Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to the Louisville native and poet Madison Julius Cawein, born in 1865. In 1913, a year before his death, Cawein published a poem called “Waste Land ” in a Chicago magazine, which included Ezra Pound as an editor. Scholars have identified this poem as an inspiration to T. S. Eliot’s poem The Waste Land , published in 1922 and considered the birth of modernism in poetry.
On March 23, 1906, the General Assembly established the Kentucky State Racing Commission . This governor-appointed group was to regulate all thoroughbred racing in the state. They also licensed corporations, trainers, jockeys, and other track personnel wanting to participate in track meets. It also gave the power to revoke such licenses.
March 23, 1920, the General Assembly granted scholarships at the Kentucky State University and the State Normal Schools to all citizens who joined the military or naval service during the war with Germany.
On March 23, 1930, UK named Adolph Rupp, a Freeport, Illinois, high school coach, as its head basketball coach out of 71 applicants. The school paid him $2,800 for his first season and $3,000 for his second.
On March 23, 1934, Kentucky finalized plans to make the Commonwealth “bandit-proof.” The strategy included hiring 8,000 olive-uniformed, fully-armed militiamen to work with sheriffs in the state’s troubled regions.
On March 23, 1940, Lexington announced that Eastern Airlines and Delta Air Lines may make the Bluegrass region a regular stop for their services. Eastern wanted to include Lexington between the St. Louis to New York route, and Delta wanted to add the city to its Cincinnati to Atlanta services.
March 23, 1950, All the King’s Men , based on Guthrie native Robert Penn Warren’s 1947 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, won the Academy Award
March 23, 1951, Army PFC Joseph E. Whiteside from Jefferson County died in the Korean War.
March 23, 1952, Marine Corps PFC James C. Carney from Convington in Kenton County died in the Korean War.
March 23, 1953, Army CPL James O. Charles from Pike County and Army CPL Charles J. Garnett from Bourbon County died in the Korean War.
March 23, 1966, Navy LCDR John B. Tapp from Harrodsburg died in the Vietnam War.
March 23, 1969, Army SP4 Robert A. Osborne from Jonesville in Grant County died in the Vietnam War.
March 23, 1971, Congress passed the VVXI Amendment. “The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.” Congress has proposed more than 11,000 amendments to the Constitution, but they only ratified 27.
10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 23, 1974, AUCTION: Of Memorabilia From The Most Orderly of Disorderly Houses . TERMS: (As Belle would say) are Cash; and inspection is at time of sale. A Lexington auctioneer held the auction. “It’s a spooky old house and we have nothing to sell but nostalgia. Madam Belle Brezing by Buddy Thompson; pg: 178
March 23, 1983, Millersburg native Blanton Collier , a former UK football coach whose career began at Paris High School and ended with the Cleveland Browns, including an NFL championship, passed over in Texas, his retirement home. He rests next to his wife in Paris, Bourbon County.
March 23, 1992, Turfway Park gave Kentucky legislatures free tickets to the Jim Beam Stakes valued at $230 each. Track Manager Gary Wilfert stated it did not intend to sway the lawmakers’ vote on a current bill backed by Governor B. Jones to aid the horse industry.
March 23, 1996, Union County won its 1st Girls’ State Basketball title 44-37 over Central Hardin in front of 5,375 fans in Diddle Arena in Bowling Green.
On March 23, 1998, Georgetown College won the NAIA National Championship in Oklahoma by beating Southern Nazarene 83-69. Will Carlton won MVP honors and Happy Osborne earned the NAIA Coach of the Year award.
March 23, 2000, Clinton Roby from Waddy caught a state record Buffalo (Smallmouth) Carp weighing 55 pounds in Kentucky Lake.
March 23, 2003, President G.W. Bush told Americans , “It is evident that it’s going to take a while to reach our objective in Iraq. Americans need to realize the war has just begun. It may seem like it has been a long time because of what is on T.V., but we are just in the beginning stages.” This was not one of his lies, America “left” in 2011.
March 23, 2004, William Chumbler from Calvert City caught a state record Paddlefish (Spoonbill) weighing 106 pounds in the Ohio River.
March 23, 2005, Police Officer Peter Alan Grignon, Louisville Metro Police Department , died while investigating an incident in which a car drove through a homeowner’s yard. As Officer Grignon responded, two subjects confronted and shot him twice in the head and neck.
On March 23, 2010, President B. Obama signed into law a vast overhaul of the nation’s healthcare system , the most sweeping expansion of government social policy in more than 40 years and perhaps the most polarizing. It did let children stay on their parents’ plan till 26. However, it became a money grab for health insurance corporations and pharmaceutical companies. America would rather bomb poor brown people and give large tax breaks to corporations rather than provide universal healthcare to its citizens.
March 23, 2012, The Hunger Games premiered in the U.S.
March 23, 2012, Danville native Jacob Tamme signed a three-year, $9 million contract with the Denver Broncos.
March 23, 2013, Governor Steve Beshear signed House Bill No.205 , which named Ale-8-One an original Kentucky soft drink.
March 23, 2014, Covington Catholic Colonels defeated Scott County 59-51 in overtime to win the Boys’ Sweet 16 State Basketball Tournament . Covington’s C.J. Fredrick scored 32 points in front of 12,637 in Rupp. He also averaged 27.8 points over the Colonels’ four state tournament victories and was named Sweet 16 MVP. Covington became the 3rd school to win football and boys basketball state championships in the same school year, joining Trinity (2011-12) and Bowling Green (2016-17).
March 23, 2019, the GII $400,000 Fairgrounds Oaks Stakes paid $23.80 to win while the heavy favorite finished last.
March 23, 2020, Kentucky announced the 4th coronavirus death , the 1st in Lexington, when an 84-year-old female with underlying health conditions passed. In his daily news conference, the governor also announced Kentucky had 124 positive cases with 1,866 tests taken. The state also set up a hotline for people to call if they saw businesses or other citizens not following pandemic protocol.
