Every historic building has a story to tell
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 (read more)
I’ve been living in the past lately (more so than usual) as I delve into the creation of the “super highway system” in Kentucky. This necessitates a great deal of browsing time in historic newspapers, where I am prone to distraction by an interesting story or photograph, a distraction that inevitably leads me down an (read more)
A sprawling Mission-style bakery complex, once lauded as “the finest west of New York,” appears poised for restoration and rebirth. The Whiteside Baking Company, which opened in 1908, has been purchased by a Florida-based spirits company that plans to open a distillery and tasting room in the complex on West Broadway Street. Von Payne Whiskey, (read more)
Category: Louisville
Tags: #arthurloomis, #bondbread, #kentuckyarchitecture, #louisvilleky, #whitesidebakery
The start of the school year still inspires me, though I am sadly not heading off to the halls of academia myself. I like the edging of summer into fall, and the promise of cooler weather energizes my mental faculties – usually resulting in a great many “to do” lists that will languish once winter (read more)
A surprise demolition last Thursday in the Downtown Paris Historic District provides credence to some tired truths.* The circa 1875 W. B. Erringer House, demolished at the behest of its owner, the Catholic Diocese of Lexington, underscores America’s willingness to tear down and destroy. The reason circulated by many for the demolition is the (read more)
Category: Bourbon County
Tags: #historicpreservation, #kentuckyarchitecture, #oldhouses, #parisky, demolition
During July, which slipped away just last week, I reveled in the cool temperatures of Northern Michigan and sagged and sweated in the sultry 95-degree days in Clinton County, Kentucky. I took many photographs in each location, but I failed to write any blog posts last month. Now, with summer camp over, I’m immersed in (read more)
Category: Uncategorized
Tags: #farms, #kentuckyarchitecture, #lighthouses, #michigan
Between 1890 and 1895, a one-story frame house was built on Mulberry Street in Lebanon, Kentucky. It wasn’t very large, maybe three to four rooms, but had a projecting, canted gable on the west side of the facade, and a small porch. It was the only dwelling on that block of Mulberry Street at (read more)
Category: Marion County
Tags: #kentuckyarchitecture, #lebanonky, #oldhouses, #vernaculararchitecure
Years ago, I fell in love with what I call the central cross gable, which looks like a peaked, triangular shaped projection on the long side of a side gable house. My great-great-great grandfather’s house, built in 1844, sports this feature (I like to call it a “CCG”) and I like how it can (read more)
Category: Woodford County
While Columbus, Indiana deserves its reputation as “the Athens of the Prairie” for its collection of mid-century modern architecture, my recent stop there found me captivated by a historic building of a different sort, one with roots extending back to the last quarter of the 19th century. The Crump Theater, an outstanding Art Moderne/Art (read more)
Categories: Indiana, Other Places
In February, I ordered my tomato seeds, for I determined that this was the year for me to start all of my own tomato plants! I would save money and grow delicious heirloom varieties destined for canning jars or tomato sauce. On April 1, assembly of the grow lights and planting of the seeds (read more)
Categories: Gardens, Kentucky Gardens
Tags: #kentuckygarden, #tomatoplants, #vegetablegardening, Gardens
The drone of the cicadas (Brood 14 is in full voice after 17 years of dormancy!) and the sudden escalation in temperatures makes me think of hazy August days, winding down a rural Kentucky road. I came across the Lick Spring United Baptist Church and the neighboring Prater Cemetery on one such August afternoon. (read more)
Category: Magoffin County
Tags: #kentuckyarchitecture, #magoffincountyky, #ruralchurchesofkentucky
It’s been an odd spring. Actually, odd is becoming (has ready become?) the new normal. We’ve been very wet, and lest you think I am relying on my handwritten notes recounting rainfall amounts (scribbled on the calendar on our fridge), greater minds than mine confirm my assessment. Lexington has received 20 inches of rain since (read more)
Category: Kentucky Gardens
Tags: #garden, #kentuckygardens
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