Kentucky Trivia
Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Governor Joseph Desha , born in 1768. The 9th governor and 8th man to hold the office endured much controversy throughout his adult life.
December 9, 1799, Kentucky created Breckinridge County from Hardin County and named it in honor of John Breckinridge, a Kentucky statesman and U.S. Senator. Hardinsburg is the county seat. Other localities include Cloverport, Irvington, Addison, Axtel, Bewleyville, Big Spring, (partially) Cannons Point, Clifton Mills, Constantine, Custer, Dyer, Fairfield, Falls of Rough, Fisher, Frymire, Garfield, Glen Dean, Harned, Hinton Hills, Hites Run, Holt, Hudson, Kingswood, Kirk, Locust Hill, Lodiburg, Madrid, Mattingly, McCoy, McDaniels, McQuady, Mook, Mooleyville, Mount Merino, Mystic, Raymond, Roff, Sample, Se Ree, Stephensport, Tar Fork, Union Star, Vanzant, Webster, and Westview. Breckinridge County, the 39th county created, covers 586 square miles.
By David Benbennick December 9, 1806, Kentucky created Hopkins County from Henderson County and named it in honor of Samuel Hopkins, a Revolutionary War General. Madisonville is the county seat. Other cities and towns include Dawson Springs, Earlington, Hanson, Mortons Gap, Nebo, Nortonville, St. Charles, White Plains, Manitou, Anton, Ashbyburg, Barnsley, Charleston, Coiltown, Dalton, Dozier Heights, Ilsley, Richland, and Wicks Well. Hopkins County, the 48th county created, covers 554 square miles.
By David Benbennick Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Harrodsburg native James Ben Ali Haggin , born 1822 in Mercer County. A graduate of Centre, he passed the bar, moved to Mississippi, married, and then moved to New Orleans. From there, he went west, investing in mines. He invested heavily in the new city named San Francisco and built a mansion that anchored Knob Hill. He later accumulated close to 500,000 acres in CA, with another 980,000 acres in AZ, NM, and Mexico. Next, he moved to New York and purchased large amounts of prime NYC real estate. Haggin was a member of the Metropolitan Club, an elite NYC social club formed by J. P. Morgan, William K. Vanderbilt, and James Roosevelt. He started his Kentucky Farm, the 8,900-acre Elmendorf Thoroughbred Farm, at 76. His visits always made the top Kentucky headline. At 85, Haggin was the 3rd wealthiest American behind John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie.
December 9, 1839, William C. Allen, a young Kentucky artist , presented Kentuckians with a full-length portrait of Daniel Boone which hangs in the House of Representative’s hall.
December 9, 1860, Governor Beriah Magoffin , sent a circular letter to other slave-state governors to persuade them not to leave the Union. The Civil War in Kentucky by Lowell H. Harrison
On December 9, 1862, Kentucky’s 16th governor passed in Boyle County . He rests in Danville’s Bellevue Cemetery. Following his term as governor, Owsley retired to his farm in Danville, until the death of his wife. After this, he lived with his children until he died.
December 9, 1899, Town Marshal Henry Hartford, Corbin Police Department , and another man died while investigating a saloon fight. Both suspects, who were well known feudist from Clay County, were apprehended a short time later. They said they shot the Marshal to show people how they have fun back in Clay County. Both were tried and acquitted.
December 9, 1919, Edwin P. Morrow became the 40th governor of Kentucky and the 4th Republican to hold office . He championed the typical Republican causes of his day, namely equal rights for African-Americans and the use of force to quell violence. Morrow had been schooled in his party’s principles by his father, Thomas Z. Morrow, a candidate for governor in 1883. His uncle, William O. Bradley, served as Kentucky’s 1st Republican governor, the 32nd overall in 1895.
Kentucky’s 1919 Inauguration Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Owensboro native Clifford Oldham Hagan, born in 1931.
On December 9, 1945, twelve days before his death, General G.S. Patton sat in the back of his limousine when his driver, Morganfield native PFC Horace Woodring, sped too fast over a railroad crossing and wrecked. Only Patton received injuries, a nasty gash on his head, which caused paralysis.
December 9, 1947, Earle Clements became the 47th governor . For three decades, he led a faction of the state’s Democratic Party that opposed a group led by two-time governor and Senator Happy Chandler .
Kentucky’s 1947 Inauguration December 9, 1950, Army PVT Jesse C. Meadows from McCreary County died fighting in the Korean War.
Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Lexington native David Akers, born in 1974.
Kentucky’s 1975 Inauguration December 9, 1978, after forcing overtime, the Cats were down 66-60 with 31 seconds to go . Back-to-back baskets by freshman Dwight Anderson cut the lead to two before he stole the inbounds pass and fed Kyle Macy for the tying jumper. Macy completed the comeback by adding a technical free throw when Kansas called a timeout it didn’t have. Cats win 67-66 in OT.
December 9, 1991, the Kentucky Supreme Court ruled that Governor W. Wilkinson had the right to follow through on his self-appointment to UK’s board of trustees . The decision came on Wilkerson’s last day in office.
December 9, 2003, Ernie Fletcher became the 60th governor of Kentucky . After a term filled with lawsuits, he returned to the medical field as founder and CEO of Alton Healthcare to profit off the sick.
December 9, 2019, Representative Cluster Howard from Jackson pre-filed Bill Request 272 , an act relating to the regulation of cannabis.
December 9, 2020, Governor A. Beshear told Kentuckians the virus’s growth had slowed and may have plateaued in the state . As the nation frantically waited for the experimental vaccine, a poll showed that only half wanted the medicine. Meanwhile, European doctors, already administering the vaccine, told their citizens with allergies to hold off on receiving the shot.
December 9, 2021, the governor signed an executive order declaring an emergency over Kentucky’s dire shortage of licensed nurses . Meanwhile, police officers arrested the Owsley County Sheriff with 4th -degree assault charges after a fight at a High School girls’ basketball game.
December 9, 2022, a U.S. Senator from Arizona declared herself an Independent and broke free from the uniparty devoted to the MIC and corporations. Meanwhile, a WNBA star arrived back in the States from Russia after ten months of incarceration for hash oil possession. America swapped her for a notorious arms dealer nicknamed the “Merchant of Death.”
