Exploring the Era Before Railroads Transformed Central Kentucky
The railroads were a disruptive technology for 1850s central Kentucky.
What a Mortality Study Reveals About Kentucky Life in the Late 1800s
A mortality study from Kentucky in the late 1800s reveals the common causes of death.
How Fincastle County Became Kentucky: A Deep Dive
Join us as we take a journey back in time and uncover the story of how Fincastle County, Virginia, became the beloved state of Kentucky that we know today.
Discovering the Free Republic of Franklintown
Franklintown was an early republic in Greene County, Tennessee. Many Kentucky settlers passed through this area.
Family Stories: Doan Family Arrives in Harrison County, KY
In this post, we learn some of the brave, and even funny stories, about her family who were descendants of the Mayflower party.
Ancestor Files: The Mystery of Aaron Horn at Fort Boonesborough
One of the First Forts in Kentucky Our ancestors often leave multiple mysteries when they pass. As family researchers, part of the fun is unraveling these mysteries. Al Horn has been working on the mystery surrounding one of his great-grandfathers who was an early...
Scots-Irish: Brief History of the Born Fighters Who Settled the Appalachians
For part of my undergraduate career in the mid-1970s, I was a work-study student at the University of Kentucky’s Margaret I. King Library. One day I was assigned to the reserve desk, and a sociology student asked to check out the library copy of Jack Weller’s...
Why Do We Have Vital Records Anyway?
Learn the reasons Kentucky started keeping birth and death records.
Pioneer Families Had Dangerous Paths into Kentucky
Our ancestors had many options for arriving in Kentucky. Some paths were more dangerous than others.
Migration Paths into the British Colonies and Beyond
Many Europeans developed pathways for early settlers to enter the land of today’s Kentucky.
Why the Huguenots Migrated to America
Huguenots migrated from France to the new world and many Kentuckians can claim Huguenot roots.
Kentucky History: Tales of a County Too Small
Beckham County was formed in 1904 and disbanded a few months later. It remains the only county in Kentucky’s history with the distinction of being dissolved.
