Every historic building has a story to tell
I am always amused by the lists released each year heralding popular baby names, and the origin of some of those choices. The practice of naming babies after famous people isn’t a trend unique to today’s pop culture-obsessed world. In Kentucky, scores of children in the 1820s were christened “Henry Clay” after the Great Compromiser, (read more)
Bell bottoms. Beanie babies. Disco and the Atkins Diet. Fads are curious, strange creatures, and likely to reappear (especially in fashion) when least expected. I am not certain that this truism exists in architecture, for I have yet to spy the fad of octagon houses taking hold again. In mid-19th century America, the octagon house was (read more)
Categories: Architecture, Historic Preservation, Kentucky architecture, Kentucky churches, Kentucky history, National Register of Historic Places, Vernacular
Tags: #benjaminhenrylatrobe, #kentuckyarchitecture, #octagonalhouse, #octagonsinkentucky, #orsonfowler, #poplarforest, #thomasjefferson, #westvirginia
When the news media reports a winning lottery ticket, my imagination shifts into overdrive. My plans for my imaginary lottery spoils include buying up lots of farmland for preservation, endowing numerous non-profits, and buying my own country store (adjacent to my farm, of course). In the preface to Pills, Petticoats, and Plows, the late state (read more)
Categories: Architecture, Country Store, Crossroad communities, Historic Preservation, Kentucky architecture, Kentucky history, National Register of Historic Places, Vernacular, Warren County
Tags: Bowling Green Kentucky, Country stores, historic tax credits, Houchens, Thomas D. Clark, Warren County Kentucky
I have a confession to make. Although we are in a “new media” age, I remain dedicated to newspapers, and everyday, as I have for years, I read the comics – all of them. I was not expecting the melodramatic and long-running Rex Morgan, M.D. to contain a mention to my profession this morning. Yes, (read more)
A true vacation for me, one in which I completely relax, can only be at the beach. I find, though, that I prefer the lazy rhythm of days walking on the sand, swimming, and copious amounts of reading, to occasionally be peppered with a bit of sightseeing. Florida’s forgotten coast, a place I’d never visited (read more)
Tourism – especially heritage tourism – can be a tough business for some communities. Small towns find their tourism dollars cut, if not eliminated, and spending money to highlight a town’s history might seem like a poor allocation of funds. I would argue the exact opposite, and there are many people who can quote the (read more)
Categories: Architecture, Historic Preservation, National Register of Historic Places, Other Places, Railroads, Theaters, Tourism, Virginia history
Tags: C&O Railway Heritage Center, Chesapeake and Ohio, Clifton Forge Virginia, CSX Railroad, Frye and Chesterman, Heritage Tourism, Historic Masonic Theatre
May 1, 2016. You may have many items on your calendar for today, and for the rest of the month. My old Farmer’s Almanac calendar (you can take the girl off of the farm, but you cannot remove the farm from the girl) informs me that it is May Day, or Beltane, the Gaelic holiday (read more)
In my family lore, there is a not-so-mythical place known as “back seat land.” As a frequent occupant of this space, landscapes and buildings that filter through my memory are most often framed by the dimensions of the back seat car window, and many a long winding road trip was enlivened by peeks of historic (read more)
The month of January found me suspended in a maelstrom of deadlines. The joy I typically find in my profession disintegrated into a frenzy of writing, severe brain strain, and a complete lack of appreciation for the fascinating buildings that were my subject. Then, one email broke through the fog of my stress, and everything (read more)
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