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  • Chautauqua in Owingsville

          Inside a Chautauqua tent, circa 1910.          This is the first in a series of excerpts about the various forms of entertainment that passed through Owingsville and Bath County during the early 1900’s.   We hope you enjoy it and the ones that will follow!        From the… Continue reading

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  • Jim Beam and The Abbey of Gethsemani: Or, Mr. Burl’s Road Trip to Nelson County

    “I think the chief reason we have so little joy is that we take ourselves too seriously.”  – Thomas Merton Colonel James B. Beam, 1864-1947 (Photo courtesy of jimbeam.com) When the news broke last week that Jim Beam had been purchased by a Japanese company, we knew immediately what excerpt from Mr. Burl’s writings we… Continue reading

  • The Catamount Hunt of Stepstone

    ​ This is one of our family favorites, and we hope you enjoy it too.  Mr. Burl’s grandfather, Jacob Kincaid, lived at Stepstone until he moved to town around 1900, give or take a few years.  The best we can figure is that this catamount hunt at Stepstone took place in the latter decades of… Continue reading

  • Mrs. Charles Darnell’s Orange Cake Recipe

    Might be a good dessert for the holidays.  I haven’t tried this recipe and have copied it just like it is written in Jane Kincaid’s cookbook.Orange CakeJuice of one large orange.1/2 cup white sugar put in juice, dissolve this mixture and let stand while mixing and baking.1/2 cup butter or crisco (scant)1 cup white sugar2… Continue reading

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  • Biplanes and Flight

    A restored 1920’s biplane. It was the age of Lindbergh – a time when little boys glued newspaper clippings in notebooks to keep track of the great aviator’s life.  I know this because we have Mr. Burl’s; it is a sweet memento from his childhood, and when I look at it, I can’t help but… Continue reading

  • Funerals, Part 2

              Owingsville Cemetery – One of the more peaceful places I know.  My children, now 21 and 25, have made countless trips up and down its hills with their father, as have I.  He uses those trips to pass on family  history and a general respect for those who came before us.… Continue reading

  • U.S. 60 (The Midland Trail)

    A Stanley Steemer From the journals: As highways began to criss-cross this country, it became apparent that a coast to coast national highway would come through the county.  United States’ highways running north and south were given odd numbers and those running east and west were given even numbers.  Hence, the U.S. highway traversing Bath County became… Continue reading

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  • Toll Roads and Railroads

    A spring wagon. I’m not certain when my father-in-law (Mr. Burl to me) penned the following, but if you will notice, he writes as though the railroads were still operational, at least to a certain extent, and his reference to City Hall is to the old City Hall building on Slate Avenue. From the journals:… Continue reading

  • Turkey Drives and Fences

    A piece of the original fencing that lined the front yard of our home. Mixed into the landscaping around our home and the home of our next door neighbor, Marcelle Doggett, are pieces of the fencing that once lined the front yards of our properties back in the early 1900’s when Mr. Burl was a… Continue reading

  • Fallin’ Weather, Jefferson (Mr. Jeff) Darnell, and Tom Turner

    Last night as we were standing in our backyard getting something out of our car, we noticed that we could hear the sounds from the drag strip over the hill very clearly, as well as the ones from the football game on the other end of town.   Don said, “It’s fallin’ weather.”  Woke up… Continue reading

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