August 16, 1862, Adj. General Finnell reported that 41,703 Kentuckians volunteered for the Union Army, one year, four months, and four days into the war.
August 16, 1884, Special Deputy Sheriff, George Cassell of the Fayette County Police Department, died from a gunshot while searching for two men who escaped from the state penitentiary.
August 16, 1888, Patrolmen James W. Jones and Joseph Rosenberg, Louisville Police Department, were walking a beat at 2:00 a.m. when they heard a woman scream, “Murder, help.” The officers entered a house infamous for wild crimes. They found a man beating Mary Burns, with whom he was living. What occurred inside the home was never discovered, but the man stabbed both officers, fled, and was arrested two hours later.
August 16, 1892, Montgomery County lynched Logan Murphy, of an unknown race for murder.
Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Eleanor R. Beckham, born in 1901. Eleanor is the only child born in the Old Governor’s Mansion in the 117 years of the governor’s official residence from 1797-1914.
On August 16, 1934, Kentucky began to issue Driver’s licenses as mandated by the 1934 legislature. Frankfort tasked the circuit court of each county to perform the tasks. Each licensee said a sworn statement and paid 50 cents.
August 16, 1943, Deputy Sheriff John Middleton, Harlan County Sheriff’s Office, died by a man collecting snakes to use at an upcoming church service. Kentucky law prohibited snake handling at church services. The man shot Deputy Middleton after a confrontation.
August 16, 1950, Army PFC Oliver Colegrove from Carter County, Army PFC William C. Gray from Perry County, Army PVT Garland R. Hall from Jefferson County, and Army PVT Charlie Harmon from Magoffin County, died in the Korean War.
August 16, 1956, Procter & Gamble purchased the brand name Duncan Hines from Hines-Park Foods, Inc., a partnership of Bowling Green native Duncan Hines and New Yorker Roy Park.
August 16, 1963, Pat Kelly, son of the greatest clown in the business, Emmett Kelly, clowned at Shriner’s Circus at the Lexington Trotting Track. Pat, 29, began his career a few years after leaving the Marine Corps.
On August 16, 1965, the promotion of two veteran police officers gave Louisville its 1st African American assistant police chief and the South’s 1st African American Police Major. The International Association of Police Chiefs stated they were unaware the South had any African American above the rank of Lieutenant.
August 16, 1969, Army SGT William K. Blackburn from Pikeville died in the Vietnam War.
August 16, 1970, Army SSG Stephen A. Sharp from Sebree in Webster County died in the Vietnam War.
On August 16, 1971, candidates agreed to limit their campaign spending for the 1st time in Kentucky political history. Lt. Governor W. Ford balked earlier but then agreed with Tom Emberton to only spend $330,000 in the general election from May 26 to November 2. Happy Chandler from the Commonwealth Party and William Smith from the American party also agreed.
After much debate on August 16, 1973, the state turned down a staff recommendation and approved EKU’s purchase of a 603 farm, eight miles from campus.
August 16, 1974, Harlan’s mayor rejected the United Mine Workers (UMW) request to hold a parade downtown. Mayor Beecher Rowlett blamed the “prevailing highly electrified atmosphere” throughout Harlan County, the site of a 13-month-old UMW strike.
August 16, 1977, Elvis Presley died.
August 16, 1980, Lexington officials swore in chief deputy David Kiser, 35, as Sheriff. He succeeded Philip Angelucci, Jr., who resigned after pleading guilty to federal mail fraud charges.
August 16, 1986, as UK football players returned to practice and school, they received a two-prong approach to drug testing. The athletic department utilized in-house testing and a local lab to be as exact as possible.
August 16, 1990, sheriffs from Breathitt, Owsley, Wolfe, and Lee Counties received indictments for taking payoffs and protecting drug traffickers. Federal authorities said it was the largest drug related public corruption case in state history. Undercover agents posed as Chicago drug dealers doling out $85,000 in bribes.
Friday, August 16, 1991, a federal court jury found five of six eastern Kentucky law enforcement officers, including four sheriffs, guilty of taking bribes to protect drug dealings. The jury deliberated about 20 hours over three days before returning the verdict one year to the day after the six were arrested and charged.
August 16, 1995, Bluegrass Airport announced they would build a booth for smokers inside the terminal. The National Smokers Alliance (NSA) praised the decision, while drawing rebuke from Kentucky’s Alliance to Control Tobacco Smoking in our Neighborhoods (ACTION).
August 16, 2006, Mayfield native Herschel Harper “Herky” Green died. The World War II flying Ace published his memoir Herky!: the Memoirs of a Checkertail Ace in 1996.
August 16, 2008, a Kentucky bred and Keeneland graduate won Monmouth Park’s GIII $300,000 Philip H. Iselin Stakes.
Kentucky Trivia: Kentucky ranked 2nd in pills per person per year, at 63.3, topped only by West Virginia at 66.5. Some Kentucky counties had staggering distribution rates per person. Whitley-187, Perry-175, Floyd-168, Bell-156, Johnson-152, Pike-146, Clay-134, Lee-133, Clinton County-147, Crittenden-119, and McCracken at 107.
August 16, 2014, a Keeneland graduate exacta won Saratoga’s GII $300,000 Knob Creek Lake Placid Stakes, for three-year-old fillies. The winner foaled in Kentucky.
On August 16, 2019, the Castle & Key Distillery southeast of Frankfort discharged an unknown quantity of untreated wastewater into Glenns Creek, killing an unknown number of fish. Down the road, Governor M. Bevin released his investigation findings and claimed the sick-outs by 1,074 teachers in February violated Kentucky law, one of many blunders that ended his reelection.
On August 16, 2020, as schools started back districts across the state were torn between doing what the governor said and following their instincts. In tears, Madison County board member Lori Cobb emphasized the importance of teaching kids in the classroom. The lockdowns placed her family and many neighbors in a difficult situation. A year and a half later, economists concluded in a Johns Hopkins working paper that lockdowns did not have a significant effect on mortality rates.
August 16, 2021, Churchill Downs employees had to be vaccinated. By September 13 they had to get the 2nd one if they chose the two-dose regimen.
On August 16, 2023, the Kentucky Supreme Court discussed the constitutionality of a Frankfort law passed by a super-majority of elephants. The issue came to a head when it appeared some elected officials helped their donors maintain a monopoly on games of chance.