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TODAY IN KENTUCKY HISTORY

Kentucky Trivia ● Kentucky Tweets

November 6, 1793, Native Americans, under the leadership of Chief Little Turtle, attacked Major John Adair and about 100 Kentucky Militia near Ft. Saint Clair in Ohio.  After a gallant fight, Adair retreated with six men killed and five wounded.  They did, however, secure their camping equipment and 140 packed horses.

November 6, 1860, Republican Abraham Lincoln defeated Kentuckian and Southern Democrat John C. Breckinridge, Democrat Stephen A. Douglas, and Constitutional Union candidate John Bell for the U.S. Presidency.  The split between Northern and Southern Democrats over slavery secured the election for Lincoln.  Months following Lincoln’s election and before his inauguration in March 1861, seven Southern states, led by South Carolina, succeeded.  Lincoln’s election did not entirely cause the Civil War.  Still, the election was one of the primary reasons the war broke out the following year.  Lincoln captured slightly less than 40% of the national vote.  He won a majority in the Electoral College, with 180 electoral votes.  Bell won Kentucky’s 12 electoral college votes by winning 66,058 (45.2%) of the popular vote: Breckinridge 53,143 (36.3%), Douglas 25,651 (17.5%), and Lincoln 1,364 (.9%).

November 6, 1861, the U.S. federal district court in Frankfort indicted John C. Breckinridge for treason for enlisting in the Confederate army days earlier.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Bardstown native John Crepps Wickliffe Beckham, Kentucky’s 35th governor born in 1869.  He also served as the U.S. Senator for Kentucky.  He was the state’s 1st popularly elected senator following passage of the 17th Amendment.  Democrat William Goebel reluctantly chose Beckham as his running mate in the gubernatorial election of 1899 despite the fact Beckham just turned 30, the minimum age for running.  Beckham became governor three months after the election.

November 6, 1897, the Central University (EKU) football team shutout the Kentucky State College Blue and White football team (UK), 0-18.

November 6, 1915, the Kentucky Wildcats shutout the Louisville Cardinals for the 4th consecutive time in the 4th Governor’s Cup.  They played the game at Eclipse Park in Louisville.

November 6, 1920, Sheriff Richard Scott Hunter, Hopkins County Sheriff’s Office, died from a gunshot as he and a deputy attempted to arrest a man for cutting his wife’s throat.

November 6, 1923, UK football player Price Innes McLean, a center, died as a result of injuries sustained while playing a game against Cincinnati.

November 6, 1928, Deputy Sheriff James Owens of the Lewis County Sheriff’s Department, died from a gunshot after breaking up a fight between two juveniles at a local school, while keeping the peace during an election.

November 6, 1934, Deputy Sheriff John Wooton, Leslie County Sheriff’s Office, died after an election dispute near Big Creek.  Despite being mortally wounded, Deputy Wooton was able to return fire and fatally wounded the suspect.

November 6, 1937, Chief of Police Lewis Marshall, Salyersville Police Department, died inside the Magoffin County Jail while placing a prisoner inside a cell.  Chief Marshall had just arrested the man for being drunk in public and walked him two blocks to the county jail without searching him.  As the man was being placed into the cell he produced a pistol and opened fire on Chief Marshall.

November 6, 1950, Army PVT Howard D. Cook from Boyle County and Army CPL Kenneth G. Grider from Russell County both died fighting in the Korean War.

November 6, 1952, Army PVT Dwaine Hall from Knott County and Army PFC Henry Scott from Harlan County both died fighting in the Korean War.

October 6, 1965, Army SGT Miles H. Loper from Knox County died fighting in the Vietnam War.

Localtonians wishes a Happy Birthday to Elizabethtown native Kelly Rutherford born in 1968.  Kelly is known for her roles as Lily van der Woodsen on the CW series Gossip Girl and Megan Lewis on FOX’s Melrose Place.  She also played Sam Whitmore on the Soap Opera Generations.

October 6, 1970, Army SP4 Lonnie D. Fields from Upton in Hardin County died fighting in the Vietnam War.

November 6, 1978, Patrolman Kenneth R. Nally, Jefferson County Police Department, succumbed to injuries received in a motorcycle accident two days earlier while escorting a high school football team to a game.  During the drive another vehicle pulled out in front of him, causing a collision.

November 6, 1979, Democratic nominee John Y. Brown Jr. defeated Republican nominee governor Louie Nunn with 59.41% of the vote to become the 55th governor.  Nunn, the 52nd governor, tried to get his old job back.

November 6, 1990, Mitch McConnell won by the smallest margin of votes than any of the 13 republican senators that ran in 1990.

November 6, 1993, the 10th Breeders’ Cup saw the biggest payout in their history, $269.60 for a $2 win bet in the Classic.

Classic
Turf
Sprint

November 6, 1999, the 16th Breeders’ Cup expanded to eight races with $13 million up for grabs.  The newest addition was the Filly & Mare Turf, run at 1 3/8 miles for females, three-years-old and older.  The favorite won the 1st edition in a 14-horse field.

F&M Turf
Sprint
Classic

November 6, 2005, an F3 Tornado cutting a 41-mile swath cut right through Ellis Park.  Three of the horses stabled at the park died that day, but many sustained severe injuries.   The terrace grandstand crumbled to the ground and nine of the 39 barns collapsed.  A farmer discovered several racehorses wandering in the Ohio River bottoms days after the storm.

November 6, 2007, incumbent Governor E. Fletcher lost reelection for a 2nd term, instead Steve Beshear became Kentucky’s 61st governor.

November 6, 2008, a Georgetown man accused of leaving his wheelchair-dependent sister’s mummified body in his car trunk pleaded not guilty to a felony.  Officials thought he kept the body in an apartment for two years.

Friday, November 6, 2009, for the 1st time, the Breeders’ Cup returned to the same racetrack in consecutive years as Santa Anita hosted the 26th edition.  John Shirreffs repeated in the Ladies’ Classic, this time with the 4-year-old filly Life is Sweet.  Saturday’s card would spotlight his undefeated Zenyatta going in the Classic.

Juvenile Fillies
F&M Sprint
Ladies Classic

Saturday, November 6, 2010, Breeders’ Cup promoted the 27th edition as The Quest for Perfection.  Undefeated Zenyatta came up just short of Blame to close out her brilliant career with a perfect 20 for 20 with a 2nd victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Churchill Downs.

Turf Sprint
Juvenile
Classic

November 6, 2014, Jerry Abramson resigned as lieutenant governor to take an appointed position with the federal government.  Prior to Lt. Gov., Abramson served as Louisville’s longest-serving mayor (21 yrs) and many locals referred to him as “mayor for life.”

November 6, 2015, Senior Patrol Officer Daniel Neil Ellis, Richmond Police Department, died two days after being shot while apprehending an armed robbery suspect at an apartment in the 500 block of Ballard Drive.

November 6, 2018, a portion of Kentuckians sent Andy Barr back to Washington D.C. over Amy McGrath.  John Yarmuth won easily.  Mass teacher protests triggered by Bevin’s pension proposal did not energize the donkeys, who only picked up two seats in Kentucky’s house, enabling elephants to maintain a substantial majority.

On November 6, 2019, Matt Jones stated, “Due to the Mitch McConnell complaint filed this morning with the FEC against me, iHeart Radio has asked that I not be on the show in the upcoming days.  The complaint is absolute nonsense and very disappointing from someone as powerful as McConnell.”

November 6, 2019, the day after the election, Governor M. Bevin requested an election recanvas after coming up 5,000 votes short to win his job back.  From the Governor’s Mansion, he stated there were “a number of significant irregularities.”  The next day, Joshua A. Douglass, a UK election law professor stated that Bevin had every right to request a recanvas but “to throw around allegations on election irregularities without any proof at all is just really dangerous.  It undermines the people’s confidence in elections.”

November 6, 2020, Joe Biden pulled ahead in Georgia and Pennsylvania as President Trump vowed to “pursue challenges through every aspect of the law.”  Meanwhile, Governor A. Beshear announced the 2nd highest single-day increase in new cases and said it was “truly frightening.”  He fomented more, “You have to understand this is the most dangerous coronavirus that has ever been in the Commonwealth.”

Positives:  2,302 / 117,505
Deaths:  10 / 1,544 – 1st Death 3/16/20
50&over: 1,504 / 49-30: 38 / 29&under: 2

November 6, 2020, for the 2nd time, Keeneland hosted the Breeders’ Cup.  Only participants and essential personnel witnessed the 37th edition in person.  The two-day race card included 169 starters in 14 races, the 2nd-highest in BC history.  Jockey Christophe Soumillon tested positive for the coronavirus and did not race.  His two mounts won, Order of Australia and Tarnawa.  Jockeys Pierre-Charles Boudot and Colin Keane picked up the mounts, and earned their 1st BC wins.  Trainer Brad Cox had four winners over the weekend, tying Richard Mandella’s record.

Turf Sprint
Juvenile Turf
Juvenile Fillies Turf