Every historic building has a story to tell
On June 10, 1886, a post office was established at a crossroads in northwestern Jackson County, Kentucky, and the community around it christened “Collinsworth.” This wasn’t the birth of the village, for it had been around well before the Civil War, but a post office marked the beginning of a modern community, one in touch (read more)
The chain link fences have gone up, making visible the divide between what was and what shall be – from tired reminders of former neighborhoods to blank earth, littered by concrete and gravel. And with the demolition of these houses, one of the last vestiges of the Virginia Avenue neighborhood between South Limestone and South (read more)
Categories: Demolition, Fayette County, Historic architecture, Historic Preservation, Kentucky architecture, Lexington Kentucky History, Lexington neighborhoods, Vernacular architecture
Tags: Adamstown, demolition, Lottie Street, Lottie Street Presbyterian Church, Maxwell Street Presbyterian Church, Porter Memorial Baptist Church, University of Kentucky, Virginia Avenue, W.S. Griffing
My first trip through Union County, in Western Kentucky, occurred during a week of spring floods. Our plan to travel along small, meandering rural roads close to the river was often thwarted by standing water. Although our circuitous route missed the county seat of Morganfield, we did stop in the coal-mining town of Sturgis, established (read more)
I have a confession to make. Yesterday, I went to Lowe’s to see if they were stocking flats of pansies yet. I returned home with only furnace filters and light bulbs, shaking my head over my own foolishness – led astray by the erratic weather patterns in the Bluegrass. I know it’s too early – (read more)
Categories: Gardens, Historic architecture, Historic Preservation, Kentucky, Morgan County, Vernacular architecture
Tags: crepe myrtles, Gardens, pansies, Spring
I’ve always viewed intellectual curiosity in a positive light. My curiosity has propelled my career, and helped forge paths to interesting places populated by interesting people. But sometimes, one must temper curiosity in light of rotting wood – and accept that sunlight shining through a roof isn’t necessarily an invitation for forward movement. I learned (read more)
The recent spate of rain drenching the Bluegrass has not only made my backyard soggy, but reminded me how frustrating rain can be when you are out in a downpour, trying to photograph historic resources. (Not that I will ever complain about the rain – as a farmer’s daughter, I know better.) Spring rains a (read more)
As a child, I made houses of anything and everything (leaves were a challenging, yet ephemerally charming material). I inherited my older siblings’ Tinker Toys and Lincoln Logs, and a series of dollhouses. The Lincoln Logs, however, were a favorite – made even more intriguing by the fact that we had an actual log house (read more)
Categories: Bluegrass, Green County, Kentucky architecture, Vernacular, Vernacular architecture
Tags: Bourbon County, Green County, Lincoln Logs, Log houses
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