Kentucky Trivia ● Kentucky Tweets

May 9, 1798, the Lexington census, as reported by the town trustees, consisted of; males above 12: 462, Females: 307, Whites under 12: 346, Negros: 360.
The Squire’ Sketches of Lexington by J. Winston Coleman, Jr.; pg: 24

May 9, 1826, Robert Trimble began his job as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.  Robert was three years old when his family migrated to Fort Boonesborough.

On May 9, 1888, Tony “Icebox” Chamberlin became the first and only switch-pitcher to win a game in professional baseball using both hands.  The Louisville Colonel’s beat Kansas City 18-6.
Baseball In Louisville by Anne Jewell

Thursday, May 9, 1889, Spokane won the 15^th Kentucky Derby for Noah Armstrong, trainer John Rodegap, and jockey Thomas Kiley.  The mile and half in 2:34.50 earned $4,880.  Spokane is the only horse foaled and trained in Montana to ever win the Derby, doing it the same year Montana became a state.

May 9, 1893, Cynthiana native Caleb Walton West began his first term as Utah Territory governor.

May 9, 1896, U.S. Secretary of Treasury John G. Carlisle of Kenton County gave his infamous hometown speech.  The once remarkably popular political figure became so disliked due to the financial panic of 1893 that he left the stage due to a barrage of abuse and rotten eggs thrown at him.  Feeling rejected, he retired from public life, sold his house in Covington, and remained in New York until his death.

On May 9, 1911, the Black Patch Tobacco War finally ended when the Supreme Court ruled in the “U.S. v. American Tobacco Co.” case that Duke Trust was indeed a monopoly and violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890.  The Duke Trust was the only buyer of coveted black patch tobacco, which caused extreme troubles to Western Kentuckians, including death and destruction.  The violence had long ended by the time the court decided.

Monday, May 9, 1914, the favorite Old Rosebud won the 40^th Kentucky Derby.  Trainer Frank Weir placed John McCabe in the irons, going 2:03 3/5, to set a new track record.  Seven horses started, and owner H.C. Applegate received $9,125.  J. E. Madden bred the colt in Kentucky.  After an almost three-year layoff due to being crippled, Old Rosebud returned to the races as a six-year-old.  Nicknamed “The Courageous Cripple,” he won 15 of his 21 starts that season and was considered the undisputed Horse of all Ages.  It was widely considered the most remarkable comeback by a thoroughbred in North American history.

May 9, 1915, the day after Regret won the Derby, the Daily Racing Form quoted Harry Payne Whitney as saying, “I do not care if Regret never wins another race, nor if she never starts in another race, she has won the greatest race in America and I am satisfied.”  Suddenly, the Kentucky Derby was on the rise again.

May 9, 1920, Deputy Sheriff Oliver Slaven, McCreary County Sheriff’s Office, died from a gunshot while attempting to arrest an escaped prisoner.

May 9, 1925, Patrolman Lon Castle, Ashland Police Department, died from a gunshot as he pursued a burglary suspect thorough a lumber yard.

Friday, May 9, 1930, Gallant Fox, owned by Belair Stud, won the 55^th Preakness Stakes going the one mile and three sixteenths in 2:00 3/5 to win 51,925.

May 9, 1931, the 56^th Preakness Stakes took place on a Saturday.  From this day forward, the Preakness is always run on Saturdays.  The race has been run every day except Sunday.  Mate won the 5^th race and earned $48,225.  For the 2^nd year in a row, the Derby ran after the Preakness.

May 9, 1936, Bold Venture won the 61^st Preakness Stakes, and earned $27,325.  They went to post at 5:18 p.m. and went the 1 and 3/16 miles in 1:38.  Granville finished second by a nose.

May 9, 1942, Patrol Officer J. Leslie Ward, Morehead Police Department, died from a gunshot after stopping a man for a hit-and-run accident.

May 9, 1954, Deputy Sheriff Clyde Fee, Harlan County Sheriff’s Office, was shot and killed by a man he had arrested for drunkenness and reckless use of a firearm two months earlier.

May 9, 1955, government officials recommended that the antipolio-vaccination be postponed until all vaccine making and testing can be doubled checked for safety.

May 9, 1961, George W. Ratterman, ex NFL player and soon to be sheriff, was given a roofie in a meeting with the “mob” to talk about moving casino operations out of Campbell County.  He regained consciousness in a nightclub dancer’s company in a hotel bedroom, where the local police arrested him for prostitution and disturbing the peace.  In Newport’s sensational police court trial, it became apparent that the gambling interests were working with law enforcement officials to discredit Ratterman and the reform movement.  After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice, six persons, among them police officers and an attorney, were brought to trial for violating Ratterman’s civil rights.  In November 1961, Ratterman and the other reform ticket candidates swept into office.  The operators of the casinos and nightclubs left town.

May 9, 1968, Army SP4 Carlos W. Cornett from Flatwoods from Greenup County and Army CPL Boyce R. Dick from Monticello from Wayne County, both died in the Vietnam War.

May 9, 1970, Army CPT Rhonald L. Durham from Somerset, Army SGT Chester G. Hall from Robinson in Harrison County, and Army SGT Richard A. Wells from West Van Lear in Johnson County, all died in the Vietnam War.

May 9, 1973, the U.S. National Register of Historic Places accepted the Jefferson Davis State Historic Site.

May 9, 1986, Corrections Officer Charles Frederick Cash, Kentucky Department of Corrections, died by a inmate’s hammer while supervising a group of prisoners at the Western Kentucky Farm Center.

May 9, 1989, Ashland native Keith Whitley died.

May 9, 2000, a fire destroyed 17,000 barrels of whiskey in a seven-story aging warehouse at the Wild Turkey Distillery in Anderson County.  Burning whiskey flowed from the warehouse, setting the woods on fire, causing limestone deposits to explode with an estimated 20% that flowed into the Kentucky River.  The alcohol spill depleted the oxygen in the river, killing an estimated 228,000 fish along a 66-mile stretch.  The company paid $256,000 to the state to restore the river’s fish population.

Kentucky Trivia:  In 1980, Wild Turkey’s original owner Austin Nichols & Company, sold the distillery to French spirits conglomerate Pernod Ricard for a reported $100 million.  In 2009, it sold again to Italy’s Gruppo Campari for $575 million.

On May 9, 2009, Jeremy Mayfield received his 1^st NASCAR suspension after testing positive for methamphetamine.  The talented Owensboro native would eventually receive a 2^nd and final suspension.

On May 9, 2020, the Justice Collective Organization organized a protest that urged Governor A. Beshear to cancel rent and mortgage payments as citizens grappled with the pandemic.  U.S. unemployment hit 14.7%, the worst rate since the Great Depression.  With 20.5 million people out of work, the hospitality, leisure, and healthcare industries took the greatest hits.  It affected low-income and minority workers the most.

May 9, 2021, Churchill Downs suspended Bob Baffert from their property hours after Baffert informed the press that Medina Spirit’s blood sample had an overage of medication.