Mason County, Kentucky, teems with historic farms, rural villages and hamlets, and of course, the wonderful county seat of Maysville, located on the Ohio River. I’ll be speaking there on Sunday, October 5, 2025 at 2pm. The Mason County Historical Society graciously invited me to talk about my journeys across Kentucky and the stories I record via the historic buildings of our Commonwealth.
Streetscape in downtown Maysville, Kentucky.
Tickets are $10 – to benefit the Mason County Historical Society – and if you attend, you get the pleasure going inside the historic (circa 1930) Russell Theatre and listening to my stories of exploration, falling through stairs, and fortuitous discoveries.
Detail of the facade of the Russell Theatre, Maysville, Kentucky.
I don’t complain to be an expert on Mason County history and architecture – far from it! But I love being an architectural historian, and and I love Kentucky. There are so many untold stories, lost within the collapsed walls of an old barn, or drifting along in family lore – and I am lucky enough to capture some of those stories with my camera and words.
Circa 1921 Rosenwald school in MaysLick, Kentucky.
We can’t guarantee the preservation of our farmland nor the buildings of historic Main Street. Historic preservation is not an accepted part of American life and culture (Not yet. Maybe one day.)
Rural road and historic buildings in Mason County, Kentucky.
So while I may lack the funds to personally restore every decrepit historic building I see, whether it be a smokehouse, a corncrib, or a house, I can take the time to take a picture, and in my spare time, attempt to discover the story of that building. And then, I can share what I’ve learned with a wider audience so that maybe, over time, our appreciation for the historic built landscape will grow and strengthen. So join me on Sunday, October 5, 2025, to hear some of my tales thus far!
I would love to hear your presentation. But….I work at Keeneland and we are racing that day !
This is such a wonderful blog! We live in Allen County and are in the process of reviving a beautiful old brick home. Disappointingly, we hit a dead end with research in trying to determine its age. Do you ever work with homeowners to help them learn more about their properties on the side?
Thank you so much! And yes, I do work with homeowners in many different ways. You can email me at gardens2gables@gmail.com