The Last Few Miles to Owensboro plus Dinner

As we neared our overnight stop in Owensboro Kentucky, I still had a few items on my list of historic places that I wanted to check out…

The first spot dates back to the 1930s when Americans were truly beginning to expand their exploration of the USA despite the ongoing Great Depression.

This is Wigwam Village #2 in Cave City Kentucky.  It was built in 1937 to offer travelers a fun/different sleeping experience during their visits to nearby Mammoth Cave National Park.  Initially, Wigwam Village #2 featured a gas station as well as a lunch counter…both long gone since the 1970s. 

These Wigwam Motels aka “Wigwam Villages” was a motel chain with 7 locations that were built between 1933 and 1949.  Originally, there were 2 locations in Kentucky with one each in Alabama, Florida, Arizona, Louisiana and California.  Of these locations only 3 have survived.  In addition to this one, the other 2 are in Holbrook Arizona (#6) and near San Bernardino California. (#7)

Wigwam Village No. 2 has 15-wigwam units for travelers.  The concrete structures/rooms were built in the form of tipis, mistakenly referred to as wigwams.  Each wigwam has all the modern conveniences one would expect including private bathrooms, air conditioning, coffee pots, free Wi-Fi and cable television.  Located on 4 grassy, tree-lined acres, the property includes 2 large fire pits where guests can gather in the evening, plus a ‘retro’ playground, cooking grills and a covered lighted picnic pavilion with tables.

There are 2 styles of wigwams or tipis for guests to choose from.  A single sleeps 2 and a double sleeps 4.  The wigwams feature the original hickory bed frames, caned chairs, night stands and vanities that were created 84 years ago in Indiana.  In addition, the bathroom’s red and white graphic tile is also original.

At the moment, part of Wigwam Village No. 2 is undergoing extensive renovation to bring all aspects of the facility back to its 1930s original appearance.  Ongoing patronage helps pay for the restoration effort.  The Village is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  To learn more about the rates and to see photos of the interior of these tipis, you can go to Wigwam Village No. 2 – Authentic Americana Since 1937 (historicwigwamvillage.com).

The old Brownsville Deposit Bank was not on my list of places to check out…but it looked old and historic to me so Laurie took this photo for me.  The bank itself was apparently founded in 1899 and it ceased doing business in 2006.  Note the exterior deposit slot. 

The building appears to have been renamed as the Washington Meredith Memorial Building at some point in time.  It was named after Washington A. “Watt” Meredith. (1862 – 1931) He was a member of the Masonic Lodge and served as a Master of the Brownsville Lodge.  As a matter of fact, the Lodge is now designated as Washington Meredith Lodge #355.

The Meredith family seems to have been prominent in the town and the surrounding area for many, many years.  A “Meredith” is currently serving as the Mayor.  The Brownsville City Hall may also share this space.  Laurie found a history for the Meredith that really is very interesting.  Check it out at https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Meredith-2143.

Our next photo opportunity in Brownsville Kentucky was the Reed-Dossey House.  This unusually large vernacular late Victorian style home is well preserved both on the outside and the inside.  It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it was built ca. 1890.  It was built by or for entrepreneur J.P. Reed who was reputed to be connected with the steamboat traffic on the Green River.  The home was purchased by the Dossey family ca. 1910 and the family occupied the property, sometimes as a boarding house, until the 1980s.  This impressive home sits on a shelf of a ridge overlooking the town.

Once again, curiosity got the best of me.  Steamboat traffic on the Green River?  The river itself is 384 miles long rising from Lincoln County in south central Kentucky.  It eventually empties into the Ohio River near Henderson Kentucky.  I learned that way back in 1842, the river and its tributary, the Barren River, were canalized with a series of locks and dams creating a navigable channel all the way to the city of Bowling Green.  In 1901, two additional locks and dams were opened on the Green River, allowing river traffic to Brownsville and Mammoth Cave.  All of the dams and locks either eventually failed or have been removed...

Our next stop was in Fordsville Kentucky, population 446.  The former Louisville, Henderson and St. Louis Railroad Depot was built in 1916.  This concrete-block, tile-roofed building has architectural elements most closely related to the Prairie School style.  The first railroad feeder line was the Owensboro, Falls of Rough and Green River Railroad which reached the town in 1889. 

This depot replaced the first one which had been built in 1890.  Like most depots in the south in those days, the current depot had 2 waiting rooms, one for whites and one for blacks.  The ticket office was in the middle between the waiting rooms.  There were actually 2 rail lines serving Fordsville, the other being the Madisonville, Hartford and Eastern Railroad.  It was completed in 1910.

As we moved further north along KY Hwy 54 toward our destination for the day, we ‘had to stop’ to take a photo of a critter that one doesn’t see too often in the eastern USA except in zoos.  There were at least 3 buffalo, aka bison in this field along the road. 

It is estimated that there are between 400,000 to 500,000 bison on ranches and farms across North America while only about 31,000 are considered to be wild…although about half of that number are fenced in/contained.  In the late 1700s, there were an estimated 60,000,000 bison roaming across North America…included the eastern portion of what is now the USA.  Due to slaughter for food, blankets and robes, as well as a means of subduing Native American tribes, by 1889, only 541 bison remained.

On to food!  We had researched and discussed where we wanted to have our dinner in Owensboro.  On a couple of work related trips (A Montgomery Ward’s ill-fated “Electric Avenue Store”), I had eaten at the Moonlight Bar-b-q Inn.  I liked it so much that Laurie and I have also eaten there on 2 or 3 other occasions.  Website: Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn - Kentucky BBQ Restaurant.  

When we checked TripAdvisor, Moonlite Bar-b-q Inn was still listed as number 1, but Old Hickory Bar-B-Que had a higher rating.  They only had about half of the reviews that Moonlite had.  We decided that it was time for a change and the reviews were very positive, so we chose to eat dinner at Old Hickory…

The inside of the restaurant was straight-forward and fairly basic, just what one would expect from a relatively ‘upscale’ BBQ restaurant. 

To quote from the restaurant’s website, “Old Hickory Bar-B-Que is a locally owned and family-operated restaurant that has been proudly serving families in Owensboro, KY since 1918.  Our bar-b-que is legendary and has been featured in many magazines and TV shows.”  1918 is when Charles “Pappy” Foreman began barbequing mutton.  The operation was given the Old Hickory Bar-B-Que name in 1954.

This is the menu at Old Hickory Bar-B-Que for purchases by the pound for take-out.  The big difference between this menu and most other barbeque restaurants across the USA is the inclusion of BBQ mutton options.

We perused the dining room menu for our options.  There are sections for plates, sandwiches, soups/salads/sides as well as for desserts and drinks.  Fortunately, our waitress gave us some valuable guidance when it came to ordering…  

We decided that we’d go for ‘plates’ instead of sandwiches.  I was looking at the Mutton Plate ($16.45) and Laurie was torn between the Brisket Plate ($15.89), or the Pork Ribs Plate ($16.25).  Then our waitress stepped in and suggested that we should order and share the Combination Plate…which comes with our choice of 3 different meats and 2 sides. ($17.49) She said that it would be plenty of food for both of us.

So…we ordered the mutton, pork ribs and brisket with French fries and beans for dinner…and, as promised there was plenty to eat for both of us.  The problem was we didn’t like most of what we were served.  Ranked from best to worst, the sliced mutton was best, the brisket was second and the ribs were the worst.  The brisket was kind of chopped up and lacked flavor and the ribs looked and tasted like they’d been overdone or cooked a day earlier.  The baked beans were mediocre at best.  Even the watery bbq sauces were almost flavorless.  The whole meal was a disappointment!

Many thanks to our waitress!  She kept us from wasting another $15.00 or so!  Of course, BBQ is a personal thing and Old Hickory Bar-B-Que is well rated, so maybe it was just us…or the pit master had a bad day.  If you’re in the Owensboro area, check it out for yourself and let me know what you think.  Website: BBQ Restaurant | Old Hickory Bar-B-Que | Owensboro, KY.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave