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TODAY IN KENTUCKY HISTORY

Kentucky Trivia ● Kentucky Tweets

March 2, 1863, the Kentucky Legislatures adopted a resolution that condemned their native son’s Emancipation Proclamation.

March 2, 1917, Kentucky played Tennessee in the Knoxville Central Y.M.C.A. and lost 25-27.  “For the third consecutive time the Vols nosed out the Kentucky State quintet Friday night.”  Kentucky’s high scorer was La Grange native Robert Ireland with 12 points.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Denny Crum, born in 1937.

March 2, 1939, Night Policeman Henry Cleman “Dick” Fowler, Franklin Police Department, died in a motorcycle crash.

March 2, 1948, Margaret Mink’s prize hen laid a double shelled egg weighing over a half pound.

March 2, 1951, Army PFC W.D. Powell from Livingston County died in the Korean War.

March 2, 1954, the University of Kentucky basketball team arrived at Blue Grass Field after completing the regular season without a defeat (25-0).

March 2, 1960, all roads in Kentucky were considered dangerous after 10 inches of snow fell in many counties.  Hazardous-driving warnings were in effect in all counties.

March 2, 1968, Army SP4 Alvin L. Cayson from Lexington died in the Vietnam War.

March 2, 1970, Army CPL Phillip G. Creech from London in Laurel County died in the Vietnam War.

March 2, 1970, Dan Issel played in his last home game for Kentucky, defeating Auburn 102-81.  Dan holds the men’s UK record for career points with 2,138.

March 2, 1977, many Cynthiana residents retreated to their roofs from severe flooding.

March 2, 1980, Governor John Y. Brown, Jr. called higher education the state’s “biggest crybaby” on budget cuts.  The Governor’s goal was to balance the budget without increasing taxes.

March 2, 1988, former Governor A.B. “Happy” Chandler sings My Old Kentucky Home on Senior Night at Rupp Arena.  Tom Hammond described the scene as “one of the most emotional moments in sport.”  Wildcat seniors included: Ed Davender, Winston Bennett, Rob Lock, Cedric Jenkins, and Richard Madison.  It was also Rex Chapman’s final game in Lexington; he entered the NBA draft after the 1987-1988 season.

March 2, 1991, Army SPC Donald Myers from Paducah died in Iraq in Desert Storm.

March 2, 1991, Army CPL Kevin Wright from Louisville, died in Iraq in Desert Storm.

Kentucky Trivia:  There have been three Kentuckians who received the Medal of Honor during peace times.  The government bestowed these medals between 1871 through 1910.  The three men are Navy Seaman Edward W. Boers, Navy Watertender Edward A. Clary, and Navy Quarter Gunner George Holt.

March 2, 1991, before the then-largest crowd in Rupp arena history, the Wildcats closed out the 1990-91 season with a 22-6 overall record.  Although UK was ineligible for the SEC title because of probation, the Wildcats secured the best record in the league (14-4) with the win over Auburn.  A ceremony and parade followed.

March 2, 1995, workers installed the last bolt on Kentucky Kingdom’s new T2 rollercoaster.  The coaster was made in the Netherlands and shipped by sea.  The ride opened to the public a month later.  Today, there is the T3.

March 2, 1996, with a 101-63 victory over Vanderbilt in Rupp Arena on Senior Day, UK became the 1st team in 40 years to finish with a perfect record in the SEC, a 16-0 sweep.  It was the Wildcats’ 25th win in a row, tying the school record for consecutive wins in a season.  Two games later, they set the new record at 27 games.

March 2, 2002, Kentucky Senate President David Williams vowed to fight against slots in racetracks.  He stated he would make an all-out assault on expanded gambling, which he did for the next decade.

March 2, 2002, University of Louisville President John Shumaker accepted the University of Tennessee’s offer to become their president.  Shumaker stayed seven years in the Commonwealth.

March 2, 2005, McCreary County v. American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky went before the U.S. Court.  They argued if the 10 Commandments could be displayed in public buildings.

March 2, 2012, eighteen tornadoes touched down across the state, impacting 27 different counties.  Twenty-six people died and more than 200 injured.  West Liberty in Morgan County got hit especially hard when six people died.  An EF-3 tornado, a mile wide, decimated much of the downtown area.  It first touched down near Mariba in Menifee County at 5:39 p.m.  Nineteen minutes later; it slammed into downtown West Liberty.

March 2, 2018, Police Officer Rodney Scott Smith, Hickman Police Department, drowned when his patrol car was washed into a flooded field off of Bernal Avenue.

March 2, 2019, a Kentucky bred won the (GII) $400,000 Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream Park.  Keeneland graduates finished 1st-2nd-3rd-4th, and 5th.

March 2, 2020, the Courier-Journal reported that Louisville businesses ran out of masks to sell.  On the same day medical scholars warned against the public buying masks so healthcare workers would have access.  Also on the same day, the Surgeon General stated masks would increase your coronavirus risk if worn improperly.  Meanwhile, in the state of Washington, six people died from covid-19.

March 2, 2020, Kentucky Senate Republicans filed three bills to limit he governor’s power.  1) Limit executive orders, 2) limit salaries for those who leave legislative positions to join executive branch jobs and 3) have oversight on Horse Park and Racing Commission appointments.

March 2, 2021, covid-19 in Kentucky continued to trend downward with a 4.76% positivity rate.  On March 1, 2022, the rate was 8.10%.  Meanwhile, floodwaters began to recede in many Eastern Kentucky counties, where one official said the high water was, “unlike anything he had ever seen.”  There were 49 local declarations of disaster.