March 21, 1775, Virginia Governor Dunmore issued a strong proclamation against Richard Henderson and the Transylvania Company.
On March 21, 1782, Captain Estill’s party regrouped between Drowning Creek’s mouth and the mouth of the Red River. After a brief discussion, they decided to pursue the Natives immediately. Of the 40 men in Captain Estill’s party, five had families in Estill’s Station. These were the men who would return immediately to guard the fort.
March 21, 1870, the General Assembly “concerning the death of Lewis Collins of Maysville, expressed its “deep regret” at his death. Collins was “a native Kentuckian of great purity of character and enlarged public spirit.” Lewis Collins is known as the state’s 1st historian. He owned and edited The Eagle newspaper in Maysville for 27 years.
On March 21, 1894, New Jersey banned wagering on all horse racing. Monmouth Park prepared and moved their meets to Jerome Park and Morris Park in 1891. The state closed the track and sold the land. Racing would not return for over 50 years.
March 21, 1897, two men went to the gallows, behind the courthouse in Newport, for the last public hanging in Campbell County. Locals found him guilty of decapitating a pregnant 22-year-old named Ms. Pearl Bryan. The community became so infatuated with the case, the courthouse sold tickets to the courtroom. More than 5,000 people stood outside for updates.
March 21, 1903, Deputy Sheriff Bert Casteel, Laurel County Sheriff’s Department, died from a gunshot as he and his brother served a warrant.
March 21, 1906, the Kentucky General Assembly approved, and Governor J.C.W. Beckham signed into law legislation creating Eastern Kentucky State Normal School, known today as Eastern Kentucky University.
March 21, 1910, the General Assembly approved “an act to establish a Bureau of Vital Statistics and to provide for the immediate registration of all births and deaths throughout the State of Kentucky.”
On March 21, 1924, Lexington’s Civic League Kite Tournament started at 2:00 p.m. sharp at the trotting track, a.k.a. Blue Grass Fair Grounds; no admission fees were required. The individual winners received medals, and a silver cup went to the school with the most points. The contest included girls and boys.
March 21, 1942, the temporary organization called the Central Kentucky Hemp Growers Co-Operative Association urged all Hemp Fiber producers to attend the next meeting. The fiber producers needed to convince the government to release the 1,900 bushels frozen at the Kentucky-Illinois plant in Versailles destined for Wisconsin. The temporary association planned on becoming permanent.
On March 21, 1945, Hill Top (Mercer County) native Franklin Runyon Sousley died in the Iwo Jima Battle of World War II. He was one of the six Marines who raised the second of two U.S. flags on top of Mount Suribachi.
March 21, 1958, in the Wildcats’ 1st game in Freedom Hall, Vernon Hatton’s layup with 17 seconds left pushed the Wildcats past Temple, 61-60, and into the NCAA Championship game.
March 21, 1959, North Marshall edged Manual 64-63 in Memorial Coliseum to win the Boys’ Sweet 16 Basketball Tournament.
March 21, 1969, Army 1LT Leonard L. Preston, Jr. from Lexington and Marine Corps PFC Philip B. Thompson from Monticello in Wayne County, both died in the Vietnam War.
March 21, 1970, Army SGT Freddie D. Mize from Somerset in Pulaski County died in the Vietnam War.
On March 21, 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that citizens who had lived in a state for 30 days were residents and thus eligible to vote there. Meanwhile, in Kentucky, Governor W. Ford called a Special Session to “correct Kentucky’s legislation.”
March 21, 1981, Simon Kenton became the 1st team out of the 9th region to capture the Kentucky Boys’ Sweet 16 Basketball tournament by defeating the Mason County Royals. The Pioneers had never danced; they didn’t expect it in 1981. Nevertheless, the team pulled off a miracle in front of 21,287 people, at the time, the largest crowd for a championship game.
Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Cynthiana (Harrison County) native Celia Ammerman, born in 1983.
Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Kentucky bred Easy Goer, born in 1986 on Calumet Farm. His father, Alydar, was proud.
Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Maysville native and Wildcat Darius Tiyon Miller, born in 1990.
March 21, 1998, Scott County defeated Paintsville 89-78 for the Boys’ Sweet 16 State Basketball Championship with 18,867 watching in Rupp Arena. Paintsville’s J.R. VanHoose ended his career with 272 points in Sweet 16 games, behind only Clay County’s Richie Farmer (317).
March 21, 1999, Willy Kan Wai-yue, a female jockey in Hong Kong, died after a spill at Sha Tin Racecourse. In the 3rd race on a rainy day, Kan’s mount clipped heels. She died 2½ hours later in the hospital.
Sunday, March 21, 2010, many of Congressman Chandler’s constituents were furious with him over a no vote on a healthcare reform bill. “I won’t be voting for Congressman Chandler again, wrote a commentator on the Kentucky Democratic Party’s FB page. Chandler won again in 2010 but lost to Andy Barr in 2012.
On March 21, 2017, Governor M. Bevin signed HB 520, that for the 1st time allowed charter schools in Kentucky. It became effective at the end of June 2017.
March 21, 2020, a Kentucky bred and Keeneland graduate won the GII $1,000,000 Louisiana Derby. He didn’t run in the Derby and never won again.
March 21, 2021, Wolfgang Kratzenberg from Verona (Boone County) caught a state record Saugeye weighing 9 lbs., 0.5 oz. He landed it in Bullock Pen Lake in Boone and Grant Counties.
On March 21, 2023, the Census Bureau reported that a worker in Kentucky travels to work about three minutes less than the national average. The average commute in the Commonwealth takes 23 minutes.