Tag: Lexington

A Stretch of Waveland Museum Lane Closes

Waveland Museum Lane will close November 15, 2018

A stretch of Lexington’s Waveland Museum Lane will be closed today, November 15, 2018, to traffic. This is an old stretch of road that connects Winthrop Drive and Millpond Road; the stretch used to be part of Higbee Mill Road when that road transversed the farms west of Nicholasville Pike in the southern edges of Fayette County.

Old city maps identifying Higbee Mill Road

The stretch of roadway will become part of a mixed use trail. The stretch of roadway is right around  the corner from my office – Brackney Law Office, PLLC. The soon to be “lost” roadway has become part of my daily commute, so I created a little video to remember her by.

Another Day Cycling Through Lexington

Whiskey offerings at James E. Pepper Distillery. Author’s collection.

My sister and I embarked on what has become our annual tradition (2018 was our third annual) of cycling through  Lexington’s past and exploring new developments and changes to the landscape in the town we both call “home.”

Our 2018 trek was met with an early disruption as I discovered that my bike lock was still at my house and that going to retrieve it would delay our ride by an hour. After posting my predicament on Facebook, a friend quickly came to my aid. But the five minute drive there and back was punctuated by a quick drive through The Lexington Cemetery, www.lexcem.org, to see the monuments that had recently been relocated there from the courthouse lawn. I had supported the removal of the two Confederates from Lexington’s most premier public space to the cemetery, and the new locations for Hunt-Morgan and Breckinridge are fitting and proper. The monuments are much more accessible having been removed from their lofty pediments.

Looking up toward the dome of the Old Courthouse.
Author’s collection.

A bike lock in hand, we proceeded to our starting point (and what should certainly be the start of any Lexington tour): The Lexington Visitors Center, www.visitlex.com. VisitLex recently reopened in the old Courthouse on West Main Street. Construction of the old courthouse began in 1898 and it served as the county courthouse for a century until new courthouses opened on North Limestone Street in 2002. It was thereafter occupied by a number of museums, most notably the Lexington History Museum, lexhistory.org, but all tenants were forced to vacate in 2012 due to lead paint, asbestos, and other environmental factors. A two year, $32 million project brought the old Courthouse to its historic grandeur.

After the visitor’s center, we walked my bike down West Short Street to the nearest available Spin bike on North Mill. Spin, www.spin.fm, introduced its bicycle rentals to Lexington just within the past few months and allow customers to rent bikes for $1 per half hour using a mobile app. My sister, in town for a week, had become an expert in Spin bikes and loved their comfort, affordability, and ease of use. They are certainly a win for Lexington and its bikeability.

We both mounted are bicycles and took off toward the Distillery District, www.lexingtondistillerydistrict.com, where much has changed since our 2017 tour. Most significantly, the James E. Pepper Distillery, jamesepepper.com, is now open for tours. Although our schedule didn’t permit a tour, we were welcomed into their visitors center where a large flag adorns the wall. The flag was found in California and returned to the distillery where it had been flown until the distillery shuttered in 1958. At one point, Pepper was the largest whiskey distillery in the United States. Today, it produces five whiskeys (3 ryes, 2 bourbons) which were fortunate enough to sample.

Our appetites whetted, my sister and I walked next door to the Goodfellas Pizza, www.goodfellaspizzeria.com, to enjoy their $6 lunch special: a huge slice of pie, a side (we each opted for a salad), and a drink (soda, tea, or a Narragansett Lager, www.narragansettbeer.com). Although it was by no means my first time at Goodfellas, it was hers and she is looking forward to returning.

Back down Manchester Street, we turned onto Oliver Lewis Way so that we could reach the next destination: Country Boy Brewing, countryboybrewing.com. It was another first visit for my sister; she and I have twice before reached their door only to find it closed due to my failure to first check operating hours. There is no pretension in this cinderblock building, only good beer. I had their Living Proof: Golden Wild Ale which was tangy and almost like a mild gose; very enjoyable. My sister, a fan of the pilsner, found their Survive to be on the money.

New student center at University of Kentucky. Author’s collection.

After leaving Country Boy, we maneuvered over to UK’s campus to sample some of the older landmarks like the Gillis Building, the Patterson Office Tower, and the statue of President Patterson. But the real reason for visiting my alma mater was to check out the new $200 million student center. Wow! Just wow. This was definitely not there when I was a student. The new two-story bookstore, operated by Barnes & Noble, is nothing but impressive (though it is remarkable how little space is actually committed to textbooks for a university having an enrollment of over 30,000). The old Alumni Gym has been preserved and repurposed as a student fitness center – it may well be the most beautiful, most well-appointed fitness centers in town.

A race down Euclid Avenue and a left onto Ashland Avenue unveiled one of Lexington’s newest bookstores: Brier Books, www.brierbooks.com. A great selection and an awesome staff. Further down Ashland Avenue, we entered Warehouse Block, warehouseblock.morningsidelex.com. My sister visited with a friend at Centered, centeredlex.org, and we settled into another beer at Mirror Twin Brewing, www.mirrortwinbrewing.com, (we shared Bee Sting, a honey hefeweizen).

We began back toward North Limestone with a brief pitstop to see the bicycle-beer combo at Bicycle Face, bicyclefacelex.com, (a shop I will surely return to). It was a great day for a leisurely 8 mile ride punctuated by so many stops at local shops and watering holes. #sharethelex

Lexington, Kentucky’s City Hall

The old Lafayette Hotel and present City Hall. Author’s Collection.

Lexington, Kentucky may be well on its way to a new city hall. Four developers have submitted proposals to city officials and three of the developers have released renderings of their proposals to the public (pictures below). With city offices spread across five downtown buildings, Lexington has been considering moving its city hall for many years. If city hall moves, it certainly won’t be the first time in history. Here are a few locales that have served as Lexington’s city hall.

Early City Hall Sites 

In 1845, the Lexington Observer and Reporter noted that “Mayor and council have entered into arrangements with owners of old medical hall to be converted into a city hall.” City offices moved into this facility located at the northwest corner of Market and Church streets along with other entities such as the library and the Odd Fellows.1

Market House (Jackson Hall) and home of city hall from 1880-1929. University of Kentucky Libraries.

In 1879, the Lexington Transcript reported that Phelix Lundin had submitted plans for a new market house which would house the council chamber on the second floor. At the end of July 1879, the cornerstone was laid for the construction of the “new market house and city hall.” By May of the following year, the city hall was occupied in the market house known as Jackson Hall. It was located in a block bordered by Limestone, Upper, Vine, and Water streets. The city sold Jackson Hall in 1941. whereupon it was almost immediately demolished to make way for a parking lot and later for the widening of Vine Street.

Long before selling, however, city hall had already moved.

In 1924, Leon K. Frankel and John J. Curtis were hired by the city to design a new city hall.  It was located on the east side of Walnut Street (later renamed  Martin Luther King Blvd) at Barr Street. According to Clay Lancaster in his book Vestiges of the Venerable City, a widening of Barr Street was completed “for an impressive approach” “with a large strip being taken from the front yards of the ante-bellum houses on the block.” The new city hall was completed in 1928 at a total price tag of $319,000.

Municipal Building, Lexington’s city hall from 1928-1983. University of Kentucky Libraries.

Lafayette Hotel

The twelve-story Lafayette Hotel was completed by 1920 and for forty years was a premier Lexington institution. By the early 1960s, the hostelry had shuttered and the building was converted into offices.  Wrote the Herald-Leader in 1983:

After opening with a gala ball in 1920, the Lafayette Hotel provided elegant lodging, refined dining and a posh place for proms for decades. The hotel closed in 1960 and served as a private office building for 20 years. But at the Lexington-Fayette government Center, the high-rise at 200 East Main Street is recapturing its public identity.

The move has long been described as temporary, however, and there have been growing discussions over the past decades about a new home for city offices. Today, the discussions are beginning to materialize.

The Proposals

As noted above, there are four submitted proposals for a new city hall. In determining which one you prefer, think about the criteria set forth by the retired dean of UK’s architecture school, Anthony Eardley, who was profiled by Tom Eblen in a 2016 column published in the Herald-Leader. In anticipation of this very project, Eardley considered (and found examples worldwide) of what makes a good – and a bad – city hall. His findings are accessible at http://eardleydesign.com/halls/.
Proposal by Municipal Consolidation and Construction which would locate City Hall on Main Street just
to the east of the Lexington Public Library’s Central Branch.
Proposal by CRM Companies which would locate City Hall on Midland Avenue in the former
Lexington Herald-Leader building. 
Proposal by Cowgirl Partners which would locate City Hall on Corral Street at Martin Luther King Blvd
There is a proposal from one more developer (Pure Development) for which there are no public details available. I’ll update this post from time to time as more information becomes available.

A Day Journal: Lexington by Bike

For those that have followed this blog for some time, you know I think that Lexington is an amazing city. Whenever my sister comes to visit, I love taking her on a bike ride to show her what has changed in the city where we spent so many years growing up. So we did Lexington by bike.

We ventured recently on a 5-hour, 10.4 mile tour (no-destination-style at an ultra-leisurely pace) with just a couple of targets in mind: we wanted to enjoy a couple brews from stops on the Brewgrass Trail. I wanted to show her what’s going on in the Distillery District and we wanted to pass our old Kentucky home.

We pulled our bikes off the bike rack where we parked on North Limestone in front of LTMS. We passed the old the old Episcopal mission on Fourth Street before cutting through the campus of Transylvania University and beside Old Morrison.

Gratz Park until Second Street when my sister declared she wanted to pass her favorite house in Lexington, the Thomas January House.To Jefferson Street where, upon cresting the viaduct, I showed my sister how the Lexington Center would expand and the beautifully proposed Town Branch Park would overtake the area.

In, through, and past the Distillery District, we turned right onto Forbes Road and discussed the fire at the stockyards. Her mind raced as she considered the potential reuse for that 10 +/- acres.

Down Leestown Road and into the Lexington Cemetery where I told her the stories of King Solomon, of John Hunt Morgan, and of Henry Clay. As we left the cemetery and with five miles behind us, we began to think about that first beer. To Blue Stallion!


The Hefeweizen was the perfect beer on that hot day! We filled our waters and immediately embarked for pint #2 at West Sixth (and for a bite at Smithtown Seafood!) We journeyed down Smith and Willie Streets before taking in the rainbow colored shotguns on Bourbon Street – the highlight of what remains of historic Smithtown for which the seafood restaurant takes its name!

 

I, of course, gave her an update on the Old Courthouse as we passed it. Then to our old Kentucky Home in the Historic Western Suburb, the iconic mural of Abraham Lincoln by Eduardo Kobra, and the new Henry Clay mural on Vine Street.

We learned that East Second Street Christian Church is contemplating a new site (according to the “Future Home Of…” sign) before admiring their circa 1875 church building.

Brochures obtained from the Visitor’s Bureau

Another stop during the day was a new one for me: The Lexington Visitor’s Bureau which has relocated to The Square (formerly Victorian Square). If you are visiting Lexington for the first or fifty-first time, stop at the Visitor’s Bureau. You’ll discover something new!

Of course, isn’t that always the case with Lexington? We certainly did during our 10.4 mile ride. #sharethelex

 
A post shared by Peter Brackney (@kaintuckeean) on Jul 20, 2017 at 12:10pm PDT

May’s Fab 4 deTour

The May “Fab Four BGT deTour” will feature the interiors and gardens of four private residences located on Bullock Place and Hambrick Place.

Bullock Place and Hambrick Place parallel East Main Street behind the Fayette County Public Schools Central Office, which is the old Henry Clay High School.

As you stroll between these properties, be sure to observe the house at 715 Bullock Place as it is the oldest residence on the street. It was built by the adventurer James Masterson on a tract of 100 acres that he purchased from Col. James Wilkerson. Masterson died in 1838 and the property was divided between his widow and five children. This particular acreage came into the hands of Major Robert S. Bullock by 1873.

714 Bullock Place

The first house will be 714 Bullock Place, which is constructed in the Dutch Colonial style. It is an easily recognizable architectural style with its large, front facing gable. The home’s owner in 1953 was J. Monroe Sellers, vice president of First National Bank and Trust Company. That bank is now the Lexington 21c Hotel and art museum.

707 Bullock Place

The prairie style 707 Bullock Place is reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wright. Prior owners include Albert Ross Marshall (d. 1937) who was a board member of the Petroleum Exploration Co. of Kentucky, S. Sewell Combs (d. 1955) who was the vice-president of the Combs Lumber Company, and Ken Lloyd (d. 2012), the noted Lexington interior designer who refurbished the residence in 1984.

704 Bullock Place

The craftsman style multi-unit at 704 Bullock Place was once the home of well-known Lexington jeweler Harry Skuller, who passed away in his home “after being confined at home for five weeks as a result of a heart condition.” (Lexington Herald, Aug. 31, 1937).  The name “Skuller” can still be found downtown: the well-known Skuller’s clock on the sidewalk of the 100 block of West Main Street.

722 Hambrick Avenue

Two blocks behind Bullock Place is Hambrick Place and the Fab 4 deTour includes one house, 722, on Hambrick. This little Victorian gem has not found its way into the history books in the same way that our other addresses have, but perhaps its bricks will speak to you during the Fab 4 deTour on May 3!






IF YOU GO
The Fab 4

BGT deTour






May 3, 2017


Gather at 5:30 p.m.,


program begins at 5:45 p.m.



Four private residences/gardens,
begins at 714 Bullock Place




Free and open to the public. An AfterHour follows.





#BGTdeTours




Fun With Flags: Kentucky Edition

I’m kind of a flag nerd. I’ve always had a thing for flags. When I was little, I’d always get the flag for the state or country I was visiting. Sometimes, I’d even correct an improper flag display. And I love Dr. Sheldon Cooper Presents Fun With Flags segments on CBS’ Big Bang Theory!

So when I saw the cover of today’s Herald-Leader, I was excited to see the prominent display of the flag for the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government prominently placed above the fold. And below the fold was the headline: “Does Lexington need a memorable city flag?“

The short answer is a resounding YES! But the longer answer is, of course, more interesting. The article notes two groups (Lexington firefighters and 8th graders at Lexington Christian Academy) that  are pushing for a new flag and promoting a few of their own designs.

The H-L article prompted me to watch an 18-minute TED talk by Roman Mars which I’ve embedded below.  Mars discusses the elements of a good flag and gives examples of both good and bad flags. Countries are pretty good at making strong banners, but American cities are pretty horrible at the task. Mars even featured Lexington’s own flag as a “bad flag” example, which is what prompted the firefighters mentioned above to take on their effort.

What makes a good flag? According to the North American Vexillogical Association, or NMVA, (far bigger flag nerds than I), there are five key principles:

1. Keep it Simple
2. Use Meaningful Symbolism
3. Use 2 or 3 Basic Colors
4. No Lettering or Seals
5. Be Distinctive or Be Related.

All of this makes sense. In fact, these are pretty good design principles overall. So how do Kentucky flags stack up on this scale? The Kentucky flag itself is, like the Lexington flag, an SOB (seal on a bedsheet). It’s just a blue background with the state seal on it. Pretty boring, indistinctive, and not simple (in that the details of the seal itself are complex).

Other cities in Kentucky vary…

Louisville

In 2004, the NMVA conducted a survey ranking the flags of American cities. The two best were Washington DC and Chicago, but I was really surprised to see that Louisville was ranked #9! Go Louisville!! (In case you were wondering, Lexington ranked #112 in the same survey.)

Really, it is a great looking flag! But wait… Louisville merged with Jefferson County in 2003 to form a Metro Government.

Louisville’s old flag

Surely wisdom (and better design) prevailed and the old flag was retained? Nope. Instead, the ‘Ville now flies this lesser banner which is, predictably, another SOB:

Louisville-Jefferson County Flag

Ugh. Another example of Kentucky just not being able to have nice things.

Frankfort

Frankfort also makes the NMVA Survey at #140 (out of 150). I can see why.

Bowling Green

Bowling Green didn’t make the NMVA Survey. It’s current flag isn’t an SOB, but it is close. If it were just the fountain, it might work. But I’m not so sure you could read the text if it were flying in the breeze at 100 feet away.

Like Lexington, Bowling Green is contemplating a new flag. There’s a movement afoot to change the flag to this distinctive banner:

The green background is self-explanatory for a town called Bowling Green. The gold represents prosperity, the blue the Barren River, and the grey represents the roads that connect in Bowling Green. It’s a good, distinctive flag that follows the 5 Principles.

Hopefully, something good will come Lexington’s way. The Portland (OR) Flag Association maintains a list (including Bowling Green) of municipalities in America looking at improving their flags. I imagine Lexington will soon make the list!

(and here’s that TED talk from Roman Mars I promised…)

Floral Hall a Fascinating Treasure in Lexington

Floral Hall in 1966.  Photograph by John Noye. National Register Application. 

If you pause to look down Red Mile Road as you cross the path’s intersection with South Broadway, you have no doubt seen the iconic Floral Hall. It is a treasured landmark of Lexington, though its very likely you’ve never been inside.

Designed by John McMurtry and completed in 1882 as a two-story octagonal building, the structure was added to a year after its completion with the addition of a third level. The building was commissioned by the Kentucky Agricultural and Mechanical Fair Association using funds appropriated to it by Congress for damages caused by Union troops during the Civil War.

The structure was named “floral hall” because it originally was a floral exhibition hall. Its use adapted over the years. The site’s brochure states that “when the city of Lexington expanded its boundaries, the city line cut through the grounds of the adjacent Red Mile trotting tack. Floral Hall remained outside the city limits, so the betting pools, the form of wagering on the races during that time, were conducted there.”

Inside Floral Hall. Peter Brackney.

Beginning in 1896, the structure became known as the Round Barn as it was then used for the stabling of horses. Stalls were built on both the first and stories, while the horses’ caretakers had quarters on the third level.Following a 1963 renovation, the building was converted into a museum housing American Standardbred horse memorabilia and equine archives.

Today, the building is known as the Standardbred Stable of Memories and is owned by a non-profit dedicated to the preservation of this historic landmark. Earlier this year, Kathryn Glenn McKinley and Kitty Sautter received The Blue Grass Trust for Historic Preservation’s Barbara Hulette Award for their preservation and continued use of the building, as well as the restoration of its cupola and its three-story chandelier. At right, you can see the grand chandelier hanging from the ceiling high above the ground floor.

The structure is beautiful and its history grand. Standardbred racing, sometimes overshadowed by thoroughbred racing, is extremely popular and its history, too, is strong in our region. Stabled here were the horses of Hall of Fame trainer tom Berry, including Hamiltonian and Hanover’s Bertha. Other greats stabled at the Round Barn include world champion Merrie Annabelle and Greyhound.

From the #BGTdeTours Facebook page, Blue Grass Trust Vice President John Hackworth invites you to experience the “fascinating treasure within our city,” Floral Hall:

deTouring Rupp Arena (Home of the Greatest Tradition in College Basketball)

Entrance to Rupp Arena. University of Kentucky Archives.

On Monday evening, one of four teams will be crowned the NCAA Champion. For basketball fans (which is all of us, right?), you can probably already hear the lyrics sung by Luther Vandross to One Magic Moment. Right?

The Final Four was once held, in 1985, in Lexington, Kentucky at Rupp Arena. It was a memorable performance as the underdog Villanova went on to beat favorite Georgetown.

Yes, the tradition of college basketball is rich in Lexington and at Rupp Arena.

Timeout during a men’s basketball game. Author’s collection. 

The home team, the University of Kentucky Men’s Basketball Team, is the most winning college basketball program. The team’s all-time record in Rupp Arena is 546-64.

The arena itself opened in 1976; its dedication coming during its third game – a December 1976 win against the Kansas Jayhawks. But the venue is about more than just basketball.

Concerts, church services, community events, minor league hockey, arena football, and more have been only a part of what has made Rupp Arena an important part of Lexington’s history.

An empty Rupp Arena in 2016. Author’s collection.

This week you’ll have the opportunity to explore this rich historic place that is now in its 40th year. It may be the last time you’ll have to see Big Bertha – the 12,000 pound sound system hanging from the center of the stadium. It’s being removed during the main tenant’s off-season. It will be the most recent of many renovations and alterations made to the venue over its rich history.

The Blue Grass Trust for Historic Preservation will be holding its monthly deTour for April at Rupp Arena. More details are available on Facebook, so mark Wednesday, April 6, 2016 on your calendar for this event!

339 Jefferson Faces Wrecking Ball

339 Jefferson Street. Fayette PVA. 

With spring comes the blossoming buds of the flowers, but it also seems to bring the wrecking ball. On March 4, 2016, a demolition permit was sought for 339 Jefferson Street.

The old house, according to records of the Fayette County PVA, was built around 1890* and is another example of Lexington’s disappearing vernacular architecture. The property owner as of January 1 was Dixon Enterprises, LLC, but the demolition permit reveals that LFUCG Code Enforcement is the applicant/owner. Dixon owns a significant amount of the center of the block.

339 Jefferson Street, then numbered 181 Jefferson, on the 1901 Sanborn Map. UK Libraries.

The house appeared on the 1901 Sanborn Map, but was then numbered 181 Jefferson Street. As noted above, the PVA records indicate that the house was built in 1890. The 1896 Sanborn map, however, does not indicate that any structures were yet constructed on that portion of the western side of Jefferson Street. As such, I believe that 339 Jefferson was built somewhere between 1897 and 1901 … ca. 1900 – 2016.

On August 27, 1910, the Lexington Leader reported that “the funeral services over the body of Mrs. Nannie L. Harvey of 339 Jefferson street, who died Friday afternoon will be held Sunday afternoon, the burial taking place in the Lexington Cemetery.” She was survived by her husband, the sole beneficiary under her will which was probated in November of 1910.

The Jefferson Street corridor is currently one of Lexington’s most active and exciting districts with new development and investment filling the area. Demolition of vernacular structures like these shotguns I highlighted last year is often a side effect of a historic area’s popularity. Other alternatives, like infill and redevelopment of blighted areas like what is going on in NoLi, exist.

It remains to be seen what will occur on this site. But until we know, RIP 339 Jefferson (ca. 1900-2016). After nearly six score together, we hardly knew thee.

The Lexington Country Club

Lexington Country Club in 2016. Author’s Collection.

The charter member list of the Lexington County Club reads as a “who’s who” of Lexington at the turn of the twentieth century. This first social club in Lexington was modeled after the clubs common and popular in larger cities in the eastern United States so that these leaders (men only) would have a place to relax. The Lexington Leader, then the local Republican newspaper, outlined the club’s purpose for prospective members and donors:

Think of having a charming place near town in easy driving distance, with an opportunity to enjoy country life in its most finished sense! Where men after business hours can go and take their families and guests for luncheon or dinner, outdoor and indoor games, where there are beautiful lawns and tennis and golf grounds and society in general go for dances and all sorts of diversions. In this way the most wholesome kind of social enjoyment can be developed and people have that for which they so often long and sign, a perfect resort for entertainment outside of their own homes. In nearly ever other city in America there is something on this order – a country club or a hunting club.

And so it was in 1901 that the Lexington Country Club organized with a site selected along Paris Pike. In 1907, the house that was utilized for the clubhouse was reinvented by the Columbus, Ohio architecture firm Richards, McCarty & Bulford whose work features prominently elsewhere in Lexington. The landscape architects of the Olmsted Brothers firm worked on improvements to the property. The facilities finally opened in October 1907 to a gala event.

Lexington Country Club prior to the 1925 fire. UK Libraries. 

Fire and Rebirth

Eighteen years later – on October 19, 1925 – the clubhouse caught fire. Schoolchildren from the Falconer school across the road helped to remove furnishings before the fire became too strong while firefighters from Lexington were dispatched. Despite the effort, the clubhouse was a total loss then measured at only $50,000. The decision was made to rebuild at once.

At the time of the fire, the club’s board was considering what to do with its facility and how it might grow its physical space. Had they deliberated for just a few years longer without the intervening fire, it is a worthy question to ask would the club have survived had the fire come just a few years later? The Great Depression arose following Black Friday four years and ten days following the fire that consumed LCC.

Instead, the fire occurred during the throes of the Roaring Twenties and its grand reopening was realized in June, 1926.  With its new facilities in place, the financial hardships brought on by the Depression and the Second World War were weathered by the club.

Marion Miley

None of these days, however, are the most remembered in club history. Instead, that honor is reserved for a more ghastly date: September 28, 1941.

In the early morning hours on that fall day, burglars broke into the Lexington Country Club hoping to retrieve money in the house which had been received during an event at the club earlier in the evening.

Miley arrived at the club as a resident on the club’s second floor when she was just 16: her father became the club’s golf pro and her mother managed the office. Though her father took a similar position in Cincinnati, both Marion Miley and her mother remained in Lexington. Miley’s golf game flourished winning many tournaments in the 1930s. By 1939, she was ranked #2 among amateur women golfers in the United States.

Marion Miley and Lexington Mayor Charles Thompson in 1935 on the steps of the old municipal building. UK Libraries.

But on that fateful evening it was found that Marion heard the noise downstairs when she went to the door of the second floor apartments she shared with her mother. At the door, she was met by her assailant and she was shot at close range.

Though the floor has since been replaced and the second floor remodeled, the spot where Marion Miley fell can be seen in the club’s ladies locker room. The legacy of Marion Miley, however, is best represented in a room that bears her name and contains mementos from her life. Additionally, an annual memorial tournament is held in the club in her honor.

The Club’s Ballroom in February 2016. Author’s Collection. 

A Post-War Evolution

Following the Second World War, the club evolved once again. Many members left to join the newly reorganized Idle Hour Country Club nearer to town on Richmond Road. Meanwhile, the Lexington Country Club took a more “family” approach with the addition of a swimming pool and other expansions. Today, its modern facilities enclosed within the heart of a space built in the 1920s create a welcoming environment for members and their guests.

On Wednesday, March 3, the Blue Grass Trust for Historic Preservation’s monthly deTours program will highlight the historic Lexington Country Club with a tour that is – as it is each month – free and open to the public. Additional details are available on Facebook.

Much of the information about the Lexington Country Club provided in this post was derived from the book, Lexington Country Club: A History of the First One Hundred years 1901-2001 by Rick Smoot (2004).