Every historic building has a story to tell
There’s a two-story brick building – built as an inn and tavern in the early 19th century – located on the riverbank in Smithland, Kentucky. The facade is laid in Flemish bond, and is six bays wide, with two doors on the first story. A series of porches span the side and rear elevations, and (read more)
Category: Livingston County
Tags: #historictavern, #kentuckyarchitecture, #smithlandky #rivertraffic, #tavern
I’ve been scanning old photo albums lately, tumbling back into time as I turn each brittle page. Laughing faces, twirling girls, dogs that I almost recognize although they’ve been gone for over 100 years – and buildings that no longer stand. I’m lucky – the cousin that lent me this album to copy as part (read more)
It’s always a delight to feast my eyes on a historic house that is not only visually appealing, but is well-maintained and not a cause of worry for anyone with a soul deeply attuned to the vagaries of historic preservation. And some houses from the first decade of the 20th century offer such an exuberant (read more)
Most of my professional projects involve only the exterior of buildings. So when I get the chance to document a house on the outside and inside, I’m in a tizzy – but also overwhelmed! Floorplans are easy, and help tell how people used the building – how they got from the front door, say, to (read more)
Category: Kentucky architecture
Tags: #historicinteriors, #kentuckyarchitecture, #overmantel
The rural landscape of Kentucky teems with historic churches. I can count on seeing them from my windshield view, no matter what part of the state I am crossing. Some are tattered and quite literally torn by disuse and neglect. Others bear the badge of modernization – visible by the layers of siding, additions, or (read more)
Like so many people, I am saddened and horrified by the devastation in Eastern Kentucky brought on by unprecedented rainfall and flooding that hit the region July 26-28, 2022. If you are able to donate to help people whose lives have been completely torn apart, please, please do so! Kentucky Governor Beshear has established the (read more)
Categories: Kentucky history, Kentucky Places
Sometimes you are in the right place at the right time, and are blissfully oblivious of this fact. Last Tuesday, in my large straw hat, clutching two cameras, I made my way through downtown Greenville, Kentucky, the county seat of Muhlenberg County. I always take the long road home, visiting towns I don’t know, and (read more)
Categories: Demolition, Muhlenberg County
Tags: #greenvilleky, #kentuckyarchitecture, #muhlenbergcountyky, demolition
Salvisa, Kentucky is a tiny town of just over 100 residents in northern Mercer County, Kentucky, named for the Salt and Kentucky Rivers (the latter was originally known as the “Levisa”). Since the mid-20th century, school consolidation, new roads bypassing Main Street (and bisecting the town), and the decline of the farming economy and a (read more)
Categories: Historic Bank Buildings, Mercer County
Tags: #historicbanks, #kentuckyarchitecture, #salvisaky, banks
Oddly shaped and quirky bits of land formed from the intersection of rail lines and roads often lead to creative and distinctive buildings. The Fuller Building in Manhattan – better known as the Flatiron Building – is a good example. The 22-story triangular shaped building, designed by Daniel Burnham and Frederick Dinkelberg, is one of (read more)
The small town of Millersburg in Bourbon County, Kentucky, suffered a dreadful blow Wednesday afternoon as a fire destroyed a block of historic commercial buildings.* The densely built block of the west side of Main Street between West 4th and West 5th Streets, containing impressive late 19th century brick buildings and one wonderful 20th century (read more)
Category: Bourbon County
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