  ;  he  was  a  successful  and  distinguished 
evangelist.  '  Iftentimes  at  meetings  he  took  occasion  to  show 
his  brethren  his  ordination  certificate  which  bore  the  autograph 
of  IJishop  Aslnu'w  These  were  considered  most  valuable  me- 
mentoes among  the  early  Methodist  people. 

Bishop  Asbury  laid  the  foundation  of  the  Alethodist  church 
in  America,  and  his  piety,  learning  and  consecration  did  much  to 
widely  spread  the  doctrines  of  this  denomination.  The  house 
was  dedicated  l)y  the  Rev.  Charles  Chenowerth. 

The  following  letter  conveyed  the  invitation  : 

Jessamine  county,  Kentucky,  Sept.  9,  1799. 
Rev.  Charles  Chenowerth  : 

Dear  Brother:  Our  meeting  house  is  completed,  and  I  in- 
vite vou  to  be  with  us  the  second  Sunda\-  in  October  to  preach 
the  first  sermon  in  the  new  house.     I  have  written  severail  others 


Il'idortj  of  Jc-«a)niue  County,  Kcntiichj.  l'.*7 

to  assist  in  holding  the  revival,  and  am  still  living  on  the  bank 
of  the  Kentucky  river,  and  preach  every  Sunday. 

Yours  truly, 

John  Metcalf. 

To  which  the  following-  response  was  written : 

Xear  Harrodsburg,  Ky.,  Sept.  26,  1799. 
Dear   Bro.    IMetcalf:     I    was   handed    your   letter   to-day   by 
Bro.  Rule,  and  will  inform  you  that  I  will  come  if  no  unforeseen 
occasion  prevents  me  from  doing  so. 

Truly  yours  in  the  Gospel  of  Peace. 

Chas.  Chenowerth. 

Rev.  John  Metcalf  was  the  first  minister.  He  had  preached 
in  Xicholasville  for  years  before  the  erection  of  the  church  build- 
ing. His  preaching  was  often  at  the  house  of  Elijah  Wallace 
who  then  lived  where  Judge  Phillips  now  resides. 

In  1789  Rev.  Thomas  Williamson  succeeded  Mr.  ]\Ietcalf.  but 
Air.  ]\Ietcalf  returned  in  1804.  In  1805  ]\Ir.  Metcalf  moved  his 
family  to  Xicholasville,  as  also  Bethel  Academy,  which  was  then 
carried  on,  on  the  banks  of  the  Kentucky  river. 

In  1821  the  distinguished  ^Methodist.  H.  H.  Kavanaugh.  after- 
ward bishop,  filled  the  pulpit.  In  1846  the  old  frame  church  was 
torn  down  after  standing  fort\-six  years,  and  a  new  brick  house 
was  erected,  and  a  few  years  since  the  present  beautiful  and 
elegant  structure  was  erected  on  the  same  ground.  Rev.  T.  W. 
AVatts  is  the  minister  now  in  charge.  The  congregation  has  al- 
ways been  considered  one  full  of  faith  and  good  works,  and  has 
•done  efficient  service  for  the  cause  of  (Jiod. 

In  1843,  there  was  a  great  revival  in  the  Methodist  church  at 
Xicholasville,  which  was  under  the  conduct  of  Rev.  Rice  Harris. 
The  following  preachers  were  in  attendance :  Jonathan  Stamp- 
ers, Benjamin  Crouch,  Richard  Deering,  Charles  Watson,  B.  H. 
McCown,  Thos.  X.  Rawlston,  Rev.  Air.  Kelly. 

The  following  letter  written  by  David  Crozer,  who  was  the 
owner  of  and  was  operating  Crozer's  Mill  on  Jessamine  creek,  to 
the  Hon.  Tucker  Woodson,  gives  an  account  of  this  meeting: 


198  Hi4onj  of  Je^aaiiune  Cuttidij,  Kctdnckij. 

"Jessamine  county,  Ky. 
■'Four  miles  east  of  Xicliolasville,  Feb.  13,  1843. 
"Plon.  Tucker  A\'oodson  : 

"Dear  Sir:  ^'our  esteemed  favor  of  10th  is  received,  and 
havino^  a  little  leisure  1  hasten  to  answer  it.  1  was  ni)t  aware  of 
the  fact  stated  l)y  you,  that  the  roads  1  named  to  you  were  undei 
the  control  of  the  local  boards.  I  knew  that  there  was  a  law  ol 
last  session,  avtthorizing  the  state  board  to  take  the  management 
of  all  the  roads,  and  had  understood  that  they  had  generallv  done 
so.  (  )n  the  sul)iect  of  the  proposed  bank.  I  am  greatl}'  at  a  loss 
to  give  yoti  my  opinion,  and  can  not  exactly  see  and  appreciate 
your  present  position  on  this,  only  I  know  that  you  were  elected 
as  opposed  to  relief  measttres.  I  am  greatly  astonished  at  the 
news  this  morning  from  Xicliolasville.  There  is  a  great  revival 
going  on  at  the  ^Methodist  church  ;  more  than  thirty  have  been 
added  to  the  church.  Among  the  converts  are  Thomas  H.  Bal- 
lard, Stephen  Spragens,  Aloreau  Brown.  Mrs.  Keene.  ]\Irs.  Wil- 
more  (wife  of  T.  D.  Wilmore),  Jacob  W'ilmore,  Jr.,  Sandy  Wake, 
James  Buskett  and  A\'m.  15.  Payne.  Idie  Rev.  Rice  Harris  was 
greatly  assisted  in  this  meeting  by  his  brethren  from  other  cir- 
cuits. 

"AA  e  must  ourselves  watch  and  avoid  the  careless  side  of  life. 

"Your  friend, 

"D.  Crozer." 

Air.  Crozer  was  mistaken  as  to  Jttdge  A\"ake.  He  never  joined 
the  ^Methodist  church. 

African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

This  church  is  situated  on  Fast  street  in  Xicholasville,  and 
was  organized  September  15,  1845,  ^^y  R^'^'-  Samuel  ^yliller,  who 
then  erected  the  first  house  of  worship  that  this  congregation 
ever  had.  The  present  beautiful  structure  was  Iniilt  through  the 
labors  of  Rev.  James  Turner.  This  church  has  a  verv  active 
membershi])  and  a  large,  successful  Sunday-school,  which  exerts 
a  fine  influence  throughout  the  members  of  the  church.  The 
minutes  sho\A-  that  it  is  one  of  the  most  liberal  of  the  colored 
churches,  and  that  in  thirtv  ^■ears  it  has  contributed  to  i)enevolent 


objects  about  $18,000.  Its  mcniberslii])  includes  a  very  large  list 
of  names.  1 1  ])resent  ])astor  is  J\ev.  1'.  A.  Nicholas,  a  native  of 
i  larrison  count  \'.  K  v. 


Colored  Christian  Church. 

One  of  the  handsomest  colored  cliurclies  in  the  C(junty  or 
state,  is  the  Colored  Christian  Church,  Xicholasville,  which  was 
erected  in  1843  '>'i''  ^oi*  several  years  used  as  a  house  of  wor- 
ship, l)eing'  then  known  as  the  Union  Church,  where  all  the 
colored  people  from  time  to  time  held  their  services.  It  was  not 
tmtil  the  year  1867  that  the  officers  of  the  church  bought  the 
Union  Clnircli  and  became  a  separate  organization.  The  pres- 
ent pastor,  the  Rev.  W.  H.  Dickinson,  came  to  the  congregation 
on  the  first  of  September,  1896.  He  is  a  native  of  \'irginia.  The 
churcli  Iiuilding  now  in  use  was  erected  in  1890.  It  has  a  large 
membership  and  is  one  of  the  most  prosperous  of  the  colored 
churches  in  Central  Kentuckv. 


Colored  Baptist  Church. 

The  first  colored  l!a])tist  church  in  Xicholasville  was  organ- 
ized in  1846.  ]->w  of  its  records  have  been  preserved.  Rev. 
Robert  Ir\'in  was  the  first  pastor,  who  remained  in  the  church 
fcur  years.  The  present  membership  is  356.  It  has  been  pros- 
perous and  particularly  so  under  the  ministrations  of  its  present 
])astcr.  Re\ .  Jolm  William  Clark. 


200  Hi-^orji  of  .Tt'X!«ii)ih})'  Omniij,  Kenincky. 

Biographical  Sketches  of  Prominent  Citi- 
zens of  Jessamine  County* 


James  Irvin. 

The  last  Revolutionary  soldier  to  die  in  Jessamine  county 
was  James  Irvan.  He  was  born  in  Mecklenburg-  county,  Va., 
in  1/54,  and  died  in  Jessamine  county  in  1851,  at  ninety-seven 
years.  He  served  seven  years  in  the  Revolutionary  war  and  was 
badly  wounded  at  the  Battle  of  Guilford  Court  House,  Alarch  15, 
1 781 .  He  was  shot  in  the  left  hip.  He  came  to  Jessamine  countv 
in  1793  and  raised  a  large  family  of  daughters  who  all  lived  to  be 
over  eighty-seven  years  of  age. 

He  is  the  only  Revolutionary  soldier  who  very  many  of  the 
peoi)le  in  Jessamine  county  ever  saw.  When  Gen.  William  O. 
Butler  was  a  Democratic  candidate  for  Governor  of  Kentucky  in 
1844,  James  Irvin  and  four  other  Revolutionary  veterans  rode  in 
the  carriage  with  General  Butler  from  the  place  of  Air.  John 
lUuler.  on  Jessamine  creek,  on  the  Danville  pike,  to  Xicholasville, 
where  General  Butler  was  to  speak,  in  the  field  adjoining-  the 
colored  cemetery,  close  to  the  line  of  the  R.,  X.,  I.  c:  B.  R.  R. 

^^'hen  Irvin  was  wounded  in  battle  he  was  left  at  the  house  of 
the  father  of  William  A.  Graham,  the  distinguished  politician 
of  Xorth  Carolina,  and  Secretary  of  the  Xavy  under  Alillard 
Fillmore.  \Miile  sick  he  cut  his  initials  on  a  stone  and  the  date 
of  his  wounding  and  brought  this  stone  with  him  to  Kentucky 
when  he  emigrated  to  the  state.  He  lived  on  the  place  now 
owned  by  Mr.  Dean,  near  Sulphur  ^^'ell,  and  was  buried  in  the 
Hickman  neighborhood. 


Frederick  Zimmerman. 

One  of  the  strong  characters  in  the  early  history  of  Jessamine 
county  was  Frederick  Zimmerman,  its  first  surveyor.  His  ances- 
tors oame  from  Salzwedel,  Germanv.     His  forefathers  emigrated 


H'idorij  of  Jessamine  Cowiti/,  Knituchj.  201 

to  Xew  York.  After  a  passage  of  six  weeks  over  the  Atlantic 
they  settled  on  tlie  Hudson  river,  at  the  village  of  Rheinbeck,  in 
Dutchess  county.  Remaining  in  Xew  York  four  months  two 
brothers  settled  in  Ciilpeper  cotmty.  A'irginia,  where  was  born 
Frederick  Zinmierman.  He  moved  to  Jessamine  county  prior 
to  1792,  and  lived  in  the  Alarble  creek  district.  He  married  Judith 
Bourne,  daughter  of  Henry  Bourne.  His  work  in  the  surveys  of 
Jessamine  county  show^s  that  he  was  a  competent  and  faithful  offi- 
cial. His  sons  and  daughters  have  been  industrious,  upright  citizens 
and  have  performed  well  llie  duties  devolved  upon  them.  John 
Zimmerman,  Daniel  Zimmerman,  Augustus  Zimmerman  and 
Morton  Zimmerman,  long  and  favorably  known  in  the  county, 
were  sons  of  Frederick  Zimmerman.  A  nnmerous  posterity  still 
reside  in  the  county  which  their  ancestor  helped  to  redeem  from 
the  savages,  and  in  the  earlier  history  of  which  he  was  a  strong 
and  influential  factor. 

Francis  Phipps 

Was  born  on  the  21st  of  October,  175 1,  and  was  for  a  long  time 
a  resident  <:)f  Jessamine  county.  He  was  engaged  in  surveying 
the  Lexington  and  Danville  pike,  by  Col.  \\\  R.  McKee  in  1829- 
30.  He  resided  at  Mr.  ihos.  Scott's  house  for  several  years, 
at  which  place  the  letter,  copied  below,  was  found.  References 
are  made  to  Rev.  John  Price,  who,  afterwards,  came  to  Jessamine 
county,  and  was  long  a  Baptist  minister  in  this  locality,  and  the 
letter  is  otherwise  full  of  interesting  matter : 

In  Mess,  No.  to.  Colonel  Hamilton's  Regiment.  Little  'N'ork,  12 
miles  from  \\'illianisl)urg.  Oct.  21st,  1781. 

\\\  Dear  I'arcnts  :  I  liave  only  time  to  inform  you  that  the 
Ih'itish  arniv.  mider  old  Cornwallis.  surrendered  to  General 
Washington  un  tlie  njih.  Capt.  Charles  Johnston,  who  will 
leave  for  Meckknburg  to-morrow,  will  give  you  full  particulars 
of  this  great  and  glorious  achievement. 

On  the  25th  of  September  our  army,  letl  b\'  the  beloved  Wash- 
ington,  reached  the  headquarters  of  General  La  l-'ayette,  at  W'il- 
lianisburg,  and  on  the  30th,  our  armv  marchetl  in  a  body  to  attack 
^'ork  and  (  iloucester.  (  )n  the  7th  of  October,  Washington 
<)])ene(l  the  attack  on  Cornwallis  with   100  pieces  of  cannon.     It 


202  JliMori/  of  Jt>^:<ii))iiiir  (nuiifii,  Keiitncki/. 

was  a  most  beautiful  si_L,'-ht  to  sec  our  l)()nil)-sliells  l)urstini:;-  in  the 
midst  of  the  enemy,  tearing-  down  whok'  eoni]Kuiies  of  our  ene- 
mies—as we  coidd  see  them  from  the  hi^^-h  ground  near  tlie  river. 
During-  the  siege,  whieh  histed  17  days,  two  strong  redoubts  were 
storuKMl  by  our  regiment,  led  by  Col.  Hamilton.  We  w-ere  as- 
sisted in  the  charge  1)y  the  h'rench.  When  within  a  few  yards  of 
the  redoubt.  Col.  Hamilton  rode  u\)  to  the  regiment,  and  said  in 
a  voice  like  tlie  l)ursting  of  a  shell:  "Charge  those  men,  my  brave 
comrades,  wJio  wish  to  make  slaves  of  our  people."  We  rushed 
at  them  with  a  loud  shout,  and  ca]:)tured  over  two  hundred — kill- 
ing and  wounding  aibout  fifty.  \\>  lost  aibout  seventy-five  of  as 
brave  men  as  ever  pulled  a  trigger  at  an  enemy  of  our  liberty. 
( )ur  French  soldiers  lost  as  many  as  we  did.  It  would  have  done 
the  heart  of  every  lover  of  liberty  good  to  have  seen  the  red-coated 
rascals  surrender  to  our  army  on  the  iQth — old  Cornwallis  and  his 
army — numbering  8,000  muskets  ;  I  counted  fifty  brass  and  one 
hundred  and  sixty  iron  cannon. 

At  about  12  o'clock  our  ami}-  was  drawn  up  in  two  lines,  ex- 
tending more  than  a  mile  in  length.  Our  French  fellow-soldiers 
were  placed  on  our  left  and  headed  by  their  General.  At  the  head 
of  our  ragged,  l)ut  brave  soldiers,  I  saw  the  nol)le  Washington,  on 
his  liorse,  looking  calm  and  cool  as  he  was  when  crossing  the 
Delaware  river  a  few  \ears  liefore.  Many  of  the  rustic  people 
of  this  part  of  A'irginia,  consisting  of  old  men,  women  and  chil- 
dren, assembled  in  numbers  equal  to  the  military,  to  witness  the 
surrender  of  the  old  murderer.  Cornwallis.  Every  face  beamed 
with  joy  and  gladness — but  a  profound  silence  prevailed  ;  no  talk- 
ing, no  noise  of  any  kind,  save  the  slow,  measured  step  of  our 
enemies,  was  lieard.  General  Tarleton's  troops  at  Gloucester 
surrendered  at  the  same  time  to  our  I'^rench  soldiers.  Evervthing 
was  done  in  a  quiet  manner. 

After  the  surrender,  I  saw  our  beloved  Washington  and  Col- 
onel Hamilton  talking  with  all  the  British  officers.  Old  Corn- 
w'allis  and  Tarleton  were  very  polite  to  our  officers,  and  it  was  a 
surprise  to  see  old  Cornwallis  treating  our  beloved  commander 
and  Colonel  Hamilton  with  so  much  consideration.  Cornwallis 
is  a  large  man,  with  dark  brown  hair,  a  ruddy  face,  good  nose  and 
has  the  appearance  of  a  man  of  kind  heart  and  good  intentions. 
General  Tarleton  is  also  a  large  man.  but  not  so  big  as  old  Corn- 


Ili.itoni  <if  Ji'-<.<(iiitiin'  Coil  lit  ij^  Kcnfitck)/.  208 

wallis.  Ilis  countenance  is  hard  and  tyrannical;  and  his  mean, 
dark  eves  are  full  of  cruelty.  Some  few  of  the  Carolinians  saw 
him  after  the  surrender  was  over,  and  cursed  him  as  he  passed  up 
the  road  on  his  \\a\-  to  the  slii])  that  was  to  take  the  British  to 
New  York.  \\']ien  tlie  boys  cursed  him  he  never  made  any  re- 
ply, but  rode  away,  showing-  no  high  temper,  that  he  was  known 
to  have  by  some  Carolinians  who  remembered  his  cruelties  in 
South  Carolina. 

The  Rev.  jolni  I 'rice  preached  for  the  soldiers  on  Sunda}-  last. 
His  sermon  was  listened  to  by  many  officers,  stich  as  General 
Lincoln.  Cols.  Henry  I.ee.  Hamilton  and  Woodford.  My  health 
is  good,  and  my  woimd  in  the  arm  is  well.  I  can  not  tell  you 
where  to  semi  me  a  letter,  as  I  have  no  means  of  knowing  where 
our  reginient  is  cjrdered  to.  Some  say  we  are  to  go  to  New  York, 
and  the  rumor  is  that  we  are  to  remain  in  Mrginia,  or  at  the  town 
of  Trenton,  in  "tlie  jersies."  I'resent  m\-  love  to  my  youngest 
sister,  also  to  Mr.  W'atkins  and  family,  and  tell  Mr.  W'atkins  his 
son  is  truly  a  self-denving  soldier,  one  who  loves  his  countrv  and 
is  willing,  if  need  be,  to  die  in  her  defense.  Pra\'  for  mc  that  I 
ma}'  be  spared  to  sec  you  once  more  alive. 

Your  loving  son. 

Franci.s  Ppiipps. 

Gen.  Henry  M.  Chrisman. 

General  Chrisman.  who  received  his  title  from  the  militia 
service,  was  the  }oungest  son  of  Hugh  Chrisman  and  was  born 
in  the  (jld  stone  liouse  un  the  blickman  creek  in  iSoo,  :ui(l  died 
in  Nicholasville,  in  1876.  His  mother  was  a  .Mcl\inne\'.  and  his 
grandmother  was  a  sister  of  Jas.  McDowell  who  was  in  a  com- 
pany of  Colonel  I  )n(llc\-'s  regiment  in  the  war  of  i(Si2. 

(  )ne  of  the  most  ])leasant  traits  of  General  Cln-isinan's  char- 
acter was  Ids  hospitality  clothed  with  kindness  and  benevolence. 
He  was  fond  ol  com])an\'  and  his  liouse  was  thronged  with  voung 
and  old  friends,  and  they  made  that  ]->art  of  Jessamine  ha])])y  by 
their  coiist;int  courtesies  to  their  neighbors.  Ilis  wife  died  in 
1852.  ]\c  in  1876,  and  the\  are  buried  011  the  cliffs  ne:ir  the  old 
stone  building.  Tliis  house  was  ])ut  up  b\  Thomas  Metcalf.  who 
was  know  11  as  "the  old  stout'  ha.mmer"  governor,  for  which  ]-)osi- 


204  Hi.<f(irii  of  ./('^■•'(iiiiinc  C(niiit[/,  Keutuckij. 

lion  he  offered  himself  twenty-ei^iit  years  afterward,  when  he  was 
elected,  defeating-  Maj.  Wni.  T.  lUirry  by  a  majority  of  only  709. 
It  is  related  of  Governor  Metcalf  that  at  one  time,  when  working 
at  Chanmiere,  he  was  invited  to  take  dinner  with  David  Meade, 
l>ut  he  declined  n|)on  the  ground  that  Mr.  Meade  had  not  asked 
his  hands  to  dine  witli  him.  Colonel  Meade  then  predicted  that 
the  stone  mason  would  become  governor  of  Kentucky,  and  he 
lived  long  enough  to  see  this  prophecy  verified. 

Peter  Simpson 

AVas  l)orn  in  Washington  county,  Pennsylvania,  in  1758. 
He  served  two  years  in  the  Revolutionary  war  under  General 
AVayne.  was  in  several  battles  and  skirmishes  in  New  York  and 
Xew  Jersey,  and  at  the  battle  of  ^'lonmouth  was  slightly  v/(  mded. 
He  was  visiting  Jessamine  county  in  1794,  and  was  present  at 
Colonel  ] Vice's  Fourth  of  July  celebration  that  year.  He  re- 
turned to  A'irginia,  and  in  1802  removed  from  the  valley  in  \'ir- 
ginia  and  settled  in  the  Marble  creek  neighborhood,  where  he 
hved  luitil  his  death  in  1835. 

Col.  John  McKinney 

Was  one  of  South  Carolina's  contributions  to  Jessamine  county. 
He  was  born  on  the  Pedee  river.  South  Carolina,  in  1756,  and 
served  in  the  Revolutionary  war,  first  imder  General  Patterson, 
and  also  under  Gen.  Francis  :\Iarion,  Colonel  Sumter,  and  Gen. 
Flarry  Lee. 

He  first  settled  on  what  is  known  as  the  Butler  farm,  in  1790, 
and  that  vear  he  erected  a  log  house  on  that  place  which  was  only 
torn  down  a  few  years  ago,  and  in  this  house  most  of  his  children 
were  born.  His  daughter,  Mrs.  Sallie  Cloke,  who  died  in  Ver- 
sailles some  vears  ago,  at  an  advanced  age,  was  born  on  this  farm 
in  1704.  wiiilc  Mrs.  Catherine  Brown,  wife  of  George  L,  was 
born  in  1802. 

Colonel  [McKinney  was  a  gentleman  of  the  old  school,  an 
enterprising  farmer  and  a  patriotic  citizen.  He  removed  to 
Woodford  count} .  where  he  spent  the  remaining  years  of  his  life, 
and  died  at  an  advanced  age. 


Hl4onj  of  Jeni^mnbie  Couiiti/,  Kentacky.  205 

Col.  John  Mosely. 

This  ^i^cntlcnian.  was  born  in  lluckinQliani  coti.ntv,  \  irginia, 
in  1760,  and  settled  in  jessamine  in  i/*;,^.  lie  served  in  the 
Revohitionarv  war.  and  was  a  i^allant  sokHer.  lie  enjoved  tlie 
distinction  of  having'  reared  the  largest  family  every  known  in 
Jessamine — he  had  three  daughters  and  eighteen  sons.  He  was 
extremely  popular  in  liis  neighborho(»d.  and  his  desrendants  in 
Jessamine  are  ver\'  numerous  and  still  live  in  tlie  immediate 
neighborhood  where  their  brave  and  prolific  ancestor  settled. 

Com.  Daniel  Boone  Ridgeley. 

Com.  1).  I').  Ixidgeley,  wlio  served  with  distinction  in  the 
United  States  navy,  was  born  in  Jessamine  county  on  ^he  30th  of 
August,  1813.  and  died  in   Philadelphia.  May  5.  1868. 

He  entered  the  navy  as  midshi])man  April  i,  1828.  He  par- 
ticipated in  the  l)ombardment  and  capture  of  \'era  Cruz  and 
other  Mexican  pcjrts.  and  was  connected  with  the  Xaval  Observa- 
tory at  Washington  in  1850-52.  He  conmianded  the  steamer 
"Atlanta'"  in  the  Paraguayan  e.\])edition.  He  volunteered  for 
active  service  in  the  Civil  war.  and  conmianded  the  steamer  "San- 
tiago de  Cuba."  He  commanded  a  steamer  in  the  Xorth  .\tlantic 
squadnm.  and  assisted  in  the  Ixjmbardment  of  Von  l-'i^her.  Xorth 
Carolina.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Hoard  of  Xa\al  Examiners 
at  Philadeli)hia.  in  \Hf)F'.  at  the  time  of  his  death.  1  lis  mother  was 
a  daughter  of  Col.  John  Price,  who  was  chietl\-  instrumental  in 
organizing  Jessamine  county,  and  was  born  on  the  farm  of  his 
grandfather  in  the  llickman  neighliorhood.  He  purchased  the 
McKinney  farm  in  Jessamine  in  1850,  and  passed  his  vacations 
there.  He  always  spoke  with  great  pride  of  his  native  county, 
and  held  the  old  home  place  as  a  sentimental  investment. 

John  Speed  Smith 

Was  born  on  the  CasjKU-  llarbaugh  i)lace.  Jessamine  county, 
lulv  y.  1792.  lie  esrved  with  distinction  in  the  ^^'ar  of  1812 — 
was  at  the  battle  of  Tippecanoe,  and  was  .\ide  to  General  Har- 
rison at  the  battle  of  the  Thames. 


21  Hi  Mi4()rij  <>l  ./("■-'iiiiiiiir  (nil  lit  [J,  Kciitiickij. 

He  removed  to  Isiadison  county  in  liis  early  manhood,  where 
he  l)ecanie  a  distin-nislied  lawyer.  He  represented  Madison 
county  in  the  legislature  in  J 8 19.  '2J,  '30,  '39,  '41,  and  '45.  and  the 
Senate  in  iS'4(')  and  "50.  tie  was  speaker  of  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentati\-es  in  [H2y.  He  was  a  member  of  Congress  in  1821-23, 
and  was  Secretary  to  the  Legation  of  the  United  States  Commis- 
sioners sent  to  the  South  American  colonies.  Jackson  appointed 
liim  L'nited  States  District  Attorney  for  Kentucky.  In  1839  he 
was  made  joint  Conmiissioner  with  Gov.  Jas.  T.  Morehead  to 
visit  the  (  )hio  legislature  to  secure  the  passage  of  laws  to  pre- 
vent the  enticement  of  slaves  and  to  provide  a  more  efficient 
means  of  returning  slaves  who  had  escaped;  the  Commissioners 
v.-ere  successful  in  this  work. 

For  several  years  prior  to  his  death  he  was  State  vSuperin- 
tendent  of  Public  \\'orks.  and  through  his  life  was  one  of  the 
most  prouiinent  and  popular  men  in  Kentucky. 

William  T.  Barry 

Was  one  of  the  most  brilliant  and  eloquent  men  who 
made  Kentucky  so  famous  in  the  first  thirty  years  of  its  ex- 
istence. He  was  in  his  childhood  a  resident  of  Jessamine  county. 
Born  in  \'irginia  in  1783,  he  came,  with  his  father,  when  a  child 
to  Kentuck\',  and  lived  for  a  short  while  in  Fayette,  and  theri 
moved  to  jessamine  county,  where  he  lived  several  years,  when 
the  familv  returned  to  Lexington.  After  attending  school  at  tlie 
Woodford  Academy  he  graduated  Lt  Transylvania  University  and 
commenced  the  practice  of  law  when  twenty-one  years  of  age,  in 
Lexington. 

From  1805  to  1835,  his  life  was  a  wonderful  series  of  successes, 
h'ortune  appeared  to  lavish  upon  him  all  of  its  choicest  blessings. 

He  was,  very  early  in  his  professional  career,  appointed  At- 
torney for  the  Commonwealth  in  Fayette  county.  Flis  learning, 
eloquence  and  industry  at  once  gave  him  both  popularity  and 
prominence.  Fie  was  elected  to  fill  a  vacancy  in  the  Legislature 
from  Fayette  in  1807.  He  was  again  elected  in  1809;  chosen  to 
represent  the  Ashland  district  in  Congress  in  1810,  he  was  again 
elected  representative  in  the  Legislature  in  1814.  In  the  dis- 
ctission  (^f  the  matters  wliich  led  up  to  the  War  of  1812,  no  man 


Hl^iorij  (if  Jt'ssamiue  County,  Kentacbj.  207 

was  more  flncjiK-nt,  ranifst  or  wise,  and  by  liis  I)rilliant,  ]jatriotic 
speeches  he  wor.  the  adniiratiou  and  contidenee  of  all  ]jartics.  In 
the  war  he  exhibited  a  higfli  degree  of  courage  and  gallantry  wliue 
serving  on  the  stafif  of  Governor  Shelby,  who,  disregarding  pre- 
cedents, took  the  field  as  the  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Ken- 
tuck}  forces.  He  was  in  the  battle  of  the  Thames,  which  added 
such  splendid  lustre  and  renown  to  Kentucky  and  her  soldiers. 

He  became  Speaker  of  the  Kentucky  House  of  Representa- 
ti\es  in  1814,  and  was  elected  to  the  United  States  Senate  while 
holding  that  place.  He  represented  Kentucky  in  the  Senate  for 
two  sessions,  and  tlien  resigned  to  accept  the  Circuit  Judgeship 
upon  a  meager  salarw  In  1817,  he  was  forced  to  stand  as  a  can- 
didate for  the  State  Senate,  and  it  was  his  magnetic  power  and 
mfluence  which  enabled  him  while  in  the  Kentucky  Senate,  to 
secure  large  aid  to  Transylvania  L'niversity  and  afterwards  he 
became  a  lecturer  in  the  Law  Department.  His  name  gave  the 
L.aw  Scliool  prestige  and  magnificent  success.  In  1820  he  was 
elected  lieutenant  ( "lovernor  l)y  an  overwhelming  majoritv  of 
T  1,000  votes  in  a  total  of  55.000,  and  at  this  time  was  unquestion- 
ably tlie  most  poi)ular  man  in  Kentucky. 

Henry  Clay,  in  1825.  accepted  the  place  of  Secretary  of  State 
and  identified  himself  with  the  Adams  administration.  This  cost 
Mr.  Cla}-  many  friends  in  Kentucky,  where  the  recollection  of 
Xew  England's  opposition  to  the  admission  of  Kentucky  into  the 
I'nion,  had  left  great  prejudice  against  it.  Barry  sided  with  those 
opposed  to  Air.  Clay. 

Air.  luUT}-  was  a])])ointe(l  Chief  Justice  of  "The  Xew  Court"  in 
January,  1825,  and  held  llu'  ])lace  until  a  repeal  of  the  Xew  Court 
.\ct,  in  1826.  He  was  a  candidate  for  Governor  in  1828,  and  was 
defeated  by  only  ^oc)  votes,  but  his  wonderful  canvass  and  superb 
elocpience  caused  tiie  state  in  the  following  year  to  cast  its  vote 
for  Andrew  Jackson,  by  a  majority  of  7,934.  .Mr.  I'.arry  was  ap- 
pointed Postmaster  General  by  Jackson,  and  held  the  office  unth 
declining  health  forced  him  to  surrender  it. 

In  the  hope  that  a  change  in  location  and  a  milder  climate 
might  restore  his  health,  the  President  nominated  Mr.  Parry  to 
be  Minister  to  S])ain.  lie  sailed  for  his  post,  but  died  at  Liver- 
pool. England,  in    1835. 

Xineteen  years  laliT  (  1  854C  by  an  act  of  the  Legislature,  the 


208  Hidory  of  Jesmmine  County,  Kentucky. 

remains  of  Air.  Barr\^  were  disinterred,  brought  to  Keiitnckv  aiul 
buried  in  tlie  state  lot,  at  Frankfort.  His  friends  erected  a  mon- 
ument to  his  memory  in  tlie  court  house  yard  in  Lexington. 

Tlitod'ore   O'Hara,    the    brilHant   poet,    dehvered   an   oration 
upon  this  occasion  (Nov.  8,  1854).  conchiding  with  tlicse  thrilhng 
.  words  : 

"Let  the  marble  like  a  minstrel  rise  to  sing  to  the  future  genera- 
tions of  the  Commonwealth,  the  inspiring  lay  of  his  high  genius 
and  lofty  deeds.  Let  the  autumn  wind  liarp  on  the  dropping 
leaves,  her  softest  recjuiem  over  him.  Let  the  winter's  purest 
snow  rest  spotless  on  his  grave.  Let  spring  entwine  her  brightest 
garland  for  his  tomb,  and  sununer  gild  it  with  her  mildest  sun- 
shine, and  let  him  sleep  embalmed  in  glory  till  the  last  trump 
shall  reveal  hini  to  us,  all  radiant  with  the  halo  of  his  life." 

Jessamine,  as  the  scene  of  his  earliest  youth,  claims  a  part  in 
the  history  of  this  child  of  most  auspicious  fate,  whose  career,  for 
splendid  achievement,  superb  eloquence,  courageous  contest,  un- 
varying success,  unchanging  popularity,  and  wondrous  influence 
has  no  equal  in  the  past  of  Kentuck}-  and  will  have  none  in  its 
future. 

Rev,  John  Metcalf, 

To  Rev.  John  Afetcalf  belongs  the  honor  of  laying  of¥  the 
countv  seat  of  Jessamine,  and  also  of  naming  the  town.  He  was 
a  native  of  Southampton  county,  Virginia,  and  came  to  Kentucky 
in  the  spring  of  17QO,  bringing  witli  liim  not  onlv  his  credentials 
as  a  minister,  but  also  a  heart  full  of  love  to  God.  PJethel  Acad- 
emy was  established  in  171  ;o,  and  was  opened  for  the  reception 
of  pupils  in  January,  1794.  It  was  the  second  institution  of  learn- 
ing ever  established  by  the  Methodist  cluu-ch  in  the  LTnited  States, 
the  one  at  Cokesburg  being  the  first.  The  labors  of  Mr.  Metcalf 
were  confined  largely  to  Jessamine  county.  He  traveled  a  few 
circuits  in  Fayette  and  Mercer,  but  his  life  work  was  connected 
with  Jessamine.  Fie  took  charge  of  Bethel  Academy  at  the  re- 
([uest  of  Bishop  Asburw  He  began  his  work  as  founder  and  con- 
tinued hi^  lal)ors  there  as  the  principal  of  this  school  in  the  "wilder- 
ness." He  infused  his  own  earnest  and  enthusiastic  spirit  into 
the  institution.     He  labored  under  tremendous  disaldvantaees  in 


Hidonj  of  Jessamine  Coniifi/,  K'lifurkij.  209 

liis  work,  Imt  lie  overcame  most  of  them,  and  l)rought  success 
where  other  men  would  have  had  only  failure. 

He  was  the  first  Methodist  minister  who  ever  preached  a 
sermon  in  Lexington.  Pastoral  work  in  those  days  was  done  un- 
der great  difificulties,  traveling  on  horseback  through  the  traces 
with  no  well-defined  roads,  and  hunting  up  the  pioneers  in  their 
cabins,  and  far  removed  from  neighbors  in  their  loneliness  and 
their  surrdunding  dangers,  this  man  of  ( iod  was  ever  ready  to 
discharge  his  duties,  lie  was  compelled  to  ride  through  the 
canebrakes  and  woods  and  pathless  forests,  but  he  had  the  spirit 
of  his  Master,  and  he  never  faltered  in  the  work  which  the  Head 
of  the  Church  had  given  him  to  do.  In  his  studies,  in  his  pastoral 
work  and  at  the  head  of  the  school,  he  found  enough  in  those 
days  to  occupy  the  heart  and  hands  of  anv  man.  Plain,  ])ractical 
and  earnest,  he  attracted  attention  and  won  hearts,  and  he  gen- 
erally drew  large  crowds  of  people,  who  were  glad  to  hear  him. 
He  was  largely  instrumental  in  l:)uilding  up  the  Methodist  churcli 
in  Jessamine  county.  He  was  born  in  1758  and  died  at  his  home 
in  Xicholasville,  in  1820,  having  reached  his  61st  year.  It  was 
through  his  labors  that  the  white  frame  Methodist  church,  was 
first  erected  in  Xicholasville,  in  i7<j<). 

Rev.   Nathaniel  Harris. 

Few  men  have  ever  been  better  known  in  jessamine  countv 
than  Rev.  Xathaniel  Harris.  He  was  born  in  Powhattan  countv. 
A\a.,  in  1759,  of  Presbyterian  ])arentage.  Being  an  only  son.  he 
was  indulged  in  many  things,  which  in  the  end  ])roved  hurtful. 
His  intercourse  witli  wliat  were  then  known  as  the  gentlemen  of 
the  day,  caused  him  to  l)ecome  both  profane  and  wicked. 

Shortly  after  his  father  removed  from  the  old  liome  place  he 
became  a  volunteer  in  the  .\merican  arm\-,  and  was  in  the  battle 
of  Guilford  Courthouse,  Xorth  Carolina. 

He  was  converted  in  .August.  1783,  and  joined  the  Methodist 
church,  and  the  conviction  forced  itself  upon  his  mind  that  he  was 
called  to  preacli.  He  settled  in  Jessamine  county  in  1790,  and  he 
was  principal  of  tlie  F.nglish  department  in  the  I'ethel  Academy. 

He  preached  in  the  various  towns  in  Central  Kentucky,  and  in 
administering  to  the  afflicted  antl  the  sick  none  ever  excelled  him. 
14 


210  History  of  Jex^( nil! lie  Coidifi/,  KcufKclij. 

At  marriages  and  funerals  his  presence  was  always  sought,  be- 
cause of  his  tender  sympathy  and  because  of  the  love  and  con- 
fidence manifested  towards  him.  He  founded  several  Methodist 
churches  in  Jessamine  count}'. 

The  last  years  of  his  life  were  spent  in  \  ersailles,  where  he 
liurchased  a  home  for  himself  and  his  two  maiden  daughters.  He 
died  on  the  12th  day  of  August,  1849,  lacking  only  a  few  days  of 
ninety  years  of  age.  He  had  been  in  the  Methodist  ministry  for 
more  than  sixtv  years.  (  )n  the  26th  of  August,  1843,  ^^^  entered 
m  his  journal,  "1  am  this  day  eighty-f( nu-  years  old.  1  stand  to 
m\-  engagement  to  be  holy  for  the  Lord." 

The  reciMxls  which  contain  the  certificates  of  the  earlier  mar- 
riages in  Jessamine  county,  show  that  his  services  for  these  cer- 
emonies were  largely  in  demand.  ( )n  the  14th  of  March.  1799, 
he  married  Jesse  Htighes  and  Xancy  Nicholson,  and  a  very  large 
proportion  of  the  earlv  marriages  celebrated  in  the  county  were 
soleiunized  1)\-  him.  He  \yas  a  faithful,  earnest,  devout  man  of 
God.  Some  might  call  his  sphere  humble.  l)ut  his  influence  on 
the  religious  and  moral  condition  of  Jessamine  county  will  long 
he  felt,  and  in  it  he  has  a  monument,  which  should  be  both  to  his 
church  and  to  those  of  his  name,  a  cause  of  unfailing  pride. 

Samuel  H.  Woodson. 

Samuel  H.  \\'oo(lson  was  a  step-son  of  Col.  Josej)!)  Crockett. 
AA'liile  in  the  military  service  in  Albemarle  county.  \'irginia.  and 
guarding  prisoners  \yhich  had  been  surrendered  1)_\'  liurgoyne. 
Colonel  Crockett  protected  the  ])ropertv  of  Mr.  and  Airs.  Tuckei 
Woodson.  There  resulted  from  this  circumstance  a  warm  at- 
tachment between  Mr.  Woodson  and  Airs.  A\^oodson  and  the 
}-oung  officer.  Shortl}"  after  Colonel  Crockett  had  been  ordered 
to  come  \yest  and  serve  under  George  Rogers  Clark,  in  connnand 
of  the  Illinois  or  Crockett  Regiment,  \\hich  had  l)een  dispatched 
l)y  the  state  of  A  irginia  to  assist  Clark  in  his  contest  with  the  In- 
dians. Tucker  Woodson  died,  and  after  Colonel  Crockett  returned 
from  the  \\'est  he  fell  in  lo^•e  with  the  handsome  young  widow 
and  married  her. 

After  this  marriage,  in  1783.  Colonel  Crocket  came 
to  Kentuck\   and  soon  brought  his  famih-  here,  in  1784,  and  with 


Histori/  <if  .[('."saiiiiiif  ('oinitij,  Kfidiicl-ij. 


211 


liiiii  came  out  Saniiu-l  II.  Woodson,  his  ste])-son.  Colonel 
Crockett  ijave  him  a  father's  love,  affection  and  attention.  He 
was  prepared  for  tlie  law  and  had  ever_\-  ad\-antat;e  the  educational 
facilities  of  Kentucky  then  could  offer. 

lie  entered  for  his  step-son  about  a  thousand  acres  of  land, 
part  of  which  is  that  now  owned  1)\  .\fr.  Jesse  Bryant,  on  the  pike 
between  Xicholasville  and  Lexint^ton. 


J  le  read  law  witli  Col.  (  ieors.j-e  .Nicholas  and  named  one  of  his 
scms  for  jud.^e  .Xicholas.  At  tlu'  liuK-  of  the  formation  of  jessa- 
mine count)-  he  was  chosen  clerk  for  the  countw  .\s  he  held  his 
office  for  life,  it  was  considered  a  distinguished  place.  He  built 
the  house  on  the  .^heeley  i)lace,  abotit  one  mile  from  Xicholasville 
on  the  l)an\ille  turnpike,  and  kept  his  office  as  clerk  there. 
I  here  were  no  count}-  Ijuildim^s  in  those  days  and  the  judges  and 
cli'rks  used   tlu-ir  residences    for   the  discharij-e  of    tlieir    official 


212  Histovij  of  Jcx^diiiinr  Coimfij,  Kciitncki/. 

duties.     He  married  Annie  Ran(l«>li>h  Meade,  a  daughter  of  Col. 
David  Meade,  of  Chaumiere. 

He  resigned  the  clerkship  in  1819  and  was  succeeded  by 
Daniel  B.  Price.  He  was  elected  to  congress  from  the  district, 
and  moved  to  Frankfort  in  1826.  He  came,  in  1827,  to  attend 
circuit  court  in  Nicholasville  and  rode,  in  very  warm  weather,  on 
horseback  from  Frankfort  to  Nicholasville.  During  the  term  of 
court  he  went  out  to  Chaumiere,  was  taken  suddenly  ill  and  died, 
in  the  fortv-seventh  year  of  his  age.  He  was  a  man  of  great  cul- 
ture, superb  integrity,  much  learning,  and  in  his  day  was  one  of 
the  distinguished  men  of  Kentucky.  He  left  a  large  family,  and 
the  people,  not  only  of  his  district  but  of  Jessamine  and  Franklin, 
his  adopted  home,  mourned  his  earl}-  death.  He  represented 
Jessamine  cc^unt}-  in  the  legislature  from  1819  to  1825. 

Maj,  Daniel  B.  Price, 

^laj.  Daniel  B.  Price  was  born  in  Powhattan  county,  Mrginia. 
the  nth  day  of  AFay.  1789.  His  father.  John  Price,  removed  to 
Kentucky  in  1794,  taking  with  him  Daniel,  his  only  son,  and  pur- 
chased 1.200  acres  of  land  in  Bourbon  county.  The  title  proving 
defective,  he  afterwards  removed  to  Clark  county,  where  he 
lived  to  the  extreme  old  age  of  ninety  years. 

When  a  boy.  Major  Price  came  to  Nicholasville  and  was  ap- 
pointed deputy  clerk  for  Samuel  H.  Woodson,  and  when  Mr. 
Woodson  resigned,  in  1816,  he  succeeded  him  and  held  the  office^ 
giving  entire  satisfaction  until  1851.  a  period  of  thirty-five  years, 
wliich  is  the  longest  period  any  one  office  was  ever  held  by  the 
same  man    in  the  countv. 

In  1813  he  married  Eliza  Crockett,  the  fourth  child  of  Col. 
Joseph  Crockett,  who  died  during  a  cholera  epidemic  in  1832. 
Fie  subseciucntly  married  Miss  Stuart,  daughter  of  Rev.  Robert 
Stuart. 

He  was  a  member  of  the  Presljyterian  church  in  Nicholasville 
and  for  half  a  century  a  ruling  elder.  He  was  also  a  trustee  of 
Center  College  and  one  of  the  directors  of  the  Theological  Sem- 
inary at  Danville.  Dr.  Robert  J.  Breckinridge  said  of  him: 
"Probably  no  citizen  of  Jessamine  count}'  was  ever  more  gener- 
a]]\-  and  favorablv  known,  and  certainh-  no  one  was  ever  more 


Hidory  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky. 


213 


thoroughly  rcsjicctcd.  A  man  resolute  for  (iod's  saving  truth  in 
l)roporti(jn  as  liis  meek  and  gentle  spirit,  he  lived  upon  it  as  his 
life  and  sotil." 

He  won  and  retained  the  respect  h.nd  confidence  of  the  entire 


connnunity.  He  was  looked  up  to  as  a  man  of  splendid  judg'- 
ment  and  unsw  er\ing  intt'grity.  Xohle  memories  of  his  life  and 
character  survive  after  a  lapse  of  nearly  fortv  vears. 


Tucker  Woodson. 

At  C'haumiere,  in  Jessamine  county,  in  1S04.  Tucker  Woodson 
was  horn.  It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  he  and  his  wife  were  born 
in  the  sami'  house  and  in  the  same  room.  His  wife  was  Evelyi'* 
llyrd.  and  she  was  a  daughter  of  Sarah  Meade,  daughter  of  David 
Meade.      We  and  liis  wife  were  both  possessed  of  ample  fortune. 


214  H'l^oi'ij  of  ,Tt'.<><niiiiiir  Cjunitij,  Kciitiichii. 

They  received  the  hest  education  that  Kentucky  could  q-ive.  He 
chose  the  law  as  his  profession  luU  s])cnt  most  of  his  life  in  care 
of  his  landed  estates,  lie  was  a  ])orn  politician,  a  man  of  the 
hi,o-hest  refinement  of  feeling,  of  the  strictest  integrity,  the  kindest 
heart  and  charmiui;-  manners.  He  was  a  great  Whig  and  a  fol- 
lower of  Mr.  Clay.  He  represented  jessamine  count \-  in  the 
legislature  in  1835.  '36.  '37  and  '40.  Was  also  in  the  senate  in 
1842-46  and  1853-7. 

He  was  always  popular  among  his  neighbors  and  friends  and 
even  his  political  opponents  loved  him.  (  )f  distingtiished  linea^'^e, 
he  was  always  the  friend  of  the  humbler  ])eople.  He  owned  land 
in  what  was  then  known  as  the  Plaquemine  District  which  in- 
cluded ."sulphur  \\'ell.  now  Ambrose.  This  was  considered  in 
e^niy  days  rhe  roughest  district  in  the  coimty.  but  it  was  there 
that   Mr.  Woodson  had  his  warmest  friends. 

In  the  great  race  for  Congress  between  John  C.  Breckinridge 
and  l-iobert  P.  Letcher,  in  1853,  in  which  Ureckinridge  was 
elected  bv  526  niajorit}-.  Mr.  AX'oodson  had  cliarge  of  the  Plaque- 
mine  District,  and  for  a  long  time  it  was  remembered  in  Jessa- 
mine county  how  shrewdly  and  beautifully  he  played  his  op- 
]ionents.  A  leading  Democrat  had  been  sent  by  Major  Breckin- 
ridge to  handle  the  monev  and  control  the  votes  in  the  Plaque- 
mine  District,  in  those  days  ])ecuniary  inducements  ])aid  to 
voters  were  not  looked  tipon  in  the  same  light  in  which  they  are 
now  regarded.  The  idea  that  all  things  were  fair  in  jjohtics  and 
war  per^'aded  the  public  mind  and  the  purchase  of  votes  was 
carried  on  with  a  good  deal  of  publicit\-  and  without  any  reproach 
or  disai)])roval  on  the  part  of  ])olitical  oj)])onents. 

1die  Democratic  manager  had  been  jirovided  with  a  large 
nuiuber  of  new  bills  issued  by  the  Xorthern  luink  of  Kentucky. 
Thev  were  hves  and  tens,  for  e\en  in  those  da\s  good  |)rices  were 
paid  for  votes,  and  especiall}-  in  this  election,  which  called  forth 
the  highest  enthusiasm  and  the  greatest  flevotion  of  the  rank  and 
hie  on  l)otli  sides.  Mr.  WOodson  saw  with  disma\-  the  large 
amount  of  new  notes  which  were  being  circulated  1)\"  liis  ])oliticaI 
o])])onents,  and  he  turned  o^•er  in  his  mind  a  ])lan  l)y  \\hich  the 
effect  of  this  new  mone\'  could  be  avoided.  Taking  one  of  the 
men  aside  whom  he  knew  very  well,  and  who  had  received  al- 
readv  (jue  of  these  new  bills,  he  asked  him  if  he  was  sure  th.at  it 


Ilisfdi'ti  (if./('<--'iiiiiiiic  Couiifii,  Kftifiiclaj.  215 

was  j^'ood ;  sa_\ini^".  what  was  true,  that  there  harl  been  circulated 
a  lariLie  number  of  counterfeit  i)ills  hilely  and  that  if  he  and  h\> 
friends  were  takin,^-  nione\-  frdin  the  Democratic  manaj^er.  Mr. 
Scott,  tlie}-  had  l)elter  he  very  careful  as  to  its  ^genuineness.  .\t 
the  same  time  he  ])ulled  from  liis  own  ])ocket  a  roll  of  well-worn 
and  old-time  I)ills  ami  ])hicini;-  the  new  and  old  hills  side  hy  side, 
conmiented  ujxm  some  differences.  The  news  spread  like  wild- 
fire that  the  new  bills  were  counterfeit  and  the  floaters  reftised  to 
receive  them  and  turnecl  in  disgtist  from  the  1  )emocratic  ntanat^er, 
who  onlv  had  new  bills,  and  would  receive  nothing  but  the  old 
time  Whig  money,  which  Air.  Woodson  and  his  friends  were 
ready,  under  ])roper  conditions,  to  distribute. 

.\  strong  ])ro-slaverv  man.  he  sided  with  the  government  in 
the  L"\\'\\  war.  btit  it  was  conceded  on  all  hands  that  he  acted  from 
conviction,  and  few  men  of  his  ])rominence  and  of  his  activit\- 
escaped   witli   so  small  a   number  of  enemies. 

In  iHyj  hi'  was  elected  count}'  judge  on  the  Re])ublican  ticket 
and  died  in  1H74.  T  los])itable.  courtecjus.  cultivated,  honest, 
patriotic  and  true.jie  left  behind  him  a  large  arrav  of  friends  who 
mourned  his  death. 

His  home  was  alwa\s  ojien  to  friends  and  strangers  alike. 
Gifted  in  conversation,  a  capable  racontetu'.  and  full  of  the 
purest  and  gentlest  kindness,  he  won  the  hearts  of  all  who  came 
under  his  roof,  llis  wife,  one  of  tlie  housekeepers  of  those  times 
which  made  !\eniuck_\-  hou^ekt'eping  renowne(|  in  all  tlie  cix'ili/.ed 
world.  sym])athized  with  the  Ixispitable  instincts  of  her  husband, 
an.d.  united  with  ihm  to  make  his  home  alwaxs  ])leasing  and  attract- 
ive. Some  of  the  riidi  treasures  of  Chaumiere  had  <lcscended  to 
them  and  these,  enlarged  by  contributions  from  other  relatives  and 
ancestors,  gave  their  home  a  charm  which  w  ill  never  be  forgotten 
by  those  who  entered  its  ])ortals.  l-"or  thirty  }cars  Judge  Wood- 
son and  his  f;unily  entertained  more  and  more  deliglitftillv  than 
any  citizen  of  Jessamine  c(junt\.  and  no  coU])le  ever  left  more 
delight ftil  mt'inories  (  f  real  Kenttick\-  home  life  than   thev. 


Chaumiere. 

In   i/'/i  there  was  established  in  Jessamiui.'  count  v  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  and  attractive  countr\-  homes  in  .\merica.     It  was 


-lt>  Hidory  of  Jeaminlnt  Count (j,  Kriduckij. 

founded  by  David  Meade,  wlio  was  born  in  \'irg-inia  on  the  29th 
of  July,  1743.  ^At  seven  years  of  age  he  was  sent  to  England  with 
the  hope  that  change  of  climate  might  improve  his  health  anc\ 
also  for  the  purpose  of  furnishing  better  means  of  education  than 
were  then  in  existence  in  America. 

Here  he  remained  until  1761.  when  he  returned  to  his  native 
land.  He  had  ac(|uired  only  a  general  knowledge  of  mathemat- 
ics, geography.  French,  grannnar  and  drawing,  but  he  had  cul- 
tivated science  and  the  elegant  arts. 

He  had  two  brothers,  younger  than  himself,  both  of  wdiom 
afterwards  became  distinguished  in  the  American  army.  Richard 
Kidder,  an  aid  de  camp  to  General  Washington,  and  who  had 
charge  of  the  details  of  the  execution  of  ]\Iajor  Andre,  and  Ever- 
ard,  who  was  an.  aid  de  camp  to  General  Lincoln,  and  he  himself 
was  subsequently  raised  to  the  rank  of  General. 

In  his  twenty-fourth  year  lie  married  Sarah  Waters,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Mr.  \Mlliam  Waters,  of  Williamsburg,  Mrginia.  and  in  1769 
he  was  elected  to  represent  Nansemond  county  in  the  House  of 
Burgesses.  I'his  was  his  first  and  only  political  experience. 
This  asseml)ly  was  dissolved  l)y  the  representative  of  the  crown 
on  account  of  certain  resolutions  which  it  had  passed  upon  the 
subject  of  the  disagreement  between  England  and  the  colonies. 

Prior  to  1796  David  Meade,  a  son  of  the  founder  of  Chaumiere, 
came  to  Kentucky.  He  was  attracted  by  the  splendid  climate, 
fertile  soil,  wonderful  forests  and  charming  surroundings,  amd  in- 
duced his  father  to  leave  a  beautiful  home  in  A'irginia,  on  the 
James  river,  and  come  to  the  wilds  of  Kentucky.  He  was  capti- 
vated by  the  glowing  description  of  the  new  land  given  by  his  son, 
and,  though  accustomed  to  all  that  wealth  and  culture  could  give, 
he  was  willing  to  abandon  the  comforts  and  the  associations  of  his 
Mrginia  home  and  build  him  a  new  one  amid  the  forests  of  Ken- 
tucky. 

David  ]\leade  was  a  man  of  large  fortune.  Under  the  laws  of 
primogeniture,  then  prevailing  in  Mrginia,  he  inherited  the  major 
share  of  his  father's  estate,  and  his  wife  also  brought  him  no  in- 
considerable dowry.  He  came  to  Kentucky  in  1796  and  debated 
for  some  time  whether  he  woidd  settle  on  the  forks  of  Elkhorn,  in 
Franklin  county,  or  in  Jessamine  county,  l)ut  through  his  personal 
reuard  for  Col.  Joseph  Crockett,  who  had  come  to  Kentucky  in 


Hhtory  of  Jesi^amine  Omtitij,  Kentucky.  217 

J 784.  and  settled  in  jessamine  county,  in   1787,  he  was  induced 
to  choose  Jessamine  as  his  future  lionie. 

He  pm'chased  aljout  three  humh-ed  acres  of  land  from  the 
Crocketts  and  Woodsons.  Tliis  land  is  four  miles  from  Xich- 
olasville,  on  the  turnpike  which  connects  the  Lexino^ton  and 
Danville,  and  the  llarrodsburi;'  and  Lexino-ton  turnj^ikes,  and  is 
now  owned  m  large  ])art  ])_\'  .Mr.  John  ."^teel.  The  beautiful  forest 
trees  attracted  his  admiration  and  won  his  affections.  Sugar 
trees,  poplar,  ash,  oak.  hackberry  and  walnut,  all  growing-  in 
most  superb  profusion,  determined  his  choice  of  residence.  He  had 
large  tracts  of  land  in  other  parts  of  Kentuck\-. 

He  founded  at  this  locality  a  home,  called  Chaumiere  des 
I'rairies.  but  it  was  familiarly  known  throughout  the  country  as 
C'hamniere,  which  is  the  I'rench  for  Indian  \  illage.  On  this 
small  place  David  Meade  lavished  vast  sums  of  monev.  He  had 
all  the  tastes  of  an  educated  and  refined  Englishman.  Whatever 
could  have  induced  such  a  man  with  such  a  fortune  to  have  come 
down  the  Ohio  river  in  a  flatboat,  and  land  at  .Ma\  sville  and  sufTer 
the  inconvenience  of  travel  and  transportation  irom  Xicholas- 
ville  to  Jessamine  county,  and  to  live  in  such  a  remote'and  unim 
proved  district,  is  almost  impossible  to  understand. 

He  laid  out  a  hundred  acres  of  ("haumicre  into  a  beautiful 
garden.  He  imported  rare  and  ex(|uisite  ])lants.  He  made 
lakes,  constructed  water  falls,  shaped  islands,  built  sunnner  lunises 
and  porters'  lodges,  and  in  this  backwoods  wiklerness  created 
an  ideal  Englishman's  home.  He  had  a  large  retinue  of  liveried 
servants,  splendid  coaches,  magnificent  furniture,  service  largelv 
of  silver,  and  maintained  in  every  way  the  st\le  of  a  feudal  lord. 

The  house  was  one-story,  built  of  vari'ous  materials,  stone, 
l>ricJ<:  and  wood,  but  all  erected  for  comfort  and  for  convenience. 
Here  David  Meade  lived  from  1796  to  1832.  During  his  thirty- 
six  years  of  residence  in  Jessamine  count}'  he  made  no  change 
in  his  method  or  manner  of  living.  His  service,  his  carriages. 
his  liveries,  fashion  of  entertainment,  liis  owm  personal  dress  ami 
that  of  his  wife,  always  elegant,  were  still  maintained  in  true 
English  st\h'.  Different  from  everybo(l\-  else  in  l\entuck\  in 
his  style  of  iiving,  he  never  excited  the  en\\-  of  his  less  wealtln-  or 
less  cidtured  neighbors.  The  hospitalilx'  and  elegance  of  his 
home  were  the  boast  of  Kentuckv.      Xo  distinguished  man   evei 


218  Hi-4()i'ii  of  Jis.oniinii   ('nKiiti/,  hciitiicL'ii. 

came  to  the  state  wlio  did  not  express  a  desire  to  see  this  wonder- 
ful place,  and  none  were  ever  disappointed  in  receiving  a  cordial 
invitation  for  tlie  enjoxnient  of  its  hospitality. 

Xo  (.ther  home  in  Kentucky  ever  entertained  so  many  Presi- 
dents, for  at  various  times  the  roof  of  Chaumiere  covered  Monroe, 
General  lackson,  (ieneral  Charles  Scott,  and  General  Tay- 
lor. All  the  distinguished  families  of  Kentucky  were  invited 
and  always  welcomed  within  its  borders.  Henry  Clay  was  a 
constant  visitor  ait  this  delightful  residence,  and  a  very  funny 
stor\-  is  told  of  the  politeness  of  ]\lr.  Clay  and  Mr.  Meade.  Mr. 
Clav  had  come  to  spend  the  night  at  Chaumiere.  ]\Ir.  Meade  was 
too  polite  to  suggest  to  Mr.  Clay  that  it  was  time  to  retire,  and 
Mr.  Clay  was  too  polite  to  tell  Mr.  Meade  that  he  desired  to  retire, 
and  so  they  sat  uj)  and  talked  all  night. 

Aaron  ilurr  often  visited  Chaumiere.  He  was  there  again 
and  again  with  iUennerhasset,  and  there  is  in  possession  of  a 
member  of  the  famil_\-  a  mirror  before  which  Aaron  Burr  sat  and 
had  his  hair  ])owdered.  After  the  arrest  of  Aaron  Burr  he  was 
permitted  to  remain  in  custody  at  Chaun.iere,  and  Col.  INIeade's 
son  acted  as  chief  of  the  guard  durmg  his  stay. 

Mrs.  Meade  was  as  elegant,  refined  and  cultured  as  her  hus- 
band.    'rhe\'  died  within  six  months  of  each  other. 

Tlie  costly  furniture,  cut  glass  and  cliina,  with  which  one  hun- 
dred guests  could  at  one  time  be  served,  have  been  scattered 
throrighout  the  country.  The  lovely  and  beautiful  bric-a-brac  can 
be  found  in  many  homes,  and  there  is  still  in  Chillicothe,  Ohio,  n 
piano  upon  which  Mrs.  Meade,  when  three-score  and  ten,  played, 
and  it  was  the  first  instrument  of  its  kind  ever  brought  into  the 
state  of  Kentuclcy. 

The  eldest  son  had  died  \()ung  and  umuarried.  At  Colonel 
Meade's  death,  none  were  able  to  maintain  or  to  hold  Chaumiere, 
and  so  it  went  under  die  hammer  on  the  block  and  was  bought  by 
a  plain,  practical  farmer.  This  surprised  and  distressed  the  citi- 
zens of  Jessamine  countx',  who  had  taken  a  just  pride  in  this 
strange  and  beautiful  home,  and  in  a  little  while  after  the  new 
owner  of  the  place  had  been  amiounced,  there  was  placarded  in 
large  letters  on  the  houses  over  the  grounds  the  words  "Para- 
dise Lost."  'Jdiis  caused  the  purchaser  to  become  indignant,  and 
in  less  than  a  week  the  1)eautiful  flower  oardens  were  filled  with 


Hlxtoni  of  Ji'ssiiiiiiiir  CoiiiifiJ,  Kent  1 1  el:  If.  -!1() 

horses,  cattle  and  lioj^s.  'J'he  glorious  forest  trees  were  felled, 
lodges  torn  down,  parks  destroyed,  and  lakes  drained.  A  portion 
of  the  house  was  pulled  down,  and  in  the  rooms  which  were  once 
the  resort  of  fashion  and  made  memorable  1)\'  the  presence  of  the 
most  distinguished  people  in  the  land,  were  stored  wheat  and 
corn.  (  )nl\  three  rooms  now  remain  of  this  once  magnificent 
home. 

On   a   hill   overlooking  Chaumiere   in   a   neglected   bur}ing- 
ground,  sileeps  the  dust  of  David  Meade  and  his  wife  and  a  few  of 
his  faniilv.  ])ut  the  memories  of  (  haumiere  will  long  live  in  Jes- 
samine count}'  and  in  the  \\'est. 

Xotiiwithstanding  its  difference  from  the  other  homes  in  Jessa- 
mine county,  and  notwithstanding  the  difiference  between  him  and 
his  neighbors,  there  was  no  jealoitsy.  He  did  not  interfere 
with  his  fellow-countrymen.  He  entertained  their  guests  if 
they  were  refined  and  re])Utable.  and  he  sought  no  political  ])re- 
ferment,  asked  for  no  honors,  onlv  desiring  to  be  ]jermitted  to 
live  in  his  own  way  and-to  exhibit  his  own  taste  in  his  own  home. 

It  was  arranged  that  General  La  Fayette  should  be  entertained 
at  Chaumiere,  and  for  this  ]nn-pose  Colonel  Meade  constructed  a 
beautiful  octagonal  room.  This,  A\ith  two  other  small  rooms  ofi  of 
the  octagonal  room,  are  all  that  remains  as  a  monument  to  the 
beauty  and  to  the  charming  associations  connected  with  this 
marvelous  home  in  the  ^\•ilderness. 

John  Cawbey. 

John  Cawbey  was  a  resident  of  Independence,  Mo.  In  Sep- 
tember, 1884,  he  wrote  to  S.  M.  Duncan  a  letter  whicli  contains 
many  interesting  facts  in  regard  to  some  of  the  olden  time  people 
in  Jessamine,  and  also  some  reminiscences  in  regard  to  Dr.  Tris- 
ler,  the  first  physician  in  Jessamine,  and  which  indicates  that  Dr. 
Trisler  was  something  of  a  mcditmi  and  fortune  teller  and  prac- 
ticed these  arts  in  addition  to  medicine,  h'or  many  years,  tradi- 
tions have  been  tloating  among  the  people  of  pristino 
Jessamine,  in  regard  tf)  the  marvelous  power  of  Dr.  Trisler  and  his 
possession  of  mysterious  powers  in  locating  disease,  finding  lost 
property,  and  in  early  days  there  were  many  who  accredited  the 
good,  old  doctyr  with  the  highest  order  of  supernatural  vision. 


--0  J{l.<torii  of  Jt'.<.<itiiiiii('  (j)iintij,  Kt'iituckij. 

]\Ir.  Ca\v])ey  says:  "M}'  niotlicr  died  at  I'Vankdin,  Ind.,  in  her 
7otli  year;  my  fatlier  died  in  liis  47th  year;  my  grandfather,  John 
C'awbey,  Hved  to  the  age  of  'i^j  years.  His  wife,  my  grandmother, 
lived  io  the  age  of  105  years,  and  (Ued  in  Mercer  connty,  Ky.  'Mv 
grandfather  was  l)i;rn  in  I.incohi  county,  Kentucky,  and  settled 
in  jessamine  county  in  1808,  where  he  spent  all  his  life,  and  was 
buried  at  old  West  I'nion  ch.urch  lot,  better  known  as  the 
"Hoover  graveyard."  !n  this  old  lot  lie  m\-  first  wife,  her 
brother,  father,  and  grandfather,  Conrad  I'Larthenhouse,  the  fathei 
of  the  late  venerable  Elizabeth  IJowman.  wIkj  lived  tcj  reach  the 
great  age  of  108.  vShe  died  in  1886.  1  have  in  my  keeping  Dr. 
Peter  Trisler's  (jerman  medical  works,  printed  in  Wittenberg, 
Germany,  in  1442,  which  makes  442  years  since  thev  were  printed. 
(Printing  was  invented  in  1440.)  I  have  also  the  Bible  of  Dr.  Tris- 
ler,  which  is  400  years  old  and  a  conmientary  over  300  vears  old, 
in  the  ( lerman  language.  d  he  first  of  his  medical  book's  contains 
1,180  pages,  the  second  book,  1 ,342  pages.  I  send  you  this  infor- 
mation for  the  purpose  of  giving  you  a  correct  account,  and  the 
dates  that  I  found  concerning  the  first  settlers  on  Jessamine  creek, 
among  my  pa]X'rs  which  1  sent  to  Missouri  several  months  before 
I  left  Jessamine  connty.  \A  hen  T  have  more  time  it  will  afford  me 
pleasure  to  give  you  manv  more  interesting  facts  concerning 
the  old  settlers  along  Jessamine  creek  and  their  occupation.  Be- 
ginning on  the  west  side  of  Hickman  road,  running  down  Jes- 
samine creek",  there  was  the  home  of  |ose])h  A\'allace,  who  was  a 
farmer  and  tanner.  Xext  was  John  Carroll,  farmer  and  auction- 
eer;  Peter  I'unk,  farmer  and  distiller;  Michael  Ritter,  farmer  and 
vender  of  crockery  ware.  etc. ;  Samuel  Walls,  farmer;  Thos.  Rey- 
nolds, father  of  Barney  Reynolds,  farmer  and  distiller,  and 
spent  much  of  his  life  fishing ;  Jacob  Myers,  father  of  the  late  W. 
B.  Myers,  was  a  manufacturer  of  gun  powder  on  the  farm  where 
Wm.  Mathews  now  lives;  Richard  West  was  a  gunsmith  and 
farmer,  and  owned  the  farm  where  Wm.  liourne  is  now  living; 
Christoi)her  Arnspiger  lived  on  the  other  side  of  the  creek,  was  a 
farmer  and  cooper;  next  came  the  old  Howser  mill  property, owned 
by  Abraham  Howser  and  George  Mason.  Both  had  an  equal 
share  in  the  mill,  and  each  one  had  his  part  of  the  farm,  and  both 
carried  on  a  distillery  of  their  own  ;  next  was  the  Bennett  farm — 
this  old  .Afr.  Bennett  fell  down  from  Ins  barn  loft  and  killed  him- 


Hl-<t()rij  (if  Ji'.i.-<amine  County,  Keidnckij.  221 

self.  He  was  an  old  hacliclnr,  and  would  often  hide-  himself  when 
ladies  passed  his  liouse  ;  Conrad  J'Larthenhouse  was  a  farmer  anfl 
weaver,  and  also  had  a  distiller}- :  George  Smith,  the  grandfathei 
of  \\'illis  P..  Smith,  lived  on  the  farm  now  occu])ied  l)y  Willis:  he 
was  a  farmer  and  distiller.  (  )n  that  old  farm  in  his  grandfather's 
lifetime.  I  ground  corn  for  the  said  distiller}'  in  the  year  1827.  At 
old  Thomas  Haydon's  mills,  now  owned  by  James  Lewallen.  for- 
merly by  Frank  Grow,  there  was  a  distillery  attached  to  this  prop- 
erty. It  has  passed  through  many  hands  since  T  first  knew  the 
place;  the  next  farm  on  the  creek  was  the  old  Grozier  mill  and 
cotton  factory.  This  ])ropertv.  like  man}-  others  in  tliose  days, 
had  a  distillery  on  it.  It  was  here  on  this  farm  that  the  first  steam 
engine  was  ever  used  in  Jessamine  county.  .Mr.  Grozier  and 
James  Hill  ran  it  for  nineteen  years.  The  next  place  was  that 
owned  b}'  Sir.  W'omack  and  Thos.  }5ryan,  who  owned  the  old 
paper  mill  and  grist  mill  built  by  old  John  Lewis.  This  mill  was 
the  first  one  erected  in  Jessamine  county,  and  had  the  first  French 
Indir  stones  brought  to  Jessamine  county,  which  cost  Air.  Lewis 
$1,200.     The  old  mill  is  now  owned  by  John  H.  Glass. 

"Before  closing  this  long  letter  I  will  relate  some  of  Dr.  Tris- 
ier's  strange  performances.  He  would  sometimes  invite  his 
neighbors  to  see  him.  lie  would  then  disappear  in  the  very 
presence  of  the  company,  and  none  could  tell  what  had  become  of 
him.  He  could  sto])  the  flow  of  blood  from  an}-  wound  by  giving 
the  initials  of  the  ])roper  name  of  an}-  man  or  women — this  was 
all  that  was  required.  He  could  tell  where  stolen  ])ro])ert}-  was 
concealed.  He  could  light  a  candle  in  a  large  room  1)}  ru1)bing 
his  hands  together.  He  ccndd  tell  the  exact  nund)er  of  pigs  a  sow 
would  have  at  a  litter.  These  are  matters  of  fact  and  have  been 
tested  and  arc  well  known  as  facts,  among  the  early  settlers  of  Jes- 
samine county.  I  renK'nd)er,  myself,  there  lived  a  man  on  the 
farm  of  Thomas  Gordon,  about  one  mile  south  of  Xicholasville, 
wdio  had  a  horse  stolen.  He  came  to  see  Dr.  Trisler.  three  times 
l)efore  he  would  tell  hiui  where  the  horse  was.  On  the  third  day 
Dr.  Trisler  met  the  owner  of  the  stolen  horse  and  told  him  to  go 
to  the  t(nvn  of  Lancaster,  in  ( iarrard  countv.  and  ui.ar  the  county 
jail  he  would  hud  llie  horse  hitched  to  a  fence  ;  he  added  :  "BtU  the 
man   that  took  llie  horse  from  vour  stable  has  been  killed  in   a 


222  Hi4(>rii  of  Jf.-i.^diniir  Coil  lit  ij,  Kcniiichij. 

clnnikeii  frolic.""     This  nia\-  ;i])])c'ar  unreasonable,  but  1  know  it  to 
be  true.  \  ery  truly,  your  friend, 

John  Cawbey. 

Alexander  Wake. 

Alexander  Wake  was  the  first  Comity  Judge  of  Jessamine 
county  under  the  Constitution  of  1850.  He  was  born  in  Fau- 
f|uier  countv.  \irginia,  in  1797,  and  died  in  Nicholasville  in  1867. 
Through  his  maternal  and  paternal  ancestors,  he  inherited  the 
love  of  liberty,  for  both  took  part  in  the  war  for  independence. 
In  the  beginning  of  the  present  century,  Judge  Wake's  father  re- 
moved to  Woodford  county.  He  brought  with  him  "from  Vir- 
ginia, a  large  number  of  slaves.  Judge  Wake  commenced  the 
stu(l\-  of  law  and  was  admitted  to  the  practice  of  his  profession  in 
1820.  [n  1851,  when  he  was  electe;!  County  Judge,  he  refused 
to  grant  license  to  sell  liquor.  Judge  James  Letcher,  of  Garrard 
county,  was  the  first  judge  who  refused  to  grant  such  license,  and 
he  was  inmiediately  followed  by  Judge  Wake,  of  Jessamine.  He 
was  a  fearless  man  in  the  discharge  of  his  otftcial  dut}- ;  he  knew 
neither  friend  or  foe  on  the  bench  ;  he  followed  the  dictates  of  his 
conscience  and  his  judgment,  and  commanded  the  respect  and 
confidence  of  his  fellow-citizens. 


John  B.   Cook. 

In  1810  Dawson  Cook,  who  was  a  native  of  King  and  Queen 
countv,  X'irginia,  removed  to  Nicholasville,  bringing  with  him  his 
son.  fohn  B.  Cook,  then  four  years  of  age.  Early  in  life  Air.  Cook 
entered  business  in  Xicholasville,  became  a  member  of  the  Meth- 
odist church,  and  in  all  the  relations  of  life  acted  well  his  part. 
He  was  kind,  generous,  thoughtful  and  courteous  to  his  friends 
and  neighbors.  One  characteristic  of  his  life  was  his  devotion  to 
his  church.  ]'"or  fifty-two  years  he  was  an  earnest  supporter  of 
the  Xicholasville  Alethodist  church,  and  was  rarely,  if  ever,  ab- 
sent from  his  seat  in  the  sanctuarv.  1  le  died  in  1886,  in  the  sev- 
enty-third year  of  his  age. 

(  )ne  of  his  sons.  Rev.  T.  H.  Cook,  was  adjutant  of  the  Fifth 
Kentuckv  Confederate  infantr\-,  and  later  a  distinguished  Meth- 


H't.-iUn'ij  itj  .Ji'.<:<(iiiinii'  Coiiiiiij,  hiiiiiickij.  2'--\ 

odisl  <li\'inc.  His  sons,  John,  Edward,  and  Hush  L.  Cook,  the 
latter  projjrietor  of  thr  Hotel  Xichohts.  and  one  dau^^hter  survive 
In'ni.  Tlis  i)ietv  and  liis  ])atri(  itisni  cs  )nd)in(,-(l  witli  liis  kind  and 
genial  manners  render  him  one  of  the  hest  rememhered  citizens  of 
Jessamine  county. 

Capt   John  Wallace 

Was  born  in  i lucks  counix.  Pennsylvania,  Dec.  i8,  1748.  His 
father  had  come  from  Ireland  in  1737.  Captain  Wallace  served 
in  the  Revoluiioiiarx  armies  under  ( ieneral  Washington.  He  had 
tliree  brothers  in  his  companx'.  He  was  with  Washington  when 
he  crossed  llie  Delaware,  and  fought  the  battle  of  Trenton. 
Colonel  Rahl.  the  conniiander  of  the  Hessians,  in  that  Ivittle,  was 
killed  by  one  of  the  sharpshooters  in  Captain  Wallace's  com- 
pany. There  Captain  W'allace  took  from  one  of  the  1  lessia.i 
officers  a  sword,  w  hich  was  kept  in  the  family  for  eighty  years,  and 
was  taken  by  Federal  soldiers  from  the  house  of  the  Rev.  Joseph 
A^'allace,  in  lnde]H'ndence,  Missouri,  during  the  late  war.  After 
liis  marriage  to  jane  l''inlc\.  in  1777.  he  removed  to  \  irginia,  but 
shortl}'  after  came  to  I'ayette  county.  Ky.,  accomjianied  by  sev- 
eral mend)ers  of  Ids  family.  His  son.  Jose])h  AX'allace,  married 
Sarah  llarr,  Januar\  -'4,  1829,  and  shortl v  after  this  Captain  \\:\.\- 
lace  settled  in  Jessanune  county,  where  the  East  Fork  and  main 
Jessamine  Creek  unite,  and  carried  on  for  more  than  forty  years 
an  extensive  tamier\-.  He  was  a  most  efficient  l>usiness  man, 
kindl}-  and  considerate  in  all  the  relations  of  life,  and  was  one  v->f 
the  best  citizens  that  ever  lived  in  Jessamine.  He  died  at  his 
])lace,  a  few  miles  soiuh  of  Xicliolasville,  Dec.  u;.  1833.  in  the 
76th  year  of  Ids  age.  Mrs.  T.  J.  I'rown  was  one  of  his  daughters. 
Scattered  throughout  l\entuck\-  and  Missoiud  are  his  descend- 
ants. Ihey  carry  with  them  as  their  inheritance  the  maul\-.  ])a- 
triotic,  intelligent  and  Christian  instincts  which  marked  their  an- 
cestors. 

A  Romantic  Story. 

On  the  lirst  day  of  Januarx',  184T,  a  \-oung  man  about  thirty 
years  of  age,  made  his  appearance  in  Xicholas\'ille,  which  then 
had  a  pe)pulation  of  oul\-  330  inhabitants.      His  name  was  Ross 


--■4  Ifisforii  of  Jr.<saminr  Comifii.  Keutiirhij. 

Hughes,  and  he  was  a  stage  driver,  a  native  of  Ireland  and  a  man 
of  phick  and  energy.  He  obtained  employment,  and  rented  an  old 
house  then  l)elonging  to  Albert  Young.  He  and  his  wife  con- 
stituted the  family.  He  drove  the  stage  from  Xicholasville  to 
Harrodsburg,  over  rough  roads  in  winter.  After  he  quit  driving 
the  stage,  he  one  da\-  told  his  wife  tliat  he  must  visit  Louisville 
and  .\ew  ( )rleans.  He  remained  awa\-  from  home  for  a  long  time 
and  the  gossips  of  the  town  made  the  young  wife  unhappy  by 
their  disagreeable  insinuations.  After  an  absence  of  four  months 
the  husband  returned,  l)Ut  within  a  week  he  received  a  budget  of 
letters,  and  told  his  wife  that  he  nmst  go  at  once  to  St.  Louis,  and 
in  a  few  hours,  he  took  his  departure  for  the  last  time  from  Xich- 
olasville, and  gossip  again  turned  its  hateful  tongue  to  the  dis- 
turbance of  the  life  and  heart  of  the  young  wife.  The  public  felt 
that  she  was  deserted.  Shorth-  after  she  became  a  mother,  and 
for  eighteen  months  lived  on  in  silence,  hoping  and  trusting.  At 
tiie  end  of  this  time  she  received  a  letter  from  her  husband  di- 
recting her  to  come  at  once  with  her  child,  which  she  did,  after 
disposing  of  her  little  household  effects.  Upon  reaching  St. 
Louis  she  found  that  her  husband  was  the  owner  of  a  splendidlv 
furnished  house  with  every  convenience  for  her  comfort,  and 
with  colored  servants  ready  to  obey  her  wishes.  In  due  time 
the  little  girl  born  in  the  little  log  house  on  the  27th  of  January, 
1841,  became  a  lady  in  fashionable  society  in  St.  Louis,  and  later 
the  wife  of  an  English  Lord,  and  the  mistress  of  a  superb  man- 
sion in  London  society.  She  died  Lady  Stirling,  on  the  6th  day  of 
September,  1889,  in  London.  Her  first  husband  was  a  distinguished 
Major  General,  in  the  Federal  arm_\-.  The  old  log  house  in 
which  Lady  Stirling  was  born  is  still  standing,  and  is  the  property 
of  Mr.  Corrington.  It  has  been  altered  and  weatherboarded 
anew,  and  is  still  one  of  the  most  comfortable  residences  in  the 
town.  It  was  erected  in  1804,  and  is  on  the  corner  lot  in  the  rear 
of  Joseph.  Lear's  liverv  stable. 


Prolific  of  Statesmen. 

In  one  corner  of  Jessamine  county  there  were  six  neighbor- 
hood boys,  living  almost  in  sight  of  each  other,  all  of  whom  played 
together  and  attended  the  same  school.     Four  of  these — George 


lUdorij  of  Jr.-isainine  Couidy   Kentuckij.  22o 

vS.  Shanklin.  Otho  R.  Singleton.  Sam'l  1 1 .  Woodson  and  A.  G.  Tal- 
bott — became  nienil^ers  of  Congress  ;  the  fifth — Jos.  15.  Crockett — 
became  one  of  tlic  most  distinguished  state  judges  in  America,  and 
was  for  many  years  Chief  Justice  of  CaHfornia ;  while  the  sixth — 
Richard  K.  Call — was  elected  to  Congress  from  Florida,  in  1823. 
He  was  ( iovernor  of  Florida  from  1836  to  1839.  and  again  from 
1841  to  1844.  .'"^ucli  a  record  of  distinguished  services  from  one 
neighborhood  is  certainlv  rare  in  this  or  anv  other  countv. 


George  S.  Shanklin. 

Hon.  G.  S.  Shanklin  was  the  youngest  son  of  John  Shanklin. 
who  was  one  of  the  early  pioneers,  emigrating  from  Pennsylvania 


to  Kentucky.     He  settled  in  Jessamine  county  in  1785.     He  early 
attended  the  celebrated  school  of  Joshua  l"rv.       Ik-  was  not  a 
15 


22(1  HUfoni  of  Je.-ixcDiihii'  Coinitij,  Koitnchij. 

politician  or  time-server.  He  was  a  man  of  a  high  sense  of  in- 
tegifity,  modesty,  courtesy  and  of  retiring  (hsposition.  He  was 
an  able  antl  snccessfid  ])ractitioner  of  law,  a  man  of  most  incor- 
ruptible honor.  He  was  elected  to  Congress  in  1865,  and  repre- 
sented Jessamine  count \'  in  the  lower  house  in  1838,  and  was 
Presidential  J^lector  in  1864.  The  latter  years  of  his  life  were 
spent  upon  his  farm,  about  three  miles  from  Xicholasville,  on 
the  Aersailles  turnpike.  He  died  .\pril  ist,  1883,  seventy-five 
vears  of  age. 


*^5' 


Otho  R.  Singleton. 

One  of  the  distinguished  sons  c^f  Jessamine  was  Otho  R. 
Singleton.  He  was  born  near  Keene,  in  1816.  In  1842  he 
settled  in  the  state  of  Mississippi.  He  was  a  gifted  man,  of  superb 
presence,  fine  courage  and  attractive  address,  and  in  his  adopted 
state  became  very  prominent.  He  was  the  son  of  Lewis  Single- 
ton, and  nephew  of  Elijah  Singleton.  He  attended  Bardstown 
College  in  his  early  life,  and  immediately  after  going  to  ^lissis- 
sippi  \ras  elected  and  served  two  years  in  the  legislature.  He 
afterwards  served  six  years  in  the  Mississippi  State  Senate,  and 
in  1852  w'as  the  presidental  elector  from  Mississippi.  He  was 
chosen  as  a  member  of  the  33d,  35th  and  36th  Congresses.  He 
entered  the  Civil  War  with  a  Mississii)pi  regiment,  and  acquitted 
himself  with  great  gallantrv.  At  the  battle  of  Leeshurg  ;i. 
Federal  officer  from  LJoston — a  Captain  Watson — demanded  his 
surrender.  At  that  time  Mr.  Singleton  was  a  captain  in  the 
Second  Mississippi  regiment.  His  response  to  the  Federal 
officer  was  a  shot  which  killed  him  instantly.  After  the  war  Mr. 
Singh.^ton  was  elected  a  member  of  the  44th  Congress,  and 
served  in  1875  as  a  member  of  that  body.  His  father  was  an 
extensive  hemp  manufactm-er,  and  maintained  his  factory  near 
Keene.     He  died  a  few  vears  since  at  Jackson,  Miss. 


Rev.  John  T,  Hendricks,  D.  D. 

^Tr.  Hendricks  was  one  of  the  most  useful  and  also  one  of  the 
most  distingttished  men  educated  in  Jessamine.  Having  united 
with  the  Xicholasville  Presbvterian   church,  the  officers  of  the 


Hi.-^tonj  of  Ji'ssdiiiiiK'  (_'i)Hiilij.  I\iiiiiu-I;ij.  'I'll 

congregation  discovered  tliai  he  was  a  man  of  fine  mind  and  deep 
religious  convictions.  'I'he  church  undertook  his  education  for 
tlie  ministr}-,  and  ami)]\  (Hd  lie  i"e])ay  it  for  the  ser\iees  rendered 
hy  it  to  him  in  liis  youth. 

lie  was  l)()rn  in  Barren  county  in  1810.  His  father  came  from 
\'irginia  and  settled  in  Kentucky  in  1805,  and  died  in  Jessamine 
county  in  1839,  two  miles  east  of  Xicholasville.  His  wife  who 
was  ISIary  Tilman.  died  at  the  same  place  in  February,  1838.  His 
ancestors  were  staunch  IVotestants  and  served  under  William, 
Prince  of  () range,  in  ilie  war  waged  by  Philip  11.  of  Spain 
against  the  Protestants  of  llolland,  al^out  the  middle  of  the  Six^ 
teenth  century. 

\\'hile  preparing  for  the  ministry,  he  undertook  the  work  of 
colporteur  in  Jessamine  county,  and  his  report  of  his  labors  is 
still  in  existence.  He  distributed  31  Bibles  free,  sold  15,  do- 
nated 25  Testaments,  and  sold  5.  His  report  closes  with  these 
words:  *"I  have  been  engaged  five  days,  finding  my  own  horse, 
"at  one  dollar  per  da\ ,  which  I  have  received. 

"Alarch  6,  1830." 

He  visited  in  all  148  families  in  the  territory  bounded  as  fol- 
lows :  I'roni  Xicholasville  witli  tlie  Shaker  road  to  Jessamine 
creek,  with  the  same  to  the  river,  up  tin-  ri\er  to  tlie  Paint  Lick 
road,  to  the  ])eginning. 

I^r.  Hendricks  died  only  a  few  niontlis  ago  in  the  SSili  vear  ot 
his  age.  His  services  at  Clarksville,  Paducah  and  other  portions 
of  the  Pres1)yter!an  church  in  the  ."^oulhern  states,  liave  given 
him  wicle  distinction  as  a  man  of  great  earnestness,  and  great 
faithfulness  in  his  Master's  cause. 

John  Gorman. 

John  Corman,  a  meni1)er  of  Captain  Price's  company,  was  a 
native  of  Wayne  county,  I'a.  !  le  was  born  in  1792.  He  removed 
to  Kentucky  in  \-ery  early  life,  and  when  the  call  was  made  for  vol- 
unteers, in  1812,  he  i)rom])tly  ofFered  his  services.  He  was  the 
first  man  in  (  aptain  1 'rice's  conunand  to  fire  a  gun  in  the  battle  of 
Raisin,  lie  killed  an  Indian  and  a  British  soldier  early  in  the 
morning. 

He  long  lived  in  the  western  part  of  Jessamine  countv  as  one 


228  Hixtorii  of  .f''-«'(i)iiiif'  County,  Kentucky. 

of  its  best  and  worthiest  citizens  and  died  in  1876.  in  liis  eighty- 
second  year.     He  was  l^rave,  honest  and  patriotic. 

Capt.  Thomas  T.  Cogar. 

Nature  was  generous  to  Capt.  Thos.  T.  Cogar,  and  gave  him 
as  his  portion  in  Hfe,  fourscore-and-six  years. 

His  father.  Michael  Cogar,  settled  in  Jessamine  in  1790  at  the 
head  of  Jessamine  creek,  and  there  his  son  Thomas   was  born  in 

1796. 

Captain  Cogar  was  a  man  of  strong  mind  and  the  kindest  im- 
pulses. His  devotion  to  friends  knew  no  limitations.  He  mar- 
ried ^liss  Ruth  Ewing  in  1822.  and  "n  1847  removed  to  the  Ken- 
tucky river,  at  Cogar's  Landing,  sometimes  called  Brooklyn. 
Here  he  carried  on  a  large  trade  and  managed  the  shipping  busi- 
ness on  the  Kentucky  river,  from  that  point. 

He  became  a  distinguished  Mason,  and  commanded,  for  many 
years,  one  of  the  crack  military  companies  of  the  county.  He 
managed  to  secure  a  large  pork-packing  establishment  at  his 
landing  and  l)y  his  energy  and  popularity  built  up  a  remunerative 
trade  for  such  a  locality. 

He  represented  Jessamine  county  for  two  terms,  in  the  legis- 
lature of  1867-71.  and  died  in  N^icholasville  in  1882.  He  was  an 
honorable  man.  a  patriotic  citizen,  a  loyal  friend,  and  an  intelli- 
gent and  faithful  legislator. 

John  Barkley. 

In,  the  earlier  history  of  Jessamine  county  that  portion  of  it 
lying  in  the  general  neighborhood  of  Keene  produced  an  unusual 
number  of  very  enterprising  as  well  as  very  gifted  men.  Among 
these  was  John  Barkley.  who  held  large  landed  interests  in  Jes- 
samine county  prior  to  1834.  At  that  time  Mr.  Barkley  removed 
to  Boyle  county,  and  estal)lished  the  first  hemp  manufactory 
south  of  the  Kentucky  river.  He  was  largely  engaged  in  mer- 
chandise and  was  also  one  of  the  leading  men  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  state.     He  was  1jorn  in  Jessamine  count v  in  1809. 

He  was  the  first  President  of  the  ].«roposed  railroad  from  Lex- 
ington to  Danville  from  the  South.     Railroad  building  at  that 


Hidory  of  Jessariiiiw  Count ij,  Kfutitckij.  '1'-.^ 

])eri()d  presented  almost  insurniotmtable  difficulties.  .Mr.  I'.ark- 
ley  went  to  Xew  York  and  enit^aged  a  civil  eng'ineer  to  examine 
the  prospects  for  the  construction  of  the  road.  The  mighty 
chasms  of  the  Kentuck\  river  stood  in  the  way.  Cantilever  and 
suspension  bridges  for  railways  had  not  then  been  tised  or  even 
invented.  The  construction  of  a  railway  was  practically  impos- 
sible without  a  bridge  which  woul  1  si)an  the  Kentucky  river. 
Mr.  Adams,  the  engineer.  surve\ing  the  road  from  LexingtDU  to 
Danville,  proposed  to  s])an  the  Kentucky  at  the  point  where  the 
Cincinnati  Southern  now  crosses. 

The  engineering  and  financial  difficulties  would  liave  defeated 
most  men,  ])Ut  the_\-  on]\-  aroused  Mr.  r.arkle\-  to  higher  etYort. 
He  was  a  man  of  great  pluck,  high  order  of  talent,  sparkling  wit 
and  a  fine  conversationalist.  He  had  received  the  best  educational 
advantages  and  had  followed  these  with  wide  reading,  especially 
in  English  literature. 

He  represented  I'oyle  county  in  the  legislature  in  i''^45.  and 
was  a  leader  in  all  movements  for  the  prosperity  and  development 
of  the  county. 

Prior  to  his  death  he  had  ]nu-chased  one  (if  the  fin(>st  farms  in 
Eoyle  county,  near  Danville,  and  was  residing  there  at  the  time 
he  undertook  the  constructitju  of  the  Lexington  &  Danville  Rail- 
road. While  on  his  wav  from  Danville  to  Xicholasville,  in  com- 
])an\-  with  Air.  Adams,  tlie  engineer,  to  arrange  some  matters  in 
connection  witli  tlie  enteri)rise.  the  horse,  which  he  was  driving, 
became  frightened  (ni  the  clitis  of  the  Kentucky  river,  and  ran 
awav.  striking  the  ^■ehicle  against  a  rock  on  the  side  of  the  road. 
He  was  thrown  out  and  instantly  killed.  This  occurred  on  the 
2 1st  day  of  janurn-w   ii^5,^. 

i-"ew  men  at  that  time  would  liave  been  a  greater  loss  to  Ken- 
tuck)-.  .Mr.  r.arkley  was  one  of  the  master  s])irits  of  enter- 
prise in  that  period  when  Kentuck}  ,  al)ove  all  othc'-s.  needed 
men  to  lead,  ])r()mote  and  advance  internal  improvements. 

He  left  the  work  which  he  had  inaugurated  for  others  to  com- 
plete, but  till-  ])oldiu'ss  (if  his  ])lans  and  the  wisdom  (">f  h.is  designs 
have  been  vindicated  in  later  years  and  that  great  thoroughfare, 
the  Cincinnati  Southern  Railway,  is  the  consummation  of  that 
which  Mr.  Harkkw  had  de\-ised  at  a  time  when  other  men  would 


230  HiMorij  of  Jfsfdiiniir  (\iiiidij.  Kentucky. 

have  disiiiissiMl  sucli  a  ])r<)ject  from  llu'ir  minds  as  utterly  im- 
possible. 

Joseph  B,  Crockett. 

Tn  1808,  Joseph  l'>.  Crockett  was  horn  at  I'nion  Mills,  on 
Hickman  creek,  A  short  while  after,  his  father  removed  to  Lo- 
gan county,  and  tliere  the  son  attended  a  classical  school.  In 
1827  he  entered  the  L'niversit\'  of  Tennessee,  at  Nashville,  but 
in  conseqtience  of  the  straitened  pecuniary  condition  of  his 
father,  he  was  comi)elled  to  leave  tlv."  L'niversity  after  one  year. 
He  studied  law  at  Hopkinsville  witli  (rovernor  Morehead.  In 
1830  he  formed  a  partnership  with  ( iustavus  A.  Henry,  which, 
after  two  years,  was  dissolved.  In  1833.  he  was  elected  to  the 
legfislature,  where,  at  once,  his  talents  and  his  industrv  s^ave  him 
a  high  stand.  He  was  again  elected  to  the  legislature  in  1836,  to 
fill  a  vacancy,  and  shortly  after  this  he  was  appointed  Common- 
wealth's Attorney  by  Governor  ("lark.  His  career  as  a  prosecu- 
tor ^vas  brilliant  and  able,  but  the  duties  of  the  office  were  tincon- 
genial ;  his  talents  led  him  to  prefer  the  defense  rather  than  the 
prosecution,  and  he  soon  established  a  reputation  for  being  one 
of  the  ablest  criminal  lawyers  ever  known  in  Kentucky. 

In  1840.  he  removed  to  St.  Louis.  ]\Io.,  where  a  most  brilliant 
success  crowned  his  career,  but.  his  health  giving  way,  in  1852 
he  settled  in  California,  and  in  a  little  while  found  himself  in  the 
very  front  rank  of  the  bar  in  that  state. 

His  kindness  of  heart  and  his  generous  courtesy  secured  for 
him  the  highest  popularitw  L'pon  the  death  of  Judge  Shapter,  of 
the  Sujireme  Court  of  California,  Air.  Crockett  was  appointed 
to  fill  the  unexpired  term.  He  held  the  place  of  Chief  Justice  for 
twelve  years  and  retired  in  1880 — the  result  of  infirmity  produced 
by  advanced  years.  He  was  regarded  by  the  people  of  California 
as  one  of  the  most  brilliant,  able  and  distinguished  judges  who 
ever  sat  on  the  l)encli  of  tlic  Supreme  Court. 

David  Bowman. 

One  of  the  uni(|ue  cliaracters  in  tlu'  early  history  of  Jessamine 
county  was  David  Bowman.  He  was  born  in  lUicks  county.  Pa., 
in  1784.  and  settled  in  Jessamine  county,  on  Jessamine  creek,  in 


Hl4orij  of  Je-miniliir  County,  Kentwkij.  231 

1800.  His  forefathers  in  Pennsylvania  were  members  of  the 
Church  of  ihe  Ignited  IJrethren.  Mr.  Bowman  united  with  the 
Presbyterian  church  in  Xicholasville  in  1825,  and  was  for  more 
than  sixtv-five  years  a  faithful  and  devested  attendant.  At  the 
time  of  his  death  in  1879,  he  was  the  oldest  member  of  the  church 
and  was  the  last  of  the  old  men  born  m  the  eighteenth  century. 

When  a  young  man  he  l)ecame  addicted  to  the  use  of  liquor; 
resolving  to  rid  himself  of  this  habit,  he  went  to  Lexington  and 
after  a  three  days'  w^alk  in  the  nnid.  reached  that  city.  There  he 
received  the  help  of  a  gentleman,  who  aided  him  to  go  to  New 
Orleans  on  a  flatboat,  and  there  he  took  service  on  a  ship,  which 
plied  between  New  Orleans  and  Havana,  and  followed  the  sea 
for  twelve  years,  and  accumulated  quite  a  fortune.  He  returned 
to  Jessamine  county,  luarricd,  and  on  twelve  acres  of  land  always 
had  corn  and  wheat,  and  money  to  sy^are. 

For  manv  years  he  attended  church  in  Xicll()las^•ille,  coming 
on  horseback,  witli  his  wife  behind  him.  lie  insisted  to  the  time 
of  his  death  ui)on  wearing  a  blue,  spade-tail  coat. 

John  Butler. 

lohn  llutler  was  the  son  of  Jhomas  iiutler,  one  of  the  old 
sheriffs  of  Jessamine  county,  under  the  Constitution  of  1779.  He 
was  born  in  Jefferson  county,  \  a.,  in  Jul}-,  1813,  antl  was  only  six 
years  old  when  his  father  settled  in  Jessamine  county.  He  was  a 
kind,  honest  and  u])rigln  man,  and  commanded  the  respect  and 
confidence  of  his  fellow-citizens.  He  was  deputy  sherifif  two 
terms,  and  died  Alarch  T.  1870.  He  was  one  of  the  .-ubstantial 
and  enterprising  men  of  Jessamine  county. 

James  R.  Davis. 

James  R.  Davis  was  born  near  Nicholasville  in  1809.  He  was 
the  third  son  of  James  Davis,  and  nephew  of  \\'illiam  Davis,  two 
brothers,  who  came  from  Culpeper  Court  House,  A'a  .  and  set- 
tled in  Jessamine  count \-  in  I7()8.  Jaiues  Davis  was  the  son  of 
Henry  Davis,  of  Culpeper  county.  \';i.,  who  served  in  the  Rev- 
olutionary War.  under  ( ieneral  Washington,  and  General  ^^^ayne. 
He  died  in   Fayette  count \-  in    1794. 


232 


Hhtonj  of  Jt'smmm£  County,  Kentucky. 


Jame?  R.  Davis  lived  in  the  Sulphur  Wells  neighborhood  for 
fifty  }ears.  He  was  a  good  and  wortliy  man.  noted  for  his  hospi- 
tality.    He  died  in  1886. 

Samuel  Woodson  Price. 

Samuel  Woodson  Trice,  son  of  Maj.  1).  B.  Price  and  Eliza 
Crockett,  was  born  on  the  5th  of  August.  1828.  in  Xicholasville, 
K}-.     He  early  exhibited  a  marvelous  talent  for  drawing,  and  he 


could  draw  the  capital  letters  before  he  knew  his  alphabet.  All 
his  holidays  and  Saturdays  were  spent  in  sketching  on  paper  and 
modeling  in  clay.  When  quite  a  boy  he  was  sitting  in  the  court 
house  at  a  famous  trial.  Thomas  F.  Marshall  was  addressing 
the  jury  for  the  prisoner.  During  this  speech  the  attention  of 
the  young  artist  was  drawn  to  an  old  and  prominent  farmer  who- 


Hidonj  of  Jesmmiw  C(nnd%  Krntncky  233 

was  listeninj;-.  with  ea|o-er  attention  to  the  eloquent  words  which 
were  being-  uttered.  His  head  was  resting  on  his  hands,  his 
finqers  alon.s^  the  side  of  Iiis  face,  while  his  month  was  wide  open. 
Jn  a  little  while  the  sketch  was  completed.  lie  handed  it  to  the 
sheriff,  who  launched  aloud  and  in  turn  handed  it  to  the  judge, 
who  also  was  not  able  to  suppress  his  mirth.  It  was  passed  from 
neighbor  to  neighbor,  and  everybody  laughed,  and  the  speaker 
was  com])elled  to  pause  for  a  few  minutes. 

After  attending  the  Xicholasville  Academy  he  was  sent  to  the 
Kentuok\-  Institute  to  complete  his  education.  This  was  in  the 
fall  of  i8.|6.  He  was  at  once  made  Professor  of  Drawing,  with 
the  rank  of  First  Lieutenant.  In  1847  the  I'niversity  suspended 
and  he  went  at. once  to  Lexington  to  pursue  his  studies  with  the 
lenowned  painter.  Oliver  FYazier.  There  he  attained  splendid 
success.  His  painting.  "Old  King  Solomon,"  is  one  of  the  most 
noted  ever  produced  in  Kentucky.  His  portrait  of  Chief  Justice 
George  Robertson,  and  the  painting  of  Dr.  J.  J.  Kullock  and  his 
familv.  rank  among  the  masterpieces  of  the  state.  The  Govern- 
ment purchased  from  liim  a  portrait  of  Major-General  Thomas, 
which  is  now  in  the  National  Galler}-.  at  Washington. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  war  he  commanded  an  inde])endent 
com]-)an}-  at  Lexington,  known  as  the  (  )ld  Infantry.  Most  of 
this  company  entered  the  Federal  service.  He  was  afterwards 
appointed  Colonel  of  the  Twenty-first  Kentuckx  Infantry.  He 
brought  this  regiment  to  a  high  state  of  eflficiency.  and  the  service 
it  afterward  performed  in  the  (fivil  war.  from  '61  to  '65,  was 
in  considerable  measure  induced  In  his  splendid  training.  At 
the  battle  of  Stone  lvi\er  he  made  a  heroic  stand  and  was  o]> 
posed  to  the  Kentucky  Confederate  troops  under  I'.reckinridge. 

General  Price  was  badly  wounded  at  Kenesaw  Mountain 
and  taken  fnun  tlie  field.  Tliis  incapacitated  him  for  further 
active  service.  He  was  appointed  conmiandant  of  the  post  at 
Lexington,  and  was  such  at  the  close  of  the  war.  He  was  brev- 
eted r>rigadier-General  for  his  gallant  conduct  at  Kennesaw.  and 
afterwards  was  Postmaster  at  Lexington,  which  ])lace  he  held  for 
two  terms.  He  moved  to  Louisville  after  his  retirement  from  the 
position  of  Postmaster,  to  pursue  his  i^rofession,  portrait  j^aint- 
ing,  but  the  loss  of  his  eyesight  prevented  him  from  further  work, 
and  he  is  now  totall\-  l)lind.      He  is  a  writer  of  viuor  and  a  mem- 


234  Jliffnrij  (if  .J(-'<--<<(iii!ii<'  (  uKiifij,  Knitnckij. 

ber  of  tlic  I'^ilson  C'lul),  for  wliicli  Ik-  fri'(|uciitl\-  ])rcpares  sketches, 
wliiclt  are  "Tcatly  appreciated  and  lii^iilv  valued.  Several  of  his 
])aiiitini;s  take  liit;h  rank,  and  one,  "Caught  Napping,"  is  a 
masterpiece  of  its  kind.  The  closing  of  his  professional  life  by 
the  destruction  of  his  sight,  was  a  great  loss,  not  only  to  Ken- 
tucky  but  to  all  lo\ers  of  art. 


William  T.  Willis. 

Captain  Willis  was  born  on  the  ioth  of  June,  1794,  in  Cul- 
peper  couiU}',  \'a..  and  was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Ikiena  \'ista, 
Februarv  23rd,  1847.  ^^^  married  hrst  Hetty  E.  Howe,  daugh- 
ter of  a  Presbyterian  minister.  He  had  been  educated  at  a  semi- 
narv  taught  l)v  his  father-in-law.  He  was  elected  to  represent 
Green  county  in  the  Legislatm-e  several  times,  and  also  repre- 
sented (ireen  and  Hart  in  the  Senate  in  1833  and  1838.  He  made 
the  race  for  Congress  in  that  district  in  1830.  with  a  majority  of 
2,000  against  him,  which  he  reduced  to  200.  At  that  time  he  was 
believed  to  be  on  his  death-bed.  and  this  seriously  afTected  his 
vote.  After  his  marriage  he  ])egan  merchandising,  and  shipped 
large  (|uantities  of  toljacco  by  liat-boat,  and  drove  horses  through 
tlie  countrx-  to  Xew  ( )rleans.  The  partner,  who  he  sent  on  one 
of  these  expeditions,  was  taken  sick  after  selling  the  horses  and 
tobacco,  and  died,  and  before  Cajitain  Willis  could  reach  the  place 
of  his  demise,  the  ]M-oceeds  of  the  sale  had  disappeared.  Being 
involved,  lie  returned  at  once,  sold  out  his  stock,  and  commenced 
studying  law  and  practiced  in  Green  and  adjoining  counties.  Not- 
w^ithstanding  that  he  had  a  large  debt  and  a  family  of  eight  chil- 
dren, and  at  that  time  was  compelled  to  meet  such  men  as  Samuel 
Brent,  Ben  Hardin,  Judge  Cnderwood  and  Judge  Buckner,  he 
succeeded  admirably  in  his  profession.  In  1840  he  removed  to 
Harrodsburg,  remained  there  three  years,  and  then  came  to  Jes- 
samine county.  He  was  a  man  of  singular  energy  and  great  abil- 
ity. He  had  built  up  a  large  practice,  and  was  regarded  through- 
out Kentucky  as  one  of  its  most  ])romising  statesmen.  Although 
fifty  years  of  age  at  the  breaking  out  of  the  Mexican  war,  he  at 
once  organized  a  com])any  for  service  and  his  ardent  patriotism 
is  l)est  attested  1)v  the  fact  that  with  him.  three  of  his  sons  volun- 


History  of  .Jex.-"iniiiK'  County,  KentKcky.  235 

teered  as  i)rivates  :  tlie  youngest  of  whom  was  l)arel\-  fifteen  years 
of  age. 

Hie  following'  is  a  list  of  his  men  : 

Roll  of  Company  "I'."  Second  Regiment.  Kentncky  Foot 
Volunteers — Alexican    War  : 

W'm.  T.  Willis,  ist  ca])tain,  killed  at  lUiena  \  ista. 

Captain — James  O.  Hervy.  First  Fieutenant— William  R. 
Keene.  Second  Fieutenant — Thos.  J.  Proctor.  Second  Fieu- 
tenant — Win.  C.  Fowry.  Sergeants — William  F.  Smith  ist,  An- 
drew J.  Nave,  2(1.  J  no.  C.  W  inter  3d.  William  Cox  4th  ;  Corpo- 
rals — Edward  i'.  Creen  ist,  Dudley  Portwood  2d,  John  A.  Willis 
^(1,  Chas.  C.  Hagan  4th.      1  )rummer — Cortney  F.  Hurch. 

Privates — Allen,  Jno.  11.;  I'.rown,  Geo.  W.:  I'.urchell.  Daniel; 
r.nrton,  Fheodric  ;  I'.nmer.  Thos.  J.;  IJeymer,  Saml. ;  (."astle.  .Au- 
gustus r.. ;  Crane.  Asa  C. ;  Crane.  Jno.  P. ;  Collins,  William  ;  1  )an- 
iel,  \\in.  H.;  Dickerson.  Woodson;  Day.  Win.:  Dnman.  James; 
Easby,  Andrew  F. ;  Easby,  Josiah  ;  England,  jas.  S. ;  l-"ain,  John  ; 
Ford,  Joshua  G. ;  Ford.  Edward  D.;  (iarison,  John  A.;  ( iravcs, 
Fiving;  Giljon\'.  ^\'illiam  ;  ( irant,  Geo.  A\'.  :  Howard.  Robt.  S. ; 
Hamilton.  A\'illiam  :  Hunter.  John;  Ilayden.  Isah  P.;  Hill, 
Cireenshm-)  ;  ilar\-e\.  Trotter;  Hawkins.  James;  Jackman.  Jos.; 
Masters,  Irvine;  Mar\in,  W  ni.  P.;  AFisters.  Jackson;  Marks, 
Geo.  F:  ATartin.  Rol)ert  ;  .\loorc.  Andrew  I'.;  AFA^ampbell,  Jno. 
G.;  AlcConnel.  Jas.  A.;  McAlurtry,  h)hn;  Xooe.  Albert  K.; 
O'Brien,  William  ;  (  )verstreet.  Saml.  R. ;  I'age.  Thos.  C. ;  Patter- 
son. Win. ;  Roberson,  Jacob  C. ;  Roberts,  .\ndrew  J. ;  Rash.  John', 
Saunders,  Jno.  A. ;  Saunders,  Geo.  W. ;  Sacre,  John  ;  Sharp.  Eze- 
kiel  K. ;  Sweitzer.  John  ;  'J'utt.  Wm.;  Thompson.  Jno.  T. ;  White, 
Jas.  N. ;  Wilson.  John  ;  Willis,  Edmond  C. ;  Willis,  Jas.  H. 

Jacoh  Kreath  Robinson,  in  the  official  Hst  sjielled  Rohertson. 
was  one  of  the  youngest  men  in  this  comi)an\ .  I  le  was  born  in 
1829.  The  oldest  man  in  the  coni])any.  John  Hunter,  was  born 
in  1804.  and  was  the  son  of  John  Hunter,  tlu'  first  settler.  \\v 
was  severeU-  wounded  in  the  leg  at  the  battle  of  lluena  X'ista  and 
died  in  1881 .  l\o])inson  was  also  a  soldier  in  the  late  war.  ])assed 
through  all  its  hardships  and  dangers,  endured  its  i)rivations.  and 
now'  resides  at  Harrodsburg.  Ky. 

This  comi)any  was  ordered  to  rei)ort  at  Fouisville  to  be  mus- 
tered  into  service.     Thev  assembled  at  Ahmdx's  Fanding  on  the 


23(J  '  Hldory  of  Jei^^aminc  Count ij,  Kentuckij. 

Kcntuck}-  river;  some  came  on  liorseback.  some  in  carriages, 
and  tliev  were  ordered  tliere  to  meet  the  steamboat  lUue  \\'ing. 
When  tlie  c()m])an\-  reached  the  river  the  steamboat  was  at 
15rookl\n,  and  w  liile  coming  down  to  ]\lundy's  Landing  ran  into 
a  sandbar  and  stuck.  Capt.  PhiHp  Thomson's  company  from 
fiercer  countw  was  also  on  the  way  to  Louisville.  With  ropes 
the  soldiers  ])ulled  the  steamer  from  off  the  sandbar  twice,  and, 
after  it  had  stuck  the  third  time.  Ca])t.  Thomson  went  to  Salvisa 
and  obtained  wagons  and  drove  through  to  Louisville,  while  Cap- 
tain Willis's  comi)any  took  coalboats  at  Mundy's  Landing,  rowed 
themselves  down  to  Frankfort,  and  arrived  there  the  next  day. 
After  taking  breakfast  in  Frankfort,  the  steamer  arrived  at  the 
landing  and  they  took  passage  and  reached  Louisville,  and  were 
mustered  in  !)}•  Col.  George  Croghan.  From  Louisville  they 
were  transported  to  Xew  Orleans  Ijy  steamers,  and  after  re- 
maining there  a  few  days,  they  crossed  the  (kilf  of  Mexico  in 
some  old  British  sailing  vessels,  and  arrived  at  Brazos  on.  the  Rio 
Grande  river.  A  part  of  the  regiment  was  engaged  in  the  bat- 
tle of  Monterey.  Shortly  after  this  the  regiment  was  ordered  to 
the  cit\-  of  Saltillo.  and  from  thence,  marching  with  General  Tay- 
lor, thev  engaged  in  the  battle  of  lUiena  \'ista.  This  was  one  of 
the  most  brilliant  battles  that  crowned  American  arms,  and  it 
was  the  onh'  I)attlc  in  which  the  entire  regiment,  with  which  Cap- 
tain Willis'  company  was  connected,  was  engaged.  This  regi- 
ment was  ccjmmanded  by  Col.  \\'illiam  R.  AIcKee,  from  Lancas- 
ter; Henry  Clay,  [r.,  was  Lieutenant-Colonel,  and  Gary  H.  Fry. 
^Major.  The  com])anv  was  enrolled  on  the  2ist  of  [May,  1846, 
in  Xicholasville,  and  was  mustered  in  at  Louisville  June  9,  1846, 
and  was  mustered  out  at  Xew  (  )rleans  June  9,  1847. 

The  story  of  this  battle  has  always  reflected  great  credit  and 
renown  on  Kentuckv  courage.  The  second  Kentucky  Regiment 
was  on  the  right  tlank  of  the  arm}-  and  held  it  throughout  the 
battle,  defeating  the  enemy  opposite  to  them,  which  was  twice 
their  number.  At  this  time  the  left  flank  gave  way.  and  its  retreat 
was  only  stopped  by  General  Tavlor  and  Jefferson  Davis  and  the 
cavalry,  who  drove  them  back  to  face  the  enemy.  It  was  then  thit 
Colonel  Hardin,  of  the  First  Illinois,  and  Colonel  AIcKee.  of  the 
Second,  made  a  disastrous  charge  against  an  overwhelming  force. 
This  charge  was  made  against  the  earnest  protest  of  Colonel  ^Ic- 


Hi^fiiri/  iif  J'ssdiidiif  ('nil  lit  I/.  Kentucky.  23 

Kee  and  (Captain  A\'illis.  hut  TIardin  insisted  upon  making-  it,  and 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Clay  urged  it,  and  the  Kentucky  boys,  fear- 
ing- that  the  Illinois  men  would  get  the  g-lory,  McKee  then  united 
in  the  charge  and  was  killed.  Col.  Henry  Clay.  Jr.,  was  wound- 
ed, and  Captain  Willis,  witli  the  high  courage  and  noble  generos- 
ity w  hich  marked  his  whole  career,  was  urging-  his  men  to  take  che 
Lieutenant-Colonel  from  the  field,  when  the  Mexican  Lancers 
came  rai)idly  down  and  killed  both  Colonel  Clay  and  Captain 
Willis.  Harvey  Trotter,  a  soldier  from  Jessamine,  was  killed  at 
the  same  time.  James  ().  Hervey  succeeded  Captain  Willis,  and 
only  foiu-  of  the  men  who  were  engaged  in  tlie  battle  of  Buena 
Vista  in  this  company,  now  remain  in  Jessamine  ;  John  A.  Willis, 
\\'illiam  C.  Lowrey,  A\'illiam  Hamilton  and  I)a\'id  Switzer.  Cap- 
tain \\  illis"  remains,  as  well  as  those  of  Trotter,  were  removed  by 
the  State  of  Kentucky,  and  reinterred  in  the  state  g-round  in 
]*"rankfort  cemetery.  It  was  upon  the  occasion  of  the  reinter- 
ment of  these  soldiers  that  Theodore  O'Hara  wrote  his  iir.mortal 
poem  of  "  The  I'ivouac  of  the  Dead,"  commencing  as  follows: 

"The  nniffled  drimi's  sad   roll  has  beat 
The  soldier's  last  tattoo  ; 
Xo  more  on  Life's  parade  shall  meet 

That  brave  and  fallen  few. 
( )n  l-'ame's  eternal  camping-g-round 

Their  silent  tents  are  spread. 
And  glory  giuu'ds,  with  solenm  round. 
The  bivouac  of  the  dead." 


Robert  Young. 

Robert  Young,  a  resident  of  Jessamine  comity  for  more  than 
sixty-four  years,  \\-as  born  in  l-'ayette  county,  on  Elkhorn  creek. 
not  far  from  the  Jessamine  line,  in  1803.  His  father,  |ohn 
^  oung,  was  a  Revolutionar\-  soldier  and  served  three  vears  under 
General  Greene.  At  the  breaking  out  of  the  war  In-  was  only 
sixteen  years  of  age.  He  was  engaged  in  ilu-  ])attles  of  Eutaw 
Springs.  Monk's  Corner,  Guilford  Coml  Ibnise.  and  at  York- 
town.  Robert  Young  was  the  son  of  Jolin  ^'oung  1)\-  liis  second 
wife.  C\-nthia  McCullongh. 


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W 
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Hidory  of  Jesxamme  County,  Kentucky.  -■!!> 

He  learned  liat  manufacturing  with  his  brother-in-law.  Mr. 
Fritzlen,  at  \'ersailles,  and  in  1825  established  himself  in  Xicholas- 
ville.  He  accumulated  a  moderate  fortune  and  in  1848  purchased 
a  farm  and  retired  from  business  as  a  manufacturer. 

He  married.  Josephine  Henderson,  a  g-randdaughter  of  Col. 
Joseph  Crockett,  and  reared  a  large  family.  His  oldest  son, 
Rev.  Daniel  P.  Young,  was  one  of  the  leading  Presbyterian  min- 
isters of  Kentucky;  his  two  sons,  Robert  and  Melanchthon,  two 
of  the  county's  most  substantial  and  successful  farmers  and  most 
respected  and  loved  citizens,  while  his  other  son.  Col.  P>ennett  H. 
Young,  resides  in  Louisville  and  is  the  author  of  this  b()(jk.  His 
eldest  daughter  married  Dr.  Charles  ^lann  and  his  ycjungest 
daughter,  Josephine,  now  resides  in  Xicholasville. 

Robert  Young  was  a  man  of  higli  integrity  and  possessed  all 
the  best  and  noblest  qualities  of  citizenship.  His  word  was  better 
than  his  bond.  Just,  generous  and  conscientious  in  all  his  deal- 
ings, he  connnandcd,  as  he  deserved,  the  respect  and  confidence 
of  his  friends  and  acquaintances.  He  was  an  earnest,  faithful 
member  and  olificer  of  the  Presbyterian  church  and  was  an  hon- 
ored member  in  man\-  of  its  councils.  No  one  ever  questioned  the 
reality  of  his  religion  ;  he  carried  it  into  all  the  dealings  of  his  life. 
He  died  November  2(jth,  1889.  beloved  and  deeply  mourned  by 
the  entire  community.  He  never  failed  to  help  those  who  were 
in  want  and  the  grateful  remembrance  of  those  who  had  received 
of  his  liberality  and  kindness  is  a  rich  legacy  for  an\-  man. 

Albert  Gallatin  Talbot 

Was  born  in  Jessamine  county,  in  the  Keenc  neighborhood, 
where  his  father  at  that  time  resided.  He  subsequently  removed 
to  Boyle  county,  and  represented  that  county  in  the  Legislature  m 
1869-73,  'I'l'l  ''1  ^^5'^  'i*-'  "^^'^^  '^  member  of  the  Thirty-fourth  and 
Thirty-fifth  Congresses,  and  of  the  Constitutional  Convention  of 
1849. 

He  was  a  man  of  idomitable  energy,  agreeable  manners,  and 
was  a  successful  politician. 


240  Hi.4i)rii  (if  Jrssimuiic  Coinifii,  Kentiick 


■la/. 


David  Crozier. 

David  Crozier  was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  l)orn  in  1795. 
and  came  to  Jessamine  county  when  he  was  quite  a  voung-  man. 
He  built  what  is  known  as  Croziers  Mill,  which  is  half  stone  and 
lialf  wood,  on  Jessamine  creek.  In  1845  li<^  carried  on  a  cotton 
factory  at  liis  mill.  He  worked  about  forty  hands,  mostly  boys 
and  girls,  and  manufactured  cotton  cloth  and  jeans.  With  the  in- 
troduction of  railroads,  and  with  the  difficulty  in  getting  materials 
(for  by  this  time  Jessamine  county  had  ceased  to  grow  cotton, 
and  the  supply  of  wool  was  never  large  enough  to  run  the  mill), 
this  mill  was  closed.  Thereafter  Mr.  Crozier  became  associated 
witli  Dr.  A.  K.  Marshall  in  carrying  the  mails  from  Lexington 
to  Uean  Station,  Tenn. 

He  was  energetic  and  enterprising  and  did  much  to  foster  and 
td^dntain  the  earlier  manufacturing  establishments  of  the  county. 

Dr.  Francis  Marion  Jasper. 

Dr.  h^rancis  Marion  Jasper,  who  died  at  Cincinnati  on  the 
22nd  of  June,  iS(-)2,  while  not  a  native  of  Jessamine  count^',  was 
long  one  of  its  most  successful  physicians,  and  his  descent  entitles 
him  to  more  than  passing  notice.  His  Revolutionary  ancestors 
came  from  Wales.  His  great-grandfather,  Abraham  Jasper, 
was  bc>rn  in  Wales  in  1728  and  settled  in  Georgetown,  South 
Carolina.  I-'rom  there  he  moved  to  a  residence  on  Cooper  river, 
near  Charleston.  His  oldest  son  became  a  prominent  Torv,  while 
his  other  sons,  Xicholas  Jasper,  John  Jasper  and  William  Jasper, 
were  bra\'e  and  devoted  soldiers  in  the  cause  of  their  countrv 
dm-ing  the  Revolutionary  war.  having  served  under  General 
.Smnter  in   .Xorth  and  South  Carolina. 

After  the  Revolutionary  war,  Nicholas  Jasper  settled  in  Pulaski 
county,  Ky.,  and  became  the  father  of  a  large  family  of  brave 
and  ]3atriotic  sons.  Xicholas  Jas])er  was  born  near  Charleston, 
South  Carolina,  in  1752.  .Sergt.  William  Jas]ier  was  the  youngest 
chiUl,  born  in  1757.  Pie  was  not  quite  twenty  years  old  during 
the  siege  of  h'ort  ^loultrie,  near  Charleston,  when  the  flagstafif 
was  broken  by  a  shot  from  the  ISritish.  (  )n  seeing  the  flag  thus 
lowered  by  a  shot.  Sergeant  Jasper    inunediately  sprang    down 


Hi4<>rii  of  Jt'-<-<iiinine  County,  Kentucky. 


241 


and  replaced  the  flaq;  amid  a  tremendous  fire  from  the  British  fleet, 
commanded  by  Sir  Peter  Parker.  I^^or  his  bravery  on  that  oc- 
ca.sion  Governor  Rutledge,  in  tlie  presence  of  the  regiment,  took 
his  sword  from  his  side  and  presented  it  to  Sergeant  Jasper.  He 
offered  the  brave  soldier  a  commission,  which  he  refused.  He 
was  killed  in  the  assault  on  Savannah,  Oct.  7,  1779,  when  he  was 
not  quite  twenty-two  years  of  age. 

Capt.  Thomas  Jasper,  who  was  the  father  of  Dr.  Francis  ^Marion 


Jasper,  represented  Pulaski  county  in  the  legislature  of  Kentucky 
in  1833.  "34  and  '^i,^.  and  when  the  War  of  1812  was  declared  he 
enlisted  in  ilie  company  commanded  by  Capt.  Harry  James. 
He  was  in  tlie  regiment  of  Colonel  Simrall.  He  was  at  the  battle 
-of  the  Thames  and  fouglu  with  s])lendi(l  courage  on  that  occasion. 
Dr.  Jasper  practiced  liis  professiiin  in  Jessamine  county  more 
tl.an  tliirty  years.  He  answered  every  known  call  for  his  ser- 
10 


242 


Hidonj  of  JoimDiinc  (Joniiiij,  Ke)itiicl'y. 


vices.  He  was  kind,  tender  and  n-entle.  and  the  qnestion  of 
remuneration  affected  neither  the  leni^th  nor  the  al)iHty  of  his 
services.     He  was  one  of  Jessamine's  l)est  citizens. 

Henry  Metcalf 

Was  the  oldest  son  of  Rev.  John  Metcalf,  who  surveyed  Nicholas- 
ville.     He  was  l)orn  in  the  vear  iSoo,  and  died  at  his  home    in 


Nicholasville,  January  i8,  1879.  He  passed  his  entire  life  in 
Nicholas^  ille.  He  was  a  useful  citizen  and  a  manufacturer  of 
ropes  and  bagging^.  He  had  a  large  factory  which  he  operated 
for  a  long  time  successfully.  He  was  a  man  of  extraordinary 
sweetness  of  temper,  and  also  of  high  character.  He  did  the 
right  as  he  knew  it.  He  opened  the  first  Sunday-school  in  the 
Southern  Methodist    Church  in   Xicliolasville    in  the    spring  of 


HUtory  of  Jesmiitiiie  ('otinitj,  Krufurhii.  243 

1843.  and  was  for  long'  years  one  of  tlie  stewards  in  'liat  cluireh 
and  \\as  liljeral  in  tlie  support  of  liis  clun-ch  and  earnest  in  its 
canse.  lie  married  a  daughter  of  John  I'ishhack.  who  settled 
in  Kentuck\-  in  i/yo.  in  jessamine  county,  where  he  died  in  1845. 
]\Jr.  John  Aletcalf,  who  still  survives  and  lives  in  Xicholasville, 
was  his  eldest  son.  Cieor,2;-c  Metcalf,  another  son,  now  resides  in 
Lexins^ton,  and  was  a  gallant  soldier  in  the  I'iftli  Kentucky  In- 
fantry, C  S.  A.,  while  Charles  Metcalf,  the  youngest  son,  is  one  of 
the  leading  lawyers  in  Tennessee,  and  President  of  the  Tennessee 
State  Bar  Association.  Jo'hn  Metcalf  and  James  Metcalf,  two  of 
his  sons,  are  still  living,  while  two  of  his  daughters,  Miss  Sallie  and 
Miss  Alice,  now  reside  in  Xicholasville  at  the  old  home  place  of 
their  grandfather,  who  laid  out  and  namecl  the  town. 

Louis  H,  Chrisman. 

Among  the  men  of  jessamine  who  were  jjrominent  in  the  first 
fiftx'  Aears  «jf  its  existence  was  Louis  H.  C'lTrisman.  He  was 
born  in  1813  and  died  in  1866,  at  his  home  two  miles  north  of 
Nicholasville  on  the  Lexington  and  I)an\ille  pike,  lie  was  al- 
wavs  acti\'e  in  ])olitics,  was  a  wiu'm  ])artisan.  and  after  a  heated 
contest  was  elected  sheriff  of  jessamine  countx"  in  1858.  He  was 
the  youngest  son  of  Joseph  Chrisman.  l)r(^ther  of  (len.  Hugh 
Chrisman.  Joseph  C'hrisnian  was  born  in  Rockingham  cotnity, 
A  a.,  in  1776,  and  came  to  Kentucky  with  his  brother  and  settled 
in  Jessamine  count \-  in    1700. 

Mr.  Chrisman  served  as  a  volunteer  aid  on  the  staff  of  Gen. 
W'm.  R.  Terrell,  of  the  I'\Mleral  army,  who  was  killed  at  Perrv- 
ville.  HcAvas  one  of  the  leaders  of  tlie  Whig  part\'  in  Jessamine 
cotmty  and  was  always  a  delightful  C(,)mpanion  wherever  he  went 
on  account  his  fme  social  qtialities.  He  was  an  extraordinary 
whistler.  He  could  carr\  the  several  ]iarts  while  whistling  a  tune 
and  this  made  him  a  welcome  guest  at  everv  political  meeting. 
He  was  a  kind  neighbor,  a  sincere  friend,  a  generous  opponent 
and  a  patriotic  citizen.  Afr.  .\.  L.  and  George  Chrisman,  his  sons, 
still  reside  on  the  old  h.imestead. 


24-1  Hldonj  of  Jessdininc  (  ounttj,  Kentucky. 


Daniel  P,  Young. 

Rev.  Stuart  Rol:)inson,  in  speaking-  of  Rev.  D.  P.  Young,  said: 
"Mr.  Young  was  perhaps  the  most  successful  of  all  the  min- 
isters of  the  Presbyterian  church  in  Kentucky  in  winning  souls 
to  Christ.  His  greatness  consisted  in  his  wonderful  skill  in  en- 
gaging  the  attention,  alike  of  the  converted  and  unconverted,  in 
the  Gospel  way  of  salvation,  and  his  eminent  ability  in  expound- 
ing the  Scriptures,  setting  forth  that  way,  and  beseeching  men  in 
Christ's  stead  to  l)e  reconciled  to  God.  The  secret  of  his  suc- 
cess was  in  large  part  that  his  heart  was  in  his  work  ;  and  he  was 
a  man  who  had  a  very  large  heart,  filled  with  the  love  of  Christ 
and  the  love  of  souls.  Nobody  who  knew  him  ever  doubted  the 
earnestness  of  his  piety  and  holy  zeal  in  the  service  of  his  Master. 
The  many  people  all  over  Kentucky,  who  these  twenty  years  aftei 
his  death,  grasp  tlie  hands  of  his  children  with  a  warmer  clasp 
when  thev  know  who  they  are,  and  who  speak  their  affection  foi 
him  \\  ith  tears  in  their  eyes,  is  the  greatest  evidence  of  the  warm 
place  he  held  in  tlie  liearts  of  those  wh<j  came  under  his  influence." 
Daniel  P.  Young  was  the  oldest  child  of  Robert  and  Josephine 
Henderson  ^'oung.  and  on  the  lot  where  Jessamine  Female  In- 
-stitute  now  stands,  was  born  on  P>bruary  22d,  1833. 

Under  Iiis  mother's  influence  he  early  consecrated  his  life  to 
Christ  and  resolved  in  his  boyhood  to  devote  himself  to  the  gospel 
ministry. 

After  passing  through  the  home  schools  he  entered  Hanover 
College,  at  Hanover,  Indiana,  and  graduated  in  the  class  of  1852. 
After  finishing  his  course  there,  he  prepared  to  attend  Transyl- 
vania University  to  jDursue  the  study  of  law,  but  w'hile  on  his  way 
to  Lexington  he  was  induced  by  his  conflicting  emotions  to 
change  his  mind  and  turned  back  to  Danville,  Ky.,  where  he 
entered  the    I'iesl)yterian   Theological   Seminary. 

His  first  charge  was  at  Georgetown.  K}..  where  under  his 
ministr\-  the  membership  of  the  church  was  largely  augmented  and 
in  an  unusual  degree  he  won  the  love  and  affection  of  his  congre- 
gation. 

T'Yom  there  he  removed  to  the  renowned  Providence  church, 
in  Mercer  countv.  and  from  there  he  was  induced  by  the  insistence 


Hi-ttory  of  Jessamine  Coujity,  Kentucky.  245 

of  friends  to  accept  the  charge  of  the  Xicholasville  church.  In 
l)otli  success  crowned  his  efforts  and  he  was  blessed  in  the  up- 
building of  these  churches. 

In  1878,  he  was  called  to  the  charge  of  the  Presbyterian  church 
at  Anchorage,  and  in  conjunction  with  it  the  principalship  of 
Bellew'ood  Seminary  and  Kentucky  Presbyterian  Normal 
School.  His  eminent  fitness  for  this  position  was  recognized 
on  every  hand,  ])ut,  within  a  few  months  after  he  removed  to 
Anchorage,  on  jmie  30th,  1878,  he  ended  the  labors  of  his  earnest, 
useful  and  faithful  life. 

John  Lafon, 

The  Lafons  who  came  to  American  were  refugees  from  France 
during  the  Huguenot  persecution.  The  founders  of  the  familv 
settled  in  .South  Carolina  and  A'irginia.  and  their  descendant. 
Pichard  Paf»Mi,  married  Aliss  Anna  Alaxey,  removed  to  Ken- 
tucky and  settled  in  Jessamine  county  in  1793.  They  came  over 
the  Wilderness  Road,  with  their  herds  and  household  effects  and 
slaves  and  settled,  through  a  ])atent.  a  thousand  acres,  comprising 
the  original  Fountain  House  tract,  being  the  lands  now  occupied 
by  I'urrier,  Phillips,  Pryants,  and  Flkins  and  others,  about  two 
and  a  half  miles  from  Kecne,  toward  Lexington.  Richard  Lafon 
wa:  a  man  of  unusual  education  for  that  period.  He  left  a  reason- 
able fortune,  although  he  died  a  comparatively  young  man.  He 
built  one  of  the  first  brick  dwelling  houses  in  the  county. 

His  son,  John  Lafon,  was  born  December  4,  1800.  He  early 
had  every  social  and  literary  advantage,  and  traveled  not  only  in 
the  Lnited  States  but  abroad.  He  was  a  man  of  unusual  energy, 
great  juigment.  br  )i'd  and  comprehensive  views,  and  was  a  born 
leader  of  men.  As  a  result  of' his  trading  and  manufacture  he 
spent  his  winters  in  Cuba  and  Xew  Orleans  and  his  suiumers  in 
Kentucky  on  his  farm.  At  one  time  he  leased  all  the  hemp 
factories  in  tln-ee  counties  and  shipped  their  product  to  the  South 
by  way  of  the   Kentucky  and  Ohio  rivers. 

He  was  a  close  friend  of  Henr\-  Clav  and  in  many  important 
matters  his  adviser.  Fie  was  the  moving  spirit  and  the  president 
of  the  Lexingt(Mi  X  Harrodsburg  Turnpike  Company  at  the 
period  of  its  com]ilction.     The  road  was  conunenced  in  1834.  by 


246 


Jlidonj  of  .J(.<si(iiiiiir  ('ok lit ^,  KentitcLtj. 


the  stale,  tlien  ahainlDiu-d  and  then  leased  1)\  the  state  to  Lewis 
Singleton  for  twenty  years.  Singleton  died  shortly  after  the 
acquisition  of  the  road,  and  it  was  then  taken  up  by  John  Lafon 
and  completed  through  to  I'erryville  in  1847.  Tl^^  work  near 
the  Kentucky  river  was  done  under  Mr.  Lafon's  administration, 
and  required  very  large  outlay  and  a  high  order  of  engineering 
skill.     He  had  tremendous  difficulties,  both  ])hysical  and  financial, 


to  overcome,  but  with  his  master  mind  he  worked  out  a  mag- 
nificent success  and  in  the  completion  of  this  turnpike  rendered 
Fayette.  Jessamine.  Mercer  and  Uoyle  counties  an  incalculable 
benefit. 

Backed  i)y  his  energy  and  financial  ability,  this  great  thorough- 
fare was  built  in  the  face  of  great  difficulties.  Such  improve- 
ments in  those  davs  could  only  be  carried  on  at  large  expenditure, 
relativelv  nuich  larger  than  now.  and  to  undertake  the  construe- 


History  of  Jeasamine  County,  Kentucky.  24:1 

tion  of  a  graded  road  such  as  this  ])ikc'.  through  the  country  on 
either  side  contiguous  to  the  Kentucky  river,  demonstrates  that 
lie  was  a  man  of  a  higli  order  of  moral  courage  as  well  as  the 
possessor  of  great  sagacity  and  un\ielding  will. 

He  married  Mary  Ann  liarkley,  whose  grandfather  had  been 
compelled  to  leave  Ireland,  where  a  ]»rice  had  been  placed  on  his 
head.  And  in  tlie  struggle  f(jr  Irish  independence  he  was  the 
friend  of  Roijert  luumett  and  devoted  to  the  liberty  of  his  country. 
Mrs.  Lafon  was  also  a  descendant  of  the  Higbees  and  they  came 
from  New  jersew  In  early  days  tliey  built  boats  on  South  Elk- 
horn  and  hauled  them  to  j'rooklyn  and  other  landings  on  the 
Kentucky  and  launched  them,  from  whence  they  were  floated  to 
New  ( )rleans. 

A  man  of  culture  himself,  possessed  of  a  large  estate,  in- 
herited botli  from  his  father  and  his  mother,  he  made  a  home  in 
every  wa\  attractive  and  delightftd.  His  hos]:)itality  was  un- 
bounded: he  accumulated  one  of  the  best  libraries  in  Kentucky, 
collected  curios,  and  !)}■  !iis  intelligence,  his  enterprise  and  his 
talents  became  associated  with  and  was  the  friend  of  many  of  the 
leading  men  of  the  state.  His  home  at  one  time  almost  rivaled 
Chaumiere.  He  built  a  beautiful  house,  he  laid  out  handsome 
grotmds.  erected  l)ath  houses  and  spring  houses,  built  laundries 
with  hot  and  cold  ])ipes,  constructed  artificial  lakes,  and  im- 
])roved  charming  drives.  There  was  on  his  land  an  ap])arcntly 
bottomless  spring  from  which  boiled  up  a  great  volume  of  water. 
This,  by  a  splendid  circular  stone  basin,  he  changed  into  a  most 
attractive  fountain  and  called  his  home  after  it — l-'ountaln  House. 
^Vith  these  surro.undings  he  founded  an  elegant  and  ideal  home. 
He  secured  rare  (lowers  and  adorned  his  yard  with  every  variety 
of  tree  that  could  ])e  grown  in  the  locality.  He  died  in  1848  in  the 
very  meridian  of  his  career.  His  earlv  demise  was  a  great  loss 
to  his  native  county  in  its  social,  physical  and  educational  interests. 

Dr.  John  W.  HoIIoway. 

Dr.  John  W.  I  lolloway,  who  represented  Jessamine  county  in 
the  Constitutional  Convention  of  i8()0,  and  who  took  a  promi- 
nent ]iart  in  the  deliberations  of  that  body,  was  a  son  of  Spencer 
Holloway,  and  was  l)orn  in  llu'  county  on  tlie  30th  of  Ajiril.  1823. 


248  Hilary  of  Jp.'<!taiiiii)e  CnKnty,  Kentnchj. 

His  grandfather,  James  Holloway,  was  a  native  of  A'irginia,  and 
was  a  captain  in  the  Revolutionary  war,  and  settled  in  Jessamine 
county  very  early  in  its  history.  His  son,  Spencer  Holloway, 
was  born  in  1792,  and  died  at  the  advanced  age  of  89.  in  the  year 
1883.  His  son,  Joihn  W.  Holloway,  passed  his  early  life  on  a  farm. 
At  23  years  of  age  he  went  to  Louisville  and  undertook  the  study 
of  medicine  under  Dr.  John  L.  I'rice  and  remained  there  three 
years,  and  finally  graduated  in  1850,  from  the  Medical  Depart- 
ment of  the  University  of  Louisville. 

From  that  time  on  to  the  present  he  has  practiced  medicine  at 
Keene.  He  has  met  with  unqualified  success  in  his  profession  as 
well  as  in  his  conduct  of  a  large  farm.  He  is  a  man  of  strong 
mental  vigor,  truest  friendship,  unflinching  courage  and  highest 
integrity. 

In  the  Constitutional  Convention  he  earnestly  advocated 
equal  property  rights  for  women  and  latterly  opposed  the  ballot 
system.  While  the  convention  did  not  adopt  his  views  they  all 
respected  his  sincerity,  his  integrity  and  his  unusual  courtesy. 

Letcher  Saunders. 

INIr.  Saunders  was  born  in  Xicholasville  on  October  29,  1864. 
His  father,  C.  B.  Saunders,  died  in  Xicholasville  in  1874.     Air. 


Saunders  was  educated  in  the  conmion  schools  of  Xicholasville. 
He  is  one  of  the  most  expert  penmen  and  careful  clerks  that  have 
ever  served  the  people  of  Jessamine.  He  was  a  pupil  of  Prof.  A. 
X.  Gordon,  while  principal  of  Bethel  Academy,  and  when  six- 


Hidory  of  Jesmmine  County,  Kentucky.  'I4U 

teen  years  of  ajj^e,  he  entered  the  Circuit  Court  Clerk's  ofifice  as 
deputy  of  Lewis  i).  Uahlwin.  Subsequently  he  became  clerk  in 
the  general  freight  offices  of  the  Louisville  &  Nashville  R.  R.  Co., 
at  Louisville.  He  returned  to  Nicholasville  in  1885,  and  one  month 
after  his  return  lie  was  nominated  for  Circuit  Clerk  at  the  Demo- 
cratic primary,  defeating  liis  competitor  by  a  handsome  majoritv. 
His  conduct  of  the  ofifice  was  such  tliat  he  was  nominated  without 
opposition  for  a  second  term.  As  Circuit  Clerk  he  took  the  front 
rank  in  Kentucky.  He  married  the  daughter  of  jas.  \\\  (ilass,  of 
Garrard  county,  January  i,  1887.  His  grandfather.  Austin 
Smithers,  during  the  epidemic  of  cholera  in  1855  went  through 
the  tents  visiting  the  sick  and  caring  for  the  dead  and  dying. 
White  and  black  alike  received  his  attention,  and  he  never  wearied 
in  waiting  on  those  who  needed  his  services  during  that  terrible 
scourge.  .Mr.  Saunders  comes  of  an  ancestr\-  full  of  humane  and 
noble  characteristics,  and  his  popularity  is  undoubtedly  the  result 
of  these  inherited  qualities. 


G.  W.  Lyne. 

Few  men  have  done  more  for  Jessamine  countv  than  Mr.  G. 
\y.  Lyne.  He  has  been  engaged  in  the  real  estate  business,  and 
his  enthusiasm  and  energy  have  enabled  him  during  tliat  period 
to  dispose  of  $2,000,000  worth  of  property  and  lie  has  been  in- 
strumental in  inducing  a  large  number  of  strangers  to  settle  in 
the  county.  Mr.  Lyne  is  comparatively  a  young  man,  only  thirty- 
one  years  of  age.  He  is  a  successful  auctioneer  and  is  the  only 
man  who  ever  made  the  real  estate  business  in  Jessamine  county 
a  success. 

William  W.  White. 

William  W'.  White,  who  died  at  his  residence,  in  Xicholasville. 
on  Jaimary  5,  1887,  in  the  8oth  year  of  his  age,  was  one  of  the 
most  earnest  supjjorters  of  the  doctrines  of  Alexander  Campbell 
and  was  instrumental  in  building  up  several  congregations  of 
that  faith  in  the  county.  He  organized  what  is  known  as  the 
Little  Hickman  ehurcli  on  the  27th  of  January.  1841.  He  was  a 
son  of  W'illiam  ( i.  W'liite,  who  came  from  Culpeper  Court  House, 


250  Il'idonj  (if  Ji'^^niiiiiic  (nil 111 ij,  KiiitilcLjI. 

\'<i.  Jlc  l)ecanie  impressed  witli  the  doctrines  ])ro])Ounded  by 
Mr.  Campljell  and  from  the  time  of  liis  miitino-  with  that  denomi- 
nation mitil  tlie  end  of  his  hfe  .qave  his  time  and  talents  and 
energy  to  building"  tip  the  church  which  adopted  them.  His 
nK'mbershi[)  was  in  the  Xicholasville  Christian  church.  How- 
ever people  might  differ  with  Mr.  White  in  his  theological,  views, 
none  ever  doubted  the  earnestness  and  the  faithfulness  of  his 
Christian  service  and  of  tlic  unselfishness  of  his  ministration.  He 
was  plain,  simple-hearted  and  earnest.  While  engaged  in  othei 
business,  he  preached  always  as  occasion  offered  and  never  failed 
to  respond  to  such  calls  as  his  church  made  upon  him. 


Rev.  Thomas  R,  Welch,  D.  D. 

Rev.  Thomas  R.  ^\'elch,  U.  D..  one  of  the  leading  Presby- 
terian ministers  of  the  Southern  l'rcsl)yterian  church,  the  son 
of  John  Welch  and  V>.  J.  Rice,  was  liorn  near  Xicholasville,  Sep- 
tember 15th,  1825.  Most  of  his  ministerial  life  was  passed  in 
Arkansas,  where  he  removed  in  1851,  and  took  charge  of  the 
church  in  Little  Rock.  After  a  coarse  in  l^ethel  Academy,  he 
graduated  from  Center  College  in  1844,  and  in  1870,  his  Alma 
Mater  conferred  upon  him  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity.  Dr. 
Welch  was  singularh-  honored  by  his  chiu'ch.  He  held  many 
positions  of  trust  in  its  courts  and  institutions.  He  led  a  busy 
and  successful  life,  l^ossessed  of  a  fine  presence,  genial  manners 
and  read}'  s}nipathy,  he  found  a  welcome  everywhere.  Another 
has  said  of  him  : 

"r*)V  long  residence,  abundant  lal)ors,  eminent  administrative 
al)ilit\-.  Dr.  Welch  is  the  Presbyterian  Nestor  of  Arkansas,  and  no 
man  in  the  state  is  held  in  higher  esteem  or  wields  a  sti"onger  in- 
fluence." 

He  died  a  few  years  since,  deeply  regretted  by  the  people  of 
the  great  denomination  to  which  he  belonged  and  sincerely 
mourned  by  the  memliers  of  his  own  congregation  at  Little 
Rock. 

Mrs.  Sarah  Withers,  an  aunt  of  Dr.  Welch,  and  long  a  resi- 
dent of  lUoomington,  Illinois,  was  a  most  benevolent,  charitable 
and  earnest  Christian  woman.     At  her  death,  a  few  vears  since. 


Hidory  of  Jeammine  County,  Kentucky.  -')! 

she  made  ihc  officers  of  the  Xicholasville  Presbyterian  church 
her  residuary  legatees,  and  directed  that  the  funds  thus  be- 
queatlied  should  be  used  for  the  maintenance  of  a  public  library 
in  Xicholasville.  Quite  a  large  sum,  estimated  at  about  $20,000, 
will  1)c  realized  and  it  will  be  sufficic;nt  to  equip  and  maintain  a 
com])lcte  and  efficient  lil^rary  in  the  city. 


Maj.  J.  H.  Hanly. 

Alaj.  jcjlin  llav  llanlw  born  in  Seville.  Spain,  in  17S4,  who 
settled  in  Jessamine  county,  in  1871.  was  the  son  of  an  officer  of 
the  British  army. 

(  )n  his  arrival  at  his  new  home,  in  what  was  then  the  far  west, 
he  inn-chased  a  very  large  tract  of  land  on  the  Kentucky  river, 
six  miles  south  of  Xicholasville.  His  house,  a  frame  cottage  of 
liberal  dimensions,  located  on  a  bluff  many  feet  above  the  river, 
was  appropriately  named  "Cliff  Cottage."  Its  picturesque  beauty 
of  location  excited  the  admiration  of  the  distinguished  painter. 
Healy.  who  visited  Maj.  Hanl\',  when  sent  by  the  king,  Louis 
Philli])])e,  of  I'^rance.  to  ])aint  the  portrait  of  Henry  Clav.  ( )n 
entering  the  grounds,  he  is  said  to  have  exclaimed,  "Grand  and 
beautiful." 

It  was  at  this  home  of  beauty  that  the  generous  proprietor  and 
his  estimable  family  dispensed  old  time  Kentuck}-  hospitality,  dur- 
ing a  period  of  more  than  half  a  century. 

]\Iai.  Hanly  was  a  very  j^ositive  character,  highl}-  intellectual, 
just  in  all  his  dealings,, truthful,  honest,  and  brave;  he  was,  in  all 
the  elements  that  constitute  a  gentleman  of  the  old  school,  a  man 
to  be  admired  and  trusted.  He  was  a  firm  believer  in  the  Roman 
Catholic  faith  and  in  the  democracy  of  Andrew  Jackson.  He 
was  a  line  shot,  and  prided  himself  upon  the  accuracv  of  his  aim. 

( )n  one  occasion.  Col.  David  Goodloe,  who  had  been  chal- 
lenged l>y  .Mr.  \\  liitc.  M.  C,  of  Madison  count}-,  to  fight  a  duel, 
came  to  ]Maj.  Hanly  to  practice  with  the  major's  dueling  pistols. 
!  Ic  ])ccanie  so  exi)ert,  after  considerablepractice,  astohit  the  bull's 
eye  repeatedly.  When  the  duel  finally  came  off.  his  antagonist 
stood  willi  bis  back  to  a  bain.  l>oth  gentlemen  were  game  and 
fired  at  the  word.     X either  were  bit.  and  nmch  to  their  disgust, 


252 


Histovi/  of  Je.-<--<(iininc  Voimiij   Kcntuckij. 


Major  tianly,  after  a  most  diligent  search,  failed  to  find  that  the 
colonel's  bullet  had  even  struck  the  barn. 


John  A.  Willis. 

Tohn  A.  Willis,  son  of  Capt.  W.  T.  Willis,  while  not  a  native  of 
Jessamine,  has  resided  within  its  borders  for  fifty-five  years. 
He  was  born  in  Green  county  on  the  3th  day  of  August,  1820; 


attended  a  sennnary  at  Greensburg,  and  afterwards  at  Munfords- 
ville,  and  in  1839  attended  St.  Mary's  College,  near  Lebanon.  He 
joined  the  Presbyterian  church  in  Greensburg  in  1840,  came  with 
his  father  to  Mercer  county  and  studied  law  and  obtained  his 
license  in  1843,  ^"<^  moved  with  his  father  to  Nicholasville  in 
1844.  He  enlisted  in  his  father's  company,  and  was  appointed  a  cor- 


IIi.<fi)ri/  of  Jei^samine  County,  Kentuc-kij.  253 

poral.  He  followed  the  Seeond  Kentucky  Regiment  in  all  its 
battles  and  marches,  and  was  mustered  out  at  Xew  Orleans  in 
1847.  W  hile  the  regiment  was  stationed  at  Comargo,  Air.  Willis 
was  stricken  witli  fever,  and  all  thought  that  it  w^as  impossible  for 
him  to  live.  After  the  death  of  AIcKee  and  Clay  and  Captain 
Willis,  the  regiment  were  anxious  to  l)e  mustered  out  of  the 
service,  and,  at  the  expiration  of  twelve  months,  the  time  for 
which  they  were  enlisted,  tlie\-  were  l)rought  to  Xew  Orleans  and 
disbanded. 

Mr.  Willis,  after  taking  a  full  course  in  the  Commercial  Col- 
lege, in  Cincinnati,  returned  to  Xicholasville  and  taught  in  Keene. 
After  two  years"  service  in  the  county  schools,  he  became  assistant 
in  r.ethel  Academw  in  Xicholasville.  After  this  time  he  was  ap- 
pointed Master  Commissioner  of  the  Jessamine  Circuit  Court  by 
Judge  AA'illiam  C.  Goodloe.  upon  the  unanimous  petition  of  the 
entire  bar,  embracing  both  Whigs  and  Democrats.  The  place 
was  given  to  Mr.  Willis  without  any  solicitation  on  his  part,  and 
he  retained  it  for  sixteen  years.  After  the  close  of  the  ci\-il  war 
he  was  elected  twice  as  County  Clerk,  both  times  without  oppo- 
sition. A  one-armed  Confederate  soldier  was  nominated  against 
him  in  the  last  race.  Imt  withdre\\-. 

Upon  retiring  frcn.i  the  Clerk's  ofifice  in  1871  with  such  citi- 
zen? as  Mr.  George  Brown.  Dr.  Brown  Young,  G.  S.  Shanklin, 
Samuel  Muir,  Charles  Farra,  Hervey  Scott,  and  William  H.  Hoo- 
ver, he  organized  the  First  X^ational  Bank  of  Xicholasville,  and 
acted  as  its  cashier  from  1871  until  T88r,  when  he  was  elected 
president,  and  held  this  position  until  i8g6.  He  was  elected 
elder  in  the  Xicholasville  Presbyterian  church  at  the  same  time 
with  Roibert  Young,  in  the  year  1850.  In  i860  he  was  elected 
clerk  of  the  session.  shortl\-  before  the  death  of  Alaj.  D.  B.  Price. 
and  has  been  such  clerk  for  thirty-two  years. 

Patriotic,  honest,  faithful,  just,  conservative  and  kindly.  A[r. 
A\  illis  has  been  a  leading  citizen  of  jessamine  countv  since  his 
return  from  .^erxice  in  the  Mexican  War.  to  which  he  gave  his 
father  and  one  vear  of  hard  and.  trvim-'  service. 


254  Hl.itorij  of  Jf'ssdiiniii'  Coiiiifij,  Kentucky. 

William  Brown. 

\\'illiani  lirown,  the  _\uungest  son  of  George  I.  Brown,  was 
born  in  Xic]iolas\ille  on  the  2T,d  of  May,  1839;  ^^^  <^i^<^^  June  i, 
1890.  He  was  a  man  of  l^riUiant  parts.  He  allied  himself  with 
the  Republican  party,  and  attained  a  higii  place  in  its  councils. 
Senator  Tames  R.  Beck  said  of  him  tliat  he  was  the  strong-est  man 
of  his  party  witli  wIkjui  he  had  ever  come  in  contact.  He  was  a 
warm.  ])ersonal  friend  of  James  G.  Blaine,  who  had  a  great  ad- 
miration for  liis  talents  and  his  abilit}'.  His  mind  was  analytic, 
comi)rchensive  and  logical.  At  school  he  did  not  appear  to  study 
as  other  l^ows.  but  he  always  knew  his  lessons  and  fuih'  under- 
stood every  sul)ject  of  which  the  text  books  treated.  He  was 
fearless  and  on  many  occasions  eloquent.  Had  he  devoted  him- 
self to  the  law,  his  chosen  profession,  rather  than  to  have  entered 
tlie  domain  of  politics,  he  wotild  liave  l)ecome  one  of  the  first 
jurists  of  the  country. 

E.  R.  Sparks. 

No  history  of  Jessamine  county  would  be  complete  without  a 
sketch  of  Hon.  E.  R.  Sparks.  His  enterprise,  coupled  with  his 
faith  in  the  futm-e  of  Xicholasville,  and  his  large  investments,  both 
in  manufactories  and  in  the  laying  out  of  additions  and  construc- 
tion of  streets  and  houses,  have  been  greatlv  instrumental  in  in- 
creasing the  population  of  Xicholasville,  and  in  widening  its  in- 
fluence and  traffic.  He  was  l)orn  al)out  a  mile  east  of  X'^icholas- 
ville  on  the  31st  of  January,  1840,  and  was  tlie  son  of  Isaac  and 
Mary  Ann  Hendricks  Sparks.  His  mother  was  a  sister  of  the  late 
Rev.  John  T.  Hendrick,  D.  D.,  the  distingitished  Presbyterian  di- 
vine. ]\Ir.  Sparks'  father  was  born  in  Ohio  and  in  early  life  moved 
to  Jessamine  county,  where  he  lived  until  his  death,  on  Jan.  28th, 
1887,  in  Ids  eighty-first  year.  Air.  Sparks  was  named  for  a  dis- 
tinguished .Methodist  minister.  Rev.  Edwin  Roberts.  From  his 
earl}'  manhood  he  has  demonstrated  himself  to  be  the  possessor 
of  great  sagacity,  and  his  uniform  success  in  all  his  financial  trans- 
actions has  given  him  a  wide  reputation  for  business  capacity. 
He  has  held  few  public  ol^ces.       In    18S2,  he  was  elected  State 


H'iMiirij  i)f  Jf'.<.-<tiiiiiiir  Cniinfii,  Kciifiirki/. 


255 


Senator  and  serv^ed  until  1886.  In  the  Senate  he  was  popular, 
conservative,  and  secured  tlie  confidence  and  tlie  respect  of  those 
associated  with  him  in  that  body,  j'or  years  lie  was  a  council- 
man, and  was  prominent  in  the  city  government  of  Xicholasville. 
He  has  carried  on  a  large  manufactory  for  hemp  in  the  county 


seat,  which  gives  cm])lt)_\  nicnt  to  a  number  of  hands,  lie  is  in 
the  hig-hest  degree  public  spirited,  and  is  always  helpful  to  his  town 
and  his  county  in  every  public  enterprise. 


John  Harrison  Welch. 

John  Harrison  Welch,  although  comparatively  a  young  man, 
has  held  c|uite  a  numl)t,r  of  ]iul)lic  offices  in  Jessamine  county  and 
is  at  present  Master  COnnnissioner  of  tlic  Jessamine  Circuit 
Court.     He  was  Ixirn  in    Xicholasville.      llis  great  grandfather, 


256 


Hixtdrn  (if  Je^--<(tiiniif'  ('(iiiitfi/,  Kciitiickij. 


]()lin  Welch,  early  settled  in  Jessamine  county,  having-  removed 
from  \  irg'inia  to  that  count\-  in  1782.  Mr.  Welch  was  educated 
at  i'ethcl  Academ\-;  was  also  a  graduate  of  Kentucky  Wesleyan 
College,  at  Millersburg,  in  1877.  He  g-raduated  from  the  Louis- 
ville Law  School  in  1881,  located  in  \'icholasville,  where  he  has 
since  practiced  his  profession.  At  twenty  years  of  age,  he  was 
elected  Superintendent  of  common  schools  of  Jessamine  county. 


lie  represented  the  county  in  the  lower  house  of  the  General  As- 
sem!)ly  of  Kentucky,  in  1889  and  "go,  in  '91,  '92  and  '93,  and  has 
been  j)r(>niinent  in  the  countA"  affairs  since  his  majority. 


Rev.  George  Stokes  Smith. 

Re\erend  Georg-e  Stokes  Smith  was  a  Baptist  preacher  and 
was  also  a  deleg'ate  to  the  convention,  at  Danville,  in  1792,  wdiich 


HlMitfij  oj  Jeammbie  County,  Ke.ntuckij. 


257 


framed  the  first  Kentucky  Constitution.  He  was  the  maternal 
grandfather  of  the  large  and  numerous  family  of  Moseleys,  Wal- 
lers and  vSmithis,  who  live  in  the  Keene  neighborhood.  He  has 
over  25c  descendants  va  Kentucky,  and  was  one  of  the  men  who 
lived  in  ihc  limits  of  jessamine  count)  in  the  earliest  days  of  its 
settler,  icui. 

He  \\a>  a  successful  Tiaptist  preacher,  and  served  several 
churches  in  \\^oodford  and  Mercer  counties,  and  at  the  old  Mount 
Pleasant  Churcli,  at  Keene.  He  led  a  useful,  honorable  and  dis- 
tinguished life.  1ji>  election  to  the  Constitutional  Convention 
in  179_\  shov.  s  l-si^  wide  popularity  and  his  distinguished  position. 
Fayette  county  had  five  members,  and  among  them  men  of  high 
standing,  but  none  wielded  more  intiuence  than  their  ministerial 
colleague. 


CHAS.  F.VANS. 


258 


Ili^tori/  (if  ,I('.<-<(i nihil'  Omiitij,  hriifiic]:i/. 


Hon.  Thos.  J.  Scott. 


Jessamine  county  is  at  present  in  a  judicial  district,  composed 
of  lessamii\e,  Madison,  Estill,  Clark  and  I  Nnvell.  The  Circuit 
Tud,Q'e  is  lion.  Thomas  J.  Sc(_)tt,  who  was  b.>rn  in  Ma  lison  county, 
but  his  father,  Dr.  lohn  Scott,  was  a  native  of  Jessamine  county, 
whence  his  father  removed,  w  hen  ciuite  a  vaino^  man, to  R'.chmond, 


Kv.  His  mother  was  a  descendant  of  C  ol.  F.still,  one  of  the  most 
celebrated  pioneers  of  Kentuckv.  Me  was  educated  at  Mount 
Pleasant  College,  in  ^lissouri,  from  wl  ich  he  graduated  at  the  age 
of  nineteen,  hrimediateh'  he  returned  to  Richmond,  where  he 
entered  tlie  law  office  of  Maj.  Scpiire  1'urner:  in  1871  he  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar,  and  in  1875  was  elected  County  Attorney,  to 
which  i)ositi()n  he  was  re-elected  twice  without  opposition.  In 
1886  he  was  elected  Common   F^leas  Judge  for  the  district  com- 


H'idoni  of  Jr.<^iiiii'nir  Counti),  Kentucky.  25it 

posed  (ti  tb.e  counties  of  Madison.  Clark,  Bourbon,  ijath,  and 
.Montgonierv  :  and  in  i8<j2.  he  was  elected  Circuit  Judge  of  the 
TwentN-ninth  judicial  district  without  opposition,  and  has  been 
similarly  re-elected  for  the  second  term.  He  is  recognized 
throughout  the  state  as  one  of  the  ablest  Circuit  Judges.  His 
careful  pre])arati(in,  liis  studious  habits  and  his  sterling  integrity 
render  him  a  nn><k-I  circuit  judge.  Although  genial  and  kindly 
in  h\>  personal  relations,  on  the  bench  he  knows  nothing  but  the 
strictest  justice,  and  this  has  won  for  bin:  the  respect  and  admira- 
tion of  all  the  people  of  the  district. 

Rev.   Stephen  Noland. 

This  distinguished  Methodist  divine  was  born  in  Wayne  coun- 
ty, Indiana,  on  tlie  T3th  of  May,  1818.  His  ancestors  came  from 
\\'ales  and  settled  in  \'irginia  twenty-five  years  before  the  war  of 
tlie  American  Revolution.  In  his  seventh  year,  his  mother  died 
and  he  was  brought  to  Kentucky,  and  made  his  home  with  his 
grandparents.  In  1834  he  entered  the  clerk's  ofiice  in  Richmond, 
Ky.,  wdiere  he  remained  five  years.  He  used  all  his  leisure  mo- 
ments for  the  study  of  law,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1839. 
He  began  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Richuioiul.  and  shortly 
removed  to  Irvine.  Estill  county.  I\\.,  and  there  he  sought  licen- 
sure in  the  Methodist  ministry.  In  1839  he  married  a  sister  of  the 
late  Samuel  h\  Miller,  one  of  the  Associate  Justices  of  the  Su- 
])rcme  Court  of  the  Cnited  States.  Rev.  Stephen  Xoland. 
who  succeeded  his  father  in  the  banking  business,  was  the  sec- 
ond son — his  other  son,  Sanuiel  II.  Xoland,  removed  to  Texas. 
Stephen  Xoland  made  the  race  for  Conunonwealth's  Attorney  in 
the  district,  which  then  embraced  seven  counties,  against  C.  C. 
Rodgers,  of  Lexington,  and  defeated  him  by  a  majority  of  800 
\i)tes.  A\"liile  holding  the  office  of  Commonwealth  Attorney, 
he  became  a  terror  to  evil-doers  throughout  the  district.  All 
sorts  of  iuHuences  were  brought  to  bear  to  defeat  ^Ir.  Xoland, 
bin  the\'  were  without  avail.  In  1854  he  came  to  Xicholasville, 
and  sliortly  afterwards  asstuned  cliarge  of  the  ^Fethodist  Episco- 
pal church.  South.  X'^otwithstanding  the  variety  of  his  occupa- 
tions, he  never  ga\e  up  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel. 

The  first  bank   in    Xicliolasville  was  orcrnnized   bv    Mr.    X"o- 


260 


History  of  Jei^mmine  Cmuify,  Kentucky. 


land  in  1864.  it  was  known  as  the  Bank  of  Noland,  Wilmore  & 
Co.  He  was  a  man  of  great  sagacity  and  judgment  in  the  con- 
duct of  his  business;  of  wide  benevolence  and  charitable  impulses, 
he  has  probably  given  away  as  much  money  in  charity  as  any  man 
who  ever  lived  in  Jessamine.  His  second  wife,  Miss  Virginia 
Brown,  daughter  of  Thos.  J.  Brown,  who  inherited  the  many 


excellent  traits  of  her  family,  survived  luiu.  He  died  on  the  27th 
of  January.  i8(;o,  after  a  lingering  illness,  and  deeply  regretted 
by  the  entire  conununity,  among  whom  he  spent  the  last  forty 
vears  of  his  life. 


The  Duncans. 

Among  the  earliest  settlers  in  Jessamine  county  were  James 
Duncan  and  Charles  Duncan.  They  located  within  the  boundary 
of  Jessamine  early  in  1788.  Charles  Duncan  was  born  in  Cul- 
peper  county.  A'a..  in  1761.     He  was  the  father  of  William  Dun- 


Hidory  ofJeHsamine  County,  Kentucky.  261 

can,  so  long  known,  who  died  at  his  home  immediately  above 
Nicholasville  in  1863.  William  Duncan's  mother  was  ^Margaret 
Burnside,  sister  of  the  Revolutionary  soldier,  Robert  Burnside, 
the  great  uncle  of  Gen.  A.  E.  Burnside.  William  Duncan  was 
born  near  Barclay's  old  mill  in  1788.  In  1813  he  married  Xancy 
Blackford,  daughter  of  Benj.  Blackford. 

James  Duncan,  the  grandfather  of  S.  M.  Duncan,  was  born 
in  Culpeper  count}-,  \'a.,  July  18,  1763,  and  was  among  the  last 
^\]^ite  men  killed  l)y  the  Indians.  With  two  companions,  John 
Huckstep  and  Joseph  Burnside,  he  went  to  the  mouth  of  Paint 
Lick  to  get  salt.  1'hey  had  made  the  salt  and  were  returning 
home,  when  suddenl}'  the  report  of  a  gun  was  heard  and  Burnside 
fell  with  a  bullet  through  his  heart.  James  Duncan  was  shot  bv 
another  Indian  who  had  climbed  up  on  a  high  bluff,  and  the  bullet 
entered  the  head  of  James  Duncan,  killing  him  instantly.  Huck- 
step escaped  to  Crab  Orchard,  where  Col.  Whitley  sent  out  a  party 
in  pursuit  of  the  Indians  and  followed  them  to  near  Cumberland 
Gap.  They  captured  the  horses  of  the  two  men  who  had  been 
killed,  but  the  Indians  made  their  escape. 

Alexander  C.  Duncan,  the  father  of  vS.  M.  Duncan,  was  the 
oldest  child  of  James  Duncan,  who  was  killed  in  his  28th  year 
and  left  three  small  children.  When  a  small  boy  James  Dtmcan 
ran  away  from  home  in  company  with  Nathaniel  Harris,  the  dis- 
tinguished Methodist  minister,  and  enlisted  in  the  army  of  Gen- 
eral Greene,  and  was  at  the  battle  of  Guilford  Court  House  and 
at  the  siege  of  Yorktown.  James  Dtmcan  was  born  July  18,  1763. 
and  was  married  to  Mary  Crockett,  daughter  of  William  Crockett, 
of  Wythe  count  \,  in  1787.  One  hundred  years  after  the  death  of 
Jan  es  Duncan,  there  came  a  great  rise  in  the  creeks  which  enter 
Paint  Lick.  'Ihey  disclosed  a  skeleton.  On  examination  of  this 
skeleton  a  bullet  hole  was  foimd  in  the  head  and  the  remains  were 
identified  as  tliose  of  James  Duncan,  who  had  been  killed  and 
buried  at  that  ])()int  nearly  a  century  before.  Every  bone  was  per- 
fect with  the  exception  of  the  right  foot.  The  remains  were  re- 
moved to  Nicholasville  cemetery  and  laid  to  rest  amid  kindred 
-dust. 

The  descendants  of  James  Dimcan  and  his  brotlier,  wlio  tlnia 
early  made  their  home  in  Jessamine  count\,  in  large  numbers 
■still  reside  in  tlie  count \  and  thc\-  have  alwaxs  been  good  citizens 
and  patriots. 


262 


HiMonj  of  Jof^diniiic  (hiintij,  Kciitiickii. 


S.  M.  Duncan. 

~S\r.  S.  '\[.  Duncan,  who  has  been  one  of  the  most  dihg-ent,  and 
faithful  of  ah  tlie  anti(|uarians  in  Kentucky,  was  a  son  of  Alex- 
ander Crockett  Duncan  and  Hannah  N.  Williams,  the  latter  be- 
ino-  a  native  of  Mecklenburg"  county  Xorth  Carolina.  She  was 
born  Afarch  S,  T793,  and  died  in  1861.     Mr.  Duncan's  father  was 


born  in  Fort  IJlackamore,  Russell  county,  A'irginia,  and  came  to 
Jessamine  county  in  1788.  He  was  an  infant  when  his  father, 
James  Duncan,  settled  within  the  limits  of  jessamine  county. 
S.  M.  Duncan  was  born  in  Pulaski  county,  in  1830.  He  enjoyed 
limited  advantages  of  education,  but  most  wonderfully  improved 
them — he  only  had  three  months'  schooling.  He  worked  for 
thirty  years  at  liis  trade  as  carpenter,  and  learned  cabinet-mak- 
ing, which  he  folio-wed  five  years,  but  afterwards  gave  that  up  and 


Hiditni  (if  Ji:<.<ini)hi('  Omntij  , Kentucky.  263 

returned  to  liis  original  callini,^  lie  has  gathered  together  an 
immense  amount  of  material  concerning  not  only  the  earliest  his- 
tory of  Jessamine  county  and  its  people,  but  in  regard  to  the  early 
historv  of  Kentucky.  He  has  ahvavs  had  a  passion  for  acquir- 
ing old  letters  and  documents,  and.  but  for  his  patience  and  care 
and  lal.'or,  not  only  in  the  finding,  but  in  the  preservation,  of  ma- 
terials, it  would  have  been  impossible  for  any  one  to  write  a  his- 
tory of  jessamine  county.  Mr.  Duncan  began  this  collection  of 
material  when  (juite  a  young  man.  He  talked  with  men  who  had 
been  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  and  to  those  who  had  in  their 
minds  fresh  recollections  of  the  struggles,  trials  and  dangers  of 
pioneer  life  m  Kentucky.  He  has  written  a  great  deal  on  the  sul> 
ject.  and  deserves  the  thanks  of  the  people,  not  only  of  Jessamine 
countv.  Imt  of  (/entral  Kentucky. 

Andrew  Hemphill. 

Andrew  Hemjtliill  was  one  of  the  most  scholarly  men  that 
lived  in  Jessamine  c(nmty  in  its  early  davs.  Me  lived  in  the 
southern  part  of  tlie  ccnmty.  settling  there  in  1823.  He  was  born 
in  Tyrone  county,  Ireland,  in  iSoo.  He  obtained  his  education  at 
Trinitv  College,  Dublin,  and  came  to  American  in  1819.  landing 
at  Philadelphia.  Jn  a  very  short  time  he  was  chosen  as  teacher 
of  Latin  iri  an  academy  in  the  city  of  Reading,  in  Berks  count}-, 
and  subsequently  became  principal  of  the  academy,  which  posi- 
tion he  held  for  two  years.  He  settled  in  Jessamine  county  in 
1823,  and  was  married  to  Mildred  Tapp.  He  came  to  Jessa- 
mine county  through  his  uncle  James  Hem])liill  wlm  Iiad  pur- 
chased a  farm  in  that  section  of  the  couiUy  nian\-  years  before. 
In  1823  James  Ilenipliill  died  and  made  Andrew  his  heir,  devis- 
ing to  him  250  acres  of  land  on  I  lickman  creek  six  miles  east  of 
N'icholasville.  Mr.  Ilem]»hill  through  all  his  life  retained  his 
scholarshii).  He  read  Latin  and  ( ireek  with  great  fluency.  He 
died  in   1863. 

It  was  his  custiini  for  many  years  to  visit  the  schools  in  which 
the  classics  were  tauglit.  These  comings  were  always  regarded 
by  tlu-  T-atin  and  ( Ireek  scholars  w  ith  fear  and  trembling.  \\  hile 
he  was  tliere  he  would  call  ui)i)n  tluni  to  read  selections  Irom 
the  Tvonian   and    (  irecian   authors.       The   scholars   imagined   that 


264  Hldorij  of  Jessttmine  County,  Kentucky. 

they  could  never  do  the  thing-  just  as  Mr.  Hemphill  would  do  it; 
}et  he  was  always  kindly,  helpful  and  suggestive  in  his  examina- 
tions, and  never  went  away  from  the  schools  without  saying 
pleasant  and  agreeable  words  to  the  scholars.  He  was  the 
father  of  a  large  family  of  children,  many  of  whom  are  now  resi- 
dents of  Jessamine  county,  and  are  among  its  best  and  most  sub- 
stantial citizens. 

Mr.  John  Henry  Glass. 

Mr.  John  Henry  Glass,  who  now  owns  Glass  Mills,  near  W'il- 
more,  was  l)orn  in  1838,  of  German  parentage,  in  Jessamine  coun- 
ty. After  going  to  school  during  his  boyhood  in  Cincinnati,  he 
learned  the  trade  of  cabinetmaker,  with  his  father,  who  was  one 
of  the  most  skilled  mechanics  who  ever  lived  in  Jessamine  county. 
In  1870  Mr.  Glass  erected  a  mill  in  Lancaster.  Ky.,  which  is  still 
in  successful  operation.  Afterwards  he  sold  out  to  George 
Denny,  the  president  of  the  national  bank,  and  moved  back  to 
Jessamine  and  bought  the  property  known  as  the  old  paper  mill, 
on  Jessamine  creek,  about  three  miles  above  its  mouth.  This 
mill  had  been  operated  for  more  than  100  years.  After  running 
it  about  three  years  he  tore  part  of  it  down  and  erected  a  new 
building  and  put  in  new  machinery,  retaining,  however,  the  water 
power,  which  had  been  in  constant  use  for  more  than  a  century. 

This  mill  is  operated  all  the  year  round,  has  its  office  and 
switch  at  W'ihnore,  Ky.,  and  is  one  of  the  best  manufacturing 
enterprises  in  Jessamine  county.  It  has  a  large  trade  up  and 
do'wn  the  Cincinnati  Southern  Railroad,  and  its  brands  of  flour 
are  considered  among  the  very  best  manufactured  in  the  West. 
The  principal  of  these,  "The  Daniel  Boone,"  shows  Mr.  Glass' 
patriotism.  IMr.  Glass  has  been  instrumental  in  building  ten 
miles  of  turnpike  in  the  western  part  of  the  county  and  in  furnish- 
ing a  constant  and  liberal  home  demand  for  grain,  which  has 
much  increased  land  values  in  that  section.  Blessed  with  a  large 
familv,  he  has  trained  them  both  to  industry  and  morality,  and  he 
is  one  of  the  useful  men  of  the  communitv. 


Hidory  of  Jeiisamuif  ( 'unnty,  Keiiiucicy. 


2t)5 


Benjamin  A.  Crutcher. 

JJenjaniin  A.  Crutclicr.  the  iiresenl  Commonwealth's  Attor- 
ney for  tlie  Twenty-fifth  ju(hcial  (hstrict,  which  includes  Jessa- 
mine, Aladison.  Estill,  Clark,  and  Powell  counties,  was  born  in 
Nicholasville,  June  21,  1856.  Elected  County  .Attorney  in  1884, 
he  resided  to  become  a  candidate  for  Commonwealth's  Attor- 


ney. He  was  re-elected  Commonwealth's  Attorney  in  1897.  He 
is  a  man  of  conser\ali\-e  instincts,  careful  ])re|)aration,  unques- 
tionable honesty  and  i^reat  industry.  He  has  proven  a  most  ad- 
mirable rrosecuiinj;-  Attorney,  firm,  faithfid.  yet  considerate  and 
just,  he  represents  the  conuuonwealth  as  if  he  were  representing 
his  own  affairs,  and  the  entire  district  recognizes  his  great  effi- 
ciency and  rd)ililv. 


266 


Hl4on)  (i£  Jesmmhie  (Jmiiiiy,  Kcntiivkij. 


Thomas  B.  Crutcher. 

The  Hon.  Thos.  ]'>.  rrutclicr  is  now  Police  jndge  of  Niclio- 
lasville.  He  was  l)oi-n  in  Jessamine  count}-  in  1831.  He  is  the 
father  of  Benj.  A.  Crutclier,  the  CommonweaUh's  Attorney  for  tlie 
district.     For  a  long-  tirae  he  was  one  of  the  leadin"-  merchants  in 


Jessamine.  He  is  a  man  of  the  old  school.  u]M-igiit,  conscientious, 
always  considerate  to  others.  l'\")r  live  years  he  has  been  Judge  of 
the  City  Court  of  Xicholasville,  and  lias  made  a  most  excellent 
record.  lie  is  a  mem])er  of  the  Mrst  IJaptist  clun-ch  and  is  one 
of  its  most  earnest  and  enthusiastic  supporters. 


John  Spears  Bronaugh. 

John  Spears  Bronaugh  was  horn  in  the  Keene  neighborhood 
and  spent  his  early  years  on  his  father's  farm.  \\\\.h  a  vigorous 
constitution  as  well  as  a  vigorous  mind,  he  improved  all  his  cdu- 


H'ldonj  of  Jeimamine  Coiniiij,,  Kcntuchii 


•_'<;■; 


calional  advantages,  and  attended  college  at  'J'ransylvania  Uni- 
versity, at  Lexington.  He  read  law  with  Judge  James  Prior, 
n_ear  Carrollton,  Ky.  I'aithi'id,  studious,  patient  and  laborious, 
when  admitted  to  tlie  bar  in  1847.  ^"^  Xicholasville,  he  was  well 
prepared  for  tlic  practice  (^f  his  profession.  For  more  than  half 
a  century  he  has  been  i)romincnt  in  all  the  litigation  which  af- 
fected the  people  of  Jessamine,  and  by  his  good  judgment,  his 


great  learning  and  wise  counsel,  he  has  endeared  himself  to  the 
whole  connntmitw  and  secm-ed  a  high  ])lace  in  the  estimation  of 
his  fellow-citizens.  At  a  lime  when  the  goxernment  of  Xicholas- 
ville needed  a  strong  hand  and  an  economical  administration.  Mr. 
Bronaugh  was  called  b\-  the  vcmcc  of  his  townsmen  to  assume  the 
fluties  of  the  Alavorally.  He  evolved  order  out  t)f  cha:>s.  sys- 
tematized all  the  affairs  of  the  city  government  and  as  executive 
officer  so  conducted  himself  and  the  affairs  of  the  town   that  it 


2fi8 


Hidory  of  Je.'<!<(imlni'  Cototti/,  Keutacki/. 


was  with  difficulty  lie  could  avoid  ihc  solicitations  of  the  voters 
to  hold  the  office  always,  and  it  was  only  his  persistent  refusal  to 
accept  the  office  which  caused  the  people  of  the  town  to  elect  an- 
other man.  He  has  always  stood  for  the  best  interests  of  the 
county  and  town,  and  while  conservative,  he  had  been  enterpris- 
ing and  has  been  a  leader  in  all  that  has  brought  the  county  to 
its  present  prosperity  and  splendid  development.  The  county 
has  trusted  him  in  man\  imi)ortant  transactions  and  he  has  al- 
ways conducted  them  with  |)rudence,  skill  and  al)ility. 


TUOS.  J.   BROWN. 


Hhtorij  of  J('^!<(iii\UiP  ('oiiiitij,  K(iifiick)j. 


269 


Robert  Curd,  Esq., 

Is  one  of  the  Mag-tstrates  of  the  county  and  resides  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Wihnore  station.  Successful  in  business,  kind- 
ly in  manner,  faithful  in  his  official  life,  he  commands,  as  he  de- 


serves, the  support  and  confidence  of  his  district.  Whatever  is 
for  the  best  interests  of  the  whole  county  always  has  his  hearty 
approval  and  assistance. 


Levi  Luther  Todd. 

The  Levi  T.uther  Todd  referred  to  in  the  minutes  t)f  tlie 
town  of  Xicholasville.  was  born  in  T.exinii^ton.  Ky..  July  26.  1791. 
He  was  educated  at  Transylvania  rniversity.  and  practiced  law 
several  vears.     He  served  with   dislinction  in  the  war  of  1812. 


270  Hidory  of  JcxfiDHhic  (hinifii,  Keiitiickij. 

He  removed  to  Lafa}-ette,    liul.,  in    1833.  ""<^1  there  held  a  dis- 
tinguished jucheial  position. 

In  1867  he  eame  to  Lexington  and  jn-esented  to  the  Masonic 
(irand  Lodge,  of  Kentueky.  then  in  session  there,  the  sword  and 
l.clt  of  Col.  Joseph  Hamilton  Daveiss,  which  were  worn  Ijy  Col. 
DaA'eiss  when  he  was  killed,  in  the  battle  of  Tippecanoe,  on  the 
7th  of  Xovend)er,   1811.      He  died  near    Indianapolis,  in   1867. 

Dr.  T.  R.  Welch. 

( )n  the  one-lnmdredth  anniversary  of  the  existence  of  Xicho- 
lasville.  Jessamine  county  is  part  of  the  Senatorial  district  in 
which  are  included  \\'oodford  and  Scott  counties.  The  Senator 
from  this  district  is  Thomas  R.  Welch,  M.  D.,  an  able  and  success- 
lul  homeopathic  physician,  now  residing  in  Xicholasville,  in 
which  ])lace  he  was  born  on  the  4th  of  h\'I)ruary,  i860. 

He  was  educated  at  Bethel  Academ_\-  under  Professor  Gordon, 
and  is  a  graduate  of  the  Wesleyan  College,  He  taught  in  the  city 
schools  of  Xicholasville  and  graduated  from  the  Hahnemann  Col- 
lege in  1885,  and  from  that  time  on  has  practiced  in  Jessamine 
county.  He  is  a  mend.^er  of  the  iSoard  of  Examiners  for  the 
schools  of  the  county,  of  the  Xicholasville  Board  of  Education, 
the  State  Homeopathic  Association  and  (_>f  the  American  Institute 
of  Homeopathy.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the  Baptist  church  and 
of  the  Odd  Fellows  and  Knights  of  Pythias. 

He  has  been  earnest  and  faithful  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties 
in  his  profession.  In  1879  the  Twenty-second  Senatorial  district, 
of  which  Jessamine  was  a  ])art,  became  a  political  battle-ground. 
It  was  the  liome  district  of  the  Hon.  J.  C.  S.  Blackburn,  and  the 
]  Ion.  Henry  L.  Martin  was  nominated  on  a  platform  antagonistic 
to  Senator  Blackburn's  views.  Jessamine  county,  by  courtesy, 
was  entitled  to  name  the  Democratic  candidate,  and  a  strong 
l^opular  man  was  recjuired.  By  a  unanimous  demand  IJr.  Welch 
was  called  to  make  the  race  for  Blackburn.  His  majority  in  the 
district  was  2,454.  an  extraordinary  manifestation  of  the  confi- 
dence of  the  people  of  the  district.  Jessamine  county  gave  him 
an  almost  un])recedented  majority  of  977  votes.  His  conduct  in 
the  legislature  justified  the  confidence  of  his  district.  He  took  a 
prominent  i)art  in  the  deliberations  of  that  historical  legislature. 


]II.<fi)rii  (if  Jf'^otminr  Count ij.  Ktufiirhii.  271 

Harrison  Daniel. 

Harrison  Daniel  was  for  many  years  one  of  the  most  promi- 
nent citizens  of  Jessamine  county.  He  was  the  grandson  of  Col. 
John  I'rice,  and  Ijorn  in  1790.  His  father,  John  Daniel,  was  a 
native  of  ( )rang"e  countw  \  irginia,  and  came  to  Kentucky  in  the 
year  1787.  He  was  related  to  the  Daniels  in  the  northern  neck 
of  X'irginia,  and  family  history  says  that  he  served  in  the  arm}' 
of  General  Washington  al  Hrandywine,  Trenton  and  .Monmouth. 
He  settled  on  ^Jarble  creek  and  here  his  son  was  born.  In  the 
early  history  of  Kentucky  Mr.  Daniel  was  a  useful  and  important 
character.  He  was  High  Sherift  and  represented  Jessamine 
county  in  the  legislature  in  1826.  He  possessed  extraordinary 
mathematical  talents.  His  son,  AX'illiam  Daniel,  went  to  the 
Mexican  war  in  the  company  of  Captain  \\'illis.  He  had  a  won- 
derful facultx  for  making  and  keeping  friends,  and  many  of  his 
descendants  still  remain  in  Jessamine  countv,  whose  peo]ile  their 
ancestor  so  faithfully  served. 


Dr.  John  C.  Welch. 

Dr.  John  C.  Welch  was  born  in  Jessamine  county  iu  1823. 
He  ])racticed  medicine  for  forty  years  in  the  county,  except  dur- 
ing his  service  for  four  years  as  surgeon  of  the  Twentieth  Ken- 
tucky volunteer  infantry.  In  1863  he  was  promoted  to  l^rigade 
surgeon.  In  1877  and  1879  he  represented  Jessamine  county  in 
the  lower  house  of  the  legislature.  He  was  a  1)rother  of  Dr. 
'Jdiomas  R.  \\'elch,  the  distinguished  Prcsl)yterian  di\ine. 


George  Brown. 

George  IJrown  was  born  in  Xicholasville  on  l*"ebruary  28, 
1819,  and  died  October  30,  1897.  He  first  attended  school  at 
St.  Joseph's,  Bardstown.  K\-.,  afterward  at  Center  College,  Dan- 
ville and  finally  at  Trans\lvania  Cniversity  in  Lexington.  Upon 
leaving  college  he  at  once  engaged  in  the  business  of  the  manu- 
facture of  hemi).  1  lis  father  had  been  one  of  the  ])ioneers  in  hemp 
manufacture   in    Lexington    and   the   son     acquired    a    ipractical 


272  History  of  Jen>!aiiiiiir  County,  Kcntnchy. 

knowledge  of  the  business  in  early  life.  Owning  a  large  num- 
ber of  slaves,  whieh  he  used  in  his  business,  he  made  it  extremely 
profitable  and  he  continued  in  the  manufacture  of  hemp  for 
many  years.  In  the  fall  of  1853  he  moved  to  a  farm  on  Jessamine 
creek,  about  two  miles  from  Niclholasville,  and  in  conjunction 
with  his  farm  operated  a  hemp  manufactory.  He  married  Ann 
AI.  Hemphill  in  1843,  ^^'^^'^  proved  to  him  an  afifectionate,  faithful 
and  helpful  wife.  She  was  one  of  the  model  housekeepers  of  Jes- 
samine county  and  as  neighbor  and  friend  had  no  superior. 

Air.  Brown  was  a  man  of  intense  activity  ;  domestic  in  his 
taste,  he  loved  his  home  and  added  to  it  those  things  which  made 
it  attractive.  He  was  a  model  husband  and  father.  When 
twenty-two  years  of  age.  he  united  with,  the  Nicholasville  Presby- 
terian church,  in  the  faith  of  which  he  continued  to  the  end  of  his 
life,  and  at  his  death  he  was  the  oldest  living  member  of  the  or- 
ganization. He  was  converted  under  the  preaching  of  Rev. 
David  Todd.  He  was  efBcient  and  earnest  in  his  Christian  work 
and  was  alwavs  one  of  the  liberal  and  helpful  members  of  the  con- 
gregation. He  was  a  pure,  good  man;  long  president  of  the 
Jessamine  County  Bible  Society,  he  was  not  only  active  but  use- 
ful in  the  Bible  work  and  has  left  behind  him  no  enemies  and  a 
host  of  friends. 


Gen.  Samuel  Dickerson  Jackman. 

Gen.  Samuel  Dickerson  Jackman  was  a  Brigadier-General  in 
the  Confederate  Army  of  Missouri.  He  was  born  in  Nicholas- 
ville in  the  brick  house  on  the  left  hand  side  of  the  road  leading 
to  Sulphur  Well,  and  opposite  the  present  house  of  Thos.  B. 
Crutcher,  Sept.  18,  1825.  He  was  a  courageous  soldier,  vigorous 
and  active  in  the  field,  and  was  extremely  successfuly  in  his  raids 
on  the  Federal  lines  in  Missouri  during  the  war.  His  mother 
was  the  daughter  of  David  Dickerson.  and  he  served  in  the  War 
of  1812.  His  father.  Dr.  John  Jackman,  left  Jessamine  county 
and  settled  in  Missouri  in  1831.  General  Jackman  removed 
from  Missouri  at  the  close  of  the  war,  to  Texas,  where  he  died  in 
1893.     He  amassed  a  large  fortune  and  died  childless. 


Hiiton/  of  Jf^''<nnine  County,  Kentucky. 


273 


Judge  Wm.  H.  Phillips. 

It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  every  officeholder  in  Jessamine 
county,  upon  the  occasion  of  the  centennial  of  its  capital  cit\',  was 
born  and  reared  in  the  county.  Judge  Win.  TT.  Phillips,  who  is 
County  Judge,  has  held  that  office  longer  than  an\-  man  who  ever 
had  it.  He  was  born  in  Jessamine  county  on  the  30th  of  ^larch, 
1838.     His  education  was  received  at  the  conuuon  schools,  and 


the  early  part  of  his  life  was  passed  on  a  farm.  He  attended 
Bethel  Academy  as  a  student,  coming  from  his  lather's  home,  in 
Nicholasville.  From  the  time  of  his  earliest  manhood  to  1874 
he  was  an  industrious  farmer,  and  lie  never  sought  office  but  was 
a  faithful  and  efficient  worker  for  his  father.  In  that  year  he  was 
nonn'nated  for  Count \  judge.  The  nomination  was  to  some  ex- 
18 


274  Historii  of  J('!i,-<ainute  County,  Ktnlacktj. 

tent  unexpected  by  liini  and  unsouo-ht.  At  tlial  time  tlie  Demo- 
cratic nominees  were  considered  the  leaders  of  a  forlorn  hope; 
the  Repttblican  ])art\-  was  organized  and  had  a1)le  leaders,  and  all 
the  county  offices  were  held  by  them:  but  Judge  I'liillips  was 
elected  1)\-  a  majority  of  fourteen  votes,  and  the  Circuit  Court 
Clerk  was  chosen  b\-  the  same  niajoritw  The  rest  of  the  Demo- 
cratic ticket  was  defeated.  In  1878  judge  I'hillii)s  was  again 
elected,  although  opposed  by  the  strongest  man  in  the  Repub- 
lican party,  and  also  by  an  independent  Democrat;  then  his  ma- 
jority was  26  votes.  In  \H^2  he  was  elected  without  opposition, 
and  he  has  held  the  office  of  County  Judge  for  2;^  years.  His  an- 
cestors were  Huguenots,  who  came  from  the  James  river,  and  set- 
tled in  Kentucky  about  1790.  His  official  career  is  unusual  and 
extraordinary,  and  manifests  the  high  esteem  in  which  he  is 
held  l)y  the  peo])le  of  his  native  county.  His  official  acts  have 
stot)d  the  closest  scrutin\-.  and  his  numerous  endorsements  by  the 
voters  is  a  testimonial  of  the  hio-hest  character. 


Dr.  Alexander  K.  Marshall. 

Dr.  Alexander  1\.  Marshall  was  a  member  of  Congress  from 
the  Ashland  District  in  1855.  He  was  the  third  son  of  Dr.  Louis 
Marshall,  wdio  was  the  youngest  brother  of  Chief-Justice  John 
Marshall.  Louis  Marshall  lived  in  \\'oodford  county,  at  a  place 
called  r.uck  fond.  Idiere  .Alexander  l\.  Marshall  was  born  the 
1  ith  of  Februar}-.  1808.  He  studied  medicine  and  at  the  age  of 
25  camei  to  Xicholasville  and  practiced  his  profession,  wdiich  he 
did  with  marked  success.  He  united  with  John  G.  Chiles  in 
1842.  in  operating  a  stage  and  mail  line  through  the  Kentucky 
mountains  to  Bean  Station,  Tenn.,  and  continued  in  this  bitsiness 
\nr  more  than  20  years,  ddiis,  however,  did  not  prevent  him 
from  practicing  his  profession. 

He  was  a  man  of  fine  presence  and  of  courage  in  the  state- 
ment of  his  convictions.  He  represented  Jessamine  countv  in 
the  Constitutional  Convention  of  1849,  defeating  George  L  Brown 
by  80  majority.  He  was  elected  to  Congress  on  the  Know 
Nothing  ticket,  defeating  James  ( ).  Harrison,  a  distinguished 
Lexington  law\er,  by  over  1,500  majority.  He  died  ui  Fayette 
count\'  in  1886. 


llixiory  of  Ji'.-'^(i))i!)ii'  Count ij,  h<  ntuckij. 


It.) 


James  Willlard  Mitchell. 

TIk,-  ])rcseni  Count}  Attornc} ,  James  Willard  Mitchell,  was 
Ijorn  in  Xicliolasville.  in  1861.  His  father,  Jas.  1\  Mitchell,  was 
eldest  son  of  Dr.  Geo.  W.  Mitchell;  his  mother  was  the  third 
dau^S;hter  of  the  late  Thomas  Jefferson  and  Mary  Jane  Wallace 
Brown,  who  was  the  eldest  daughter  of  Joseph  Wallace,  son  of 
Capt  Jolin  \\'allace.     Captain  John  Wallace  was  one  of  the  most 


distiui^^uished  of  the  Rcvohuionary  soUHers  who  came  to  Jessa- 
mine. 1  le  served  witli  ( ieneral  Washiniitt)n  and  <  leneral  Wayne; 
he  was  at  tlie  hattles  of  lirandywine,  Trenton,  Monmouth,  Long; 
Island,  and  was  with  \\'ashins-t(5n  at  A'alkw  Forjre. 

\o  man  in  Jessamine  cotmt\-  commands  in  a  hiqiier  degree  the 
conlidiiue  ot  his  fehow-citizens  and  no  one  is  ca])ahle  of  arousing 
more  enthusiasm   in   his  i)arty  and  among  his  friends.      He  has 


276  History  of  Jc^s(nni lie  (hunti/,  Kentucky. 

great  will  force,  unflinching  energy,  and  has  been  often  compared 
to  Gen.  Joseph  Wheeler,  whom  he  is  not  unlike  in  stature  and 
appearance. 

Mr.  Mitchell  was  elected  County  Attorney  by  a  large  and  flat- 
tering majority.  The  County  Attorneyship  was  the  first  position 
to  which  Mr.  Mitchell  was  elected  and  he  fills  it  with  credit  to  him- 
self and  to  his  constituents.  He  is  a  man  also  of  fine  business 
capacity,  thorough  reading  and  preparation,  great  punctuality  in 
the  discbarge  of  his  official  and  personal  business.  Few  men  are 
more  eloquent  or  effective  on  the  stump.  He  understands  hu- 
man nature,  and  is  destined  if  he  chooses  to  follow  public  life,  to 
become  a  leader  of  men. 

He  married  Miss  Annie  Anderson,  daughter  of  Capt.  Samuel 
M.  Anderson,  He  is  thoroughly  identified  with  the  people  of 
Jessamine,  and  they,  in  turn,  feel  a  just  pride  in  his  success  and 
his  attainments  in  his  profession. 


Francis  M.  Bristow 

Was  born  in  Clark  county,  Ky.,  on  the  nth  of  August,  1804. 
He  lived  for  twenty-six  years  on  the  farm  now  occupied  by  Mrs. 
Mary  Ann  Bourne,  three  miles  east  of  Nicholasville.  He  w^as- 
well  educated,  studied  law,  and  divided  his  time  betw-een  his  pro- 
fession and  farm.  He  early  moved  to  Todd  county  with  his 
father,  who  had  settled  in  Jessamine  county  in  the  year  1790. 
In  1830-31  Mr.  Bristow  was  elected  to  the  Kentucky  Legislature,, 
in  1846  to  the  State  Senate,  and  was  a  member  of  the  State  Con- 
stitutional Convention  in  1849.  In  1854  he  was  elected  Repre- 
sentative in  Congress  to  fill  the  unexpired  term  of  Presley  Ewing, 
and  in  1859  was  again  elected  as  Representative  from  Kentucky 
to  the  36th  Congress. 

His  son,  Benjamin  H.  Bristow,  served  with  distinctfon  in  the 
Federal  army,  afterwards  became  Solicitor-General,  was  a  can- 
didate for  President  before  the  Republican  party,  was  long  a 
resident  of  Louisville,  but  moved  from  that  city  to  New  York, 
where  he  has  achieved  distinction  and  success  in  the  practice  ot 
law. 

Frances  M.  Bristow  died  at  Elkton,  Ky.,  January  10,  1864. 


Hixtonj  of  Jrsmmine  Count]),  Knifiicky. 


277 


Curd  Lowry,  County  Clerk. 

Curd  I.owry,  the  present  county  clerk  of  Jessamine  county,  is 
the  third  son  of  the  late  Judge  Melvin  T.  Lowry,  who  was  county 
and  circuit  clerk  for  twelve  years  prior  to  his  death,  in  1887.  He 
secured  the  ofifice  in  opposition  to  Robt.  S.  Perry,  who  had  held 
it  for  sixteen  years  and  his  race  in  this  respect  was  phenomenal. 


He  was  born  Xovember  19,  1862.  at  the  home  of   his    maternal 
grandmother,  ]^Irs.  Harrison  Daniels. 

He  was  for  two  terms  deputy  clerk  under  L.  D.  Baldwin.  In 
1887  he  moved  to  Kansas  City  where  he  remained  two  years  and 
then  rt'Uirned  to  a  position  in  the  I'irst  National  Bank.  His 
great-grandfather  on  his  mother's  side  was  John  Daniels,  who 
settled  in  Fayette  county  in   1788  and    married  a  sister  of    Col. 


278 


Hiitorij  of  .Jcssaiiiiiir  ('i)iiiifi/,  Kcniiiclcij. 


Tohn  Trice.  1  Us  paternal  grand  father  settled  in  Jessamine 
county  long-  l)ef()re  its  organization,  lie  comes  of  distinguished 
parentage  and  lineage  and  his  ])()pularil\  is  the  result  of  his 
kindlv  heart  and  gentleman\-  manner. 


Magistrates  of  Jessamine  County. 

In  this.  i8<;8,  Jessamine  county  is  divided  into  five  magisterial 
districts.  Al  the  last  November  election,  the  gentlemen  chosen 
to  fill  this  responsible  office  were  as  follows: 

ROBERT   CLEMMONS. 

]Mr.  Clennnons  resides  at  llrannon  on  the  C"incinnati  Southern 
Railroad  near   h'avette  county  line,      lie  is  one  oi    the    leading 


farmers  in  Jessamine  county,  and  has  been  elected  magistrate 
for  several  terms  He  was  l)orn  in  h'ayette  county,  is  about  fifty- 
five  years  of  age,  and  is  honest,  clear-headed,  and  a  faithful  repre- 
sentative of  the  interests  which  his  fellow-citizens  entrust  to  his 
keeping. 


HiMorij  of  Je-<''(niii)if'  Coidifii.  I\i  iifiifh/. 


JAMES  T.  BARKLEY. 

He  resides  in  Xicholasville.  I  ie  was  ihe  sun  of  Mason  liark- 
ley,  wlio  was  a  large  farmer  on  the  Marrodsburg  Pike.  He  was 
1)orn  in  1848.  and  is  engaged  in  llie  hardware  business  in  Xicholas- 
ville.    He  is  a  man  who  is  higiily  esteemed  l)y  his  fellow-citizens. 

ALLEN  W.   ROBINSON 

Resides  in  the  Marble  creek  neighborhood,  lie  was  a  grand- 
son of  John  Robinson.  He  is  a  man  who  never  shrinks  from  do- 
ing his  dut}'.  and  has  made  a  most  efficient  ofificer. 

WILSON  FAIN 

Lives  in  the  llickman  neighborhood.  He  is  a  son  of  Larkin 
l-'ain.  who  represented  Jessamine  ci:)unt\  in  the  Legislature  in 
1850-55.  He  enjoys  to  an  unusual  degree  the  confidence  and 
respect  of  his  fellow-citizens  in  that  portion  of  the  countv  in 
which  he  resides. 


Col.  Wm.  A.  Lewis. 

Who  commanded  a  regiment  from  Kentucky  at  the  battle  of 
the  Raisin,  in  1812.  in  which  regiment  were  two  companies,  Gray's 
and  Price's,  from  Jessamine  couiUy.  was  long  a  resident  in  the 
count \.  He  was  born  in  \'irginia.  in  1778.  and  <lie(l  in  1835. 
His  exposures  in  the  \\'ar  of  181 2  brought  on  rheumatism,  and 
the  colds  he  contracted  in  the  northwestern  army  settled  in  his 
eves  and  resulted  in  a  total  loss  of  eyesight.  He  was  a  gallant 
soldier  and  a  man  res])ected  and  loved  by  all  the  ])eo])le  of  the 
county.  In  the  terrible  battle  of  Raisin  he  showed  splendid 
heroism,  and  a  high  order  of  coiuMge,  and  had  his  advice  been 
followed,  the  terrible  tragedy  of  thai  battle  would  have  l)een 
avoided. 

Allen  L.   McAfee 

Was  long  a  prominent  public  man  in  Jessamine  county.  He  died 
of  cancer  of  the  throat  March  t(S.  t888.  He  was  the  second  son 
of  Col.  Robert  McAfee,  and  was  l)orn  in  Mc.\fee.  fiercer  county, 
on  the   15th  of  .\ugust,    1825.     He  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in 


280  lUdonj  of  Jc)i!<(iiniiic  Coiinfij,  Kentucky. 

Harrodsl^urg'  in  1845.  '^''"1  removed  to  Little  Rock,  Arkansas, 
where  he  commenced  the  practice  of  his  profession.  About  this 
time  the  war  with  Mexico  broke  out,  and  he  volunteered  as  a  pri- 
vate in  Captain  .Mean's  company  of  cavalry,  which  was  one  of  the 
companies  in  the  regiment  of  Col.  Ambrose  Yell,  who  was  killed 
at  the  battle  of  Buena  A'ista.  In  that  battle  Colonel  McAfee  bore 
a  prominent  part  in  the  charge  of  Humphrey  Marshall  and  Col- 
onel Yell  against  6,000  lancers,  led  by  General  Mineon,  who  at- 
tempted to  take  the  American  batteries.  In  the  charge  in  which 
McKee,  Clay  and  Willis  were  lost,  Colonel  McAfee  saw  a  Mexi- 
can laTicer  in  the  act  of  killing  a  wounded  soldier.  He  instantly 
shot  the  Mexican.  He  used  what  was  in  those  days  a  celebrated 
gun  known  as  the  Mississippi  rifle. 

At  the  close  of  the  Mexican  war,  Colonel  McAfee  moved  to 
Nicholasville,  and  married  Miss  Elizabeth  Shely.  In  1857  he  was 
elected  a  member  of  the  Kentucky  legislature.  Early  in  1861 
Colonel  McAfee  was  arrested  as  a  Southern  sympathizer ;  he  was> 
taken  from  his  home  at  12  o'clock  at  night  on  the  21st  of  June, 
and  without  warrant  or  charge  was  carried  and  lodged  in  prison 
in  Lexington.  A  writ  of  habeas  corpus  was  taken  out  by  Frank 
Hunt,  Esq.,  and  W.  C.  P.  Breckinridge,  Esq.,  in  order  to  get 
Colonel  ^McAfee  before  the  Federal  Court,  then  in  session  at 
Frankfort,  but  the  Federal  officers  suspended  the  writ  of  habeas 
corpus.  On  the  way  to  Camp  Chase,  in  Cincinnati,  he  escaped 
by  walking  away  from  the  guards,  passed  through  Central  Ken- 
tuckv  and  reached  the  South.  He  was  commissioned  lieutenant- 
colonel  by  James  A.  Seddon,  Confederate  Secretary  of  War.  In 
1864  he  raised  a  battalion  of  300  mounted  men,  and  was  with  Gen- 
eral Jones  in  W'^estern  Virginia,  and  helped  to  defeat  General  Av- 
erill's  rail  on  Harrodsburg  in  1864.  He  was  severely  w'ounded 
in  1862  at  Big  Creek  Gap.  He  was  captured  in  1864,  and  re- 
mained in  Camp  Douglas  until  the  close  of  the  war.  He  was  a 
magnificent  looking  man  in  physical  appearance,  and  possessed 
a  high  degree  of  courage. 

In  1866  he  was  elected  State  Senator,  defeating  Richard  Spurr, 
of  Fayette,  by  over  500  votes. 


Hidorij  of  Je<.-<ami)ie  Coantij^  KcidKckij. 


28 


Andrew  McAfee. 

Andrew  McAfee,  wlio  at  present  worthily  represents  his  ward 
in  the  city  council,  is  one  of  the  younger  generation  of  colored 
men,  who  by  his  conduct  and  character  has  done  much  to  dis- 


sipate tlie  prejudice  against  the  education  of  his  race.  He  was 
educated  in  the  local  schools  for  his  race,  and  by  his  energy  and 
determination  has  won  the  confidence  and  trust  of  his  con- 
stituents. 


MiMoni  of  ./i'-<.«(iinn''  Coniilij,  hriihicLij. 


•IX'A 


Centennial  Exercises,   1898. 

The  ctnlcnni;il  uf  XiclKjlasville  \\a>  cek-l)ratf(l  by  the  citizens 
of  the  town  and  jessamine  cotmty.  on  the  i6th  day  of  September. 
1898.  Both  the  coimn-  and  tlie  citv  made  pnbhc  snbscriptions 
to  tlie  fnnd  necessarv  tor  the  celebration.     The  event  created  un- 


li.  -M.  AKXHTT, 
Cliaiiiiian  Executive  Committee. 


nsnal  cnthnsiasni  anion^  the  jjcoi^le  of  the  connty  and  one  of  the 
largest  crowds  ever  seen  in  Central  Kentncky  was  assembled  on 
this  occasion. 

The  procession,  representing  the  industrial  interests  of  the  city 
and  cotmty  occnjiicfl  the  morning:  while  historical  and  patriotic 
addresses  took  np  the  afternoon. 


284 


H'tdonj  of  Jrxxdmlue  County,  Kentucky 


Louisville,  Cincinnati,  Lexington,  Danville,  Versailles,  Shelby- 
ville,  and  other  cities  and  towns  sent  large  delegations  to  the 
celebration. 

The  executive  committee,  consisting  of  B.  AL  Arnett,  chair- 
man ;  W.  L.  Steele,  J.  D.  Hughes,  H.  H.  Lowry,  Charles  Deering, 
and  J.  B.  Stears,  provided  a  most  interesting  program  and  con- 
ducted the  exercises  in  the  most  patriotic  and  pleasing  manner. 


GEO.  B.  TAYLOR, 
Chief  Marshal  Centennial  Celebration. 

Committees  of  ladies  from  all  parts  of  the  county  united  in 
completing  the  arrangements  for  the  great  occasion.  These 
committees  were  as  follows : 

Hanly— Mrs.  Joe  Wallace,  Mrs.  W.  J.  Wilmore. 

Wilmore— Mrs.  John  B.  Chambers,  :S'rrs.  James  Hawkins. 


H'ldonj  of  Jessamine  County,  Kentucky.  285 

Keene — ]\Irs.  C.  !•"..  Smith,  ATrs.  James  Sallee. 

Nealton — Airs.  Annie  JJavis,  Airs.  E.  J.  Young. 

Brannon — Airs.  Chas.  Smitli,  Mrs.  Len  Bryant. 

Logana — Airs.  Chas.  Spillman. 

Ambrose- — Airs.  Xewton  Davis. 

Little  Hickman — Airs.  J.  H.  Dean. 

East  Hickman — Airs,  i-'rank  Alitchell.  Airs.  Hcnrv  Alnir. 


The  following  was  the  program  for  the  occasion: 

I 798- I 898. 

Jessamine  County  and  nicbolasville  Centennial 

10:30  a.  m. :     Street  ])ara(le  under  su])ervisi(jn  of  Chief  Alarshal 

Geo.  D.  Taylor,  and  assistants. 
12  m. :     Dinner  on  Duncan  Heights. 
I  :30  p.  m. :     Alusic  by  band — "Aly  Country ,  'Tis  of  Thee." 

Prayer  by  Dr.  E.  Beecher  Todd. 

Song,  by  quartette — ".Auld  Lang  Syne." 

Address  of  welcome,  on  behalf  of  Jessamine  county — Judge 
V;.  H.  Phillips. 

Alusic  by  band — "Hail.  Colum])ia  !     Happy  Land." 

Address  of  welcome,  in  behalf  of  Xicholasville — Alaj.  \\'.  L. 
Steele. 

Afusic  b\-  band — "Old  Kentucky  Home."' 

Address — Col.  Bennett  H.  A'oung. 

Song,  l)y  (juartctte — "Star  Sjiangled  Banner." 

Address — Hon.  Evan  E.  Settle. 

Alusic  bv  band — "Dixie." 


INDEX. 


PACE. 

Adams'  letter 104 

African  M.  E.  Church   ....  19S 

Ariel  College 185 

Asbury  College       183 

Baptist  Church,  First       .    .    .  195 

Baptist  Church,  Mt.  Pleasant,  18S 

Baptist  Meeting  House   ...  78 

Barkley,  John 228 

Barkley,  J.  T 279 

Barry,  Wni.  T 206 

Bethany  Church 193 

Bethel  Academy 169 

Biographical  Sketches    .    .    .  200 

Boat  Horn    ...        40 

Bowman.  David 230 

Black's  Station 46 

Bristow,  F.  M 276 

Bronaugh,  J.  S 266 

Brown,  George 271 

Brown,  William 254 

Butler,  Percival 36 

Butler,  John 231 

Caldwell,  J-  S.,  Company   -    .  137 

Camp  Nelson 185 

Capillary  Steani  Engine   and 

Cotton  Factory 163 

Catholic  Church,  St.  Luke's  .  193 

Cawbey.  John      ......  219 

Celebrations 100 

Centennial  Exercises,  1898    .  283 

Chaumiere       215 

Charter,  First 85 

Charter,  Second 86 

Christian  Church          ....  194 

Chrismau,  Gen.  Henry  M.  .    .  203 

Chrisman,  L.  H 243 

Church  Land r84 

Civil  War 136 

Clear  Creek  Church      ....  192 

Clemmons,  Robert   ....  278 

Cook,  Jno.  B 222 


228 
199 
199 
140 

137 


Cogar,  Capt.  T.  T.  ... 
Colored  Baptist  Church  . 
Colored  Christian  Church 
Confederate  Dead  .... 
Confederate  Monument  . 
Commissioners'  Report,  Negro 
Slaves,  Tithes  and  Dogs   .  S9-91 

Corman,  John 227 

Corn  Crop 158 

County  Attorneys 78 


County  Judges 78 

County  Seat,  Location.   ...  84 

Court  House 164 

Crockett,  J.  B 230 

Crockett,   Jos 23 

Crockett,  Robt.,  Company  .  .  123 

Crozier,  David 240 

Crutcher,  B,  A 265 

Crutcher,  T.  B 266 

Curd,  Robert 269 

Daniel,  Harrison 27  r 

Davis,  J.  R 231 

Dudley's  Defeat iii 

Douglas,  Jessamine 67 

Duncan,  S.  M 262 

Duncans,  The 260 


Early  Houses .    . 
Early  Settlers 
Ebenezer  Church 


r'ain,  Wilson 

Fearnaught     

Ferries 

First  Court 

First  Circuit  Court    .... 

First  IVIarriage 

First  Mill 

P'irst  Order  in  Civil  Action 
First  Powder  Mill     .... 

First  Vineyard   

First  Will 


53 

45 

195 

279 
21 

157 
74 
74 
77 
5^ 
75 
51 
55 
76 


Hidorij  of  Jr.<siiiHiii''  County,  Kcntnckij. 


287 


PAfiE. 

Glass,  J.  H 264 

Glass  Milling  Co 182 

Gray's  Company loS 

Hanly,  Maj.  J.  H 251 

Hat  Manufacturers 16,^ 

Harris,  Rev.  Nathaniel    .    .    .  209 

Hendricks,  Rev.  J.  T.,  D.D.  .  226 

Hemp  Manufacture  .    ....  15S 

Hemphill,  Andrew 263 

Hickman  Bridj^e        152 

Hickman  Creek 151 

High  Bridge 153 

Hightower's  Company     .    .  123 

Hollovvay,  Dr.  J.  \V 247 

Hotels       167 

Indians,  Last      .        48 

Jackman,  Gen.  S.  D 272 

Jasper,  Dr.  F.  M.   .    .    ...    .    .  240 

Jessamine  County — 

Creation 6r 

Naming 66 

Jessamine  Creek 148 

Jessamine  Female  Institute  .  176 

Keene ...  187 

Kentucky     River     Improve- 
ments      155 

Kentuckians  at  Raisin     .    .    .  135 

Kentucky  Legislature — 

Journal,  Minutes  and  Acts,  . 
1798  to  99 63-66 

Lafon,  John 245 

Lawyers               92 

Ivcwis,  Col.  W.  A 279 

Lewis,  Thos.,  Company  .    .    .  124 

Lowry,  Curd 277 

Lyue,  G.  W 249 

Marshall,  Dr.  A.  K 274 

Mayor  and  Council      ....  92 

McAfee,  Andrew 281 

McAfee,  A.  L.  .       279 

McCampbell,  And.,  Co.    ...  136 

McKinney.  Col.  John  ....  204 

McLean,  John 8r 


I'.AGE. 

Metcalf,  Henry 242 

Metcalf,  Rev.  John 208 

Methodist  Church,  North  .    .  194 

Methodist  Church,  South  .    .  196 

Members  Senate 79 

Members    House    Represen- 
tatives    .    .        .            ...  79 

Militia  and  Muster  Day  .    .  95 

Mitchell,  J.  \V 275 

Mosely,  Col.  John 205 

Netherland,  Benj 15 

Newspapers 177 

Nicholas,  Geo 92 

Nicholasville — Beginnings    .  16  r 

Nicholasville  Presley.  Church  190 
Nicholasville  —  Selection     of 

Site  . 80 

Noland,  Rev.  Stephen    .    .    .  259 

Phillips.  Judge  \V.  H    ....  273 

Phipps,  F^'rancis 201 

Physicians 92 

Pioneers 59 

Postmasters            164 

Post    Office    and    Establish- 
ment    S2 

Pottery 163 

Price  Letter 68 

Price's  Company 108 

Price,  John 30 

Price,  Sam'l  Woodson     .    .    .  232 

Price,  \Vm 31 

Public  Well 168 

Quarter  Session  Judges  ...  72 

Raisin,  Battle  of 125 

Ridjiley,  Com.  Daniel   Boone  205 

Robinson,  A.  W 279 

Saunders,  Letcher 248 

Scenery 143 

Scott,  Hon.T.  J 258 

Settlers,  F'irst 42 

Settlers  on  Jessamine  Creek,  44 

Shanklin,  G.  S 225 

Sheriffs 78 

Singleton.  O.  R 226 


288 


HUtortj  of  Jemannne  County,  Kentucky, 


PAGE. 

Singleton,  Mason,  Company,  121 

Simpson,  Peter 204 

Smith,  Rev.  G.  S 256 

Smith,  John  Speed 205 

Soldiers  in  Indian  Wars  .  .    .  103 

Soldiers  in  War  of  1812      .    .  104 

Sparks,  E.  R 254 

Statesmen,  Prolific  of .    .    .    .  224 

Sulphur  Well iSi 

Talbot,  A.  G 239 

Taxable  Property 91 

Thames,  Battle  of 113 

Thames,  Soldiers  in  Battle  of  120 

Todd,  I,evi  L 269 

Turnpikes 157 

Walker,  Geo 35 

Wake,  Alexander 222 

War  1812-15 105 


I'AGE. 

Welch,  J.  C,  Dr 271 

Welch,  T.  R.,  Dr 270 

Welch,;.  H. 255 

Welch,  Rev.  T.  R.,  D.D  .    .    .  250 

White,  Jas.,  Company  .    .    .    .  142 

White,  W.  W. . 249 

Willis,  J.  A 252 

Wilmore 181 

Willis,  W.   T 234 

Woodson,  Jessamine    ....  146 

Wallace,  John 223 

Woodson,  vSamuel  H 210 

Woodson,  Tucker 213 

Youug,  D.  P 244 

Young's  High  Bridge  ....  154 

Young,  Melanchthon   ....  160 

Young,  Robert 237 

Zimmerman,  Frederick  ,    .    .  200 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE. 

Arnett,  B.  M 283 

Baptist  Church,  Colored    .    .  186 

Baptist  Church 156 

Brown,  Geo 159 

Brown,  T.  J 268 

Butler,  Wm.  0 80 

Catholic  Church 166 

Christian  Church 134 

Christian  Church,  Colored    .  192 

City  Fathers 282 

Clear  Creek  Church no 

Confederate  Monument  .    .    .  138 

Court  House 126 

Crozier's  Hill 58 

Ebenezer  Church 102 

Hickman  Bridge 122 

High  Bridge 130 

Jessamine  Creek 106 

essamine  Female  Institute  .  150 


PAGK. 

Methodist  Church,  Colored   .  178 

Methodist  Church,  North  .    .  174 

iMethodist  Church,  South  .    .  144 

Mingo  Tavern 16 

Militia  Notice  of  1832  ....  96 

Mt.  Pleasant  Church     ....  170 

Paper  Mill 52 

Pioneer  Cabin 54 

Pioneer's  Dress 43 

Presbyterian  Church   ....  162 

Price,  Win.,  burial  place     .    .  118 

Stone  House 56 

Stone  Mill       114 

Taylor,  G.  B 284 

Union  Mills 98 

Young,  Robert 238 

Young,  Josephine 238 


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