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TODAY IN KENTUCKY HISTORY

Kentucky Trivia ● Kentucky Tweets

March 10, 1775, Daniel Boone and Michael Stoner set out to blaze a trail through the Cumberland Gap for the Transylvania Company from Fort Chiswell, Virginia.  With the aid of 35 axmen, they helped create the principal route used by settlers for more than 50 years to reach Kentucky from the east.

March 10, 1775, NC Governor Martin wrote the Earl of Dartsmouth in England and warned him against Richard Henderson and his confederates.  Meanwhile, Colonel Preston wrote Lord Dunmore of Virginia to inform him that the pre-council conference with the Cherokees at Sycamore Shoals was underway.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Logan County native James Bowie, born in 1796.  According to his older brother John; this was James’s birthdate.

March 10, 1810, Judge John Boyle, became the 5th Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice.

March 10, 1856, the General Assembly approved an “Act to incorporate the city of Paducah.”  Paducah was no longer an incorporated town, but a city!  The Act included elections for mayors, judges, city attorneys, wharfmasters, and a city council.  It was now okay for the city to pave the sidewalks and roads.

March 10, 1864, Camp Nelson in Jessamine County, high on the Kentucky River Palisades, began to draft Blacks for the Civil War.  What unfolded over the next ten months was one of the most extraordinary events in the entire Civil War.  Around 57% of all age military black men in Kentucky joined the Army, the highest percentage of all states.  More than 500 U.S. Colored Troops mustered into service during June 1864, and a record 1,370 new troops enlisted at the camp in July.  Approximately 10,000 African Americans received emancipation from slavery in exchange for service in the Union army.

March 10, 1869, Kentucky created Menifee County from Powell County, Wolfe County, Bath County, Morgan County, and Montgomery County and named it in honor of Richard H. Menefee, a Kentucky U.S. Congressman.  The county seat is Frenchburg.  Other localities include: Denniston, Korea, Mariba, Means, Pomeroyton, Scranton, Sudith, and Wellington.  The 114th county created, Menifee County covers 206 square miles.

KY 1869
640px Map of Kentucky highlighting Menifee County.svg
By David Benbennick

March 10, 1870, Kentucky created Martin County from Lawrence County, Floyd County, Pike County, and Johnson County and named it for John P. Martin, Kentucky U.S. Congressman.  The county seat is Inez.  Other localities include: Beauty, Job, Lovely, Laura, Pilgrim, Tomahawk, and Warfield.  The 116th county created, Martin County covers 231 square miles.

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640px Map of Kentucky highlighting Martin County.svg
By David Benbennick

Kentucky Trivia:  Mary E. Merritt attended the Berea College nursing training program in 1902 for a two-year degree in nursing.  In 1904 when the Day Law forced segregation of the colleges in Kentucky, Merritt finished her nurses’ training at Freedman’s Hospital in Washington, D.C., affiliated with Howard University.  She was the 1st African American to be licensed as a nurse in Kentucky.

March 10, 1925, Deputy Sheriff Enos Murphy, Hopkins County Sheriff’s Office, died while going to the assistance of another deputy and the Madisonville Police Chief, who were involved in a shootout with two suspects.  

March 10, 1926, Chief of Police Bart Rowe, Elkhorn City Police Department, succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained the previous day when he was shot by a drunk man who was attempting to sell moonshine in Elkhorn City.  Chief Rowe was able to kill his murderer.

March 10, 1930, the Senate overrode Governor Sampson’s veto of a bill that directed the acceptance of Senator T. Coleman du Pont’s Cumberland Falls State Park offer.  The vote was 20-11.  The House had already overridden the veto, and thus the bill became law.  Governor Sampson wanted the land for utility companies.

Kentucky Trivia:  Kentucky native T. Coleman du Pont offered to buy the Cumberland Falls to stop a hydroelectric power plant.  Mr. du Pont died before purchasing the land, but his wife backed up his promise and bought 593 acres for $400,000 and gifted it to Kentucky.  Today it is part of the Daniel Boone National Forest.

March 10, 1933, Deputy Sheriff Theopolis Madden, Knott County Sheriff’s Office, died while confronting a drunk man.  Earlier in the evening, other county officers told the murderer to leave town and go home.

Monday, March 10, 1940, the General Assembly opened a four-day session, they would adjourn sine die on Thursday.  Legislators named the session “Pet Bills” for certain members of the Assembly that stood by the Keen Johnson administration.  From the 830 bills, over 2/3 would die.

Friday, March 10, 1950, Ms. Smith, president of the Lexington Education Association chapter urged all her members to attend the legislative sessions in Frankfort.  Teachers had attended the night sessions since January.   The turnout exceeded expectations.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Columbia native William Lance Burton, born in 1960.  Lance performed more than 15,000 shows in Las Vegas for over 5,000,000 people as a magician.  In 2010 he ended his 31-year show in Sin City.

March 10, 1968, Army PFC Walter E. Anderson, Jr. from Lexington died in the Vietnam War.

March 10, 1969, Marine Corps PFC Buford Hardy from Richmond and Army CPL John W. Hill, Jr. from Louisville, both died in the Vietnam War.

March 10, 1973, as President Nixon sought to bring back the death penalty, a federal court ruled that coal operators could ignore the U.S. Bureau of Mines regulations and the millions in fines assessed to the companies.  Meanwhile, the violent standoff at Wounded Knee in the Sioux territory of South Dakota ended.

March 10, 1976, the CDC made the difficult decision to delay a vaccine because a lack of outbreaks for an unusual swine-type influenza.  They Center reported only five individuals tested positive.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Louisville native Patrick Henry Hughes, born in 1988.  Hollywood told his life story in the 2015 movie I Am Potential.

March 10, 1988, the U.S. National Register of Historic Places placed the John James Audubon State Park on their list.

March 10, 1989, Kentucky basketball finished the year with a 13-19 record, its 1st losing mark in 61 seasons.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Lexington native Grace Victoria Cox, born in 1995.  The television actress is known best for her role as Melanie Cross on CBS’s Under the Dome.  She then starred in Starz’s Now Apocalypse and Netflix’s The Society.  In 2019, she acted in the bio pic Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile.

March 10, 1997, Deputy Sheriff Gregory Hans, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, died by a gunshot at the scene of a domestic dispute.

March 10, 2005, President George W. Bush spoke at the University of Louisville to promote his idea of overhauling Social Security by letting citizens invest their own money in the stock market if they wanted to.  What could go wrong?

March 10, 2013, Madison Central defeated Ballard High School by one point to win the KHSAA Boys Sweet 16 basketball championship in Rupp Arena in front of 17,315 fans.

March 10, 2018, a Keeneland graduate won Santa Anita’s GII $400,690 San Felipe Stakes for three-year-olds.

March 10, 2020, Madison County’s Berea College announced they would close due to the coronavirus, and Governor A. Beshear wanted all nursing homes to ban visitors except loved ones receiving end-of-life care.  Meanwhile, N.Y. City Health Commissioner stated, “We don’t recommend the use of masks.”  Finally, the Italian government put the entire country on lockdown after the elderly died at an alarming rate.

March 10, 2021, “We still have far too many deaths reported today,” Governor A. Beshear said in a short written update.  He reported 34 deaths for a state total of 4,884.  Around 881,477 Kentuckians had received vaccinations.

Tuesday, March 10, 2021, Congress approved the latest coronavirus stimulus relief package at $1.9 trillion, the most extensive spending package in American history.  The legislation passed via budget reconciliation, and President J. Biden signed it on Friday.

On March 10, 2022, the U.S. reported that consumer inflation jumped to 7.9% over the past year.  Propelled by surging food, gas, and housing costs, it was the largest spike since 1982, and experts believed it would only worsen.

March 10, 2022, a $13.6 billion emergency package of military and humanitarian aid for Ukraine won final approval, hitching a ride on a government spending bill loaded with political prizes for both prizes.  The Afghanistan War had ended, but America’s addiction to combat continued.