Tag Archives: kentucky

Danville Kentucky

April 16, 2019 Sharon Leave a comment

I grew up in Danville, Kentucky. Danville is located in central Kentucky, south of Lexington. It’s a small town loaded with history. Of course, growing up, I never paid attention to any of these things. Now, when I go back to visit family, I can’t help but seek these places out. I want to share with you some of the historic places and the places that hold meaning.

Constitution Square

Constitution Square Historic Site was the birthplace of Kentucky’s statehood. The site originally had a meeting house, jail, and courthouse. The cabins currently on the site are replicas of the originals.

Ephraim McDowell House

McDowell House Museum was home of the “the father of ovariotomy”. McDowell was the first to person to successfully remove an ovarian tumor. The story is fascinating. I recommend reading about it. Visit their website for more info.

Vintage apothecary bottles — A shelf full of McDowell’s potions.

Burke’s Bakery

While not technically a historic site, it’s definitely a landmark. Burke’s opened in the 1970s and is still going strong. With donuts, pastries, cakes, pies, cookies, and more, there is sure to something to make everyone happy. I’m a big fan of the gingerbread men. My mouth is watering just thinking of them.

Courthouse

The courthouse was finished in 1862. The Italianate style building was erected to replace the original courthouse, which burned down. The large clock tower can be seen from just about every angle in town.

Danville Office Equipment

Another local landmark, Danville Office Equipment has been in it’s current location since 1975. They sell everything from pens to computers. They also have a service department that started out repairing old typewriters, but now offer service for copiers and printers. My father worked here for over 40 years. I worked there for several years myself.

I have been to many small towns in the south. See my Tuesday Trekkin’ blog for just a few of them. Danville is one of the few that still maintains that active hometown feel. Many towns are empty with closed up and shuttered shops and restaurants. It’s great to see a small town maintaining a vibrant, active downtown.

Danville Kentucky Courthouse

June 28, 2018 Sharon Leave a comment

Some images of the courthouse in downtown Danville, KY. I grew up in this small town in central Kentucky. It’s easy to overlook places in your home town. I don’t remember the courthouse looking quite so impressive when I live there.

Early Morning Sun

Early Sunday morning is a great time to visit small town America. The streets are virtually empty. If you time it just right, you’ll get to hear the church bells ring. But since it was in the early morning, the sun was not in an ideal place. I decided to play it up a bit as the golden light shines through the windows.

Colorful flowers in front of the courthouse in downtown Danville, KY. The early morning light gives the building a golden glow.

Three larger upper windows and three arched doorways. A beautiful courthouse with great details.

The front of the courthouse in Danville, KY.

Prints of these images are available here.

Americana, Maps, Photography

It’s Map Time

June 8, 2018 Sharon 4 Comments

I’ve recently created a new Kentucky travel map.

Originals

The Madison County Courthouse in Richmond, KY

1827 Map of Kentucky with the counties color coded.

1850 detailed map of Kentucky with insets

Final

Americana, Photography

A Weekend in the Bluegrass

April 29, 2018 Sharon Leave a comment

My father recently gifted my sister and I a farm in Springfield, KY. So, the mister and I decided to go up and spend the weekend checking out the area and surrounding towns.

Freewheelin’ Friday

We started out early on Friday and headed north to Kentucky. We stopped in Stanford at the Bluebird Cafe where we ate a great lunch with excellent service. I had a pear salad, ask me about romaine lettuce and hep a. Walt had a ham and cheese with sliced pair (Parisian pear sandwich). From there we made our way to Danville where we stopped at Kroger for snacks and supplies. Then the Liquor Barn next door. I want one of these in my town. Really. It’s just too cool. They have liquor and beer and snacks and liquor and beer and this one even had a bar in the middle. Have a beer while you pick out beer. Does it get better?

Bluebird Cafe Menu

Pear Salad

Parisian Pear Sandwich

We finally made it to the Farm. Holy shit, one lane windy roads, dogs, and deer everywhere. It’s a quiet, dead end road with no traffic and very few neighbors.

Springfield, KY

After a nap and a very short hike, we decided it was dinner time. We debated on whether we should go to Danville or Springfield for dinner. We chose Springfield because it’s closer to our current location. We went to a place called Mordecai’s in downtown Springfield. On Friday they have seafood buffet with shrimp and crab legs and other seafood type stuff. But we aren’t really buffet people, so we ordered off the menu. We started with the Wisconsin cheese curds, fried cheese with a spicy breading. I got the blackened, grilled salmon and the mister got the Kentucky Hot Brown. What in the hell is that? I can hear you asking that right now. Well, it’s white bread (usually toasted), turkey, cheese, mornay sauce (this varies depending on location), more cheese, bacon, and tomato. There are variations with ham added. This version did not have the Mornay sauce which disappointed the mister greatly. He said it was still excellent. The beverage was Country Boy Cougar Bait, brewed in Georgetown, KY. I generally prefer darker beers, but I liked this pretty well. In fact, we bought a six pack to back to Tennessee with us.

Mordecai’s in Springfield

Fried Cheese

Country Boy Cougar Bait

Grilled Salmon with sweet potato

Kentucky Hot Brown

Sightseeing Saturday

The next morning, we took a much longer hike. We saw a few deer in the distance, but not much else. After cleaning up, we headed to Bardstown, KY for lunch. I loved Bardstown. It reminded me of a European town or maybe something in England. It very much had the feel of a quaint historic village. We had lunch at the Old Talbott Tavern. The historic tavern contains a bed and breakfast, a restaurant, and a bourbon bar. The food was fantastic. I had the brisket sandwich. The mister had the Kentucky Hot Brown. This hot brown had the Mornay sauce, making him a happy man. We did try the Kentucky Ale beer cheese. It was good, but I have had better. I washed mine down with Guinness and the mister had the Tavern Mule – bourbon, ginger beer, and fresh ginger. It was perfect. Did I mention they have a bourbon bar? See the pics!

View from the morning hike

Our new friend

Talbott’s Tavern

Talbott Tavern Menu

Guinness and Talbott Mule

Kentucky Hot Brown

The Bourbon Bar – all of those bottles are bourbon

Walt with a blackened tree

After lunch we went to the Bourbon Heritage Center, located at the Heavenhill Distillery. If you go to a distillery, note the trees in the area. All of the bark will be black. This is from where the liquid evaporates and coats everything in the area. The museum had a great exhibition, detailing the history of Kentucky bourbon. We did not tour the distillery or do a tasting. We were tired and had enough drink already.

Homeward Bound

Sunday morning, we headed home. On the way home we stopped in Stanford, so I could take some more photos of the courthouse. We finally made it to the interstate and a Waffle House. I got my old standard, the Cheese and Eggs plate and the mister got a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich.

If you have seen my Tuesday Trekkin’ blogs, you’ll know that I love to visit small town America. Many of the small towns I visit are virtually empty. It was great to see active small towns worth visiting again. Americana at its best!

Americana, Photography, Tuesday Trekkin'

Weekend Trek

November 28, 2017 Sharon Leave a comment

It’s not a Tuesday Trek, but it was still a trek. I went to Kentucky for dinner with my family. Before I headed home the next day, my mom and I headed out to Nicholasville for breakfast. We had delicious breakfast at Cottage Cafe on the edge of town. My current wish is to find a place like this on our Tuesday Trek! The service was great, the food was awesome, and the atmosphere everything I wanted. They also have lunch and dinner. That menu looked pretty good as well.

After eating, we went downtown so I could take photos of the courthouse. The courthouse itself is Gothic in design and looks different from most courthouses. I walked around a bit but I wanted to get home, so I couldn’t get as many photos as I wanted. But I will be back!

Cottage Cafe Sign

Cottage Cafe outside

This is just part of the breakfast menu

The Fiesta omelet with cheese, jalapeno peppers, tomatoes, onions.

The Jessamine County Courthouse in Nicholasville, KY is an unusual Gothic architecture.

Photography

Signs! Signs! And More Signs

February 12, 2017 Sharon Leave a comment

Signs are a definite favorite with myself and other photographers. Some are vintage, retro, or just retro looking. Billboards, neon, painted on buildings, I don’t know why we are drawn to them. Perhaps it’s that they seem to be art in their own right, created to draw people in. Even the most simple sign can garner attention and make us stop to stare. Some signs have the name of a business and some are warnings for what lies ahead. You’ll find a little bit of everything in this sign gallery.

To purchase any of these please visit my gallery.