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TODAY IN KENTUCKY HISTORY

Kentucky Trivia ● Kentucky Tweets

June 3, 1781, Captain John “Jack” Jouett, Jr., a Revolution War hero, rode 40 miles from Monticello to Charlottesville to warn Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, and other legislators of the British approach.  Jack rests in peace in Bath County.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Christian County native, now Todd County, Jefferson Finis Davis, born in 1808.  From 1821-24 he returned to Kentucky from Mississippi, where he studied at Transylvania University.  In 1835 his first marriage took place in Louisville; however, his wife died three months later in Louisiana.

On June 3, 1877, Jackson hosted a Democratic Party convention.  It was an ill-tempered gathering, marked by frequent gunfire, at which nothing was accomplished.  Local feuds dominated the scene.  

June 3, 1882, Boyd County lynched George Ellis, a white male, for rape and murder, the 4th recorded lynching in Kentucky.

June 3, 1909, Franklin County lynched John Maxey, a black male, for murderous assault, the 121st out of 135 lynchings in the Commonwealth.

June 3, 1927, Louisville’s Ford Motor Company Assembly Plant rolled off their last Model T.  By 1923, the success of the Model T had enabled the small plant to go from 53 employees to 600, and by 1925, the continued success enabled Ford to build a 2nd larger plant.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Paducah native Homer Louis “Boots” Randolph III, born in 1927.  Boots is best known for his 1963 saxophone hit Yakety Sax, which became Benny Hill’s signature tune.  Boots played a significant role in the “Nashville sound” for most of his professional career.

June 3, 1939, Johnstown won the 71st Belmont Stakes, over five others, going the 1 ½ miles in 2:29 1/3 and earned $37,020.  Mr. A.B. Hancock bred the winner.

June 3, 1941, Police Officer Glenn Scalf, Corbin Police Department, died when he arrived at a local business to investigate a domestic disturbance involving a man and his wife.  As he walked inside, the man shot him.

June 3, 1944, Bounding Home won the 78th Belmont Stakes over six others.  Bounding Home became the 1st horse to win the Belmont after the same horse (Pensive) won the Derby and Preakness; all previous winners of the first two legs went on to win the third.  The 1 ½ miles went 2:32 1/5 and earned $55,000.

June 2, 1955, The Seven Year Itch starring Owensboro native Tom Yewell premiered worldwide.

June 3, 1957, B.B. Hardin from Mt. Eden caught a Kentucky record White Bass in Herrington lake, weighing five pounds.  He shares the record with Lorne Eli, who caught one in 1943 in Kentucky Lake.

Localtonians wish a Happy Anniversary to Martha Layne Hall and Billy Louis Collins, who wed in 1959.  Billy, a Hazard native and Georgetown College graduate, met Martha in her hometown of Bagdad at Cedarmore Baptist summer camp, where they both worked.

June 3, 1961, Miss Lee Willis Grigsby, Miss Louisville, seated, became Miss Kentucky at Transylvania College’s McAlister Auditorium.

June 3, 1961, Sherluck, at 65-1 odds won the 95th Belmont Stakes over eight others going the 1 ½ miles in 2:29 1/5 to win $104,900.  Carry Bach had won the first two legs only to finish 7th in New York.

June 3, 1967, Damascus won the 99th Belmont Stakes and paid $3.00 to win.  Owner Edith Bancroft’s brother won the Belmont in 1955.  William Shoemaker and Frank Y. Whitley complete the winning connections and earned $104,950.  Damascus finishes 2nd in the Derby and won the Preakness.

June 3, 1967, Army CPL Larry V. Sayers from Lick Creek in Pike County died in the Vietnam War.

June 3, 1968, Army SP5 David R. Squires from Louisville died in the Vietnam War.

June 3, 1969, Army SP4 Charles E. Moore from Pine Knot in McCreary County and Army PVT Billie W. Reed from Murray in Calloway County, died in the Vietnam War.

On June 3, 1976, a bomb exploded on a Jefferson County school bus in front of the driver’s home at the end of the first year; courts ordered busing for desegregation.  The violence put the city of Louisville on high alert.

June 3, 1977, private investigators concluded that a short circuit in an electrical cord for a fountain pump caused the Beverly Hills Super Club fire that killed 161 persons in May.

On June 3, 1981, three men in their 20s died, and two were injured in a mining accident at a Grays Knob Coal Company about four miles south of Harlan.  Investigators pointed to poisonous gas that caused the tragic mishap.

June 3, 1993, Lexington country singer John Michael Montgomery made a music video at Austin City Saloon for his song Beer and Bones.

June 3, 1997, Humana bought a Miami-based health insurer in a $400 million deal which made the Louisville based organization the 3rd largest publicly traded managed-care company behind Aetna and United Health Care.  Corporate America strikes again.

June 3, 2012, the 59th WHAS Crusade for Children raised $5.2 million.  As of 2012, the organization has raised more than $143 million since it began in 1954.  One-hundred percent of the money went to special needs children in Kentucky and Indiana.

June 3, 2016, Muhammad Ali died at age 74 after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease.

On June 2, 2017, Eric Conn, the flamboyant lawyer who pleaded guilty in March to a $550 million social security fraud scheme, went on the run.  They finally caught him seven months later in a Pizza Hut in Honduras.  Conn launched his law office in Stanville in 1993 but now works in a WVA prison.

June 2, 2018, the national E3 College Competition selected the “Appalachian Mining Town” game, developed by EKU students, as one of five finalists for event.  “It’s an incredible honor and I know all of us were surprised,” said Nick Tiemeyer, one of 15 students who developed the game.‘

June 3, 2019, Lt. Governor Jenean Hampton demanded answers from Governor M. Bevin’s administration after they fired one of her employees without her consent.  “In the future, you are not to execute any personnel action involving my staff unless you have my express, written permission.”  Governor M. Bevin made several questionable strategic decisions leading to his defeat in 2020. 

June 3, 2020, the federal bureau of prisons released Johnny Boone, of the Corn Bread Mafia fame, from an Ohio facility due to Covid-19.

Kentucky Trivia:  President Obama granted clemency to three Marion County men; all were either directly or indirectly connected to the Cornbread Mafia.  He also granted a pardon to Les Berry, an original member of the alleged “Cornbread Mafia.”

On June 3, 2021, through the Freedom of Information Act, the government released Dr. Fauci’s emails he sent during the pandemic’s beginnings.  Dr. R. Paul tweeted out the emails vindicated his accusations about Fauci and again asked that he be fired.