Oct2017full

OCTOBER 2017

Autumn Color

The Farmer & The Frenchman Spirits of Buffalo Trace Jim Bowie, Part I Kentucky Horror Filmmakers

Display until 11/12/2017

www.kentuckymonthly.com

9 Consecutive Years on The Washington Post’s List of Top Performing Schools with Elite Students 91 National Merit Finalists 20 Semifinalists in Siemens Competition

We come from all across Kentucky to The Gatton Academy on the campus of Western Kentucky University. We finish our junior and senior years of high school as we start college. We conduct research with professors, study abroad, and attend college classes. While we are challenged academically, we thrive in a supportive environment designed just for us and make lifelong friends. Tuition, fees, room and board are paid for by the Commonwealth of Kentucky. You, too, can have a future filled with infinite possibilities.

Class of 2020 Admissions Deadline: February 1, 2018 WEBSITE: wku.edu/academy

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In This Issue 32

12 Departments 2 Kentucky Kwiz 4 Mag on the Move 6 Across Kentucky 7 Curiosities The Witches’ Tree 8 Cooking 46 Gardening 47 Field Notes 48 Calendar

Featured Fare 12 A Tale of Two Cultures

A love of wine, food and farming inspires Katy Groves-Mussat and Hubert Mussat of the Farmer & Frenchman Winery

18 Jim Bowie: Knife-Wielding Son of Kentucky

Part I of a two-part series

32 Spirited Tales

Historic Buffalo Trace Distillery has been the site of some ghostly encounters over the years

36 Talents in Terror

Picking the brains (BRAINS!) of Kentucky horror filmmakers

40 Opportunity Knocks

Voices

Berea program provides struggling women with an education and a sense of self-worth

3 Readers Write 45 Past Tense/ Present Tense 56 Vested Interest

8

ON THE COVER

Fall fills Kentucky with brilliant color; see page 47.

KENTUCKY

Kwiz

Test your knowledge of our beloved Commonwealth. To find out how you fared, see the bottom of Vested Interest or take the Kwiz online at kentuckymonthly.com.

1. Kentucky Avenue runs through the middle of which other Southeastern Conference school’s campus?

A. University of Alabama B. University of Florida C. University of Missouri 2. Presley Neville O’Bannon, a Marine lieutenant and future Kentucky state senator, retired to Russellville two years after successfully leading the Marines in the 1805 Battle of Derna, which led to the inclusion of which phrase into the Marines’ Hymn?

A. “From the halls of Montezuma” B. “To the shores of Tripoli” C. “In the snow of far-off Northern lands” 3. Since 1947’s Great Lakes Bowl, the Kentucky Wildcats have played in 15 bowl games, compiling an 8-8 record.

In which bowl have they played more than any other?

A. Peach Bowl B. Hall of Fame Classic C. Music City Bowl 4. Mila Kunis, consistently ranked as one of the most beautiful actresses and the spokesperson for Jim Beam, rose to popularity on which television show?

A. The Big Bang Theory B. Friends C. That ’70s Show 5. Matthew McConaughey, the creative director and celebrity spokesperson for Lawrenceburg-based Wild Turkey, is best known for which catchphrase?

A. Dy-no-mite B. Alright, alright, alright C. Bazinga

Kentucky Kwiz, McConaughey has a legitimate Kentucky connection through his father, Jim McConaughey, who did what?

A. Was a jockey in the 1964 Kentucky Derby B. Played basketball at Western Kentucky University C. Played football at the University of Kentucky 7. Daniel Morgan is one of the inspirations for the character Benjamin Martin—portrayed by Mel Gibson in the movie The Patriot (2000)—and the namesake of Morgantown, Kentucky.

Morgan began his military career as a civilian teamster with his cousin, who would independently rise to fame in Kentucky as well. Who was he?

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K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • O C TO B E R 2 0 1 7

© 2017, Vested Interest Publications Volume Twenty, Issue 8, October 2017 STEPHEN M. VEST, Publisher & Editor-in-Chief

Editorial PATRICIA RANFT, Associate Editor DEBORAH KOHL KREMER, Assistant Editor MADELYNN COLDIRON and TED SLOAN, Contributing Editors JESSICA PATTON, Art Director Senior Kentributors JACKIE HOLLENKAMP BENTLEY, ANNETTE CABLE, BILL ELLIS, STEVE FLAIRTY, GARY GARTH, CYNTHIA GRISOLIA, RACHAEL GUADAGNI, JESSE HENDRIX-INMAN, ABBY LAUB, WALT REICHERT, GARY P. WEST

A. Daniel Boone

Marketing and Circulation

B. Simon Kenton

BARBARA KAY VEST, Business Manager

C. James Harrod 8. While more than two-thirds of Kentuckians who enlisted during the Civil War fought for the Union, only two monuments to the Grand Army of the Republic were erected in the Commonwealth. One is in the Frankfort Cemetery and the other is located where?

A. Uniontown B. Covington C. Union 9. A copy of Birds of America sold at Sotheby’s Auction House in New York for $11.5 million on Dec. 6, 2010. It was the second-highest price ever brought by a single printed book, and it was the creation of which artistic Kentuckian of French heritage?

A. Paul Sawyier B. Jean-Claude Lafayette C. John James Audubon

Advertising

JULIE MOORE, Senior Account Executive MISTEE BROWNING, Account Manager EDLISA EMBRY, Account Executive DAVID MCMILLEN, Account Executive JENNIFER MCMILLEN, Account Executive For advertising information, call (888) 329-0053 or (502) 227-0053 KENTUCKY MONTHLY (ISSN 1542-0507) is published 10 times per year (monthly with combined December/ January and June/July issues) for $20 per year by Vested Interest Publications, Inc., 100 Consumer Lane, Frankfort, KY 40601. Periodicals Postage Paid at Frankfort, KY and at additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to KENTUCKY MONTHLY, P.O. Box 559, Frankfort, KY 40602-0559. Vested Interest Publications: Stephen M. Vest, president; Patricia Ranft, vice president; Barbara Kay Vest, secretary/treasurer. Board of directors: James W. Adams Jr., Dr. Gene Burch, Kim Butterweck, Gregory N. Carnes, Barbara and Pete Chiericozzi, Kellee Dicks, Maj. Jack E. Dixon, Bruce and Peggy Dungan, Mary and Michael Embry, Wayne Gaunce, Frank Martin, Lori Hahn, Thomas L. Hall, Judy M. Harris, Greg and Carrie Hawkins, Jan and John Higginbotham, Dr. A. Bennett Jenson, Walter B. Norris, Kasia Pater, Dr. Mary Jo Ratliff, Barry A. Royalty, Randy and Rebecca Sandell, Kelli Schreiber, Christopher E. and Marie Shake, Kendall Carr Shelton, Ted M. Sloan and Marjorie D. Vest.

Kentucky Monthly invites queries but accepts no responsibility for unsolicited material; submissions will not be returned.

Kentucky Monthly is printed and distributed by Publishers Press, Shepherdsville, Ky.

10. Kentuckian Charles Floyd was the only member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition to die during the two-year trip to the Pacific Coast. He died barely three months into the trip near present-day Sioux City, Iowa. His

death was attributed to what?

A. An arrow fired by a Sioux warrior 6. While some of you may think it’s a stretch to include Mila Kunis and Matthew McConaughey in the

Celebrating the best of our Commonwealth

B. A ruptured appendix C. A bear attack

www.kentuckymonthly.com (888) 329-0053 P.O. Box 559 100 Consumer Lane Frankfort, KY 40601

VOICES ELLIS APPRECIATION Just a note expressing how much I enjoy Bill Ellis’ Kentucky Monthly columns.

I grew up on a farm in Anderson County and graduated from Anderson High School (not Anderson County) in 1966, so the subjects of his pieces are very familiar to me.

Thanks so much and keep ’em coming.

Bill Robinson, Frankfort

I enjoy Bill Ellis’ writing and Kentucky Monthly in general.

Below is a Texas “Tall Story” or “New Historical Fact.”

Many years ago the “parents-to-be” of little George Washington moved to Texas, and as good new residents became enculturated in Texas ways of thinking.

Then came the birth of little George.

Soon, he grew to be a young boy. One day, George was out in the yard and chopped down the cherry tree.

George’s father asked if he had done this. George replied, “Yes, Father, I cannot tell a lie. I chopped down the tree.”

Well, George’s father, by now having had in him the “Texas Way” of stretching the truth, exaggerating—

telling a Texas Tall Tale—was so embarrassed to have a son in Texas who couldn’t tell a lie that he moved the family back to Virginia, where in time, George grew up and became President of the United States.

Allen Anthony, San Antonio, Texas KENTUCKY MONTHLY APPRECIATION I am at the Hilton Garden Inn in their patio flower-water garden reading your Kentucky Monthly with tears of joy.

What an absolutely beautiful, well organized, captivating work of art this magazine conveys to the reader.

Thanks to you and your staff, I have fallen on love with the state of

Readers Write Kentucky, and I am so excited about exploring every region.

Kentucky Monthly has so much for residents and visitors.

Beverly Vanderhaar, Glenwood, Maryland

We Love to Hear from You! Kentucky Monthly welcomes letters from all readers. Email us your comments at editor@ kentuckymonthly.com, send a letter through our website at kentuckymonthly.com, or message us on Facebook. Letters may be edited for clarification and brevity.

Counties featured in this issue n

PENNED

Kentucky Monthly’s Annual Writers’ Showcase Attention, Writers! Kentucky Monthly is seeking submissions for our annual literary section in the February issue. Entries will be accepted in the following categories: Poetry, Fiction & Creative Non-Fiction.

Working on a novel? Send the first paragraph for a chance to be featured!

Submission deadline - December 1

For guidelines and to submit entries, visit kentuckymonthly.com A U G U S T 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

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MAG

ON THE

MOVE

Even when you’re far away, you can take the spirit of your Kentucky home with you.

And when you do, we want to see it!

Take a copy of the magazine with you and get snapping. Send your high-resolution photos (usually 1 MB or higher) to editor@kentuckymonthly.com.

Mark & Becky Anuskiewicz and Dotty & John Lewis

Mackinac Island, Michigan The Anuskiewiczes, from Paintsville, and Lewises, from Louisville, vacationed together at the stunning Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island in Michigan.

Mary-Miller and Carl Boyd Sydney, Australia

Mickey Arnold Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

Sonia Hendrickson Rhode Island

The Boyds, originally from Mt. Sterling and now living in Utah, took in the sights in Sydney while visited their daughter, Emily Naylor, who lives in Australia.

Arnold, who hails from Lancaster, enjoyed a good read while relaxing on the island’s scenic beach.

Hendrickson, along with Bax Brooke, both of Winchester, stopped off at Dave’s Marketplace in East Greenwich, Rhode Island.

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K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • O C TO B E R 2 0 1 7

Mike Kraemer Put-in-Bay, Ohio Louisville resident Kraemer visited the intriguingly named Put-in-Bay on South Bass Island in Lake Erie.

Pam Mylor Columbia River

Rod and Delores Baker Appalachian Trail

Mylor, of Sparta, cruised the Columbia River aboard the American Pride with her husband, Marty. They followed the Lewis and Clark trail to the edge of the continent.

The Maysville couple are pictured at McAfee Knob on the Appalachian Trail close to Roanoke, Virginia.

O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

5

BRIEFS

Across Kentucky

STARTING POINT

A

Kentucky Bourbon Trail Welcome Center & Exhibit is in the works. The Kentucky Distillers’ Association and Louisville’s Frazier History Museum have partnered to create the center to be located along Whiskey Row at the Frazier, which will be the official starting point of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

Slated to feature state-of-the-art interactive exhibits, the experience will provide an introduction to the history of bourbon and educate visitors on what makes Kentucky the ideal location for producing our native spirit.

“We get dozens of calls every day from visitors around the world who are planning their Kentucky Bourbon Trail journey and asking where to start,” KDA President Eric Gregory said. “Now, we’ll have the perfect answer—the Kentucky Bourbon Trail Welcome Center at the Frazier History Museum.”

A record one million stops were made on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour distilleries in 2016.

The Welcome Center is scheduled to open Conceptual rendering of the Welcome Center in August 2018.

SIPPING FOR A CAUSE

S

ome of the world’s rarest bourbons will be the highlight of a philanthropic event to benefit The Dragonfly Foundation, a nonprofit organization committed to assisting young cancer patients and their families and caregivers.

Burlington’s historic Tousey House Tavern will host the Decades Bourbon Tasting Event on Oct. 26. The rare bourbons to be sampled include Kentucky Owl batch #7, 1977 Old Weller Antique, 1984 Van Winkle Family Reserve, 2017 25 year Old Rip Van Winkle and other vintage samplings.

Handcrafted cocktails and cuisine by the Tousey House’s renowned Chef Jonathan Weiss and crew will accompany the tastings.

“We’re a family-owned business, which means we’ve always been centered around our community and family, and continuously looking for ways to give back,” said Brad Wainscott, managing partner of the Tousey House.

For tickets and more information, contact Wainscott at touseyhouse@fuse.net or visit the Tousey House Facebook page.

ALL ABOARD!

T

he Innovation Station, a project of the Madisonville-Hopkins County Economic Development Corporation and the City of Madisonville, will open in November in one of the city’s historic, Depression-era train stations. Renovations are nearly complete on the 4,700-square-foot space, which will feature 56 co-working spaces, two conference rooms, a business reference library and high-speed Internet.

The Innovation Station was inspired, in part, by the Launch Pad, a unique shared workspace in New Orleans. “In our eyes, that really fit the bill of what we wanted to see in Madisonville,” Mayor David Jackson said. “Our old train depot was comparable—a unique building, in a convenient location to downtown, and the workspace could provide an environment conducive to collaboration.”

Ruthann Padgett, vice president of entrepreneurial development, and Development President Ray Hagerman will be housed in the Innovation Station.

Madisonville Community College will hold business and entrepreneur education classes there, and programs such as Tech Tuesdays will provide networking and reciprocal learning opportunities. “We’ll offer one-on-one consultations for business owners, and we’ll be bringing in speakers and educators,” Padgett said.

“Workers will have all the tools and resources they need to get started, and the open areas will allow them to interact with and learn from each other.”

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K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • O C TO B E R 2 0 1 7

B I R T H DAYS 3 Kevin Richardson (1971), Lexington-born singer best known for his stint with the Backstreet Boys 4 Gary Ransdell (1951), retired president of Western Kentucky University 5 Ed McClanahan (1932), Brooksvilleborn author best known for his novel The Natural Man 5 Kevin Olusola (1988), beatboxer, rapper from Gary Ransdell Owensboro 5 Ann-Blair Thornton (1989), Miss Kentucky 2011 from Bowling Green 9 Joe Survant (1942), past Kentucky poet laureate and English professor at Western Kentucky University 12 Josh Hutcherson (1992), Unionborn actor best known for his roles in The Hunger Games 13 Pat Day (1953), retired Hall of Fame and four-time Eclipse Awardwinning jockey 15 Chris Ramsey (1962), wood artist from Somerset 17 Mark Maynard (1957), managing editor of Kentucky Today 23 Dwight Yoakam (1956), Pikevilleborn country music Matt Shultz singer and actor 26 Mallory Ervin (1985), Miss Kentucky 2009 from Morganfield 23 Matt Shultz (1983), Bowling Green-raised lead singer of the rock band Cage the Elephant 27 Mary T. Meagher Plant (1965), Louisville-born gold medal-winning Olympic swimmer and former world record holder in the butterfly 28 Annie Potts (1952), Franklin native best known for her roles in Designing Women and Pretty in Pink 28 Telma Hopkins (1948), Louisvilleborn singer/actress who was a member of Tony Orlando and Dawn and starred in Bosom Buddies and Gimme a Break!

29 Sonny Osborne (1937), Hyden-born Bluegrass singer and five-string banjo player Annie Potts

CULTURE

I

“

think that I shall never see, a poem lovely as a tree,” the poet Joyce Kilmer famously wrote. It’s likely Kilmer never came upon the gnarled, knotted and somewhat creepy Witches’ Tree that sits at the northwest corner of Park Avenue and 6th Street in historic Old Louisville. This tree, legend has it, grew out of, well, one dark and really stormy night.

Here’s how the story goes: Back in the day, the late 1880s to be exact, there was a lovely, tall maple tree that served as a popular gathering place for folks well acquainted with the dark arts—aka witches. It seems they would meet under the tall branches and double, double toil and trouble the night away.

But in 1889, a city planning committee selected the maple to be used in the coming year’s traditional May Day celebration, which meant it would be chopped down to provide the festival’s maypole. (In Victorian times, this was a popular celebration; its centerpiece was a tall tree that had been stripped of its bark and decorated with garlands. During the festival, children and others would dance around the maypole.) The local witches, as you might expect, took umbrage with this idea.

So they made a fuss and warned the committee, but folks didn’t listen, and the lumberjack’s chainsaw commenced.

The angry witches fled to the forest, found a new tree and did what they do best—swore revenge and cast a spell. “Beware the 11th month!” the head of the coven cautioned. And then everyone seemed to forget about it. Or did they?

Eleven months later, on March 27, 1890, Louisville was ripped apart by one of the most devastating cyclones on record. According to The Filson Historical Society website: “The storm hit at 8:30 p.m. and lasted only about five minutes, long enough to sweep over the downtown area. The storm entered the southwestern city limits and tore across the West End in a southeasterly direction, leaving behind a path of destruction.”

The storm, the report notes, was so oddly localized that there were people in Louisville who didn’t even know that buildings were destroyed and more than 100 lives were lost until the next day, when the Louisville Courier-Journal dubbed it the “Storm Demon.”

Soon after, there was evidence that the storm was maybe not just Mother Nature at her most destructive but actually the mark of something more evil settling the score. It is said that at the height of the storm, a lightning bolt struck the stump of the old maple, and magically a new tree sprung from

Illustrations by Annette Cable

Curiosities

its long-dead wood, a sapling that grew into the eerie Witches’ Tree.

Today, the landmark has contributed to Old Louisville’s reputation as one of the most haunted neighborhoods in America. You can learn more about the area’s sites by taking a tour. Louisville Historic Tours offers nightly, 90-minute tours of paranormal hot spots for $20 per person. David Dominé, author of the True Ghost Stories and Eerie Legends from America’s Most Haunted Neighborhood, will host The Victorian Ghost Walk Tour featuring The Witches’ Tree Oct. 19-22. For more information on the tours or to make a reservation, visit LouisvilleHistoricTours.com.

The local coven has come back to regularly cast spells and concoct potions, which has helped make the tree a popular tourist attraction.

It’s “become a kind of a destination for all kinds of people of different religions,” Dominé told WHAS-TV news recently. “They come and they leave amulets and charms and good luck offerings on the tree. People will often stop here on the way to Churchill Downs and leave an old horseshoe or a bell or something to bring them luck at the track.”

Thinking about stealing a trinket or two? Think again.

According to legend, the tree will put a hex on you.

Of course, in this age of social media, even The Witches’ Tree has its own Facebook page. There, she exhibits many of the gifts left for her, offers a spell or two and will answer if you message her. We did, and the tree was kind enough to share with readers some Halloween advice: October winds blow strong and bright, Halloween spirits roam day and night.

They shake my branches, fill you with fright.

They clatter my limbs, threaten with spite.

Bad luck, curses, hexes and more, Kentucky Monthly fans have some in store In this ghost month, as they leave front doors, For there are bluegrass goblins galore.

But there’s a way to keep luck good.

See me in this grand old neighborhood.

Leave tokens on my gnarled trunk of wood, Your luck will return, the way it should.

Hocus pocus, and swampwood tea, A year’s good luck I will grant to thee.

Fiddle-dee-do and fiddle-dee-dee, As thanks for the charm, blessed you will be!

— Cynthia Grisolia O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

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FOOD

Cooking

FALL FLAVOR

Photos by Jesse Hendrix-Inman. Dishes prepared at Sullivan University by Ann Currie.

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K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • M AY 2 0 1 6

As autumn arrives, brisk breezes begin to blow and earlier sunsets trigger a desire to settle inside for some warm, substantial dinners. The season’s harvest yields heartier vegetables such as varieties of squash.

Executive Chef James Moran of Sullivan University’s Juleps Catering offers a creative selection of dishes featuring that iconic fall vegetable.

Grilled Chicken with Succotash and Kale Almond Pesto This recipe is Latin meets the South, with the manchego and roasted poblano pepper that give this “pesto” a little flair. When people think of pesto, they usually think basil, pine nuts, garlic, parmesan cheese and oil. However, pesto is an easy dish for adding your own personality. One of my favorite parts of cooking is adding my own twist to a classic dish to elevate flavors. The kale and almonds give different flavor profiles to this pesto.

1 roasted poblano pepper 3 cups kale ½ cup marcona almonds, plus extra for garnish ½ cup manchego cheese, shredded 2 tablespoons roasted garlic puree ½ cup canola oil, plus 2 tablespoons 1 lemon, juiced 2 8-ounce chicken breasts 2 slices thick-cut bacon, diced small 2 tablespoons onion, diced small 1 large yellow squash, diced medium 1 cup fresh corn 2 cups spinach 1 tablespoon minced garlic 8 cherry tomatoes, cut in half 2 tablespoons chives, finely diced Salt, to taste Pepper, to taste 1. Over an open flame or a grill, roast the poblano pepper, rotating until it is charred evenly, about 3 minutes. Place it in a small bowl and cover with plastic wrap to create steam until skin starts to fall off, about 10 minutes. Remove the pepper from the bowl and rub

off the burnt outside with a paper towel. Do not rinse.

Remove the stem and seeds, and set aside.

2. Remove all the stems from the kale. In a small saucepan over high heat, add water and a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Add the kale and blanch until the kale turns bright green, about 2 minutes. Quickly remove the kale and add it to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. Drain the water from the kale and try to dry the kale as much as possible.

3. In a blender, add the marcona almonds, manchego cheese and garlic purée. Mix until blended. Drizzle in a portion of the canola oil to loosen up the mixture.

Add the charred pepper and kale and blend until smooth. Add the rest of the ½ cup of oil and taste the pesto. Add the lemon juice and salt to your liking. Set aside.

4. Heat the grill to medium high heat. Add the chicken breasts and cook until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees, about 15 minutes. Remove from the grill and set aside.

5. In a medium sauté skillet over medium high heat, add 2 tablespoons of canola oil and bacon, and cook until the fat renders, about 2 minutes. Stir in the onions and cook for 1 minute. Add the squash, corn, spinach, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook for 3 minutes.

4. To serve, place each chicken breast on a plate. Top with the vegetable mixture. Garnish with cherry tomatoes, almonds and chives, and spoon pesto around the edge of the plate. * NOTE: Can substitute jalapeno pepper for poblano, but use only 1 tablespoon.

O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

9

FOOD

Cooking

Spaghetti Squash ‘Pasta’

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Many people love a big bowl of pasta, but I just want to take a nap after consumption.

Spaghetti squash is a great substitute for pasta. It is a lighter and gluten-free version of “spaghetti.” With this dish, you can substitute your grandmother’s marinara recipe and maybe include homemade meatballs or grilled chicken breasts. The squash complements a number of ingredients, so you can be as adventurous as you like.

2 spaghetti squash 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for roasting the squash 4 small cubes butter 1 lemon, juiced and zested 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped 3 basil leaves, chopped 2 tablespoons chives, chopped 1 tablespoon fresh curly parsley, chopped 12 cherry tomatoes ½ cup andouille sausage, diced into small pieces ¼ cup yellow onion, diced 1 tablespoon minced garlic 1 red bell pepper, roasted and julienned Shredded cheese, to taste Fresh cracked black pepper and salt, to taste 1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the squash in half length-wise and remove the seeds. Rub the

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K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 7

squash with the oil, and in the center—where you removed the seeds—add a small cube of butter.

Roast uncovered until the squash is soft, about 25 minutes.

2. Remove the squash from the oven.

While it is still warm, hold it in your hand and run a fork from top to bottom removing the squash from the skin. The squash should resemble thin spaghetti noodles.

Set aside.

3. In a small mixing bowl, combine the lemon zest, oregano, basil, chives and parsley, and set aside.

4. In a small mixing bowl, cut the cherry tomatoes in half and squeeze the lemon juice on them. Add a pinch of salt and set aside.

5. Add 2 tablespoons oil to a medium sauté skillet over medium-high heat. Add andouille sausage and sauté about 3 minutes. Stir in onions and cook another 2 minutes.

Add garlic and sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant. Stir in the roasted red bell peppers and the spaghetti squash, and sauté another 2 minutes. Taste the “pasta” and add more salt to your liking.

6. To serve, garnish squash and sausage mixture with cheese, herb and zest mixture, tomatoes, a drizzle of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon and pepper.

3 garlic cloves, chopped 1 cup heavy whipping cream 1 cup coconut milk 1 large butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed ¼ cup yellow curry powder 1 tablespoon ginger, grated 1 tablespoon turmeric 1 bay leaf 2 tablespoons salt

Curry Butternut Squash Purée My inspiration for this recipe was sweet meets heat. The butternut squash has a natural sweetness that complements the spiciness of a curry. I love to make homemade curry paste with smoked habaneros or Carolina reapers, but you can find a nice curry powder at the local Asian or Indian market. The recipe below isn’t really spicy; aromatic would be a better description.

2 tablespoons canola oil 2 cups yellow onion, julienned 2 tablespoons honey

1. Add the oil to a medium pot over medium-high heat. Let it reach a smoke point, about 2 minutes. Add onions and honey, and cook until onions soften, about 5 minutes.

Stir in garlic and cook until it is fragrant, about 45 seconds. Add the cream, coconut milk, squash, curry powder, ginger, turmeric, bay leaf and salt.

2. Simmer until the squash is soft, about 10 minutes. Discard the bay leaf and purée the mixture in a blender or food processor until it is smooth. Adjust the salt to taste. * NOTES: When peeling and seeding the butternut squash, wear gloves to prevent your hands from drying out. Cut the squash into consistent chunks to promote an even cook time.

Black Walnut Bacon Sorghum Vinaigrette This recipe truly represents Southern fall flavors. With local Kentucky sorghum and bacon fat, it screams comfort. I pair this vinaigrette with a warm salad, fingerling potatoes, a poached egg and duck confit. ¾ cup canola oil, plus 1 tablespoon 1 cup yellow onion, julienned 1 tablespoon light brown sugar 2 tablespoons water Salt, to taste ½ cup walnuts ¼ cup champagne vinegar or white balsamic vinegar 1 tablespoon whole grain mustard ½ cup sorghum ¼ cup warm bacon fat 2 tablespoons black pepper 1 tablespoon kosher salt 1. Add 1 tablespoon oil to a sauté skillet over medium-high heat.

Add onion and brown sugar. Cook about 1 minute. Add water to prevent burning. Once the onions begin to break down, reduce heat to low and cook until the onions are soft and translucent, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and set aside to cool.

2. In a small sauté skillet over medium high heat, add the walnuts and toast until oils start to extract, about 2 minutes. Stir continuously to avoid burning. Remove from pan and let cool at room temperature.

3. In a blender, add caramelized onions, walnuts, vinegar, mustard, sorghum, bacon fat, salt and pepper. Once the ingredients are blended, slowly add remaining canola oil until emulsified.

4. To serve, drizzle over a bed of lettuce.

BURLEY TEMPLE INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 oz.

Kentucky Bourbon 4 oz. Ale-8-One Grenadine Maraschino Cherry P R E PA R AT I O N

Fill rocks glass with ice.

Pour bourbon into glass Followed by a splash of grenadine and Ale-8-One. Garnish with a maraschino cherry.

DRINK

M AY 2 0 1 6 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

11

A Tale of Two Cultures A love of wine, food and farming inspires Katy Groves-Mussat and Hubert Mussat of the Farmer & Frenchman Winery

Text and Photos By Lindsey McClave

12 12

NTTU UC CKKYY M MO ON NTTH HLY LY •• O OC CTO TOBBEERR 22001177 KKEEN

Hubert Mussat and Katy Groves-Mussat with their gorgeous vineyard as a backdrop; opposite, inside the rustic-yet-elegant event space.

T

he sun rests hot and high above Henderson, a smattering of clouds bright against the blue sky, offering patches of shade to the rows of corn beginning to crop up around me.

Leaving the small bustle of central Henderson behind, I turn onto a country highway, following the road past undulating fields until the drive leading to Farmer & Frenchman Winery appears on my left. A border of thick corn stalks frames the drive before dropping to the side dramatically to reveal a sweeping vista overlooking neatly arranged, trellised grapevines. A rustic barn sits just behind the vines, its age apparent, yet it’s well preserved.

I curve around this idyllic farmscape and park in a gravel lot adjacent to a larger structure housing the vineyard’s restaurant and tasting room. I step into the restaurant, excited to meet proprietors Katy Groves-Mussat and Hubert Mussat, the husband-and-wife team behind this 1½-year-old wine- and food-inspired venture.

The design of the restaurant and tasting room is spacious and open, and the exposed ductwork and contemporary décor create an unexpected juxtaposition to the view of the vines beyond. This contrast mirrors Katy and Hubert’s relationship, and the beautiful result of what can be created when two individuals from different corners of the world come together and realize a dream in the middle of Kentucky’s rolling farmland.

••• Katy and Hubert’s love story did not begin in Katy’s hometown of Henderson or Hubert’s hometown of Paris, France. “I had to go to Miami to meet my Frenchman,” says Katy, laughing at this unlikely confluence of events.

Katy spent her childhood plucking strawberries from the vines around the old tobacco barn built by her grandfather, who, along with his wife, bought the farmland in the 1940s that the Farmer & Frenchman Winery now occupies. Katy found herself drawn to agriculture and went on to study it at the University of Alabama. Her degree would lead her to focus on local foodways, specifically the influence of Cuban politics and culture on the foodways of southern Florida, regularly taking her to the vibrant city of Miami.

Hubert’s journey to Miami came via a different but related industry: food. His family is of Italian origin, and he was exposed to their recipes for pizza, pasta and the like at the age of 8, spending time behind the scenes in the kitchen of his father’s restaurant. Growing up in Paris, Hubert was naturally immersed in wine as well, since it is such a fundamental part of French culture. He was always interested in learning more, greatly developing his palate and breadth of knowledge over time.

Hubert marveled at his father’s business acumen and soaked up as much knowledge as possible, building his O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

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skillset by lending a hand throughout the restaurant and kitchen. He broke from this trade early, spending three years as a civil engineer, but it wasn’t the right fit, and he couldn’t help but heed the kitchen’s call. He made the move to Miami in 2000, joining his father, who had been running a successful restaurant in the area. Together, they opened a second establishment, and Hubert settled in Miami. The stars aligned in 2009, when he and Katy met at a party called “French Tuesday.”

••• Their romantic fate sealed, Hubert and Katy made several visits to Henderson over time—trips to see the barn her grandfather had built and the land where Katy ran free as a child were inevitable. Katy and her mother had always daydreamed about resurrecting the farm, but none of their ideas had taken root. Hubert was struck by the beauty of the rustic barn and the sloping valleys below, and the wheels of revitalization began to turn. All that was needed was Hubert’s vision to bring the farm back to life.

A fundamental aspect of Katy and Hubert’s dream was to highlight the beauty of the farm and to showcase country living. Nothing brings people together quite like food and wine, and Hubert’s background in the food and beverage industry gave them a leg up in establishing their restaurant.

The vineyard side would take a bit more education, for as much as Hubert and Katy knew about wine, they weren’t winemakers. They started by attending a conference on fruits and vegetables at the University of Kentucky and began to connect with established Kentucky vintners as well as Patsy Wilson, the University’s grape expert, and Andy Rideout from the UK College of Agriculture’s Cooperative Extension Service.

Given that winemaking is a lengthy labor of love, Farmer & Frenchman Winery offers a curated selection of wines from France and Italy as well as varietals bottled under the F&F Select label, which includes wine crafted by Katy, Hubert and their winemaker, Raymond Meyer, using imported grapes that are fermented, aged and bottled at

The Henderson County winery is idyllic and picturesque.

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an off-site facility. The vines decorating the lush fields of Farmer & Frenchman Winery were planted in the spring of 2015 and are now studded with chambourcin and vignole grapes—varietals that have proven to thrive in the climate of the Bluegrass State. The first run of wine made with grapes from their own soil will be ready in the coming months. In the meantime, the spirit of bringing two cultures together continues with their wine list’s mix of locally and European-produced wine.

••• Whatever wine you sample, there is an item on the restaurant’s menu with which to pair it. Hubert’s Italian roots are reflected throughout the offerings, which include a selection of pizza and pasta, French and Kentucky cheese platters, and daily specials often crafted with ingredients sourced from the region. Hubert uses recipes that have been passed down in his family for years, and everything is made from scratch.

The restaurant has drawn many from Henderson and the surrounding area to the farm since it opened. However, when developing their business plan, Katy and Hubert knew the concept would need to be multifaceted to meet their financial demands and to fully realize their vision. The answer was the same rustic building that had so inspired them in the first place—the old tobacco barn. As much of the structure as possible was restored, enabling the barn’s original charm to shine while being highlighted by large chandeliers. When the barn’s side doors are open, the sweeping farmscape is exposed, making this renewed space a picture-perfect location for an event.

The couple continues to develop the farm in line with their vision of what Farmer & Frenchman Winery will grow to be, including plans to build three cabins on the grounds, so guests can take a short walk to their lodgings after a day spent experiencing the winery and restaurant. Katy is a yoga instructor and looks forward to one day offering customized retreats—bringing food, wine and yoga together for a rejuvenating weekend spent among the vines.

Along with a plethora of drink options, the restaurant offers a mouthwatering charcuterie and cheese board, and made-from-scratch pizza.

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After my tour with Katy and Hubert and a lunch of housemade pizza, charcuterie and a flight of wine, I can understand the desire to laze away the day, finding peace in the fruitful surroundings. They admit the road to creating Farmer & Frenchman Winery hasn’t been without bumps, and that in only their second year of business they still have much to accomplish, but say their life on the farm couldn’t be better. “It was like I never left,” said Katy of returning to Henderson permanently.

Hubert agrees and couldn’t be more grateful for the community’s open arms.

Eight years after a farmer found her Frenchman at a party in Miami, their family has increased twofold. Their children wake up every day, looking out over the fruits of their parents’ labor, a dream realized that is sure to only get better with age. Q

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Jim Bowie

Knife-Wielding Son of Kentucky Part I: The Early Years

By Ron Soodalter Illustrations By Jessica Patton 18

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S

itting up in his sick bed, he could hear the chaos in the courtyard outside—the roar of cannon, the crack of musket fire, the screams in Spanish and English of wounded and dying men. He knew it was only a matter of minutes before they smashed in the door to his chamber, but with a single-shot pistol in each hand and his fabled knife in his lap, he was as ready as fevered resolve and desperation could make him.

Suddenly, the heavy door gave way with a crash as a horde of wild-eyed Mexican soldiers poured in. He fired the pistols, felling a man with each shot. Scooping up his terrible blade, he slashed and thrust, inflicting mortal damage until the soldiers’ bayonets ended the one-sided contest. Jim Bowie, Southern entrepreneur, Texas pioneer and fabled knife-fighter, was dead.

At least, so goes the legend. In fact, there is no definitive account of Bowie’s final moments, any more than there is of his fellow Alamo defender, Davy Crockett.

Mexican soldiers unaware that Bowie was dying or perhaps already dead of disease reported scornfully that the famous “Santiago” Bowie perished helpless in his cot, cowering under a blanket.

The fog that surrounds Bowie’s death is consistent with the fantastic stories that followed him throughout his life, ultimately making him a folkloric figure of mythic proportions. However, a study of the documented history of Bowie’s life reveals a man whose character was somewhat less than peerless.

••• According to the Texas State Historical Association, the flesh-and-blood James Bowie “was born near Terrapin Creek [now Spring Creek] where it crosses Bowie’s Mill Road [Turnertown Road], nine miles northwest of Franklin, Logan County [now Simpson County], Kentucky, probably on April 10, 1796.” He was one of four brothers, sons of a farmer, millwright, whiskey distiller and dedicated wanderer named Rezin.

Prior to James’ birth, Rezin had moved the family from Tennessee, where he had operated a gristmill. The Kentucky frontier offered boundless opportunity, and the Bowies prospered. Rezin acquired a small herd of cattle, built another mill, increased his slave holdings, and acquired hundreds of acres of land. Always seeing greater possibilities around the next bend in the road, however, he soon took his brood to Missouri, and from there, to Spanish-owned Louisiana Territory, where he again did well.

Rezin’s third son, James, embraced the rustic life, and hunted and fished the bayous from early youth. (According to Bowie family lore, he roped and wrestled alligators for fun, and trapped bears for profit.) Physically, James was impressive. His brother John described him as “a stout, rather raw-boned man, of six feet [in] height, weigh[ing] 180 pounds,” with sandy hair, deep-set gray eyes and a fair complexion. “Taken altogether,” wrote John, “he was a manly, fine-looking person, and by many of the fair ones he was called handsome.”

Despite what John describes as an “open, frank disposition,” James had a dark side. He could not tolerate what he perceived as an insult. “[T]he displays of his anger,” wrote John, “were terrible, and frequently terminated in some tragical scene.” A friend recalled, “When unexcited there was a calm seriousness … which gave assurance of great will power, unbending firmness of purpose, and unflinching courage. When fired by anger his face bore the semblance of an enraged tiger.” In the words of one biographer: “What observers took for fearlessness was as much an entire forgetfulness of his own safety in the grips of his fury … Instilling fear in others was something James Bowie did with ease.”

••• While in his teens, James worked in his father’s logging business and invested in land. But by 1814, the War of 1812 was still raging and had finally come to Louisiana. James and older brother Rezin enlisted in a Louisiana regiment and marched to New Orleans. Although they saw no fighting, it was James’ first exposure to a cosmopolitan center, and its elegance—along with the saloons and gambling dens—made a lasting impression.

When the war ended, James, Rezin and John entered into a business arrangement with the notorious pirate and smuggler, Jean Lafitte, in an enterprise that was both sordid and illegal. They became slave traders. For James, whose long-term ambition was to become a major landowner, it was a fast track to making enough money to realize his goal.

Theirs was a two-part enterprise. Lafitte would attack slave ships on the seas and commandeer their human cargo, which he would then sell to the Bowie brothers at a dollar per pound, to be ferried up the river from Vermilion Bay and sold on the auction blocks of St. Landry Parish.

Since the law would have considered their enterprise illegal importation, the Bowie brothers devised a scheme to keep themselves above the law, while earning tremendous returns. Rather than risk arrest and confiscation of their “property,” they would turn the slaves over to the local authorities as illegal imports and collect sizable rewards. With the reward money in their purse, they would then buy back the slaves at auction and re-sell them at a significant profit.

In a relatively short time, slave trading earned the Bowies some $65,000—the equivalent of more than $1.25 million in today’s currency. They soon quit the slaving business, built a sugar plantation, and, with James in the lead, set about establishing themselves as real estate moguls. Unfortunately, they did so almost exclusively through swindling and land fraud.

••• Louisiana—including what had become Arkansas—had been a Spanish territory, and the king of Spain had proffered parcels of land as a means of encouraging Spanish settlement beginning in the early 1700s. President Thomas Jefferson honored these land grants when he purchased the territory from Spain in 1803. However, it soon became evident that several grantees had never occupied their land, while others had been the recipients of “floating grants,” allowing them to select the land they wanted at some future date. Such conditions all but invited those who were inclined to perpetrate land fraud; such men were the brothers Bowie.

At this time, Louisiana real estate was ripe for the picking. Writes historian William C. Davis, “The business of Louisiana in 1820 was the acquisition of wealth. Men lived on the expectation of fortune, hoping each new day for the bonanza that awaited in the trading houses of New Orleans or out in the vast soil.”

James Bowie was not unique in seeking a fast track to financial success. Swindlers abounded in this time and place, and having once been the victim of a land fraud scheme himself, he was aware of both the methods and the possibilities. Bowie not only forged land grant documents; he then created deeds of sale, indicating that he had purchased the land described in the spurious grants. Since the documents required the signatures of witnesses, Bowie forged these as well, using the names of respected citizens who were far enough away to render their awareness of his activities unlikely. The plan was to O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

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immediately sell the feloniously acquired land to unsuspecting buyers. “The audacity of Bowie’s scheme,” writes Davis, “was stunning.”

Inevitably, his plot was uncovered when a registrar noticed that the handwriting on all the grants and related papers was identical. Feeling the need for an immediate change of venue, Bowie moved from the backwater Avoyelles to the more upscale Alexandria, where he continued to register bogus claims. His name was fast becoming synonymous with fraud throughout the region.

Bowie refused to let this stop him, as he set about seeking loans and letters of credit based on his bogus real estate claims. At 30, he also began involving himself in local politics. In backing a friend and fellow army veteran named Samuel Wells, he ran afoul of Maj. Norris Wright, Wells’ strong political opponent.

Wright, a local sheriff and notorious duelist, publicly maligned Bowie’s reputation, an insult the volatile Bowie could not stand. Armed with nothing but a pocketknife, he confronted Wright, who promptly drew a pistol and shot Bowie in the side. The bullet was deflected by pocket coins, causing only a bruise and a broken rib. Bowie kept his feet and proceeded to pummel Wright, whose friends intervened in time to save the major’s life. Bowie’s own friends belatedly arrived and carried the injured man to his room. The two would soon meet again on the field of honor, and what followed would elevate Bowie’s status from slave runner and local land swindler to nationally known knife-fighting superstar.

••• The year 1827 can be considered the time in which the legend took root. Inevitably, any discussion of Bowie comes around to the famous knife that bore— and still bears—his name. Folklore tells us that he designed the weapon himself, with a massive blade, clipped and sharpened along the front of the top edge.

Satisfied with the lethal design, Bowie then commissioned the highly skilled Arkansas blacksmith James Black to fabricate the knife. Black, the story goes, had earlier found a piece of a meteor, which he forged into the blade of this remarkable fighting engine.

Handled in ivory and mounted in silver, the one-of-a-kind superweapon became the deadly, inseparable companion of its designer.

The reality is much less dramatic. Fearing for his injured brother’s future safety, Rezin gave James a knife for his protection: “Colonel James Bowie had been shot by an individual with whom he was at variance,” Rezin later wrote, “and as I presumed a second attempt would be made … to take his life, I gave him the knife to use as occasion might require, as a defensive weapon.”

In an era of singleshot firearms, men often relied upon their edged weapons for protection and to resolve matters of 20

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Above, a drawing of an early Bowie knife; below, James Bowie’s signature, taken from a document dated Jan. 5, 1836

honor. The knife that James accepted from his brother and wore for the rest of his life was far from a thing of beauty.

It was a simple, homemade affair, as described by Rezin himself in a letter written two years after his celebrated brother’s death: “The first Bowie knife was made by myself in the parish of Avoyelles, in this state [Louisiana], as a hunting knife, for which purpose, exclusively, it was used for many years … The length of the blade was nine and one-quarters inches, its width one and one-half inches, single edged and not curved.”

More than six decades later, Rezin’s granddaughter— recalling her mother’s version of the actual forging of this first Bowie knife—wrote: “This instrument, which was never intended for ought but a hunting knife, was made of an old file in the plantation blacksmith shop of my grandfather’s Bayou Boeuf plantation, the maker was a hired white man named Jesse Clift, he afterwards went to Texas. My mother, Mrs. Jos. H. Moore then a little girl, went to the shop with her father, heard his directions, and saw Clift make the knife.” No ivory, no silver, no meteorite—just a functional, well-used hunting knife.

••• It wasn’t long before James would have occasion to use his brother’s gift. His friend, Samuel Wells, got into an altercation with a Dr. Thomas Maddox, which they agreed to resolve in a pistol duel. Since Louisiana forbade dueling, the event was scheduled to take place on a sandbar in the Mississippi River near Vidalia. On the morning of Sept. 19, 1827, the two antagonists paced off the required distance, as their seconds and a sizable group of friends looked on from the sidelines. Longstanding animosities existed between

various members of both parties. Chief among them were James Bowie and Maj. Wright, who had been making himself scarce since Bowie’s recovery, but on this day had chosen to accompany his friend Maddox.

At the signal, both parties fired and missed. They fired a second time, with the same result and agreed to resolve their differences over a glass of wine. Others in the party were not so sanguine, however, and a free-for-all broke out.

Pistols were drawn and fired on both sides, and one member of Maddox’s party, frustrated at missing Bowie, threw his pistol at Bowie’s head, inflicting a deep gash.

As Bowie clung to a tree stump, momentarily stunned, Wright approached and shot him through the lung. An enraged Bowie charged his nemesis, whereupon two other Maddox partisans fired at him, shooting him through the thigh and felling him. Wright and an associate descended on Bowie, stabbing at him with their swords, as the recumbent man furiously parried their blows with his knife. One sword thrust pierced Bowie’s left hand, while another glanced off his breastbone and skidded down his ribs.

Incredibly, the grievously wounded Bowie lunged upward, grabbing Wright’s lapel and hauling himself into a sitting position. Shocked, Wright drew back, pulling Bowie nearly upright. Wielding his knife with fixed purpose, Bowie thrust it deep into Wright’s chest, and, as he later recalled, “twisted it to cut his heart strings.” Wright died instantly, falling onto his mortal enemy and pinning him.

Wright’s associate again stabbed at Bowie, who managed to cast off Wright’s body and wound his assailant in the arm.

The fight, which Rezin later described as a “chance medley,” or rough fight, ended as suddenly as it had begun.

It had taken less than two minutes and left two men dead and Bowie severely injured. He had been shot twice—once seriously—stabbed at least seven times, and cut deeply on

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his head. As Bowie was carried from the field, the physician attending the duel echoed everyone’s opinion that he would not survive. Bowie himself, while conceding that he was “damned badly wounded,” had no intention of dying.

Reports of the affair made national news, and a slowly healing Bowie found himself the focus of widespread admiration. Strangers, assuming a familiarity, referred to him as “Big Jim Bowie.” He had singlehandedly fought four men armed with swords and pistols, killing one and wounding at least one more, using nothing but what eyewitnesses called a “butcher knife.” States biographer Davis, “Impelled by the rage that blinded him to fear or self-protection, he stood his ground and simply kept fighting. That was the sort of thing that turned brutal, pointless brawling into legend.”

Suddenly, men across the country were requesting their local blacksmiths or cutlery stores to make them a “knife like Bowie’s.” Soon, the steel mills of Sheffield, England, were turning them out in the tens of thousands for export to the United States, and the Bowie knife, in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, quickly became de rigueur on the frontier. Over the years, Bowie, never one to shy from celebrity, had several large, ornate knives forged as gifts to various friends and luminaries. In one brief free-for-all, he had literally hewn a place for himself in the pantheon of American fighting men.

followed Bowie throughout his life, and Rezin was quite specific on the subject. The sandbar fight, he wrote, “was the only time the knife was used for any purpose other than that for which it was … originally designed … [N]either Col. Bowie nor myself, at any point of our lives, ever had a duel with any person whatsoever.”

Before he was fully healed, Bowie was back in the land fraud business with Rezin and John, this time applying for approval on hundreds of spurious grants in Arkansas. Their plan was a clever one. They flooded the territorial superior court office with hundreds of applications, all written in Spanish. Not speaking the language and overwhelmed by the sheer number, the U.S. attorney simply approved the vast majority of their claims, making the Bowies financially comfortable, at least for the moment.

Now approaching his mid-30s, the ever-ambitious Bowie sought to enhance his station by running for Congress.

However, the story of the sandbar fight did not work in his favor with the type of prominent men whose support he required, nor did the swirling rumors of his involvement in land swindles. A political career was not in Bowie’s future.

Moreover, given the increasing notoriety his fraudulent claims were now receiving, he determined that it was time for a move. New horizons beckoned, and Big Jim Bowie saw the promise of his future in the raw new frontier to the West: Texas! Q

••• Ironically, despite Hollywood’s best efforts, and notwithstanding the countless tales of Bowie dispatching opponents in droves, the Vidalia sandbar melee was the only knife fight he was ever in. No documentation whatsoever exists to support the wild tales of mayhem that

Home for the Holidays This holiday season visit our campus and help us celebrate our 150th anniversary.

Enjoy an array of holiday lights and decorations during a self-guided tour through our historical campus while listening to memories of the holidays from those who have called our campus home over the years.

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Part II of the Bowie saga, which will appear in the November issue, telld the story of James’ brief but eventful sojourn in Texas. It was there that he achieved fame as a soldier and a leader of men and, through his death, a revered place in the so-called “Texas Trinity.”

Three days in Kentucky. That’s all it takes to discover that horses, bourbon and bluegrass are just the beginning. For sample itineraries and travel tips, visit KentuckyTourism.com/weekend.

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O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

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Come relax at Point Park or explore our many trails and waterways.

Ride the Valley View Ferry, visit the museum or hike the trails at Camp Nelson Civil War Heritage Park, raise a glass at First Vineyard, home of the first commercial vineyard in the U.S., or enjoy the majestic views of the Kentucky River Palisades on the Kentucky River Blueway Trail.

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SPIRITED TALES Historic Buffalo Trace Distillery has been the site of some ghostly encounters over the years

By Brent Owen 32

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H

igh on a Franklin County hill overlooking the Kentucky River sits Buffalo Trace Distillery, a mecca of bourbon that has been in operation since the late 19th century. Iconic figures in the industry, like Col. E.H. Taylor and Albert Blanton, have put out some of the finest bourbon in Kentucky from barrels held in its rack houses.

But not all of the spirits at Buffalo Trace are intoxicating; some just might be supernatural.

Over the years, there have been many accounts of ghostly run-ins throughout the property. On most weekends, in addition to the traditional distillery tour, Buffalo Trace offers a guided ghost tour that visits some of the most “active places” on the site. “There’s so much history here,” tour guide Will Prible said. “Not just that, but there’s so many layers of history.”

Prible met with me to walk the grounds and recount stories about ghostly encounters on the property—some personal, some secondhand.

“I’m not a skeptic,” he said. “I like to get spooked. Not that I invite it—doing Ouija boards and stuff like that. I don’t need to bring that on. But I do enjoy a good ghost story now and then.”

••• The most famous story focuses on Warehouse C, a building constructed in 1885. Sometime in the early 20th century, the foreman was taking a nap inside the warehouse while his men worked outside.

He drifted off with his hat pulled down over his eyes. Suddenly, he awoke from a dead sleep to the sound of someone whispering, “Get your men out of the way.”

He jumped with a start, removed his hat, and looked around. No one was there. He put his hat back on and returned to his afternoon nap.

Again, from a dead sleep, he heard: “Get your men out of there, now!”

With that, the foreman jumped up, stopped everything and got his men away from the building. A few minutes later, nearly all the brick on the side of the building where the men had been working fell off the structure and landed at the spot where they had been. Several people would have died that afternoon if the foreman hadn’t heeded a supernatural warning.

On my visit to the distillery, Prible took me to the second floor of Warehouse C and showed me a haunting line in the masonry between the original bricks and those that replaced the ones that fell. It’s unclear exactly who the ghostly warning came from, but many suspect Col. Taylor, a man who was obsessed not only with a quality product, but also with the care and well-being of his staff.

This story is indicative of most of the ghostly encounters that have occurred at Buffalo Trace. They tend to be nonthreatening, gentle, innocuous and sometimes playful. Words like “creepy” or “eerie” might come to mind, but no one has ever claimed to have felt anxious or even afraid after one of the supernatural experiences.

••• The more playful run-ins come from the ghost of a little girl. “That one bothers me the most,” Prible said. “I have a thing about kids and ghosts. That’s when I wet my pants.”

When the second floor of the visitors center was being renovated, a group of painters came in to work after hours to avoid being in the way of visitors. As the crew went up the back staircase and turned the corner, they saw a little girl standing in the corner wearing period dress. All five of the painters admit to having seen her standing there.

After a few minutes in which the workers watched in quiet awe, she simply disappeared.

Prible had an encounter in that very same room. He was setting up for a wedding one afternoon. When he arrived, he saw that the lights were on in the second-floor room, where the event was to take place.

“The lights in that room aren’t kept on a switch but on motion sensors,” he said. “The lights go on and off depending on if anyone is in that particular area of the room. I just figured someone was already there to help.”

As he approached the building, he found all the doors were locked, so he began to knock. No one answered. Finally, he found a guard who opened the building and let him in.

“As soon as I got in, I could hear someone walking around upstairs,” Prible recalled. “As I went upstairs, I called, ‘Hello?’ ” No answer. And when he got upstairs, the lights were out.

A little spooked, Prible started doing what he could until his crew O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

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arrived for the rest of the preparations, starting at one of the bars. He then heard someone at the bar on the other side of the wall shuffling around, as if setting up that bar.

He peeked around the corner. Nothing. And then, suddenly, at the bar from where he had just been, he heard the same noises. So he peeked back over there. Nothing. It seemed like a kid playing a game with him. This back-and-forth happened a few more times before something eerie caught his attention.

“I noticed that every time I walked to a different part of the room, as I followed the sounds, I was the one triggering the lights,” he said. “So whatever was creating the noise was doing it in the dark and not triggering the motion sensor at all. That’s when I was like: ‘nope.’ ” Considering the playful nature of the experience, I suggested it might be the same little girl the painters saw.

“Maybe,” Prible said, “maybe, but I don’t want to think about that.”

A second little girl has been photographed on the property near a good climbing tree behind the Blanton Mansion. The little girls are somewhat of a mystery to the staff of Buffalo Trace. No one has yet been able to make a connection between either girl and the property. The closest they’ve come to an answer is that two little girls once lived across the street from the distillery. One girl drowned in a well, and the other died of a fever.

••• Prible had another ghostly encounter while giving a tour of Warehouse D. Warehouse D was built in 1907 and still houses more than 20,000 barrels of bourbon. Around 2 p.m. on a Saturday, he brought the group in and gathered at a first-floor intersection where two aisles meet. He was about to speak, when he looked down one aisle and saw a man standing at the other end looking intently at one of the barrels. “How did someone with the tour get that far away without me noticing?” was the first thought that came to Prible’s mind.

“He wasn’t glowing or ethereal, like you imagine ghosts.

He was standing there just as you and I are, wearing khaki pants and a shirt, almost as if it were a uniform or something,” Prible said. He asked the man to rejoin the group, but the man didn’t respond. Prible asked again, and again received no indication that the man had even heard him. Just then, the man stepped forward, walked right into the barrels, and disappeared.

A woman standing beside Prible asked who the man was. Prible’s response was somewhat appropriate: “You saw that, too? I’m not crazy!”

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He then walked down and looked between all the ricks to see where the man could have gone. But there was no room for a grown man to fit between them; he had simply vanished. “It was spookier when I got down there, because I figured I would find someone who got away from the group or someone that works here, who just didn’t hear me,” Prible said. “I got down there, and no one was there.

The hair on my arms immediately stood up.”

As he returned to the group, he explained what had happened and allowed them each to walk down to see for themselves. Upon checking out the spot where the man had disappeared, they all agreed that no one was there.

••• These are only a few of the stories that echo throughout the buildings of Buffalo Trace Distillery. People may read stories like these and debate their validity, writing them off to natural causes or, at worst, claiming folks make up these tales. But in the end, belief in ghosts is just that: a belief.

There’s something reassuring that in a place like Buffalo Trace, the epicenter of the industry at the very heart of the Bluegrass, the ghosts who wander there are as good natured as the spirits that surround them. Q

A Spectral Experience?

Learn more about Buffalo Trace’s ghost sightings on the distillery’s Ghost Tour, offered Thursday-Sunday.

This tour is limited to 30 people and fills quickly, so book well in advance. For more information, visit buffalotracedistillery.com or call 1-800-654-8471.

Special thanks to tour guide Will Prible for providing his haunting insights.

Photo: Rob Taber

Folk ~ Bluegr ass ~ americana

Watch performances online at lostriversessions.org and on WKU-PBS (check your local listings)

Listen on the radio and online at wkyufm.org every 1st Thursday of the month @ 8/9e

LOST RIVER SESSIONS LIVE!

Monthly concert series at the historic Capitol Arts Center in downtown Bowling Green.

Visit us online for concert and broadcast information.

LostRiverSessions.org

n I s t n e l Ta

Terror M

any Kentuckians may not realize that the Commonwealth practically brims with creators of grim and gruesome flicks. Probably the best known of these is horror movie icon John Carpenter, who was born in upstate New York but moved to Bowling Green as a 5-yearold and attended Western Kentucky University prior to becoming a filmmaker.

Jackson native Jeffrey Reddick, screenwriter and director of the Final Destination film franchise, posed questions to some of the best and brightest working in the horror film genre in Kentucky today, gaining insight into the joys and challenges of filmmakers P.J. Starks – writer, creator and 36

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Picking the brains (BRAINS!) of Kentucky horror filmmakers

producer of Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories; Cherokee Hall – writer, director and producer of Terror at Crimson Creek; Tim Ritter – writer, director and producer of Reconciled Through The Christ; Nathan Milliner – writer and director of The Confession of Fred Krueger; Claude Miles – writer, director and producer of The Wrecking Crew vs. The Zombies; John Holt – director, cinematographer and editor of The Dooms Chapel Horror; George Bonilla – director of Monstrosity; Chris Bower – actor and co-producer of Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories; and Eric Huskisson, actor and producer of Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories.

Q. What is it that drew you to the horror genre?

Starks – My grandmother, Almeda. She’s a real horror fan at heart and passed that on to me. Growing up, I consumed a steady diet of Dawn of the Dead, Halloween and Friday the 13th.

Honestly, she’s the reason that our horror anthology franchise Volumes of Blood even exists. I have to give some credit to my mom, Alicia, as well. She allowed me to rent horror flicks, and that helped.

Hall – Horror is the only genre that transcends cultures, meaning what’s scary here in America is also scary in Japan and other countries around the world.

Ritter – I’ve always loved horror. The TV broadcast of Halloween cemented the deal … I found something I could emulate with my super-8 movies—point-of-view shots, rubber knives, masks and victims. To some degree, I’m still following that protocol nearly 30 years later!

Q. Do you plan to stay in the horror genre, or branch out to other fields?

Starks – I’ve branched out to other genres. Nevertheless, horror is my true passion. Volumes of Blood gave me a series of films that I feel defines me as an artist. It’s also given me what I call a “film family.” For the foreseeable future, horror wins the day.

Ritter – I’ve been making low- and no-budget horror/scifi features for over 33 years in Kentucky, and then Florida, where I grew up, and now in Kentucky again, and I see no reason to change. I just add my latest movie obsessions into the horror and sci-fi stuff I make.

Q. What are some misconceptions you’ve found that people have about filmmakers who work in the horror genre?

Ritter – Mainly this notion that you’re a crazy, drugfueled degenerate! I think it’s interesting when people meet you and find that you’re a normal, down-to-earth person.

And this is a business—in order to do movies, we have to raise funds, get investors and go through a lot of red tape, so if we were so out there, we’d never get through the business side of the business.

Milliner – That we’re disturbed psychopaths or only love horror films. I want to tell all kinds of stories, but after recently making a big action fantasy, I realized I missed the

horror genre. I enjoy creating atmosphere, suspense and tension, and creating dread in the audience. The way you move the camera, sound design, misdirection and the manipulation of your audience is rewarding. And as far as how disturbed we are? I always say, “Think of it as the safe part.” We’re all capable of thinking of horrible things, but thinking it and doing it are totally different. I hate real violence. I have too much empathy.

Miles – The more collegiate film groups do not seem to take anything in the horror genre seriously. The misconception seems to be that horror isn’t art, which is followed by a marginalization of anyone they see as coming from a horror background.

Q. Since Kentucky is part of the Bible Belt, has it been a hindrance to making horror films?

Ritter – Absolutely not! My beliefs are actually the same as most of the Bible Belt folks, so we have something in common right away. I made a movie about my religious convictions in Kentucky called Reconciled Through The Christ, and we incorporated loads of religious color into the story by just filming what was around me. It was a great experience, and everyone who participated was very respectful and cool with the material, whether they believed what I did or not.

Hall – I just don’t tell my church that I’m making a horror film.

Holt – I consider myself very lucky to be a Kentucky filmmaker. It has never been a problem. I’ve experienced great support from this great state. Whether it’s a project with Red Band or working with a crew out of town like Blood Moon Pictures, the people everywhere in Kentucky have been welcoming. Growing up, it seemed as if filmmaking was on Mars. The idea of it was that far away.

“People don’t do that here,” I was told. Making movies only happened in LA. Now all has changed. I love making films here.

Bonilla – The only attitude we ever experienced was from the local arts community. We went to an event to support local arts. One lady walked up and asked for my info. I gave her a card, and she said, “Oh, horror movies,” and dropped my card and walked off! Ironically, I saw she is now part of the film commission.

Actors wait patiently as a crew prepares to shoot a scene.

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Q. What is one of the best advantages of filming in Kentucky?

Ritter – The right people will work extremely hard, and for very little, if they believe in what you’re doing.

Awesome locations—you can have great city shots with skyscrapers, drive two hours and be smack in the middle of wilderness! I love the woods in Kentucky and try to incorporate them into my movies. I’ve shot everything from alien invasions to Bigfoot attack scenes in these woods, and they are beautiful.

Miles – The tax credit is the new big advantage to filming in Kentucky. Though the real advantage lies in the boundless myriad of locations and people that are so freely available.

Bower – There are endless free or nearly free resources such as locations, props, permits and many others here in Kentucky. This state is filled with talented people, and they are each connected with someone that has a resource to help a production out. It’s an indie filmmaker’s paradise.

Q. What would you like to see happen in Kentucky to help bolster the film industry in the state?

Hall – Raise the tax incentive and lower the minimum budget amount down to $100K. Miles – I would love to see a larger union presence in the state. Currently, there are no SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) franchised agents in the state due to the arcane rule that a franchised agent must be located within 100 miles of a local (office of the SAG-AFTRA). Additionally, background actors have no union protections. The films are finally coming, thanks to our tax incentive. Now, we need unions and the protections they offer workers more than ever.

Bonilla – Get Dian Knight back in the (Kentucky) Film Office. She believed in independents. The attitude of the new regime is: “If it’s not Hollywood, we don’t need it.”

That’s a shame, as we have one of the most vibrant and prolific film communities in the country.

Holt – Organization. There’re filmmakers tucked into so many places in this great state. We need to network and grow. It takes support to make films, and I believe we can do that for one another. Whether it’s hiring someone for a job or giving simple advice, we can be there for one another to help keep telling our stories.

Q. What piece of advice would you give a filmmaker who lives in Kentucky and wants to get into making movies?

Hall – Don’t wait until you get the latest and greatest camera. Use your cellphone if you have to. Learn to tell a story on film first, then buy all the equipment you want.

Ritter – Just start making movies and making contacts. Social media is a great place to meet folks locally and nationally.

My last few movies came together on social media by people contacting me who lived close by and wanted to participate. I’ve found that one thing leads to another, and if you’re persistent, it’ll happen.

Bonilla – First, get a good story. Then, as Bruce Campbell told me, “preparation, preparation, preparation.” Many filmmakers get tied up in raising funds instead of getting a good story. Money makes a movie, not a good movie.

Huskisson – Just do it! If it’s your

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passion, don’t hesitate. Don’t let anyone or anything stop you. Get onto different media avenues and network with others like yourself. Above all else, have fun.

Q. Talk about your project—what you did on it and how making it in Kentucky made it special.

Starks – Our newest installment, Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories, was recently released on DVD and VOD through Dark Cuts. I do a lot of the main scripting, but my producing partner, Eric Huskisson, and I share duties on set. He handles most of the business, while I tend to be more on the creative side. When I conceived the VOB films, I wanted to create a viewing experience that was horror fans making horror films for horror fans. We never anticipated it would take off like it did, and now we have the big boys of horror like Fangoria (horror film fan magazine) saying it’s “the best anthology film in years,” iHorror.com stating it’s “an anthology powerhouse packed with terror,” and Blumhouse Productions calling it a “cult hit franchise!” It’s special because Kentucky is where we live and work. We’re getting to live out our dream here. My films are set in my hometown of Owensboro. I’m proud of the foundation we’re creating here. These grassroots productions have helped build a tight-knit Kentucky network and given those who are interested an avenue to spread their wings. It has become the ultimate collaboration between Kentucky-based artists, and that’s very special indeed.

Hall – For Terror at Crimson Creek, we got an entire school for a weekend at no charge. In Mountain Mafia, I was able to blow up a car with help from the local police, fire department and EMTs, and all it cost me was 4 gallons of gas. I couldn’t have done that anywhere else in the world legally.

Ritter – I’ve been making movies in Kentucky, Ohio and Florida my whole life, so … I’ll pick just a couple. Reconciled Through The Christ was a great project. The actors were so perfect and the way I was able to integrate the local color— the Bible verses posted on walls and signs in small towns— was wonderful, free set dressing! You can see it for free on YouTube. The guy I had doing special effects—Ohio native Todd Pontsler—delivered Syfy B-movie level CGI (computergenerated imagery) with very little money. With I Dared You! Truth or Dare 5, filming with local actors was outstanding; they are so enthusiastic. Another actor I met years ago, Thomas Kindler, opened up his home and property to us. We shot a

Collaborators review a still shot on set.

short with him called Dealers of Death, and people will see how great he is when it’s released in the sequel to Hi-8.

Miles – I have worked as an actor on many projects here in Kentucky— horror and otherwise. It is hard to single out one in particular, but here are a few locally made independent horror films I really enjoyed working on: Deadly Dares: Truth or Dare IV, Red River, Terror at Crimson Creek and 6 Feet Below Hell. All of these projects draw from the unique locations and talent available here in Kentucky.

Q. Anything else you’d like to add?

Starks – When we made Horror Stories, I had the pleasure of working with some of the most passionate artists I’ve ever met. The insanely talented costume designer Barbie Clark helped us create iconic looking characters like The Harvester. John Holt and Austin Madding served as DP (director of photography) and cinematographer, giving the film a professional look that took it to the next level. Cassandra Baker, our special effects supervisor, gave us more than 25 incredibly visceral on-screen kills that will stand the test of time. Christopher Bower played the role of Mr. Stine and brought that character to incredible life. We had great production assistants such as Brian Storm, who sadly passed away last November, but was an integral part of production and is sorely missed by everyone. My wife, Katrina, stepped up and took charge as production manager and rocked the role! I could go all day about all the incredible people who helped bring Horror Stories from script to screen.

Ritter – Creating alternative realities and so forth is what I live for—love doing this stuff, and it’s the only time I feel alive! I love collaborating with like-minded people who feel the same and do it for the joy of doing it, leaving their egos at home. And if you can get paid for doing what you love in some way, that’s just icing on the cake.

Miles – Currently, I have the privilege to be working on a SAG/ AFTRA pilot, Square Brains, a science fiction comedy variety show. I say “privilege” because it certainly isn’t for the cash! Square Brains is my dream project and to make the pilot here in Kentucky is priceless. This project is a deep dive into my twisted mind. The story of two human/mice spliced nihilist detectives, their television show and the network executives who don’t understand any of it.

Bonilla – Never ever, ever quit. Keep storming the gates. Q

For more information on the projects mentioned in the Q&A, follow Volumes of Blood, Square Brains, Reconciled Through The Christ, Terror at Crimson Creek, The Wrecking Crew vs. The Zombies and others on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

s Greeting

from

KENTUCKY

BT1057-4.625x7.735-GreetingsFromBerea-KyMonthly.indd 1

VisitBerea.com Exit 77 or 76 off I-75

O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY 39 8/21/17 10:16 AM

Opportunity Knocks Berea-based program provides struggling women with an education and a sense of self-worth

By Rachael Guadagni | Photos Courtesy of David Stephenson

I

“

grew up ashamed of my heritage in the Appalachian mountains of North Carolina, and up until I went to the New Opportunity School for Women, I had never known that there was anything to be proud of.”

Those words are from George Ann, a woman who, along with several others, shared her life story and personal transformation in Changing Lives in Appalachia: The New Opportunity School for Women. This emotionally powerful book written by the school’s founder, Jane B. Stephenson, details the lives of the women who attended the school and those who work tirelessly to make it a reality. “These women are so smart,” said Stephenson, “and no one has ever told them. What we want to do is very different.”

“Different” is one description, but what is most profound about this program is its approach and clarity of purpose, which should prompt us to ask, “Why haven’t we been doing this all along?” In what could only be described as a fortunate series of events, Stephenson explains her early exposure to adult learning and the genesis of the New Opportunity School for Women. “My husband and I were in Lexington in the ’70s,” she said. “He was teaching at [the University of Kentucky], and I was in the program in the Extension Office working in academic support services for adult students. They weren’t enjoying the same advantages 40

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as the regular day students, and we assisted them.”

In 1984, her husband John became president of Berea College, and Stephenson maintained her desire to help older students.

A call from well-known writer and professor Gurney Norman in 1986 proved to be the spark that lit the flame.

“He called and said, ‘I have a friend in eastern Kentucky who needs help. She’s divorced with two kids, has no skills and has never worked. Do you have a program for her?’ Boy, I wished we did and asked my husband if we could do a program at Berea.”

John was all for the idea, save for the one hurdle that seems to foul up many good intentions: money. The women served by the program would not be in a position to pay, and staffing, supplies and transportation for participants were concerns.

Soon after came what Jane Stephenson calls a miracle. A representative from a foundation in California phoned John and said the organization wanted to give some money to the college. Did he have any programs in mind? After explaining Jane’s idea for educational outreach geared toward Appalachian women, the foundation agreed it sounded great and asked for a written proposal. There was just one catch. “They needed it by Friday,” Stephenson said. “It was Monday.”

Gathering together individuals who shared her vision, Stephenson and crew hammered out the basics of the program. “The group brainstormed in the president’s living room,” she said. “What could we do? Would people come?”

Shortly before Christmas in 1986, the foundation agreed to fund the project for two years, and the New Opportunity School for Women officially was launched in Berea the following summer. A part of Berea College when it was founded, the NOSW now is independent of that institution.

•••

•••

©2003 Harpo Productions, Inc./George Burns

Women accepted into the NOSW are housed in campus dorms for an intensive three-week program that covers everything from computer skills and how to effectively look for a job, to writing and Appalachian history. At the heart of the program is the sincere desire to foster and develop a true sense of self-worth in each woman. “The largest component of our program is self-esteem,” said Stephenson.

“We give them courage [and] teach creative writing and all about Appalachian culture. They are often put down as hillbillies and don’t know about their history. We teach computer basics and job search skills, and are very big on education and getting a degree. We want them to have a career with benefits and not just a job that’s a job.”

The women who attend often have to clear several hurdles to make their time at the school a reality. “Eighty percent of the women have a family income of less than $10,000,” Stephenson said. “They sometimes come from shelters or rehab and have little support from home. Our program is free, and we even pay for child care back home if necessary.”

Students must have either a high school diploma or GED, because, as Stephenson puts it, “We can’t do literacy in three weeks.” While at the school, students attend class in the morning and work at jobs on campus or in the community in the afternoon. Stephenson explains that each woman is encouraged to seek a job that interests her and for which she has an affinity. “Their job might be on campus in the offices, at a nonprofit, the library, or if they like animals, perhaps at the humane society. The community truly welcomes the interns.”

Students also attend concerts, visit museums and experience cultural opportunities that may be few and far between back home.

Staying on campus promotes a feeling of security for the students, and they quickly bond with one another over their shared experiences. Simply knowing that others have endured some of the same hardships helps the women feel less alone and realize they have the power to change their lives. The following excerpt from Stephenson’s book shares in agonizing detail exactly what life was like for George Ann, and how the New Opportunity School helped her see how different things could be.

Growing up, I was taught that girls were to be “seen and not heard.”

There was sexual abuse from several kinfolk to me and my sister, Virginia. However, back then you did not say a word, or you would have been called a liar and scorned from the community … Even though we were related to most everyone in the holler, we were still “outcasts” because we were always running from my dad when he was drinking and my mom was fearful … I can remember walking those gravel roads in pitch-black dark to a neighbor’s house at least a mile away. My dad was trying to hit Mom with steel knocks, and my sister was getting in between them and telling Daddy to go ahead and hit her … I was fearful most of my life. I think it’s due to the fact that I had to retreat inside myself to survive. It’s hard to believe now, but in those days I was very shy, passive, withdrawn, had no self-esteem, and lived in a fantasy world … I cried many tears trying to decide if I was doing the right thing by coming to the NOSW. Looking back, I am glad I did. It changed my life and my children’s lives, especially the younger ones, forever. When I came to the NOSW in summer 1992, I thought I was the only one who had such a terrible background … It was wonderful to know I wasn’t alone anymore. For the first time in my life, I was appreciated for being myself and not a sex object for men to abuse, and for others to tell me how worthless I was.

Stephenson has worked from day one to dispel the sense of worthlessness that exists among so many of her students, and she accomplishes it with the help of others who donate their time and resources to the cause. “There is a lot of community involvement from churches and individuals who prepare the evening meal and really want to help the participants,” she said.

Left, students learn about computers and technology; right, Jane Stephenson being presented a “Use Your Life Award” by Oprah Winfrey in March 2003; opposite, the Bond House on Chestnut Street in Berea, which served as the NOSW headquarters until 1997.

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The NOSW support does not stop with graduation.

“After the program, they can apply to us for scholarships that can be used for anything from tuition to child care to gas to buying a computer,” explained Stephenson The group also provides dental care—which many of the women have never had—and assists with eye exams, glasses and basic women’s health care such as mammograms and Pap smears.

The NOSW has expanded to include programs in North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia, and the Berea program is experimenting with a new one-week, nonresidential version that will serve those who cannot attend the traditional three-week, live-in session. Both stress the importance of an education, and Stephenson noted the impact that has on the entire family. “When you educate a

woman, you educate a family, and we’re seeing what effect the education of the women has on their children,” she said. “Nine hundred and fifteen women have been through the three-week program, and 41 percent of their children have gone on to higher education, including four who have Ph.Ds. “The [nearby] colleges are so supportive of the women.

Their teachers teach our classes, and the women realize it’s not so scary to be on a college campus.”

The New Opportunity School for Women is a beacon, a light in an otherwise bleak landscape that stifles too many lives. Stephenson has created a way for women to alter their path and reach for things they never thought possible.

And much like the night sky filled with stars, it is, as she puts it, “A beautiful thing to watch.” Q

New Opportunity School for Women 2011 reunion

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BuffaloSeminary.org Independent day and boarding school for college-bound girls 205 Bidwell Parkway, Buffalo, NY 14222 | 716-885-6780 42

K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • O C TO B E R 2 0 1 7

For more information on the New Opportunity School for Women, visit nosw.org or facebook.com/ noswberea.

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Jane B. Stephenson’s book, Changing Lives in Appalachia: The New Opportunity School for Women, is available at Amazon.com.

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your time

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Upcoming Spotlight Days

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October 7, 2017 November 11, 2017 December 2, 2017 Februar y 3, 2018 March 24, 2018 44

K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • O C TO B E R 2 0 1 7

EASTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY Eastern Kentucky University is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and Educational Institution.

VOICES

Past Tense/Present Tense

Monuments: No One Should Be Forgotten

BY BILL ELLIS

I

n the old days, school children like me read Thomas Gray’s places of remembrances of folks, like you and me, who trod “Elegy Written in a Country Church Yard” with the our numbered days. immortal line: “The paths of glory lead but to the grave.”

Our first great-grandson, William Matthew Ellis, to be We all are headed to the same place, regardless of our called Liam, died soon after birth in early February 2015. status in life, “rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief.” I He is buried in the Ellis family plot in Grove Hill Cemetery mean to the grave and not justly or unjustly to our final in Shelbyville with a small personal monument. I have reward, whatever our individual beliefs may be. I do not requested to be cremated when I die and to be placed intend to sound morbid, disrespectful or frivolous in this beside Liam. My ashes will take up no more space than his piece, but only explore how we approach death and dying. tiny casket.

Some of you ladies have witnessed birth because you’ve The more I thought about such tragedies, I looked into had babies. I have not, and would be like the man in a the deaths and burials of three of my father’s siblings, all recent television ad who passes out while watching the stillborn, delivered by the same doctor and buried in birth of his child. But I have unknown graves at Burks been privileged to be in Branch Baptist Church in attendance when loved ones rural Shelby County. My have died. I closed my grandparents, William mother’s eyes after she died. It Preston and Mary Ann was a sacred moment.

Campbell Ellis, were tenant Those of you who have farmers and, I am sure, could witnessed the death of a friend not afford tombstones or even on the battlefield have a small marker. experienced something that I Once, with my father many have not. It must be a searing years ago and then again with experience, from what I have my son not long ago, we been told. After my father searched the churchyard for returned from World War II signs of the burials but could (when my parents and I slept find none. My father could not in the same bedroom in our recall much about the three-room house on Snow circumstances of the burials, Hill), he would have but he knew that the last little nightmares. I recall him girl, like her mother, had shouting, “King, King,” for his brilliant red hair worthy of her partner on a .30-caliber Scottish ancestry. machine gun who was killed in The Shelby County cenotaph honoring the author’s uncle and In consultation with Steve aunts, who were stillborn. the Philippines. My mother Collins of Hall-Taylor Funeral would console him, and he Home, Blake Shouse of would drift back to sleep as would I as a 6- or 7-year-old.

Shelbyville Monument Company, and Rev. Billy Betts of One time, he told me that King, a native Texan as I recall, Burks Branch Baptist Church, a plan was formed to honor was shot through the jaw, and there was no way to stop the the three Ellis children with a marker. bleeding. He never talked to me about it again, and I did William P., March 31, 1917; Mary Elizabeth, Sept. 30, not ask.

1924; and Helen Jane, Nov. 19, 1929, have been memorialized Everyone should be remembered. We build monuments with a cenotaph in the same way others with missing to those who fall in battle. I am awestruck by such places. gravesites—or those buried elsewhere—are honored.

On a guided European tour a few years ago, we visited the My father, born on Nov. 7, 1919, grew up as an only child, Netherlands American Cemetery, the resting place of 8,301 as did I. We both missed out on an Ellis brother, sisters, American GIs. I searched out the names of men from aunts, an uncle, and their offspring and descendants. We Kentucky. There were several. There are many such places never had big Ellis family reunions. in Europe, Asia, Kentucky and other states, and, of course, I will remember Uncle William, Aunt Mary and Aunt Arlington National Cemetery.

Helen, mourning for the lives that might have been, but On a later trip to Poland we toured, if that is the word, also accepting that, no matter how long we live, according Auschwitz. I was amazed not only by the size of the to James 4:14, I am only a “mist that appears for a little compound but also by the pervasive silence. It is a sacred while and then vanishes.” place. I could not cry as I thought I would. I reckon I was Most people these days are buried in large cemeteries numb, dumbfounded to have finally seen a “death camp.” and not in a churchyard. Soon after the Ellis cenotaph was There are people who deny that the Holocaust took place. I placed, Rev. Betts told me that the few old markers at his would suggest that they read Night by Elie Wiesel, but they church “have almost found new life, reminding us our time may not be convinced and consider it “false history” or on earth is short, but each life is significant.” something like that.

Cemeteries—large and small, well-kept or not—are Readers may contact Bill Ellis at editor@kentuckymonthly.com O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

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OUTDOORS

Gardening

Gardening Fashions & Fashion Fails

BY WALT REICHERT

I

thought I’d take this last column of the gardening year to reflect on some of the gardening fads and fashions I’ve seen over the years. Styles in gardening, like fashion and anything else, change over the years. Some of the changes are encouraging, some are depressing, and some are just funny. Hang on.

Blast From the Past I’m old enough to remember lawns, gardens and landscaping from the late 1950s and early ’60s. We decorated our landscaping with some, uh, interesting stuff back then. Remember the plastic pink flamingoes that we planted among the carpet junipers? I was always fond of the little white concrete hens and chicks people placed among the petunias. Sometimes, it was a concrete goose, pig or rabbit … but you get the picture. Or tire crowns? Take a large tire, like a truck or tractor tire, paint it white, cut V-shapes into the inside edge so that you’ve made a crown and plant marigolds or petunias inside. Super trendy.

I remember spending half a hot summer day helping my uncle Tom make a bathtub Mary. Take an old bathtub, stand it upright and sink about a fourth of it in the ground.

Paint the inside blue and the outside white, and put a statue of the Virgin Mary inside. Surround with roses— preferably pink—or flowers of your choice. A lawn focal point and shrine all in one place.

And whitewash. My dad’s family in Louisville’s Germantown area would whitewash anything that didn’t move. They whitewashed trees, whitewashed the sides of houses, and even whitewashed the rocks. (In point of fact, whitewashing a tree is not a bad idea; it smothers some insects and keeps bark from splitting in winter.) Not much whitewashing going on these days, but my neighbor recently whitewashed some of his trees, so there is hope.

Two old-time garden decorations are making a comeback, and they’re good to see again. Remember gazing globes? They originated in Victorian gardens. They were glass (now plastic or stainless steel) balls about the size of bowling balls that had a shiny surface. Strategically placed, gazing globes reflect the flowers in the garden ,and the effect can be enchanting. Then there’s the bottle tree. The original bottle trees were trees that had died but were left standing in the garden and the small limbs were cut to stubs. Bottles of various colors, usually green or blue, were placed over the stubs at downward angles. Now, you can buy bottle trees made of steel, plastic or wood, and you can even buy the bottles, so you don’t have to drink so much wine if you really don’t want to.

Modern Fashions Back in the ’50s and ’60s, about the only plant that graced the foundations of homes was the taxus, or yew.

They were popular because they stayed green all year, covered up the concrete foundation, and could be sheared into any and all shapes. Most houses had the requisite two

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horizontal and one upright taxus. If you had a larger house, you might have had an extra one, a Christmas tree-shaped taxus next to the front steps.

We have a little larger palette to choose from these days, but it is amazing how many plantings are similar, that is to say, faddish. Some of those fad plants are good plants, but you just want to say, “Enough, already.” Other fad plants are real troublemakers.

Take the river birch for example. The river birch is a native tree with peeling bark that grows in a clumping pattern. Not a bad tree, but it does have its insect issues.

However, countless homes built in the 1980s through the ’90s sported river birches in the front. Whole subdivisions were landscaped with river birches. Usually, the trees were planted way too close to the house and topped over the roof, so many of those have been taken down. The rest are still up there, damaging shingles and clogging up gutters.

Another “discovery” that made its way into nearly every parking lot in the country is the ‘Sunburst’ variety of honey locust. The honey locust is a native tree that covers itself with formidable thorns. But landscapers like the rounded shape and small leaves that allowed dappled shade beneath its branches, so that when the thornless and gold-leafed Sunburst came along, it got planted everywhere. Pretty tree, but subject to scale and other insects as well as a disease called heart rot. Seemed like a good idea at the time.

Then there is the notorious ‘Bradford’ and other cultivars of ornamental pears. These guys seemed like the perfect tree: nice round shape, beautiful white blooms in the spring, burgundy fall color. Except … the first puff of wind and they collapsed. I’ve seen them folded up like umbrellas. It is the rare older Bradford pear that doesn’t have whole sections missing from wind damage. Worse, ornamental pears are invasive. Whole fields in Kentucky are now covered with them, as the birds have spread their seeds. That’s bad, because the trees are almost useless to our native pollinators. And still they are popular, and nurseries and garden centers keep selling them.

Finally, some plants are just getting planted way too much. I really like oakleaf hydrangea, a native shrub with cone-shaped white flowers that has been bred into dozens of cultivars. But the shrub has been “discovered,” and now it’s everywhere.

Same with nandina, also called heavenly bamboo. It comes in large and small varieties and sports a glowing red fall color.

But again, it is overplanted and when the winters are severe, it gets badly burned. Then the whole planting looks awful.

It is true that sometimes we have to live with a plant for a while before we fully understand its good and bad points. So maybe the trick is to seek out a diversity of plants for our landscaping and gardens and ignore the faddish. Let the winners shine forth. The losers we can always cover up with our Mary in the bathtub!

Readers can reach Walt Reichert at editor@kentuckymonthly.com

OUTDOORS

Field Notes

Colorful October

BY GARY GARTH

O

Courtesy of Kentucky Department of Tourism

ctober is a favorite among hunters and anglers, campers and paddlers, hikers and backpackers, birdwatchers and nature lovers.

It is the month for playing outside. Summer, with its withering humidity, has past; winter and its challenges have yet to arrive. Daytime temperatures are comfortable, and nights are crisp. In general, the weather rule is dry and cool.

A narrow but well-defined path switchbacks its way to the forest floor, where it intersects Parched Corn Creek in Wolfe County, a clear, coolrunning stream that winds through this ancient landscape with a rhythm that eclipses the seasons. The surge and pulse, gurgle and splash of the creek have rubbed the stones smooth and give voice to the woods. Trout live here; other critters, too.

The October woods surrounding this rivulet have taken on their annual rainbow hue. Flecks of red and yellow and orange and purple refract the afternoon sun. But pick any point on the color wheel, and you’ll find a glint of it in the fall woods, although to absorb the full effect, one should be stationed on a ridgeline looking out and not a creek bed looking up. The deeper the woods, the more intense the colorful display; something akin to being inside beauty. But unlike the creek, which will outlive the critters that swim in it and drink from it, and the humans, who wade and fish in it, the kaleidoscope landscape soon will fade. It’s an October spectacle.

Fall foliage typically emerges first in the highlands of eastern Kentucky in mid or late September and moves west throughout October and into early November. October displays the fall color phenomenon in its fullest bloom across the state, although predicting when colors will peak is impossible with any real degree of certainty.

Fall foliage brilliance, or lack thereof, is driven by a variety of factors, primarily weather and rainfall. The most vivid colors generally emerge when the weather is clear and dry; the nights cool but the thermometer above freezing.

Wherever you live in the Commonwealth, a colorful landscape is nearby. Locales worth a look include: Daniel Boone National Forest, Wilderness Road Heritage Highways (Kentucky), Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest, Kentucky State Parks, and Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area.

Additional information is available through the Department of Tourism’s ColorFall program at kentuckytourism.com/seasons or phone 1-800-225-8747.

Kentucky’s colorful fall foliage lineup includes: Red Maple (Acer rubrum) — Celebrated for its brilliant red hues in years when autumn color reaches full potential. Fall color: orange-red, scarlet red.

Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) — Can be spectacular in fall with brilliant yellow or orange leaves. It is capable of producing striking color combinations. Fall color: yellow, orange red.

Sweetgum (Liquidamber styraciflua) — An attractive tree with a penchant for displaying rich, wine-colored leaves in autumn. Fall color: yellow, orange, red, purple.

Black Gum (Nyssa sylvatica) — Noteworthy for its filigree of winter branches but it achieves its greatest glory when in full autumn coloration. Fall color: orange, red, purple.

Pignut Hickory (Carya glabra) — The most common of several hickory species in Kentucky, with a tendency to turn a shimmering gold every fall, regardless of seasonal weather variables. Fall color: yellow, yellow-gold.

Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) — Can be found in every county of the state, it is among the first trees to show color. Fall color: yellow.

Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboretum) — Offers perhaps the best deep red of any of the natives. Its midsummer sprays of flowers turn woody and golden yellow in the fall. Fall color: crimson red.

Black Walnut (Juglans nigra) — Among the most coveted of hardwoods, pioneers considered it an indicator of good land.

The nuts are flavorful but must be gathered early, before squirrels and other wildlife can consume them. Fall color: yellow, yellow-brown.

Scarlet Oak (Quercus coccinea) — Has extraordinary leaf color in early spring and autumn. The last tree to turn in fall, it terminates its leaves with what is typically the last grand splash of color in the autumn woods. Fall color: scarlet red.

White Oak (Qurcus alba) — Its unfurling leaves in the spring are rose colored before turning a medium green. The white oak also has fine fall color, and its leaves persist well into winter. Fall color: yellow, yellow-brown, red, redbrown.

Chestnut Oak (Quercus prinus) — Can survive on steep, rocky sites where other oaks cannot. The large, oblong acorns are a staple food for wildlife in fall and early winter. Fall color: yellow, yellow-orange, yellow-brown.

Beech (Fagus grandifolia) — Elegant tree with smooth bark and a graceful form. An important wildlife tree, it forms cavities that serve as den and nest sites for birds and mammals. Beechnuts are consumed by squirrels, deer, turkeys and black bears. Fall color: copper, gold-bronze.

Dogwood (Cornus florida) — A small tree, it boasts horizontally spreading branches that arc upward. Given its lovely flowers in spring and crimson foliage in fall, it is attractive most of the year. Fall color: red, burgundy, purple.

Sassafras (Sassafras albidum) — Unusual in that more than one leaf shape occurs on the tree. Explorers and Colonists thought the aromatic root bark was a panacea for various diseases. Fall color: yellow, orange, pink, red.

Winged Sumac (Rhus copallina) — Though not tree-sized, this small shrub boasts plenty of fall color. Roadsides across Kentucky are flanked with these autumn sparklers, providing a swath of bright color. Fall color: red, maroon, purple.

Source: Kentucky Department of Parks Readers may contact Gary Garth at editor@kentuckymonthly.com O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

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CALENDAR

Let’s Go

7

October SUNDAY

1.

Art in the City Fine Arts Festival, Riverfront Park, Owensboro, (270) 316-9945

MONDAY

2.

TUESDAY

3.

Tea Tuesday, Waveland State Historic Site, Lexington, also Oct. 10, 17 and 24, (859) 272-3611

WEDNESDAY THURSDAY

4.

8.

16.

Jack Hanna, Camp Spook, The Grand Levi Jackson State Theatre, Frankfort, Park campground, (859) 236-4692 London, through Oct. 22, (606) 330-2130

17.



15.

5.

6.

7.

12.

13.

14.

19.

20.

21.

27.

28.

John Conlee in Concert, Historic State Theater, Elizabethtown, (270) 765-2175

Halloween Fest, Fort Boonesborough State Park campground, Richmond, (859) 527-3131

18.

Victorian Mourning Customs, Waveland State Historic Site, Lexington, through Oct. 19, (859) 272-3611

30.

31.

2

More to explore online!

Visit kentuckymonthly. com for additional content, including a calendar of events, feature stories and recipes.

K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • O C TO B E R 2 0 1 7



0

Un-BOOlievable Weekend, ColumbusBelmont State Park Campground, Columbus, through Oct. 29, (270) 677-2327

Halloween

48

St. James Court Art Show, Historic Old Louisville, through Oct. 8, (502) 635-1842

HarvestFest, Elkton, (270) 265-7070

Sundown Kool & The Bowling Green Series, Barton Gang, Norton Bourbon and 1792 Distillery, Center for the Arts, Brewfest, Bardstown, Danville, Bowling Green 1-866-239-4690 (859) 236-4692 Ballpark, Bowling Green, (270) 883-0368

22.

29.

SATURDAY

Woodsongs Hanson BBQ Kentucky Coffeehouse Blast-Off, Vanity Guild of Artists with Michael Fair Outlet Mall & Craftsmen Johnathon, east parking lot, Fall Fair, Historic Gateway Regional Hanson, Indian Fort Arts Center, through Oct. 14, Theatre, Berea, Mount Sterling (270) 871-1875 through Oct. 15, (859) 986-3192

1

Bluegrass on Beshear, Lake Beshear, Dawson Springs

FRIDAY

Ongoing Ongoing Bale Trail, Country Pumpkins Fall various locations Festival, Country around Elkton, through Oct. 31, Pumpkins, (270) 265-7070 Dry Ridge, through Oct. 31, (859) 905-9656

Ongoing Ongoing Agate: Jewel of Alison Saar: Breach, Kentucky University of Exhibit, Kentucky Art Kentucky Artisan Museum, Center, Berea, Lexington, through through Nov. 11, Dec. 3, (859) 985-5448 (859) 257-5716

Pumpkin House, Stafford House, Paintsville, through Oct. 31, (606) 793-4006

Let’s Go!

A guide to Kentucky’s most interesting events Bluegrass Region

Boarding School Symposium, The Lexington School, Lexington, (716) 885-6780, buffaloseminary.org

21 Escape Games, White Hall State Historic Site, Richmond, also Oct. 28, (859) 623-9178, parks.ky.gov

12 Queen Machine, The Grand Theatre, Frankfort, (502) 352-7469, grandtheatrefrankfort.org

26 Flip FabriQue: Catch Me! Norton Center for the Arts, Danville, (859) 236-4692, nortoncenter.com

Ongoing

13-14 Forkland Heritage Festival & Revue, Forkland Community Center, Danville, forklandcomctr.org

Alison Saar: Breach, University of Kentucky Art Museum, Lexington, through Dec. 3, (859) 257-5716, finearts.uky.edu/art-museum

13-15 Oktoberfest, downtown Harrodsburg, (859) 734-6811, facebook.com/kyoktoberfest

Man o’ War: The Mostest Horse That Ever Was, Kentucky Horse Park, Lexington, through Nov. 1, (859) 259-4232, imh.org

13-15 Boonesborough Boogie Nationals Car Show, Fort Boonesborough State Park, Richmond, (502) 863-3960, parks.ky.gov

Agate: Jewel of Kentucky Exhibit, Kentucky Artisan Center, Berea, through Nov. 11, (859) 985-5448, kentuckyartisancenter.ky.gov

14 Orpheus Chamber Orchestra with André Watts, Norton Center for the Arts, Danville, (859) 236-4692, nortoncenter.com

October

1 Bourbon Country Burn, Kentucky Horse Park campground, Lexington, (502) 386-6299, bourboncountryburn.com 1-28 Devine’s Corn Maze & Pumpkin Patch, Devine’s Farm, Harrodsburg, devinescornmaze.com 3 Tea Tuesday, Waveland State Historic Site, Lexington, also Oct. 10, 17 and 24, (859) 272-3611, parks.ky.gov 6 One Night in Memphis, The Grand Theatre, Frankfort, (502) 352-7469, grandtheatrefrankfort.org 6 Seed to Feed Dinner Series, Old Friends Thoroughbred Retirement Farm, Georgetown, oldfriendsequine.org 6-28 Halloween Lights Drive-Thru, Fort Boonesborough State Park campground, Richmond, parks.ky.gov

14 Bike Night, Judicial Center, Harrodsburg, (859) 613-2140, harrodsburgky.com 14-15 Kentucky Guild of Artists & Craftsmen Fall Fair, Historic Indian Fort Theatre, Berea, (859) 986-3192, kyguild.com 15 Jack Hanna, The Grand Theatre, Frankfort, (859) 236-4692, grandtheatrefrankfort.org 15 Liv On: Olivia Newton John, Beth Nielsen Chapman and Amy Sky, Norton Center for the Arts, Danville, (859) 236-4692, nortoncenter.com 17-29 Halloween Fest, Fort Boonesborough State Park campground, Richmond, parks.ky.gov 18 Fall Daytime Tour, Elmwood Stock Farm, Georgetown, elmwoodstockfarm.com 18 Wynonna and the Big Noise, The Grand Theatre, Frankfort, (502) 352-7469, grandtheatrefrankfort.org

7 HarvestFest: Eat! Drink! Danville!

Main Street, Danville, historicdanvilleky.com

18-19 Victorian Mourning Customs, Waveland State Historic Site, Lexington, (859) 272-3611, parks.ky.gov

7 Edgar Winter Band, Norton Center for the Arts, Danville, (859) 236-4692, nortoncenter.com

20 Kool & The Gang, Norton Center for the Arts, Danville, (859) 236-4692, nortoncenter.com

7-8 Battle of Perryville Commemoration, Perryville Battlefield, Perryville, (859) 332-8631, parks.ky.gov

20-22 Geocaching Weekend, various locations, Berea, bereachamber.com

11 Buffalo Seminary at The Lexington School High School Placement Fair and

20-22 Rifle Frolic and Frontier Skills, Fort Boonesborogh State Park, Richmond, parks.ky.gov

27-28 Disturbia at the Distillery, Buffalo Trace Distillery, Frankfort, buffalotracedistillery.com 27-29 Haunted Frontier, Old Fort Harrod State Park, Harrodsburg, (859) 734-3314, parks.ky.gov 28 Spooktacular Halloween Parade, Main Street, Harrodsburg, (859) 734-6811, harrodsburgky.com 31 Halloween MAINia, Main Street, Winchester, (859) 737-0923, downtownwinchesterky.org November

1 Day of the Dead Festival, The Living Arts and Science Center, Lexington, lasclex.org 3 Riders in the Sky, The Grand Theatre, Frankfort, (502) 352-7469, grandtheatrefrankfort.org 4-5 Open Studios ARTTOUR, various locations, Mercer and Boyle counties, (859) 734-7731, facebook.com/arttourky 6-30 $30 or Below Arts and Crafts, Arts Council of Mercer County, Harrodsburg, through Dec. 16, (859) 613-0790, artscouncilofmercer.com 10-12 First Batch Straight Kentucky Bourbon, Bluegrass Distillers, Lexington, bluegrassdistillers.com 11-12 Home & Hearth Christmas Bazaar, Russel Acton Folk Recreation Center, Berea, bereaky.gov

Louisville Region

Ongoing Kentuckians in the First World War, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, through Dec. 28, (502) 635-5083, filsonhistorical.org O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

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CALENDAR

Let’s Go

Linda Bruckheimer’s Kentucky, Frazier History Museum, Louisville, through Jan. 11, (502) 753-5663, fraziermuseum.org Weep No More – Victorian Funeral Customs, My Old Kentucky Home State Park, Bardstown, through Oct. 31, (502) 348-3502, visitmyoldkyhome.com October

5 John Conlee in Concert, Historic State Theater, Elizabethtown, (270) 765-2175, historicstatetheater.org 6-8 St. James Court Art Show, Historic Old Louisville, (502) 635-1842, sjcas.com 7 Ghost Trek, downtown Bardstown, also Oct. 14, 21 and 28, Bardstown, ghosthunter.com 12-31 Jack o’ Lantern Spectacular, Iroquois Park, Louisville, through Nov. 5, jackolanternlouisville.com 13 Dracula, Hardin County Schools Performing Arts Center, Elizabethtown, (270) 765-2175, thepac.net 13 Shadows of Federal Hill Ghost Tours, My Old Kentucky Home State Park, Bardstown, also Oct. 15, 20, 22, 27 and 29, (502) 348-3502, visitmyoldkyhome.com 13-15 Night of the Living Dead, Historic State Theater, Elizabethtown, also Oct. 19-22, (270) 765-2175, hardincountyplayhouse.com 14 Buffalo and Wild Game Night, Rough River Dam State Resort Park, Falls Of Rough, (270) 257-2311, parks.ky.gov 14-15 Arts, Crafts & Antiques Fair, downtown Bardstown, (502) 348-4877, bardstownmainstreet.com 19 Sundown Series, Barton 1792 Distillery, Bardstown, 1-866-239-4690, 1792bourbon.com 21 Craft Beer Festival, Farmers Market Pavilion, Bardstown, (502) 348-0899, bardstowncraftbeerfest.com 21 Car & Truck Show, Kentucky Railway Museum, New Haven, (502) 549-5470, kyrail.org 21 Glendale Crossing Festival, downtown Glendale, (270) 765-2175, glendalekentucky.com 21-22 Via Colori Street Painting Festival, Big Four Lawn Louisville Waterfront, Louisville, (502) 338-3640, viacolorikentucky.com 27 Halloween Spooktacular, downtown Bardstown, (502) 348-4877, bardstownmainstreet.com 28 Whiskey City Cruisers, Kentucky Home

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K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • O C TO B E R 2 0 1 7

Square Shopping Center, Bardstown, (502) 3486456, visitbardstown.com

28 Murder Mystery Theatre, Kentucky Railway Museum, New Haven, 1-800-272-0152, kyrail.org 28-29 Train Robbery, Kentucky Railway Museum, New Haven, 1-800-272-0152, kyrail.org November

20-22 Halloween Family Weekend, General Butler State Resort Park, Carrollton, also Oct. 27-29, (502) 732-4384, parks.ky.gov 20-22 Campground Halloween Carnival Weekend, Big Bone Lick State Historic Site, Union, also Oct. 27-28, (859) 384-3522, parks.ky.gov 20-28 Paranormal Weekend, General Butler State Resort Park, Carrollton, (502) 732-4261, carrolltontourism.com

4-30 Merry & Bright Christmas Tours, My Old Kentucky Home, Bardstown, through Jan. 6, (502) 348-3502, visitmyoldkyhome.com

21 Two Rivers Campground Trick or Treat, Two Rivers Campground, Carrollton, (502) 732-4665, carrolltontourism.com

10-12 Deer Widow’s Weekend, Rough River Dam State Resort Park, Falls Of Rough, (270) 257-2311, parks.ky.gov

26 Taste of the Decades Bourbon Tasting, Tousey House Tavern, Burlington, TouseyHouse.com

11-12 Annual All Wrapped Up Gift & Craft Show, Rough River Dam State Resort Park, Falls Of Rough, (270) 257-2311, parks.ky.gov

Western Region

Northern Region Ongoing Bale Trail, various locations around Elkton, through Oct. 31, (270) 265-7070, ExploreToddCounty.com Ongoing Country Pumpkins Fall Festival, Country Pumpkins, Dry Ridge, through Oct. 31, (859) 905-9656, countrypumpkinsky.com October

6-8 Kentucky Wool Festival, Hwy. 159, Falmouth, (859) 654-3378, kywoolfest.org 7 Kentucky Kruizers Saturday Night Cruise, Hometown Pizza, Carrollton, (502) 732-5010, carrolltontourism.com 13-15 Salt Festival, Big Bone Lick State Historic Site, Union, (859) 384-3522, parks.ky.gov 14 Art Walk, downtown Carrollton, (502) 732-5713, carrolltontourism.com 14 Turning of the Leaves Festival, Main Street, Augusta, (606) 756-2183, augustaky.com 14-15 Halloween Fall Fest, Jane’s Saddlebag, Union, (859) 384-6617, janessaddlebag.com

October

1 Barbecue on the River, downtown Paducah, bbqontheriver.org 1 Art in the City Fine Arts Festival, Riverfront Park, Owensboro, (270) 316-9945 1 Arsenic and Old Lace, The Empress Theater, Owensboro, theatreworkshop.org 6 Edgar Winter Band, Glema Mahr Center for the Arts, Madisonville, glemacenter.org 6-7 Haunted Hall, Octagon Hall, Franklin, also Oct. 13-14, 20-21 and 27-28, (270) 791-0071, octagonhall.com 7 HarvestFest, Elkton, (270) 265-7070, ExploreToddCounty.com 7 1872 Historic Island Wooden Bridge Concert, Island Wooden Bridge, Island, Facebook.com/historicislandwoodenbridge 8 Bluegrass on Beshear, Lake Beshear, Dawson Springs, bluegrassonbeshear.com

15 Burlington Antique Show, Boone County Fair Grounds, Burlington, burlingtonantiqueshow.com

13 Josh Turner, Owensboro Convention Center, Owensboro, owensborocenter.com

17 Kentucky Gathers Dulcimer Group, General Butler State Resort Park, Carrollton, (502) 732-4384, parks.ky.gov

13-14 Hanson BBQ Blast-Off, Vanity Fair Outlet Mall east parking lot, (270) 871-1875, facebook.com/Hanson-Lions-Club-135900333126759

13-15 Civil War Days, Columbus-Belmont State Park, Columbus, (270) 677-2327, parks.ky.gov 14 Show & Go Car Club Cruise-In, Brothers Bar B Que, Madisonville, (270) 383-3296, showandgocarclub.com 20 MadCity Street Market, downtown Madisonville, visitmadisonvilleky.com 20-22 Photography Weekend, Pennyrile Forest State Resort Park, Dawson Springs, (270) 797-3421, parks.ky.gov 21 Maiden Alley Oktoberfest, Maiden Alley Cinema, Paducah, maidenalleyoktoberfest.com 27-29 Un-BOO-lievable Weekend, Columbus-Belmont State Park Campground, Columbus, (270) 677-2327, parks.ky.gov 28 Kidapalooza, downtown Madisonville, 1-877-243-5280, visitmadisonvilleky.com 28 Trunk-or-Treat, Lake Barkley State Resort Park, Cadiz, (270) 924-1131, parks.ky.gov November

Autumn Happenings in

Western Kentucky 4th Annual Bluegrass on Beshear Show & Go Car Club Cruise In MadCity Street Market Madisonville Kidapalooza “The Acoustic Living Room” Songs and Stories with Kathy Mattea

877-243-5280

October 8 October 14 October 20 October 28 November 2

www.visitmadisonvilleky.com

2 Axis Prisoners of War in Kentucky, McCracken County Public Library, Paducah, mclib.net 2 Kathy Mattea, featuring Bill Cooley, Glema Mahr Center for the Arts, Madisonville, glemacenter.org 2-5 River’s Edge International Film Festival, Maiden Alley Cinema, Paducah, riversedgefilmfestival.org

Southern Region

October

1 NMRA All-Ford World Finals, Beech Bend Raceway, Bowling Green, (270) 781-7634, nmradigital.com 1 AutumnFest, Bear Wallow Farm, Nancy, also Oct 7-8, 14-15, 21-22 and 28-29, (606) 871-7745, bearwallowfarm.com 12 The Bellamy Brothers, The Center for Rural Development, Somerset, (606) 677-6000, centertech.com 13-14 Downtown Days, Public Square, Columbia, (270) 384-2501, columbia-downtowndays.com O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

51

CALENDAR

Let’s Go

13-14 Foothills Festival, Albany, foothillsfestivalky.com

State Park campground, Campbellsville, (270) 465-8255, parks.ky.gov

14 Oktoberfest Party, Dueling Grounds Distillery, Franklin, duelinggroundsdistillery.com

21 Bowling Green Bourbon and Brewfest, Bowling Green Ballpark, Bowling Green, (270) 883-0368, bgbrewfest.com

20-21 Big Buffalo Crossing BBQ Cook-Off, downtown Munfordville, visitmunfordville.com 20-21 Halloween Campout, Nolin Lake State Park, Mammoth Cave, (270) 286-4240, parks.ky.gov 20-22 Halloween in the Park, Green River

24 Score: A Film Music Documentary Film Screening, Capitol Arts Center, Bowling Green, theskypac.com/capitol-arts-center 28 Somernites Cruise Car Show and Shine, Fountain Square, Somerset, (606) 8722277, somernitescruise.com

November

4 Mill Springs Battlefield Ghostwalk, Zollicoffer Park, Nancy, (606) 636-4045, millsprings.net 11-12 Sheltowee Artisans Art Fair, The Center for Rural Development, Somerset, (606) 875-5264, centertech.com

Eastern Region

October

6 An Evening with Mark Lowry, Paramount Arts Center, Ashland, (606) 324-3175, paramountartscenter.com 6-7 Outdoor Family Adventure, Cumberland Falls State Resort Park, Corbin, 1-800-325-0063, parks.ky.gov 6-7 Carter Caves Haunted Trail, Carter Caves State Resort Park, Olive Hill, also Oct. 13-14 and 20-21, 1-800-325-0059, parks.ky.gov 7 Kentucky Apple Festival, Main Street, Paintsville, kyapplefest.org 12 Woodsongs Coffeehouse with Michael Johnathon, Gateway Regional Arts Center, Mount Sterling, grackentucky.org 13-14 Camper Halloween Weekend, Greenbo Lake State Resort Park, Greenup, also Oct. 20-21, (606) 473-7324, parks.ky.gov 13-16 October Court Days, downtown Mount Sterling, mtsterlingcourtdays.com 13-28 The Addams Family, Jenny Wiley Mainstage, Pikeville, (606) 886-9274, jwtheatre.com 14 A Flutter in the Night, Pine Mountain State Resort Park, Pineville, (606) 337-3066, parks.ky.gov 16-22 Camp Spook, Levi Jackson State Park campground, London, (606) 330-2130, parks.ky.gov 20 Comedian Rodney Carrington, Eastern Kentucky Expo Center, Pikeville, eastkyexpo.com 21 Big Church Night Out, Eastern Kentucky Expo Center, Pikeville, (606) 444-5500, eastkyexpo.com 21 Buffalo Night, Jenny Wiley State Resort

52

K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • O C TO B E R 2 0 1 7

STATEMENT OF OWENERSHIP, MANAGEMENT & CIRCULATION: 1) Publication Title: Kentucky Monthly, 2) Publication No.: 1542-0507, 3) Filing Date: Oct. 1, 2017, 4) Issue Frequency: 10-times, 5) No. of Issues Published Annually: 10, 6) Annual Subscription Price: $20, 7-8) Complete Mailing Address of Known Office of Publication & Address of Headquarters: 100 Consumer Lane, Frankfort, KY 40601-8489, 9) Full Name & Complete Mailing Address of Publisher, Editor & Managing Editor: Stephen M. Vest, PO Box 559, Frankfort, KY 40602-0559, 10) Owner: Vested Interest Publications, Inc., 100 Consumer Lane., Frankfort, KY 40601-8489.

Shareholders owning at least 1%: Barbara K. & Stephen M. Vest, 1001 Silver Creek Drive, Frankfort, KY 40601; Marjorie Vest, 9251 Stonestreet Road, Louisville, KY 40272; Michael & Mary Embry, 152 Skyview Drive, Frankfort, KY 40601; Mary Jo Ratliff, PO Box 1347, Pikeville, KY 41502; Christopher & Marie Shake, 2165 Cypress Landing Drive, Atlantic Beach, FL 32233; Jack E. Dixon, PO Box 128, Napoleon, IN 47034; Thomas H. & Judy Harris, 1713 Parkridge Parkway, Louisville, KY 40214; Ted Sloan, 1067 Macland Street, Lawrenceburg, KY 40342; Walter B. Norris, 418 Northridge Drive, Lexington, KY 40505; Carl D. Moreland, Frankfort, KY 40601, Kendall C. Shelton, 204 Denison Way, Frankfort, KY 40601, Barbara Ann & Pete Chiericozzi, 2255 Oregon Road, Salvisa, KY 40372, Dr. Alfred Jensen, 3715 Glen Bluff Road, Louisville, KY 40222, O.W. Gaunce, 113 W Public Sq, Ste 200, Glasgow, KY 42141 11) Known Bondholders, Mortgagees & Other Security Holders Owning or Holding 1% or More of Total Amount of Bonds, Mortgages or Other Securities: Harold Fletcher, 95 Pine Valley Lane, Rotunda West, FL 33947, 12) For completion by nonprofit organizations or other securities: not applicable, 13) Publication Title: Kentucky Monthly, 14) Issue Date for Circulation Data: September 2017, 15A) Total No. of Copies. Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 34,676. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 35,000, 15B) 1) Mailed Outside-County Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541. Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 18,939. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 18,946. 2) Mailed In-County Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3578: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 0. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 0. 3) Paid Distribution Outside the Mails Including Sales Through Dealers & Carriers, Street Vendors, Counter Sales & Other Paid Distribution Outside USPS: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 470. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 400. 4) Paid Distribution by Other Classes of Mail Through USPS: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 0. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 0. 15C) Total Paid Distribution: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 18,637. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 17,432.

15D) 1) Free or Nominal Rate Outside-County Copies Included on PS Form 3541: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 8,189. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 6,092. 2) Free or Nominal Rate In-County Copies Included on PS Form 3541: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 0. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 0. 3) Free or Nominal Rate Copies Mailed at Other Classes Through the USPS: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 0. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 0. 4) Free or Nominal Rate Distribution Outside the Mail: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 0. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 0.

15E) Total Free or Nominal Rate Distribution: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 8,189.

No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 6,092. 15F) Total Distribution: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 34,676. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 24,436. 15G) Copies Not Distributed: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 4,433. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 2,973 15H) Total: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 34,676. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 35,000. 15I) Percent Paid: Avg. No. of Copies Each Issue during Preceding 12 Mos.: 69.7%. No. of Single Issues Published Nearest to Filing Date: 71.3%.

I certify that statements made above are correct & complete. Stephen M. Vest, Publisher & Editor.

Park, Prestonsburg, (606) 889-1790, parks.ky.gov

paramountartscenter.com

27-28 Halloween Campout Celebration & Spooky Cave-in Movie, Carter Caves State Resort Park campground, Olive Hill, 1-800-325-0059, parks.ky.gov

3-4 Murder Mystery Theater, Carter Caves State Resort Park, Olive Hill, 800-325-0059, parks.ky.gov

27-28 Murder Mystery Weekend, Cumberland Falls State Resort Park, Corbin, (606) 528-4121, parks.ky.gov 28 Trace Adkins & Aaron Lewis Concert, Eastern Kentucky Expo Center, Pikeville, (606) 444-5504, eastkyexpo.com 28-31 Pumpkin House, Stafford House, Paintsville, (606) 793-4006, visitpaintsvilleky.com November

3 EmmyLou Harris, Paramount Arts Center, Ashland, (606) 324-3175,

10 Gary Allan Live, Eastern Kentucky Expo Center, Pikeville, (606) 444-5500, eastkyexpo.com 10-18 The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley, Jenny Wiley Mainstage, Pikeville, (606) 886-9274, jwtheatre.com

For additional Calendar items or to submit an event, please visit kentuckymonthly.com.

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O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

53

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K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • J U N E 2 0 0 8

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J U N E 2 0 0 8 • K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY

XX

VOICES

Vested Interest

No Clear Answers

I

was bewildered by the Civil War long before the tragedy in Charlottesville, Virginia, or the current debate over Confederate monuments.

My ancestors fought on both sides. In fact, of my four Civil War ancestors, like Kentucky’s population, three fought for the North and one for the South. I have long known that two of the three who fought for the North were from slave-owning families. Why would slaveholders wage a war to free slaves? Were they particularly enlightened, closet abolitionists? Or were they naïve enough to believe that they could, by fighting to preserve the Union, be allowed to keep their slaves? I don’t know.

President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation freed slaves only in areas in rebellion. It did not apply to Kentucky, Maryland, Delaware or Missouri. It also did not apply to the Union-held parts of Tennessee. Could some of these Kentuckians have fought to preserve slavery where it existed? Again, I don’t know.

Kentucky claimed neutrality when the war began in April 1861, and it wasn’t until after Confederate Gen. Leonidas Polk marched into Columbus in September, more than five months later, that Union troops entered the state—at Kentucky’s invitation. During the war, more than 100,000 Kentuckians chose to fight for the Union, and maybe 30,000 joined what became known as “The Lost Cause.”

Kentucky was on the winning side—yet our ancestors honored the losers and largely forgot the winners.

While I can’t prove why my slave-owning ancestors chose to fight for the Union, my Confederate ancestor owned little if anything and certainly owned no slaves. I hoped I could discover why he fought for the Confederacy at the Kentucky Historical Society.

Alexander Stafford enlisted in the Jesse’s Battalion of Mounted Rifles on July 22, 1862, in Boone County. Within a week, he was captured near Mount Sterling and sent to Camp Morton near Indianapolis, where he started writing weekly letters home to his wife, America.

For months, his letters went unanswered, and he grew

Prison Camps at Johnson’s Island.

worried. By August, he was being held at Johnson’s Island Prison, near Sandusky, Ohio. “I cannot think that you would have received so many letters from me and answered none.”

His letters are fraught with fear. He had learned STEPHEN M. VEST from fellow prisoners who Publisher & Editor-in-Chief were getting mail from Gallatin and Carroll counties that his rented farm in Ghent was in trouble and America wasn’t getting what she should for the corn he had planted. “Fortune has decreed that every cup of sweet shall not be without its bitter ingredients.” He wrote that he would have never enlisted if he had known the hardships she would face. “I expect to be released soon and go home and attend to my business and leave those who wish to exhibit their patriotism by following the fortunes of war. I have seen enough of the elephant to satisfy me that I can make more by staying at home.” No answer.

“If you have not sold all our things do not do so until you hear further from me.” No answer.

“Sell the cow if you must.” No answer.

“Keep my spare horse as long as you can.” No answer.

In October, America responded and Alexander wrote that hearing from her was “like the communion of a hundred spirits,” but his hope of a quick release had evaporated. “… You had better hire someone to chop your wood this winter.”

He wrote that he had plenty to eat and a comfortableenough bed, but by November he admitted: “I have been a prisoner nearly four months and am getting very tired of this place.”

In late November, Alexander wrote: “Nothing bears on my mind but you and the children. If I never more shall see you in this world I hope to meet you in the world where parting is no more. Forgive me for the way I acted last spring.”

A few days later, he wrote from Cairo, Illinois, that he was en route to Vicksburg, Mississippi, for a prisoner exchange. “Sell what you can. I understand if you need to go live with your brother.” That was his last letter. In December, America received word that Alexander was left for dead near Atlanta with “the fever.”

In the dozens of letters he wrote, there was not a single mention of why he joined the Confederate army. There is no mention of slavery nor states’ rights nor Northern aggression. He was just a 20-something-year-old man who wanted to be at home with his family. Joining the army was clearly a mistake as was the war itself—a mistake that took the lives of more than 620,000 Americans, many of those Kentuckians.

At least, that part is clear.

Readers, and those looking for a speaker for a church or civic group, may contact Stephen M. Vest at steve@kentuckymonthly.com

OCTOBER KWIZ ANSWERS: 1. C. Mizzou; 2. B. Tripoli; 3. C. The Wildcats have a 2-2 record in Nashville’s Music City Bowl; 4. C. That ’70s Show, in which she co-starred with her current husband; 5. B. Alright, alright, alright; 6. C. His father was a Wildcat, drafted in the 27th round by the Green Bay Packers; 7. A. Daniel Boone; 8. B. Covington; 9. The namesake of Audubon Park; 10. B. Appendix 56

K E N T U C K Y M O N T H LY • O C TO B E R 2 0 1 7

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