Kentucky Trivia
You don’t make it with your hands. You form it with hands. You make it with your mind. Edgar Tolson, 1971
Monday, September 7, 1778, the Great Siege of Fort Boonesborough began when the best war chiefs of the Shawnee, an estimated 444 Native Americans, 12 Frenchmen, and one Negro, surrounded the fort.
September 7, 1861, the Kentucky state legislature, angered by the Confederate invasion, ordered the Union flag to be raised over the state capitol in Frankfort, declaring its allegiance with the Union.
September 7, 1889, Governor S. Buckner finally ordered the troops to Harlan. He made it clear the troops would only protect the court, not intervene in the Howard-Turner trouble or relieve the elected officials of their duty. The order did not please Judge Lewis, who begged the governor to have the troops clean out the Howards. The trial went on without interruption. The county supported both families evenly and, at the same time, felt both sides were to blame for the county’s trouble.
September 7, 1896, in step with the most popular pastime of 1896, a 100-mile bicycle race between Lexington and Covington occurred. Cliff Nadaud won in a record 6 hours, 7 minutes, and 56 seconds.
September 7, 1903, Constable William Bolton, Pulaski County Constable’s Office, died from a gunshot wound in Mt. Victory as he and another constable attempted to serve a warrant on two brothers.
September 7, 1915, Richmond native James Park made his MLB debut for the St. Louis Browns.
September 7, 1918, Prestonsburg native George B. Martin became Kentucky’s 25th Class II Senator.
On September 7, 1935, Kentucky held two run-off elections. Keene Johnson defeated J.E. Wise for Lt. Governor and Chandler defeated Rhea, securing the nomination for governor.
September 7, 1947, Constable William Coop, Clinton County Constable’s Office, died from a gunshot when he and two other constables served a warrant to search a home for illegal liquor.
September 7, 1950, Army PFC Frankie L. Barnett from Hopkins County, Army PFC Billy L. Geary from Muhlenberg County, Army PFC Robert M. Kouns from Boyd County, and Army PFC Alvin C. Williams from Ballard County, all died in the Korean War.
September 7, 1951, Army PFC Cecil E. Page from Monroe County, Army PFC Lloyd W. Reid from Jefferson County, Army PVT Earl E. Roberts from Montgomery County, and Army PFC Robert L. Roberts from Owsley County, all died in the Korean War.
September 7, 1952, Marine Corps PFC Edward E. Rowe from Hansford in Rockcastle County and Marine Corps PFC Edward Harper from Lynch in Harlan County, both died in the Korean War.
On September 7, 1956, the Kentucky State Fair officially opened at 11:00 a.m. when Governor and Mrs. Chandler cut a Blue Ribbon. Around 36,672 locals attended, more than doubling last year’s opening night count. The governor claimed the Exhibition center to be one of the finest in the world.
Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Golden Pond native W. Earl Brown, born in 1963 in Trigg County. To many he is known as Kenny in Scream (1996) and Warren in the movie There’s Something About Mary (1998).
September 7, 1967, Army SGT James M. Wilson from Utica in Daviess County died in the Vietnam War.
September 7, 1968, Army SSG Edgar J. Grismer from Louisville, Army CPL Charles G. Russell from Louisville, and Army SP4 Carlos D. Vibbert from Louisville, all died in the Vietnam War.
September 7, 1970, Marine Corps CPL Don M. Justice from Pikeville died in the Vietnam War.
September 7, 1970, William Shoemaker won on Dares J. at Del Mar for his 6,033rd victory, breaking the victory record held by Johnny Longden.
On September 7, 1971, Mrs. Madeline Hicks, 23, became the 1st black female to start UofL’s Dental School. In 1970, the school graduated the 1st black dentist.
September 7, 1978, the Commonwealth of Kentucky opened the $35 million Kentucky Horse Park.
September 7, 1984, Lee City native Edgar Tolson passed away in Campton. Today, Edgar’s woodcarvings are valuable pieces in the folk art community.
September 7, 1994, Dr. Peter W. Ross became Kentucky’s 1st doctor to bill Medicaid $1,000,000 when he billed $1,165,832 for treating Medicaid patients in one year. Dr. Ross worked 12-14 hours a day. He claimed most of his money went towards paying his practice’s bills.
On September 7, 2001, officials announced that pollution around the Paducah uranium plant had spread and severely threatened human health. The state warned people not to eat fish from Big Bayou Creek, which flowed by the plant.
On September 7, 2005, the University of Louisville announced its largest grant in school history when it received $22 million to build a research center to study infectious disease and bioterrorism.
September 7, 2008, the government seized control of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, which guaranteed millions of bad loans. Three weeks later, the market crashed, and the Bush and Obama administrations worked together to bail out their donors who placed bad bets on Wall St. Americans suffered the consequences and no one went to jail.
On September 7, 2009, President B. Obama touched down in Northern Kentucky, traveled to Cincinnati, and spoke to the AFL-CIO Labor Day Picnic. He had been President for eight months. Meanwhile, in Washington, Congressmen, Pentagon officials, and soldiers warned Barry not to send more troops to Afghanistan.
Obama Trivia: In 2021, AFL-CIO boss Richard Trumka told HBO, “Former Presidents Clinton and Obama didn’t understand unions’ importance and were disappointments to organized labor because of it. Both of them surrounded themselves with Wall Street people, so all of their advice came from a Wall Street lens.” In February 2009, Obama sent 53,000 troops to Afghanistan. In December 2009, he sent 30,000 more. In Obama’s eight years, he dropped 26,172 bombs in seven countries. His war-mongering and devotion to Wall St. were unprecedented.
September 7, 2017, Lexington native Walker Buehler made his MLB debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
September 7, 2019, a Kentucky bred won the GIII $1,000,000 Calumet Farm Kentucky Turf Cup Stakes at Kentucky Downs.
September 7, 2020, Senator J. Biden said he would take the coronavirus vaccine “only if we knew all of what went into it.”
Positives: 291 / 53,064
Deaths: 0 / 996 – 1st death March 16, 2020
50&over: 968 / 49-30: 27 / 29&under: 1
September 7, 2021, as Governor A. Beshear sounded the alarm on coronavirus, Kentucky opened a Special Session to address the COVID-19 policies. One bill struck down the governor’s mask mandates in schools and daycare centers. Thirty-four members of the 38-member Senate did not wear masks. Meanwhile, all the late-night talk show hosts read from the pharma script and roasted people interested in ivermectin, a Nobel prize-honored inexpensive medicine.
September 7, 2022, Rep. Andy Barr got brownie points from the MIC for traveling to Taiwan to escalate war tensions with China. Andy’s boss, Nancy, had just returned.
September 7, 2022, Rep. T. Massie tweeted, “She cites a human study for bivalent vaccines, but neglects to mention those studies weren’t for the booster she’s pushing in the video. I thought @CDCDirector was going to restore trust in CDC by being more honest and transparent? That didn’t last long.”