Kentucky FactsDid you know? From Post-It Notes to President Abraham Lincoln here are some fun facts that are uniquely Kentucky…
The world's largest baseball bat, 120 ft. tall & 68,000lbs, stands at the Louisville Slugger Museum
Cumberland Falls is the only waterfall in the Western Hemisphere to display a moonbow.
More than 500 roses are in the garland presented to the Kentucky Derby winner each year.
The Smuckers plant in Lexington is the largest peanut butter producing facility in the world.
Post-It Notes are manufactured exclusively in Cynthiana.
The great Man o' War won all of his races except one, which he lost to a horse named Upset.
Cheeseburgers were first served in 1934 at Kaelin's in Louisville.
All Chevrolet Corvettes are manufactured in Bowling Green.
The world's longest cave, Mammoth Cave, was first promoted in 1816, making it the second oldest tourist attraction in the U.S., preceded only by Niagara Falls.
Mammoth Cave is the longest recorded cave system in the world, with over 360 miles explored & mapped
More than $6 billion worth of gold is held in the underground vaults of Fort Knox. This is the largest amount of gold stored anywhere in the world.
The public saw an electric light for the first time in Louisville. Thomas Edison introduced his incandescent light bulb to crowds at the Southern Exposition in 1883.
Middlesboro, Kentucky is one of only a few cities in the U.S. built within a meteor crater.
Explorers, Pioneers & Frontiersmen
*Not born in Kentucky
Daniel Boone* (1734-1820) Hunted and explored Kentucky, 1767-74; cleared the Wilderness Road and founded Fort Boonesborough, 1775.
James Bowie (1796-1836) Texas Ranger, died at the Alamo, designed Bowie knife.
George Rogers Clark* (1752-1818) American Revolution frontier general and explorer, secured the NW Territory for the U.S., founder of Louisville, 1778.
Simon Kenton* (1755-1836) Frontier explorer, soldier, scout for Daniel Boone and George Rogers Clark.
Dr. Thomas Walker* (1715-1794) Led the first documented expedition through Cumberland Gap, 1750.
Political Leaders
*Not born in Kentucky
Jefferson Davis (1808-1889) Only President of the Confederate States of America, 1861-65.
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) 16th U.S. President, 1861-65.
Zachary Taylor* (1784-1850) 12th U.S. President, 1849-1850.
Military & Social Leaders
*Not born in Kentucky
John "Casey" Jones (1864-1900) Railroad engineer.
Mary Todd Lincoln (1818-1882) Wife of Abraham Lincoln.
McCoys of the Hatfield-McCoy feud, resolved in 1888.
Colonel Harland Sanders* (1890-1980) Kentucky Fried Chicken founder.
John Thomas Scopes (1900-1970) Defendant in famous "monkey Trial" for violating a Tennessee law against teaching evolution.
Scientists, Inventors & Physicians
*Not born in Kentucky
Ephraim McDowell* (1771-1830) Performed first successful surgical removal of an ovarian tumor, 1809.
Garrett A. Morgan (1877-1963) Invented first automatic, tri-color traffic signal, 1923.
Phillip A. Sharp (1944- ) Nobel Prize winner for the discovery of split genes and for advancing research on cancer and hereditary diseases, 1993.
Artists & Architects
*Not born in Kentucky
John James Audubon* Ornithologist, artist. Began his work on "Birds of America" in Kentucky.
Frank Duveneck Painter, sculptor, educator.
Matthew Harris Jouette Portrait artist.
Gideon Shyroc k Architect; introduced Greek Revival style to the "West".
Helen M. Turner Impressionistic landscape artist, portraitist.
Authors & Journalists
*Not born in Kentucky
William Wells Brown America's first black novelist.
Edgar Cayce Psychic counselor/author.
A.B. Guthrie, Jr.* Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist.
Duncan Hines Restaurant-guide publisher.
Barbara Kingsolver Novelist.
Bobbie Ann Mason Novelist.
John Ed Pearce* Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist.
Diane Sawyer TV journalist/commentator.
Robert Penn Warren Pulitzer Prize 1947, 1958, 1979.
Entertainers
*Not born in Kentucky
Ned Beatty - Actor
John Carpenter - Croducer/director
Steven Curtis Chapman - Singer
George Clooney - Actor
Nick Clooney - Actor
Rosemary Clooney - Singer
Billy Ray Cyrus - Singer
Johnny Depp - Actor
Don & Phil Everly - Singers
Rebecca Gayheart - Actress
Crystal Gayle - Singer
Tom T. Hall - Singer
Ashley Judd - Actress
Naomi Judd - Singer
Wyonna Judd - Singer
Brian Littrell, Backstreet Boys - Singer
Patty Loveless - Singer
Loretta Lynn - Singer
Lee Majors - Actor
Bill Monroe - Singer
John Michael Montgomery - Singer
Joan Osborne - Singer
Annie Potts - Actress
Boots Randolph - Musician
Kevin Richardson, Backstreet Boys - Singer
Ricky Skaggs - Singer
Merle Travis - Singer
Steve Wariner - Singer
Keith Whitley - Singer
Dwight Yoakum - Singer - Singer - Actress - Singer - Singer - Singer - Singer - Singer - Actor - Singer - Singer - Singer - Actress - Musician - Singer - Singer - Singer - Singer - Singer - Singer
Sports Personalities
*Not born in Kentucky
Muhammad Ali - boxing
A.B. "Happy" Chandler - Baseball
Paul Hornung - Football
Tamara McKinney - Skiing
Mary Meagher - Swimming
Pee Wee Reese - Baseball
Adolph Rupp* - Basketball
Wes Unseld - Basketball
Darrell Waltrip - Auto racing
Michael Waltrip - Auto racing
Symbols & Traditions
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Commonwealth of Kentucky
Kentucky is one of four states to call itself a "commonwealth." In 1792 when Kentucky became the 15th state - the first on the western frontier - both "commonwealth" and "state" were used. Commonwealth, meaning government based on the common consent of the people, dates to the time of Oliver Cromwell's England in the mid-1600s. The other U.S. commonwealths, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Virginia, were originally British colonies. Kentucky, once part of Virginia, chose to remain a commonwealth when it separated from Virginia.
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Bluegrass State
Bluegrass is not really blue - it's green - but in the spring, bluegrass produces bluish-purple buds that, when seen in large fields, give a rich blue cast to the grass. Early pioneers found bluegrass growing on Kentucky's rich limestone soil and traders began asking for the seed of the "blue grass from Kentucky." The name stuck and today Kentucky is known as the Bluegrass State.
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Frankfort, population 27,741. Frankfort was chosen as the capital in 1792 by a commission who was instructed to choose the town that pledged the largest contribution toward the construction of a statehouse. Frankfort's proposal overwhelmed all other offers and the town was chosen as the state capital.
During the Civil War, Frankfort was the only Union capital occupied by Confederate troops.
Frankfort is located astride a double curve in the Kentucky River in central Kentucky and is known for one of the most beautiful capital buildings in the country.
Kentucky’s 91,000 farms average 164 acres. Kentucky ranks high nationally in the production of numerous crops, including corn, hay, tobacco, winter wheat and soybeans. Kentucky also ranks highly in livestock production. Cash receipts from farm marketing in 1999 were $3.46 billion; the principal contributors were horse and mule sales (including stud fees), tobacco, cattle and calves, broilers, dairy products and corn.
Click here to go to the Kentucky Department of Agriculture site. Located in the south central United States along the west side of the Appalachian Mountains, Kentucky ranks 37th in land size, with 39,732 square miles (102,907 square kilometers). The Commonwealth is bordered by seven states: Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee, Missouri and Illinois. The Ohio River flows 664 miles (1,068 kilometers) along the northern and western borders of the state. Kentucky's highest point is Black Mountain in Harlan County, 4,145 feet (1,264 meters) above sea level; its lowest point, the Mississippi River in Fulton County , 257 feet (78 meters) above sea level
Kentucky has more miles of running water than any other state except Alaska. The numerous rivers and water impoundments provide 1,100 commercially navigable miles (1,770 kilometers).
Kentucky has 12.7 million acres of commercial forest land - 50% of the state's land area. The main species of trees are white oak, red oak, walnut, yellow poplar, beech, sugar maple, white ash and hickory. Kentucky ranks third among hardwood producing states.
The total value of Kentucky's mineral production in 1999 was $3.8 billion. Principal minerals and by-products produced in order of value are coal, crushed stone, natural gas and petroleum. Kentucky is the nation's third largest coal producer - 152.4 million tons in 1996.
Click here to go to the Kentucky Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Cabinet site. |
