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TODAY IN KENTUCKY HISTORY

Kentucky Trivia ● Kentucky Tweets

On March 8, 1777, Native Americans set fires to isolated cabins around Fort Harrod to draw the settlers out.  Some settlers fought through the woods and made it to the fort, with four settlers wounded and one killed.

On March 8, 1780, Colonel Richard Callaway, Pemberton Rawlings, and three enslaved people worked on a ferry boat about a mile above Boonesborough when the Shawnees fired upon them.  They scalped, burned, and then rolled the Colonel in mud.  Pemberton Rawlings also died.  Locals buried two pioneers in a single grave within the old Boonesborough Fort.  One enslaved person escaped to tell the news, and Native Americans captured the other two.

Kentucky Trivia:  “Probably no single man accomplished more than did Colonel Richard Callaway in laying the foundation that culminated in the admission of Kentucky into the Union on June 1, 1792.”  This was a quote by R. Alexander Bate in an article published in The Filson Club History Quarterly.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Wayne County native Preston Hopkins Leslie, Kentucky’s 26th Governor, born in 1819.  Preston Leslie was born in Clinton County, Kentucky (then a part of Wayne County).  He worked with his father on the family farm until 1835, then supported himself with odd jobs, including driving a stagecoach, running a ferry, and being a store clerk.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Lexington native Mary Deshea, born in 1850; a founder of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

March 8, 1880, workers completed the Cincinnati-Southern Railroad through Kentucky over much heated opposition by L&N.  Today in Kentucky History by Robert A. Powell pg: 28

March 8, 1898, Murray native Nathan B. Stubblefield received patent #US600457A for the electric battery.

March 8, 1908, Flemingsburg native Herman “Ivory” Chittison, jazz pianist, passed over.

Tuesday, March 8, 1910, Georgetown College hosted State University, Lexington (UK) and lost 24-23 in Buell Armory Gymnasium.

March 8, 1918, the 1st Kentucky High School basketball Tournament took place at Centre College in Danville.  Lexington High School beat Somerset to win the championship.

March 8, 1919, the University of Kentucky basketball team lost to Miami of Ohio 38-14 in the Buell Armory Gymnasium under Coach Andrew Gill.  In the second half the University of Kentucky five failed to score a single point, while Miami men threw eight field goals and two fouls.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Park native, Louie Broady Nunn, Kentucky’s 52nd governor, born in 1924.  Park is located in Barren County.

March 8, 1922, Kentucky authorized Murray State College as a teacher training institution.  It would gain university status in 1966.

March 8, 1951, Virgil Munday Chapman passed over after an automobile accident in Washington D.C.  The Middleton native died representing Kentucky as the 34th Class II U.S. Senator.

March 8, 1951, the following died in the Korean War:
Army MSG James I. Burns from Pike County
Army PFC Willie l. Collier from Floyd County
Army PVT Allen Higgs Jr. from Daviess County
Navy LCDR John J. Magda from Camp Taylor in Jefferson County
Army CPL Irvin H. Packo from Christian County
Army PFC William T. Wirotzious from Jefferson County

March 8, 1953, Army PVT Clifford E. Sizemore from Whitley County died in the Korean War.

March 8, 1961, President John Kennedy met with Kentucky Governor Bert Combs, center, and Senator John Sherman Cooper, right, to discuss aid for the depressed Appalachian coal region.

March 8, 1968, Army SP4 Larry R. Redmon from Salvisa in Mercer County died in the Vietnam War.

March 8, 1969, the following died in the Vietnam War: 
Army CPL Alfred E. Alvey Jr. from Morganfield in Union County
Army SGT Jewell C. Blankenship from Hopkinsville Christian County
Army CPT Emrath P. John from Lexington
Air Force LtCOL Paul E. Garrett from Bowling Green in Warren County
Army PFC Paul D. Haydon from Louisville
Army SP4 John R. Hornsby 19470113 from Paducah McCracken County

March 8, 1971, Muhammad Ali (31-1) fought Joe Frazier (27-0) in Madison Square Garden.  In The Fight of the Century, the two men split an unprecedented $5 million purse for the richest and most publicized bout in history.  Ali called Frazier an Uncle Tom.  Frazier fumed and trained like never before.  Frazier won a unanimous 15-round decision in one of the fiercest fights of all time while handing Ali his 1st loss.

March 8, 1971, Army 1LT John D. Hale from Brandenburg in Meade County died in the Vietnam War.

On March 8, 1976, Jack Givens led a late rally with Rick Robey and Mike Phillips as the Wildcats outlasted the Bulldogs in an exciting overtime win for the last regular season game at Memorial Coliseum.

Kentucky Trivia:  The men’s UK basketball team did play an exhibition game against Marathon Oil in November 1976.  Five days later they opened their season in Rupp Arena.

March 8, 1976, Kentucky Senate Bill 150 designated the Kentucky coffee tree as the official tree of the Commonwealth.  Today the state tree is the Tulip Poplar.

March 8, 1983, Richmond indicted five city officials over bribery charges after the city started a discussion on extended drinking hours.

March 8, 1986, Coach E. Sutton and the UK Wildcats beat Alabama, 83-72 in the SEC Tournament finals at Rupp Arena in Lexington.

March 8, 1991, Marine Corps CPT Reginald Underwood from Lexington died fighting in the Desert Storm.

March 8, 2000, after a lengthy debate in which some lawmakers shared their emotional ties to tobacco, the House approved a compromise bill to divide much of the settlement money among counties instead of placing it in one pile to prop up agriculture.

March 8, 2014, Santa Anita Park hosted the GII $300,500 San Felipe Stakes for three-year-olds.

March 8, 2018, Pearse Lyons, the Irish-born Kentucky billionaire who founded the international agribusiness and beverage giant Alltech died at age 73.  Pearse and his wife Deirdre started the company in their Lexington garage.

March 8, 2019, standing under a new Bevin/Alvarado campaign sign, with a Marine Corps fighter jet behind him, V.P. Mike Pence talked at the Bluegrass Airport to support Governor M. Bevin’s reelection.  President Trump also sent his full endorsement.

March 8, 2020, UK rebooted their computer system to end a month-long cyberattack they claimed was the most substantial cyber intrusion in University history.

Sunday, March 8, 2020, Kentucky announced three coronavirus cases, bringing the total to four in Harrison, Fayette, and Jefferson Counties.  Simultaneously, the Surgeon General told the public, “masks do not work for the general public.”  Also, on this day, Dr. Fauci stated on 60 Minutes “people should not be walking around with masks on.”

March 8, 2021, for the 1st time in a year, Lexington students went to middle and high schools where they practiced virus protocols.  These included temperature checking, masks, desk shields if requested, contact tracing, wiping desks, and SOP for students entering and leaving classes.

March 8, 2022, Russia, Russia, Russia; the xenophobia continued as America built its case for war.  President J. Biden announced America would stop importing Russian goods while closer to home, we learned that the state’s public pensions had $62 million invested in the foreign country.