August 21, 1836, in the evening, Lexington’s Grand Masonic Hall caught fire . Local fire engines Kentuckian , Resolution , and Lyon responded to the call, but the building collapsed around midnight. The Squire’s Sketches of Lexington , by J. Winston Coleman, Jr. pg: 39.
On August 21, 1849, John Wesley Hunt passed away in Lexington after a successful business career. One of his 1st ventures was a dry goods store, which morphed into the hemp industry, packaging cotton bales for shipment. As president of the Farmers and Mechanics Bank of Lexington, he led the establishment of Eastern State Hospital for the mentally ill and joined Transylvania University’s board of trustees. In addition, John dabbled in the horse industry by transferring English stallions from the East. He was the 1st millionaire west of the Allegany Mountains. His legacy would include Confederate General John Hunt Morgan (grandson) and great-grandson the famed scientist Thomas Hunt Morgan.
August 21, 1890, Woodford County lynched John Henderson, a black male, for murder.
August 21, 1927, Deputy Sheriff Jesse Fulton, Letcher County Sheriff’s Office , died from a gunshot wound while attempting to make an arrest. Unfortunately, the murderer never got caught.
August 21, 1931, at 1:30 p.m., Cumberland Falls, the “Niagara of the South,” became a Kentucky State Park. As a result of discussions about building a hydroelectric power plant above the falls, Louisville native T. Coleman duPont offered to buy the falls and surrounding acreage to create a state park. That final transaction included 593 acres and the falls for $400,000 in March 1930, but duPont did not live to see the park as a reality.
August 21, 1936, Constable General Jackson Anderson, Wayne County Constable’s Office , died in the line of duty.
Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Hazel native Jackie DeShannon , born in 1941 in Calloway County. She is best known as the singer of What the World Needs Now Is Love and Put a Little Love in Your Heart.
August 21, 1952, Army CPL James H. Townsend from Graves County and Army 1LT William R. Frost, Jr. from Jefferson County died in the Korean War.
On August 21, 1955, another internationally known Kentucky UFO incident occurred in the tiny town of Kelly , near Hopkinsville, when a bright streak of light disappeared behind a tree line. Shortly after that, about a dozen small creatures with large pointy ears, claw-like hands, spindly legs, and glowing yellow eyes attacked a family of five adults and seven children. According to the family, they held the creatures off with gunfire as best they could, but their weapons didn’t seem to have an effect. Instead, they just made a sound that “resembled bullets striking a metal bucket.”
On August 21, 1960, billed as the largest circus under canvas, the Clyde Beatty-Cole Brothers Circus came to Louisville . A crowd of four thousand gathered under the 11-acre, three-ring tent to see 250 performers and 150 animals.
August 21, 1970, water pollution, in an unknown form and size , struck the Ohio River in Western Jefferson County, killing over 10,000 fish.
August 21, 1978, the Kentucky State Fair began with the World Championship Horse Show , showcasing over 1,800 horses for the five-day event. Within August, over 5,800 horses stabled at the fair.
August 21, 1982, the Travers Stakes was notable from the start , as the three winners of the 1982 Triple Crown races met again on the racetrack; Gato Del Sol, Aloma’s Ruler, and Conquistador Cielo.
August 21, 1990, a state-wide poll showed that 74% of Kentuckians wanted the casino issue on the ballot as a constitutional amendment . The same survey also showed Kentuckians favor casino gambling by a slim margin.
August 21, 1993, a Keeneland graduate $2 exacta paid $83.80 in the GI $750,000 Travers Stakes in Saratoga.
On August 21, 2000, a federal judge expressed great concern about the state’s system for handling money as he sentenced a husband-and-wife team to prison for stealing $850,000 from Kentucky State University. The wife received 27 months, and the husband received 21.
On August 21, 2009, 60 to 80 inmates rioted at Danville’s Northpoint Training Center over food quality. They set five buildings on fire, including the kitchen, medical, visiting, canteen, and a multi-purpose facility. By 10:30 p.m., the prison’s Corrections Emergency Response Team subdued the situation.
August 21, 2010, a Kentucky bred and Keeneland graduate won Saratoga’s GI $500,000 Alabama Stakes . A Keeneland graduate also finished 2nd .
On August 21, 2019, President D. Trump addressed a national veterans’ conference in Louisville, touting his administration’s record on helping veterans . He then signed an executive order to expedite erasing the veterans’ student debt for those who are permanently disabled. “Nobody can complain about that, right? Nobody can complain about that,” the president stated.
On August 21, 2020, the 1st school district in Kentucky to open in-person learning announced they would shut down . Through social media, Green County Superintendent William Hodges said he closed the doors due to increased coronavirus activity after he received unofficial notice of an employee at Green County High School testing positive.
August 21, 2020, in a dramatic about-face, Churchill Downs announced it would not allow fans to watch live the Run for the Roses after announcing that 23,000 fans would attend nine days earlier.
On Tuesday, August 21, 2023, the National Weather Service issued a heat advisory for Anderson, Fayette, Franklin, Harrison, Jessamine, Mercer, Scott, Washington, and Woodford. Therefore, Fayette County Public Schools prohibited all outdoor activities for the rest of the week. Meanwhile, last night’s lows in the upper 50s came close to breaking records.