One of the earliest roads in Kentucky led from Fort Boonesborough to a prime hunting location known as the Lower Blue Licks, or the Lower Salt Spring. Salt licks attracted buffalo in large numbers and were favored spots for hunters. Licks also provided a valuable source of salt that was critical for preserving meat. In 1775, Kentucky's settlement year, the hunters at Boonesborough discovered the Lower Blue Licks by following a series of connected buffalo traces. The path crossed the river near Boonesborough and went up Lower Howard's Creek in present-day Clark County. There it traverses the Lower Howard's Creek Nature & Heritage Preserve. This report describes the history and geography of the Salt Spring Trace, as well as other early roads in the Preserve.

Unusual place names evoke a sense of mystery and wonder. How did a place come to be called the "Wolf Pen" or the "Shot Factory"? Where in the world were the "Indian Old Fields" and "Brandenburg's Mill"? Researching these names often reveals fascinating stories about local history, families, events, and politics. Clark County, Kentucky is blessed with many such interesting places. The articles in this book are collected from a column in the Winchester Sun called "Where in the World? " Each article describes an historic place or person in Clark County, some well known, some not so well known. The articles were written for the Bluegrass Heritage Museum in hopes of fostering an interest in local history and the Museum. This book is intended to do the same. This work includes 62 articles that appeared in the Sun between September 6, 2007 to June 3, 2016. A few articles were updated for this publication after additional information became available.

No one played a more important role in the settlement of Clark County than Capt. William "Billy" Bush. Born in Orange County, Virginia, Billy came out with Daniel Boone in 1775, resided for a time at Fort Boonesborough, then spent the rest of his life living a few miles from the fort. He thus became one of the first permanent settlers in Kentucky. Billy was also a key figure in establishing Providence Baptist Church, the first church in Clark County. Their place of worship-the Old Stone Church-is now the oldest church on Kentucky soil. Billy Bush laid claim to thousands of acres of land between Winchester and the Kentucky River, and Daniel Boone ran the surveys for him. This land became the foundation of the Bush Settlement.

Unusual place names evoke a sense of mystery and wonder. How did a place come to be called "Barefoot" or "Battle Row"? Where in the world were the "Sycamore Forest" and "Blue Ball"? Researching these names often reveals fascinating stories about local history, families, events, and politics. Clark County, Kentucky is blessed with many such interesting places. The articles in this book are collected from a column in the Winchester Sun called "Where in the World?" Each article describes an historic place name in Clark County, some well known, some not so well known. The articles were written for the Bluegrass Heritage Museum in hopes of fostering an interest in local history and the museum. This book is intended to do the same. This work includes one hundred articles that appeared in the newspaper between January 6, 2005 and August 23, 2007. A few of the articles were updated for this publication when additional information became available.

Maps published frorn the third quarter of the eighteenth century through the Civil War reflect in colorful detail the emergence of the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the unfolding art of American cartography. Ten maps, selected and annotated by the most eminent historian of Kentucky, have been reproduced in authentic facsimiles. The accompanying booklet includes an illuminating historical essay, as well as notes on the individuaL facsimiles, and is illustrated with numerous details of other notable Kentucky maps. Among the rare maps reproduced are one of the battlefield of Perryville (1877), a colorful travelers' map (1839), and a map of the Falls of the Ohio (1806) believed to be the first map printed in Kentucky.

" Among the darkest corners of Kentucky's past are the grisly feuds that tore apart the hills of Eastern Kentucky from the late nineteenth century until well into the twentieth. Now, from the tangled threads of conflicting testimony, John Ed Pearce, Kentucky's best known journalist, weaves engrossing accounts of six of the most notorior accounts to uncover what really happened and why. His story of those days of darkness brings to light new evidence, questions commonly held beliefs about the feuds, and us and long-running feuds -- those in Breathitt, Clay Harlan, Perry, Pike, and Rowan counties. What caused the feuds that left Kentucky with its lingering reputation for violence? Who were the feudists, and what forces -- social, political, financial -- hurled them at each other? Did Big Jim Howard really kill Governor William Goebel? Did Joe Eversole die trying to protect small mountain landowners from ruthless Eastern mineral exploiters? Did the Hatfield-McCoy fight start over a hog? For years, Pearce has interviewed descendants of feuding families and examined skimpy court records and often fictional newspapeputs to rest some of the more popular legends.