Dr. Jefferson Polk’s Office, Perryville, Kentucky

During my senior year at Centre College, I had an internship in Perryville, Kentucky. Despite being an English major, I was becoming more and more obsessed with history, and when I wasn’t conducting deed research (the real point of my internship), I was haunting the buildings of Merchant’s Row (one of the only surviving 19th-century mercantile districts in the country). The sentiments expressed in the 1973 National Register of Historic Places nomination: “There is an amazing similarity between the 1860 appearance and present appearance of the little town of Perryville, Kentucky” still ring true. One especially endearing historic building is the small frame office of Dr. Jefferson Polk.

Façade and side elevation of the mid-19th century structure.

It is a wee bit of a building, only one bay wide, with a parapet wall rising up above its handsome Greek Revival doorway. A wooden door with two elongated panels (that screams Greek Revival in Kentucky) is framed by a four light transom and five-light sidelights. The weatherboarded structure has another door on the north elevation, flanked by two 9/6 wood windows.

The one-room office was heated, I believe, by a stove – as evidenced by the small brick flue at the rear of the building.

Façade (east elevation) and north elevation.

This secondary door led out into a garden/yard and to Dr. Polk’s personal residence.

The four bay wide house of Dr. Polk.

One day I will take the time to address the myths and stories and plausible explanations behind houses with two front doors (I spent a great deal of time on this topic while writing my graduate thesis and still haven’t recovered). Dr. Polk’s house has a window/door/door/window fenestration pattern which wasn’t that unusual at the time of its construction (1840s or so? ), but prompts many curious questions today. (It has more to do with the interior floor plan and desire for symmetry than anything.)

On the opposite side of the street, more buildings of Merchant’s Row.

Perryville is a small rural town on the banks of the Chaplin River in western Boyle County, Kentucky. It was thrust into the national spotlight by the October 1862 Battle of Perryville, a bloody entry in a bloody Civil War.

Latimer’s Dry Goods Store, circa 1840. Photograph December 2015.

The 745-acre Battlefield is a serene place now (except during the annual reenactment). In 1954, the Perryville State Battlefield site was established by the Kentucky State Conservation Commission. In 1962, a museum and visitor’s center were opened at the battlefield.

When tourism is good, the town of Perryville – and neighboring communities- prosper. But cultural heritage tourism has been declining for the last 20 years, and it’s hard for towns like Perryville. In 2001, the Perryville Battlefield Preservation Association transferred ownership of several Merchant’s Row buildings to the city of Perryville. And it’s hard for the city to adequately care for these historic buildings.

The Johnson Britton House, circa 1845. Photograph December 2015.

When the tourism dollars aren’t flowing, it’s difficult to find money in the coffers to maintain and restore historic buildings – and perhaps it’s even harder to justify that expenditure. And Perryville teems with historic buildings like Dr. Polk’s office and house. I don’t know what the condition is of other buildings in downtown Perryville, but the deterioration of Dr. Polk’s office was obvious to me as I walked by it last summer.

Many of these buildings stood during that horrible October of 1862, and have witnessed decades of change ever since.

The circa 1850 Wallace Green House.

I’ve always thought I excel at being an a very wealthy person. Historic buildings would be fixed and restored, farmland would be saved from development – and I could wave a magic wand to help truly unique places like Perryville. Perhaps once the Pandemic releases its hold on us, and we can travel safely, Perryville’s next revival will be right around the corner. I truly hope so – for a collection of buildings like Merchant’s Row can’t be replicated, and the experience of visiting both the town and the Battlefield is one I hope many future generations will be able to enjoy.