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Localtonians wishes a Happy Birthday to John Brown, born in 1757.  John was one of the founding fathers of Kentucky.

September 12, 1816, Kentucky artist Joseph H. Bush writes Henry Clay and apologizes for being unable to refund the money that Clay loaned to him.
Jouett-Bush-Frazer Early Kentucky Artist by William Barrow Floyd

September 12, 1850, Presley O’Bannon died in Henry County.  Presley was a first lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps, famous for his exploits in the First Barbary War (1801-1805).  In recognition of his bravery, he was presented a sword for his part in attempting to restore Prince Hamet Karamanli to his throne as the Bey of Tripoli.  This sword became the model for the Mameluke Sword, adopted in 1825 for Marine Corps officers, which is part of the formal uniform today.

Localtonians wishes a Happy Birthday to Louisville native William Gilbert Barron, born in 1894 in a dressing room at the Hopkins Opera House in Louisville.  Billy was a comedian, actor, writer, and film director known for his comic sneeze routines.  He appeared in over 200 feature films, short subjects, and television shows starting in 1929.

September 12, 1901, three black males; Frank Howard, Samuel Reed, and Ernest Harris were lynched in Ballard County for murder.

September 12, 1910, with only 12 members remaining, the Shakers of Pleasant Hill near Harrodsburg faced their colony’s demise and contracted to sell their 1,800 acres of land and buildings to Col. George Bohon.  In return, Bohon agreed to care for them and allow them to stay on their property for the rest of their lives.

September 12, 1915, Ford Motor Company opened their new plant in Louisville on a 2.5 acre site on South Third Street. Initially the plant employed 53 people and produced 15 cars per day, many of which were Model T’s.
The Kentucky Encyclopedia edited by John E. Kleber; pg: 309

September 12, 1935, Louisville native Earl Browne made his MLB debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

September 12, 1950, Army PVT Bobby R. Harris from Warren County and Army PFC Thomas E. Maye from Bourbon County died in the Korean War.

September 12, 1951, Army PFC Leo Chaffins from Knott County died in the Korean War.

September 12, 1952, the U.S. Government announced they would acquire 36,000 acres in Bullitt and Hardin Counties to expand Ft. Knox.

On September 12, 1953, a banquet was held at the Hollywood Playground Auditorium to honor Madame Sul-Te-Wan by the who’s who of motion picture actors and film personalities.

September 12, 1964, UK’s football coach Charlie Bradshaw, announced it would junk its plan to play three unit football and will revert to two platoons.

September 12, 1967, Army SP4 Frank E. Lyon from Louisville died in the Vietnam War.

September 12, 1968, Army CPL Donald R. Butler from Morehead, Marine Corps LCPL Clifford L. Scholl from Louisville, Marine Corps PFC David M. Sowards from West Liberty, and Army PFC Edgar L. Tomlinson from Williamstown in Grant County, all died in the Vietnam War. 

September 12, 1970, Phyllis George was crowned Miss America for 1971.  The Women’s Liberation Front demonstrated at the event.

September 12, 1981, comedian Bill Cosby performed at Rupp Arena as part of IBM’s celebration of 25 years in Lexington. 

September 12, 1998, Kentucky wide receiver Craig Yeast celebrated after catching a 54-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Tim Couch during the Wildcats’ 52-7 throttling of visiting Eastern Kentucky.  It was schools’ first-ever meeting on a gridiron.

September 12, 2006, hip number 425, a colt by Seattle Slew sold for $11,700,000.

On September 12, 2009, Bill Sparkman, Jr., a school teacher and field representative for the U.S. Census Bureau, was found dead hanging from a tree in rural Clay County.  After more than two months of investigation, police concluded that his death was a suicide, staged by him to look like a homicide so that his family could collect life insurance.

September 12, 2020, Louisville and Western Kentucky start the football season by playing each other.  Louisville wins 35-21 and climbs to the top 20 but only wins three more games the rest of the season.   The game was played in the rain before 11,179 physically distanced fans at Cardinal Stadium.

Kentucky Trivia:  The Kentucky Wildcats and Louisville Cardinals did not play each other in 2020 for the first time since they renewed the rivalry in 1994.

September 12, 2020, a Kentucky bred and Keeneland graduate takes Kentucky Downs GIII $1,000,000 Calumet Farm Kentucky Turf Cup for three-year-olds and upward.