Kentucky Trivia & Tidbits - Page 6

Looking for Kentucky trivia? Try our list Kentucky little know facts, tidbits and trivia.

More than 130 miles of rocky, rugged mountain roads in former coal mining country in Harlan County are traveled by all-terrain vehicle (ATV), dirt bike, truck and Jeep enthusiasts and have made the county a popular spot for fans of off-road driving.

first appeared: 10/9/2005

The Lake Cumberland area makes a splash as the "Houseboat Manufacturing Capital of the World," with nearly a dozen manufacturers, including Lakeview Yachts and Fantasy Yachts in Monticello (pop. 5,981) and Sumerset Houseboats and Sharpe Houseboats in Somerset (pop. 11,352).

first appeared: 9/25/2005

In 1883, candy maker Anton Busath saw Polish actress Helena Modjeska perform and was so impressed that he asked to name his caramel confection after her. Modjeskas still are made by Bauer’s Candies in Lawrenceburg (pop. 9,014).

first appeared: 9/18/2005

The city of Maysville (pop. 8,993) has transformed its downtown floodwalls into an art gallery with murals depicting the town’s four-century relationship with the Ohio River. The Floodwall Mural Project began in 1998 with paintings by artist Robert Dafford.

first appeared: 9/11/2005

After receiving rave reviews for the sweets she served her bridge club, Ruth Tharpe Hunt established a candy company in Mount Sterling (pop. 5,876) in 1921. Ruth Hunt Candy has been the official candy maker for Churchill Downs and the Kentucky Derby since 1993.

first appeared: 8/28/2005

May’s Lick (pop. 350), the state’s self-proclaimed "Asparagus Capital," has held a festival each year since 1997 to celebrate the tasty spears. According to local lore, a banker named the town the "asparagus bed of Mason County" nearly 100 years ago, despite the fact that few, if any, people grew the crop.

first appeared: 8/14/2005

Since 1865, the Weisenberger family has been grinding cornmeal and wheat flour at a mill along South Elkhorn Creek near Midway (pop. 1,620). Weisenberger Mills, now operated by the family’s sixth generation, is the state’s oldest continuously operated mill.

first appeared: 7/31/2005

A caravan of 70 bookmobiles and 350 librarians, trustees and friends from across the state paraded around the Capitol in Frankfort (pop. 27,741) in February 2004 to mark the 50th year of Kentucky’s bookmobile service and encourage lawmakers to continue funding the program.

first appeared: 7/17/2005

The history and science of caves, groundwater and bats and the life story of Floyd Collins, a pioneer in cave exploration who died after being trapped in Sand Cave in 1925, are chronicled at the American Cave Museum in Horse Cave (pop. 2,252).

first appeared: 6/19/2005

Inspired by his childhood near Louisville, cartoonist Fontaine Fox created Toonerville Folks, sometimes called Toonerville Trolley, in 1908. Featuring the Skipper, a hotfooted trolley driver, and Mickey (Himself) McGuire, the comic strip ran until 1955 and inspired more than 50 short silent film comedies starring Mickey Rooney.

first appeared: 6/5/2005

In 1785, before Kentucky’s statehood, the Virginia Legislature granted a charter to John Craig to operate a ferry on the Kentucky River. The Valley View Ferry, about 12 miles north of Richmond (pop. 27,152), honors its heritage by flying the flags of both Kentucky and Virginia.

first appeared: 5/22/2005

The 1897 L&N Railroad Bridge over the Ohio River reopened in 2003 as a pedestrian bridge linking Newport (pop. 17,048) and Cincinnati, Ohio. Although its official name is the Newport Southbank Bridge, locals call it the "Purple People Bridge" because of its bright lavender color.

first appeared: 5/8/2005

The weathered cabin where country singers and sisters Loretta Lynn and Crystal Gayle grew up still stands in Butcher Hollow near Van Lear (pop. 1,050).

first appeared: 4/24/2005

Legendary jockey Isaac Burns Murphy, born in 1861 in Fayette County, is buried near famous racehorse Man O’ War in Lexington. Murphy, an African-American, won the Kentucky Derby in 1884, 1890 and 1891.

first appeared: 4/10/2005

In 1971, while teaching at the University of Kentucky at Lexington, Sam Hurst developed electronic touch-screen technology. He founded Elographics (today known as Elo TouchSystems and headquartered in Menlo Park, Calif.) to manufacture his invention.

first appeared: 3/27/2005

Commissioned in 1991, the submarine USS Kentucky is the third U.S. naval vessel named for the Bluegrass State.

first appeared: 3/13/2005

State lawmakers adopted an official silverware pattern called Old Kentucky Blue Grass, the Georgetown Pattern, in 1996.

first appeared: 2/27/2005

In 1817, John Bemiss named Bloomfield (pop. 855) in Nelson County by combining his wife’s maiden name, Bloomer, with his daughter’s married name, Merrifield. The town had been known earlier as Gandertown and as Middleburg.

first appeared: 2/13/2005

The world’s longest plastic-deck bridge is the 420-foot-long pedestrian bridge across the Levisa Fork of the Big Sandy River near Paintsville (pop. 4,132). Dedicated in 1999 as the Forrest and Maxie Preston Memorial Suspension Bridge, it connects the communities of River and Offutt.

first appeared: 1/30/2005

A third generation of the Cox family operates Cox Hardware, a fixture along Main Street in Mount Vernon (pop. 2,592) since the store opened in 1907. Washboards, kerosene lanterns and galvanized washtubs are among the items for sale.

first appeared: 1/16/2005

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