TODAY IN KENTUCKY HISTORY

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Elisha Warfield, Jr., born in 1781. When Elisha was nine years old; his family moved to Lexington from Maryland. He became a successful medical practitioner in Lexington after graduating from Transylvania Medical School and later became the 1^st Professor of Surgery and Obstetrics at his alma mater. The doctor was essential in Lexington’s development and became a prominent politician and abolitionist in Kentucky. In 1809 he helped found the Lexington Jockey Club. In 1821 he decided to devote his energies to breeding, training, and racing thoroughbreds full-time. In 1826, he helped found the Kentucky Association, which built a racetrack on land adjacent to his stud farm, Meadow Lane, the home of Lexington, one of America’s greatest stallions.

February 5, 1801, John Curd, Jr. died in Mercer County.

February 5, 1817, the General Assembly passed a bill “to establish a hospital in the town of Louisville.” Many travelers on the Ohio River languished in Louisville with fatigue and sickness, making the sickbay a priority.

February 5, 1838, the General Assembly passed “an act to incorporate the Kentucky Historical Society” because “the collection and preservation of the antiquities of our country, and of memorials and documents serving to illustrate its history and institutions . . . have a tendency to enlarge the sphere of human knowledge and the advancement of science, to perpetuate the history of moral and political events and to improve and interest posterity.”

On February 5, 1842, a charter from the Kentucky General Assembly founded the Kentucky Institution for the Education of the Blind in Louisville. The sixth-oldest institution of its kind in the U.S. was the first established in the South.

February 5, 1861, Eminence College, one of Kentucky’s 1^st coeducational colleges, became official via the General Assembly. Located in Henry County, they offered courses in Latin, Greek, mathematics, physics, and chemistry.

February 5, 1875, Benjamin G. Bruce published the 1^st issue of a weekly magazine called the Kentucky Live Stock Record in a house at 17 Jordan’s Row, now Upper Street. The Lexington magazine became The Thoroughbred Record.

February 5, 1895, several decades after he heroically saved lives in the Civil War, Maysville native John Samuel Darrough received the Medal of Honor.

Kentucky Trivia: Seventeen Kentuckians received the Medal of Honor fighting in the Civil War. Sixty Kentuckians have received the Medal overall.

February 5, 1905, Deputy Sheriff Henry Day, Letcher County Sheriff’s Office, suffered a fatal heart attack while visiting a man he had wounded the previous week.

On February 5, 1924, the Law Enforcement House Committee voted favorably for House Bill #239, the “1^st Big Step” to stop horse betting in Kentucky and regain state control from race track interests.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Artemus native (Knox County) Sarah Kathern “Kitten” Ramsey, born in 1939.

On February 5, 1940, Deputy Sheriff Jerry Combs, Breathitt County Sheriff’s Office, died while arresting two men who created a disturbance at the Federal Surplus Commodities Office. The state convicted both men of murder, however, the 26-year-old shooter received life.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Owensboro native Darrell Lee Waltrip, born in 1947.

February 5, 1951, Army CPL Rush F. Crum from Floyd County died in the Korean War.

February 5, 1951, the Kefauver Committee subpoenaed many gamblers in Northern Kentucky who represented a national gambling syndicate. Although authorities released no names one gambler admitted, “They summoned a handful of our boys.” The feds were investigating interstate commerce in handbooks, slots, and white slavery.

February 5, 1962, a meeting took place in Standiford Motel, room 118. Present were ex-U.S. senator/governor Earl Clements, ex-U.S. senator/governor Happy Chandler, State Treasurer Thelma Stovall, and several Frankfort attorneys. These long-antagonistic fractional democratic leaders had one goal, to stop the current Republican U.S. Senator Thurston Morton from winning re-election. They were unsuccessful.

February 5, 1969, Army WO1 Willard H. Burkhart from Helton in Leslie County died in the Vietnam War.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Louisville native Adrienne Johnson, born in 1974. Adrienne has played a significant role in the women’s basketball program for 18 years. She also played for eight seasons in the WNBA, beginning during the league’s inaugural year (1997) with the Cleveland Rockers.

February 5, 1980, the Democratic legislatures ended their honeymoon with Governor John Y. Brown, Jr. when they told him to balance the budget without raising taxes. Brown wanted it on the table, but the body would rather cut services than raise taxes.

February 5, 1980, restoration on Lexington’s Hunt-Morgan House came to a halt. The Blue Grass Trust needed to find the “correct bricks” to restore the home properly. The restoration project started in late 1978.

February 5, 1989, Darrin Van Horn, a 2-1 underdog, defeated Robert Hines by a 12-round unanimous decision to win the IBF Junior Middleweight Championship.

February 5, 1990, State Police began an investigation into the Hodgenville Police Department after the mayor had destroyed speeding tickets and delayed the prosecution of drunk-driving cases. Mayor Keith also served as acting Police Chief after the chief died unexpectedly.

February 5, 1991, the Senate prepared for its 1^st impeachment trial in 75 years. Agriculture Commissioner Ward “Butch” Burnette resigned at the last minute before proceedings began. He placed a friend on payroll three weeks before she started.

February 5, 1997, more than 30 Kentucky hospitals sued Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, claiming the insurer breached its contract by failing to negotiate changes in the rates it used to pay hospitals. Anthem, at the time, was Kentucky’s largest health insurer.

February 5, 1997, both sides of the aisle asked Governor P. Patton for a special session to reform Kentucky’s health care system. Even ex-governor B. Jones chimed in, stating he wanted to correct his miscalculations. The Kentucky health insurer offered a breast cancer patient a plan for $1,500 a month, and she had to pay six months upfront.

On February 5, 2001, Wallace Wilkinson’s creditors filed suit to have his companies seized. Wilkinson admitted his liabilities exceeded his assets by $300 million. He also admitted he had been financially insolvent since 1992, while he operated his Ponzi scheme. Additionally, the conman failed to pay federal income taxes since 1991.

On February 5, 2003, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell sat in front of members of the U.N. Security Council and lied about Saddam Hussein and his weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Ten days later, millions protested for peace in 600 cities worldwide. In March, the Iraqi War began after a slew of Bush/Cheney lies. Nobody went to prison.

On February 5, 2006, J. B. Holmes won his first PGA title by taking the FBR Open in Phoenix by seven shots to win $936,000. He liked the scene so much that he won his second PGA event in Phoenix in 2008 over Phil M.