ASHLAND HISTORICAL HOME TOUR--ASHLAND, KENTUCKY

 Kentucky is such  a beautiful state!   Bobby and I were talking, just this morning, how blessed we are to be born in the United States, and it is a miracle of God that we won our independence from England.  The patriots laid it all on the line for freedom, and we are truly blessed because of their vision and bravery.  I am taking the walking tour of the historic section of the city.  It is supposed to be a two mile trip, but it felt like more.  I walked 6000 steps and quit.  It was hot and I was lugging a big camera bag, and my excuse was parking.  I parked in front of the library at Central Park, and even though there was no parking limit signs posted, I decided to head back, after all the lady at the tourism center said the city was very firm on the two hour parking limit.
This sign tells the origin of Ashland.  I must contact the Poages in Rankin, Texas to see if their family came from this area, and do you think M.T. Hilton is related to Conrad Hilton?

This fountain is at the library entrance of the Central Park, a 47 acre area of trees and walking paths, ponds and  flowers.  This is a nice place for people to cool off on hot, steamy days.

 The path leading into the park, with lights, flowers,  and benches.

 Cone flowers, pure delight for butterflies.

 This man made pond is so beautiful, and peaceful.  I think it will be a delightful place for Bible reading, prayer and meditation.

 Water lilies, something I haven't seen in West Texas.

 One end of the pond is covered in lilies.

 Another little fountain just across the street from King's Daughter Medical Center.

 Kentucky Iron, Coal, and Manufacturing Company sold the park acreage to the city for $32,500 in 1900.  Martin Hilton laid out the city in 1854 and this plot of ground was used as a park back in those days.  King's Daughter is instrumental in the park development.

 2008 Lexington Avenue.  Lon Rogers, coal operator, built this beauty in 1920, complete with cross gables on each end, exterior embellishments and a flowing brown shingled roof.  I am taking information right off the  Ashland Historical Tour pamphlet.

 1900 Lexington Avenue. The Veyssie family occupied this hip roofed, frame home for most of the 20th century, which was built about 1900.  It features a semicircular cast iron porch.

 Pineapples are a symbol of hospitality.   According to Hawthorne Tours the tradition began when sea captains returned to the colonies from adventures among Caribbean Islands loaded with rum, fruit and spices.  The captains speared a pineapple outside their home signaling to folks it was time to join him for food, drink and fun, and I am sure his house was the most popular one on the block, at least as long as the rum held out.

     

 Here we are at 1520 Lexington Avenue.  This house is probably the first home built on Lexington Avenue back in 1855 by Alexander Bagby.  Bagby was a high powered lawyer from Louisville and the Bagby family lived here until the 1930s.

 These old houses are built high on the hill, definitely out of the flood zone.

 1520 Chestnut Court.  W.W. Culbertson built this home for his second bride, Lucy O'Hara Hardy, in 1876.  The land was compliments of W.W.'s first wife, Sarah Means who died in 1874.  W.W. was an iron manufacturer, state legislator, and mayor of the city.

 1317 Hilton Court.  This is the only view I could get of this house,  built by Martin Hilton in 1855.  He also designed the plan for the town and provided sanctuary for southern soldiers during the Civil War.  The Hilton family owned the home until 1983.  There was no way that I could get in front of the house, so this is as good as the photography is going to be.

 Just a nice home that I saw on the tour.

 1304 Bath Avenue.  Abraham C. Campbell, financier, built this house in 1870.   This is an impressive structure, sitting on a huge gated yard.  The address is big and bold on the entrance gate, and the sign on the other side says, "No Soliciting."  

 The walk way to the Campbell home.

 I had fun using my big lens to get close to the front door.  Nice door decoration!

 1301 Bath.  Rufus VanSant built this beautiful home before 1897.  He was the owner of VanSat-Kitchen Lumber Company.  The stone porch was added in 1913.

1317 Bath.  This charming house dates back to 1875 and belonged to Robert Peebles who was the secretary-treasurer of the Ashland Coal and Iron Company.  This was home to a member of the Peebles family until 1984 and is the only 19th century Gothic house that exists in Ashland.  Now it is an apartment building.

1401 Bath.  W.B. Seaton designed this home in 1893.  W.B. Seaton was manager of Bellefonte, a coal fired iron furnace that was set up in Greenup County in 1826.  He built this house big enough for five children and big enough so they wouldn't be heard.  I do believe he achieved his goal! 

1400 Bath.  In 1920 W.B. Seaton built this fine home for his daughter, Hilda Peebles.  Ms. Peebles died of pneumonia in 1923.  Desjardins and Hayward, architectural firm from Cincinnati, designed the building.

1420 Bath.  This was the largest house in Ashland in 1856 and is still an imposing structure.  John Means was the owner, and a member of the Town Board in 1860.  Then he became president of the Eastern Division of the Lexington and Big Sandy Railroad in 1870.  In 1881 he was elected Ashland mayor.

1504 Bath. Hugh Means is the builder of this awesome structure; it may have been designed by Martin Hilton, city engineer.  Means was a director of Kentucky Iron, Coal and Manufacturing Co. Hugh, Thomas and John Means were Ohio industrialists and they had a major role in the development of Ashland.  After reading about all of his accomplishments, I felt like I need to get off the computer and go do something!

1516 Bath.  I think this is the most spectacular of all the homes.  It was built sometime after 1864; the land was purchased by Eliza Jan Gartrell.  It was later owned by Thomas Means,  John Kobs Sr., John Hager, and Mrs. Alice Fetter, who had the thing torn down around 1917, and she built this mansion, known as the Mayo Manor ( she was the widow of John C.C. Mayo).  It is easy to see that coal was king in the early 1900s.  There were some very wealthy folks in Ashland at that time. 

 Today, this fine home houses the King's Daughters' Medical Foundation, and I am so happy that it is being used and maintained.

 1600 Bath.  In 1875, Robert Poage built this house for his son, Ashland Poage.  Poage was one of the founders of Ashland, and his son was the first born in the city after the Kentucky legislature created it with a special act in 1854.  I have tried to reach the Poages in Rankin, Texas to find out if they are of this family.

1612 Bath.  "Mrs. Sarah Calvin built a frame house on this lot in 1891 which was remodeled in 1954 by Simeon S. Willis, the only resident of Ashland ever to be honored by election as governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.  This house utilizes the exterior feature of the 1854 Lace House in Columbia, S.C."  Quoted from Ashland Historical Tour pamphlet.

 1600 Central.  Timothy Field, co-owner of Crump & Field Wholesale Grocery Company, built this palace on Winchester and 17th, then in 1900 the whole thing was moved in tact to 1600 Central with mules (about five blocks).  I am in awe of the engineering it took to build this massive structure, but more in awe of the amazing skill needed to move the whole thing to a new location without tearing it up! 

Indian Mounds in Central Park.

 1616 Bath Avenue.  Andrew Wilson, Ashland contractor, built this brick mansion for Sarah Ann Calvin in 1892.  The house remained in the family until 1979 when Hope McCown, last family member,  passed away.  The house is trimmed in red and cream colored sandstone, with terra cotta

The First Church of Christ, Scientist on 315 17th Street was designed by architect Laura White and built as First Christian Church in 1890.  Now, it is for sale.  the congregation outgrew the sanctuary and has moved.

This painting of the church is on a wall next to the train station.

1624 Winchester Ave.  C.H. Parson's Department Store is now the Highlands Museum and Discovery Center.  The department store opened in 1926.  In 1948 it became the tallest building in Ashland when two more floors were added.  The department store was open for business until 1989.  In 1993 the Highlands Museum opened with historical and cultural exhibits.  Stop in at the gift shop.

First Presbyterian Church located at 1600 Winchester Avenue was finished in 1888.

1544 Winchester Ave.  The Community Trust Bank was originally the Ashland National Bank and finished in 1923.  It crashed during the depression, like many banks did, and in 1932 the Second National Bank bought the building. It became Community Trust Bank in 1980.

Looking all the way up on the Community Trust Bank building.

These beautiful baskets of fuchsia petunias hang from every light pole on Lexington Street.

1601 Winchester Avenue.  This building was built in 1890s as the Merchant National Bank.  Eventually it became the Steele and Lawrence Pharmacy (1946) and the McMeans Pharmacy in 1987.  Now it is a tuxedo shop.

Camayo Arcade, located at 1536 Winchester Avenue, was built in 1926 and was said to be the finest arcade building in the South.  Today shops and offices have taken the place of pool tables and pin ball machines, or whatever was in the arcade.

1401-1405 Greenup Avenue is  the location of the Crump and Field building,  originally a wholesale grocery store and built in 1892.  Restoration of the outside started in 1987 and was finished in 1989.

Calvary Episcopal Church is on 14th and Winchester Avenue.  This structure was consecrated in 1903, however the original church burned after a laundry exploded in 1898.  The fire burned half a city block and was one of the worst fires in Ashland.  In 1979 another fire broke out and burned  the church hall on the west side of the building.

This theater was built in 1930 according to the design created by Paramount Pictures for a model  constructed at the Chicago World's Fair in 1932.  The plan was to have one of these copies built in each of the 48 states.  Three were completed and the Ashland Paramount Theater is the only surviving  copy in existence.

Today the theater is owned by the Greater Ashland Foundation and is the Paramount Arts Center.

These buildings are not on the tour, but are old and across from the Paramount.

If you want some great food go to Fat Patty's located on Winchester Stree in the McCleary Building built in 1907.

First United Methodist Church located on 1801 Carter Avenue.  The building was finished in 1920 for the First Methodist Episcopal Church, North.  The First Methodist Episcopal Church, South joined with this church and became the United Methodist Church.  Mrs. Jay from Jayton said uniting these two churches was a mistake.  Time will tell.

Here we are at 1800 Carter Avenue and believe it or not this is a house that was built in 1880 by Morgan Huff who was the editor of the Ashland Republican.  Mr. Huff is famous for printing "The Ashland Tragedy" which detailed the rape and murder of two girls, and the murder of a brother.  Frances Gibons age 14  and her disable brother, Robert, age 17, and Emma Carico age 15 were bludgeoned to death with an ax and crowbar Christmas Eve 1881.  Now, the building is a dentist office, and the bottom floor has been enlarged for the business. 

These are the buildings that are on the Ashland Historical Tour, but there are many other beautiful homes and buildings to see in this fine city.  Coal and steel have been the life blood of this part of the state.  Our trade with China and the climate change frenzy is taking its tole on this area.  I hate to see buildings that are empty, and businesses that are gone.  I want to see production again.  Hopefully we can see this happen in the near future.

STRAIGHT OUT OF THE PAGES OF ATLAS SHRUGGED

This is new to me.  I am originally from Eastern Montana, land of wide open spaces, sparse population, with miles and miles of ranch and farm land.  Now, I live in West Texas with wide open spaces, a little more population,  and larger cities.  About the only type of industry is a cotton gin; and  a refinery here and there.  This is blast furnace for a steel mill.  The minute I saw it,  Atlas Shrugged popped into  my mind.

 This is the AK Steel plant at Ashland, Kentucky, and it is on "hot idle," meaning that it isn't totally shut down.  There are about 200 people working here.  Sadly, 600 people were laid off in December 2015 (why do lay offs seem to happen in December?).

 I love industry!!!  Real wealth is created by production, and I just feel warm and happy inside when I see a gin running full blast with a cloud of dirt billowing out of it, or when I see the lights of an oil rig when I am driving home at night.  I feel the same way when I see calves with their mamas out in a pasture.  So, I hope this plant can go back to work soon.  When I worked for Troy Construction I found that Troy did not use Chinese steel or Mexican steel, because it was so unreliable;  we cannot afford to have a pipe rupture or a valve go bad.

A BOUTIQUE, ASHLAND, KY

I was running around Ashland, taking pictures for a blog on Ashland Historical tour and found the neatest boutique on Carter Street not far from the Methodist Church and the First Church of Christ, Scientist.

This is a store for ladies, sorry guys, you are out of luck here ...unless you want to buy the lady in your life something that is outstanding, and I urge you to do so!   Dresses, skirts, scarves are all unusual and very classy.

The building is so beautiful!  This is the oldest condo in Ashland and was built in the early 1900s.  Owner, Carolyn Runyon opened November 17, 1992.  This is just one example of some of the beautiful wood in the building.

This shop is such a pleasant change from the huge stores in the mall with massive amounts of clothing to sort through.  This is my idea of shopping.

Carlolyn is the only Brighton dealer in town, and don't you just love these sandals?

More Brighton.

This is the front room of the store with a beautiful bay window.

The entry of the store.

Carolyn lives upstairs--there are four floors, and she uses the top floor for storage.

Carolyn let me take pictures of her home, and it is something out of a magazine.  She re-did the third floor for her mother, and it is just as fabulous as the second floor.  I didn't take pictures of it. And I didn't take photos of every room, but you get the idea.

The original sink.

I dream of having a bathtub like this!

The pedestal sink is original and just gorgeous.

Carolyn was in medical administration before she became a boutique owner.  She said she always wanted a business of her own, and she and her daughter-in-law saw this house and bid on it.  Her daughter-in-law owned a business and with her know-how  helped Carolyn get started.  They went to Charleston and Lexington to look at clothing and decide which  designers they liked before going to market.  Then they flew to New York to market.   She said she nearly sold out during the first season because she had no idea how much to buy.   She said the business has been very rewarding and she has never regretted her leap into a totally new vocation.  Carolyn, you are a brave woman!

More gorgeous wood!

The front porch of A Boutique.

Leaded glass and original door.

The outside is so inviting that one cannot resist stopping in, and there is a sale!

Potter Law Firm is in the condo next door.  Isn't this just an amazing building?

If you have looked at my blog, you know I am practically obsessed with antique houses, and this is one of my favorites.  The fashions inside make it even more enticing.  Thank you Carolyn for taking time to tell me about your life.

OH!!! HOW I LOVE COLOR!!!

Fixing, doing, and updating a 50 year old house is taking a long time.  I moved in here in 2010, and then Bobby and I went to Pennsylvania for a couple of years, then to Abilene to work.  So doing curtains and everything else has taken a long time.  

Today I crossed the last thing off my to-do list--cornice boards.  My mother-in-law put up hand made drapes about 30+ years ago.  She had some drapery outfit out of Snyder do them and there is no way anyone could afford to replace them today.  It was amazing how much hand stitching went into each drape.  After all this time and the many sandstorms,  they were rotten and dirty, so I took all of them down and slowly but surely made curtains (something that is washable).  She had cloth covered cornice boards in one bedroom to match the drapes, so I tore all the fabric and padding off, and sanded the glue off.  Finally I am done painting them. 

Some day I may re-do them, but for right now they are as done as they will ever be.  I love color.

BACK HOME IN MONTANA MAY 2016

I got to go home to Montana in May, and had the best time, even though it snowed and the power was off for three days.  Here are just a few shots of all the friends I got to hang with when I was there.

This is Zeus.   He is half German Shepherd (look at those ears) and half border collie.  He is very smart and very attached to his owner.  She said his mother died when he was a tiny baby and she raised him on a bottle, so no wonder he waits for her by the door.

This is Penny, Zeus' best friend.  They run and chase each other, making me envious that I can't run like the wind.  Penny is very spoiled (in a good way).  She gets in the house, gets in Cowboy's chair, and doesn't even get in trouble.  She thinks my role in her life is to give her massages in the evening, and if I sit down on the couch, she piles in the middle of me ready for a deep tissue work over.

This is the dear one!  Amy is old, and doesn't really get to go with the cowboys anymore, but she spends her time puttering around the yards, and sleeping whenever she needs to.

I was in the Women's Run at Billings with Cowboy's Sweetheart, Farmer's Wife, and daughter Maggie, and my cousin Connie.  Here, we are standing on a street corner waiting to get together with the rest of the gang, and this lady walks up and says, "I bet you don't remember me."  Gosh, I hate to admit that I don't remember people, but out of a crowd of 7000 women, I wasn't expecting to see anyone I knew, so I had to say, "Give me a hint!"  Deanna is the sister to my dorm roommate when I was in high school.  Here is Deanna and my cousin Connie.

Me, Cowboy's Sweetheart, and Connie.  We walked the two mile and finished in the middle of the throng of bodies.

Here is a cutie who was part of the 7000+ bodies to participate in the event.

The snow storm that killed the electricity for three days.  This doesn't look too bad, but further west they got a foot of snow and the wind was gusting up to 60 MPH.  This tore down poles.

Cowboy and Chantal heading into that wet blizzard to check the heifers.  Calving heifers is tough enough without these conditions.  The wind was fierce.

This is Cowboy, keeping late hours.  He just finished putting a prolapsed heifer back together in the dark.  Anyone who thinks that beef is too high needs to take a few days helping Cowboy. 

NEW SHOES! Horse shoes, that is.

Time flies when you retire!  When I was home in September 2015,  I went with Cowboy to take horses for new shoes, and here I am just now getting a blog together.  Here are the "men", as Cowboy calls them, waiting for their turn.

 Cowboy and Gene talking about everything, not just horse shoes.

 I am telling you!  That is a nice looking butt!  I am talking about the sorrel horse.

 Yes, you!  You are next to get new shoes.

 Gene Messer shoes horses at his place outside of Roundup, Montana.

 He used to come to the ranch, but people would hear that he was in a certain location and start hauling horses in for him to do.  Soon he was overloaded.

 Now, you make an appointment to get horses shod.

 Penny was along for the trip, and here she is enjoying the "good stuff" that Gene cleaned out of the hooves.  Dogs really love the trimmings, especially trimmings from the frog.

 Penny is ready to roll it up and go home, but we left the horses and went to Billings for a few errands.  When we came back "the men" were shod and ready to head home.

This was a fun trip.  Thanks Cowboy!