Along the Road...and Maysville Kentucky

When we left Paris Kentucky, I followed US Hwy 68 north toward Maysville Kentucky, our final destination for the evening.  The scenery was littered with horses and horse/stud farms.  We were ahead of schedule, so I thought that I'd get off what was essentially a 4-lane highway and take some 2-laners the rest of the way to Maysville.  We do love the backroads!  You never know what you'll come across along the way.   

Once off the most direct route to Maysville, we headed north up KY Hwy 32 and into the town of Carlisle Kentucky.  The Lexington and Maysville Railroad was completed to Carlisle in 1871 and it was folded into  the Louisville and Nashville Railway system in 1891.  The land the original depot was built on was donated by 13 citizens and businesses in the town.  It was built in 1882.

This depot was built by the Louisville and Nashville Railway in 1912.  It replaced the original wood framed structure which had burned down.  The station had deteriorated significantly before it was renovated by the Nicolas County Historical Society.  At last report, the Nicolas County Rotary Club was meeting here on a regular basis.  The building has 2 large meeting rooms as well as a full kitchen so it can be rented for special events.

I couldn't find out very much about the Carlisle Christian Church which is located at 242 North Locust Street.  This imposing structure was built in 1899.  The Disciples of Christ/Christian Church denomination was organized in 1860 and they originally met in the the town's school or in private homes until the first church structure was built in 1868.

Apparently Halloween is a big deal in Nicolas County Kentucky.  I just wish I owned the company that produces most of these skeleton figures...they are everywhere this year!  

Originally, the Nicolas County seat was in Ellisville Kentucky.  The county was originally created from parts of 3 very large counties that were part of Virginia.  When the county seat was moved to Carlisle in 1816, the log courthouse in Ellisville was also moved.  It was used until it was replaced in 1818.  

The current Nicolas County Courthouse is the fourth one and it was completed in 1893.  As you can see, this 3-story Second Empire style structure is quite ornamental...lots of detail.  I believe that the county was named for Wilson Cary Nicolas, a Virginia Governor and U.S. Senator.  However a second source claims that it was actually named for George Nicolas, Kentucky's first attorney general and the father of Kentucky's original constitution.

Note: Daniel Boone lived in Nicolas County with his family from 1795 until 1799.  His last cabin in Kentucky still stands and it is a National Historic Place.

These 2 photos provide an explanation or the reason for the subject of the following photo from Maysville Kentucky.  In 1937 a devasting flood impacted Maysville.  Homes and businesses were destroyed by the raging waters of the Ohio River.  The river crested at 75.2 feet, slightly more than 25 feet above flood stage...

The 1937 flood at Maysville led to the construction of a floodwall to protect from future flooding.  No surprise when it comes to most government funded projects, construction didn't actually start until 1949 and the floodwall wasn't completed until 1956.  It was built to handle a flood reaching 3 feet higher than the 1937 disaster.  The floodwall is over 14,000 feet long, ranges in height from 11 to 30 feet depending on the terrain and it is equipped with 5 pumping stations.  

In the late 1990s, artist Robert Dalford and his team created the Maysville Floodwall Murals.  Rather than having to look at blank concrete walls from the downtown area, Dalford created 10 murals that are a tribute to the town's history.  The subject matter ranges from bison hunts by Native Americans to the Underground Railroad to local celebrity, Rosemary Clooney.  The two shown above depict the town's Market Street in the 1920s and a scene from the Germantown fair Grandstand.  The murals are a big tourist draw in Maysville.

Maysville Kentucky is the county seat for Mason County.  This stately and commanding structure is the Mason County Courthouse.  The Greek Revival style building...resembling a Greek temple...was built in 1844.  The clock on top of the courthouse was built by a locksmith from Flemingsburg Kentucky in 1850.  

Mason County was organized in 1788 and Washington Kentucky was the original county seat.  At that point nearby Maysville was just a primitive site of warehouses and wharves...with very few homes.  But by the 1830s, Maysville had a population of 3,000 and it was the second-most important commercial city in Kentucky after Louisville.  Washington Kentucky had dwindled in importance and after a fire in 1825 and a series of cholera outbreaks, in 1848 the county seat was moved to Maysville.  Maysville donated its city hall to the county as the courthouse.

It seems a little unusual to me but the Mason County Clerk's Office isn't housed in the Courthouse.  Instead its located in this smallish double door Greek Revival style structure.  It was built in 1860.  The Circuit Clerk is also based here...

This grouping of homes along West Third Street in Maysville is referred to as Mechanic's Row.  The homes were built ca 1816.  They're considered to be among the finest examples of New Orleans-inspired architecture in Kentucky.  The property these home sit on was originally purchased from John May...as in "Maysville".  The name Mechanic's Row, stems from the residents who were both merchants and skilled craftsmen.  Originally, these home didn't have any porches, but they certainly add that extra wow architectural factor.

This is the January-Cochran House which is located at 20 West 3rd Street in Maysville.  It's right across the street from Mechanic's Row.  This home was built ca 1838 by Andrew McConnell January.  He was a successful merchant, the first President of the Bank of Maysville and a one-time President of the old Lexington-Maysville Turnpike Company. (Toll roads are not new to America!)

This home, with its 6,683 square feet of living space, remained in the builder's family for six generations.  The interior was fully modernized in the early 2,000s and it has 4 bedrooms, 2 full and 2 half baths, a chef's kitchen, family room, double parlors, a library, huge dining room and a grand staircase.  The home sits on about three quarters of an acre.

That rather austere looking three-story structure with the New Orleans-style balcony at left of the photo, is the Jones House.  Built before 1856, it is right across the street from the courthouse.  With over 6,000 square feet of floor space, the building is home for a law firm, Fox, Woods and Estell.  John Estell has been the Mason County Attorney since 1994 and, based on the sign in the window, apparently he was running for office during our visit.

I was faked out by the look of that 'old church' at the right.  The Trinity United Methodist Church was actually completed in March of 1962.  It is nice that 'the look' fits the neighborhood.

The Maysville Presbyterian Church is located at 21 West Third Street, right next to the County Courthouse.  This massive Gothic-style structure was built in 1850 after a fire destroyed an earlier Presbyterian Church, the "Old Blue Church", that was located on Second Street.  Note the large Gothic-arched stained-glass windows at the front of the structure.  In 1854 a nearby powder magazine exploded and it damaged this church.  Reportedly, the damage caused by the blast is still apparent inside the church.

That's about it for now.  Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them...

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave