Middle School Club nurtures passion for history
Members of the Nicholas County Middle School History Club enjoy a day of discovery at the Neal Welcome Center in downtown Carlisle.
Some of the younger citizens of Nicholas County have been bitten by the history bug and have discovered that those who came before them have left a fascinating heritage to explore.
Middle School Social Studies teacher, Wesley Hopkins, has started a club for his sixth-grade students to help fuel their love for history.
Hopkins said he started the club to motivate and encourage his students to have a passion for not only our nations history but the history of their own community as well.
During a field trip to the Neal Welcome Center in early February, club members learned about some of the early businesses of Nicholas County such as the historic Forest Retreat, Neal’s Square Deal and C.C. Coles Department Store.
Club members also enjoyed the “Doodle Bug” pinball machine that was recently donated to the museum as well as a collection of typewriters and the display with items from the old Carlisle High School.
Students also enjoyed the selection of hats that were made by Zelia South.
Zelia, they learned had a shop located in the lower part of Neal’s Square Deal in 1897.
Carlisle and Nicholas County has a tremendous historic past that club members will find both fascinating and interesting.
The history of Nicholas County, based on the research Henry Perrin used for his book, tells us that the first county seat was established at Lower Blue Licks in 1800 and the first court session was held at the home of Martin Baker, Jr.
From Order Book A the first minutes of Nicholas County read as follows:
“At the house of Martin Baker, Jr., in the County of Nicholas on Monday, the second day of June in the year one thousand and eight hundred agreeably to an act of assembly entitled “An Act for forming a new county out of the counties of Bourbon and Mason, a commission of the peace from under the hand of his excellency James Garrard, Esquire, Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky thereto affixed was produced, appointing Nathan C. Standeford, gentleman, sheriff of the county.
The Seat of Justice was fixed: “Whereupon it is ordered that the place for holding courts in this County as aforesaid be fixed on the lands of Henry Clay, Jr. on Main Licking in the bends of the river, below the mouths of Stoney Creek and opposite Bedinger’s Mill on said river, the bottom containing about 90 acres.”
The court met in the new court house in August of 1800 at Blue Licks.
The second county seat was established in 1805 on the Lexington and Maysville Road, on the James Ellis farm and named Ellisville. A log court house was built here the same year.
When the county seat was moved to Carlisle in 1816, so was the Ellisville Courthouse and remained in use until the first brick courthouse was built in 1818. The second brick courthouse was built in 1845 and the third, and the third brick courthouse was dedicated on the same site on July 4, 1893.
The real story of Carlisle is said to begin on a June day in 1816 on Samuel Kincart’s farm.
IN 1810 Samuel Kincart built a substantial brick house on his 200-acre farm along the great public road about 12 miles from Upper Blue Licks and 8 miles from Millersburg.
The site of the Kincart home was later Lot #1 n the Town Plat of Carlisle.
The people of Nicholas County grew dissatisfied with the location of the County Seat and voiced their discontent until in 1814-15 the Kentucky Legislature passed a bill authorizing the removal to a more central point and appointed commissioners to locate a more suitable point.
They inspected various sites and soon narrowed it down to two places.
One was a point on the old main dirt road from Maysville to Lexington, afterward known as Forest Retreat.
The other was the Kincart farm. Meanwhile, all Ellisville was in an uproar, threatening dire vengeance against all concerned in the removal scheme, but the location was duly made at Kincart farm.
The legislature confirmed the decree and the new site was granted under the name of Carlisle.
On June 5, 1816, the following proceedings of the town council appear recorded in the archives of the town: “At the house of John Kincart, in the town aforesaid, the place fixed by commissioners as the permanent seat of Justice of Nicholas County, a majority of the trustees of said town met according to appointment.
June 15, on the day the lots were to be sold, Thomas Jones laid claim to the entire 50 acres.
A plat of the town was laid out at that time.
The old log courthouse at Ellisville was removed and erected temporarily on the east side of the public square on lot number 37, Second Street.
It was soon replaced by a new and elegant brick courthouse in the center of the public square and erected under the supervision of Gen. Thomas Metcalfe, who then lived in the suburb of the town, in the extreme northwest quarter.
As soon as the lots were sold, people began to pour in from all quarters.
Hotels, stores, offices, and dwellings were speedily erected and the town at once began to take rank among the business points of the State. The old brick farm house became a hotel and was kept by Peyton Shumate, Esquire, who raised a large family of handsome daughters, several of whom afterward became noted as hotel keepers. Especially noted were Mrs. Amanda Tureman, Goddard House in Maysville and Mrs. James Dudley, The Dudley House in Flemingsburg.
The “Old Black Tavern”, so called from the logs being painted black, was removed from Ellisville and placed on the east end of Main Street and was kept by James Ellis, Sr.
In 1813, at his father Samuel’s death, John Kincart inherited a 200 acre farm from his father.
His father was buried on the farm in the northeast corner of his peach orchard.
The farm was to become Carlisle in 1816. John Kincart deeded 50 acres of land, laid off into streets and town lots for the county seat of Nicholas County. He selected lots as his payment.
Eventually the public square, Samuels Orchard, became the site of Carlisle’s Courthouse, around which the town grew.
Jacob Leer, “Uncle Jake”, a cabinet maker, was the first jailer of the county.
About the year 1840 he opened the first baker shop in town where the cakes, pies, bread, and ginger pop was made by Peter Rentz.
Soon after the town of Carlisle was laid out, a nail factory on a small scale was opened by a German citizen named Peter Schwarzwelder, in a one-story frame which stood upon the corner of Main Cross and Front Streets.
The first saddle ever made in Carlisle was made by Thomas M. Stephenson, who was then an apprentice of Robert Dykes.
Mr. Dykes came to Carlisle in 1816 and carried on the saddle trade on Main Cross Street.
Other leather shops were opened successfully by William and Lawson Smith.
George Robinson, Andrew Couchman and others also had successful leather shops in the early years.
The tailoring business was introduced Isaac Messick. John Camplin also worked at the trade for a short time then moved his business to Sharpsburg.
The first hatter of the new county seat was Jesse Boulden in 1816. His shop was located on Main Cross street.
Shoes were first made in the new town by Gavin Mathers.
A very important branch of business in those days was that of cabinet makers.
All the bedsteads, bureaus, corner cupboards, candle stands, breakfast, dining and kitchen tables had to be made at home, from lumber sawed in the mills.
Richard D. Henry is thought to be the first cabinet maker to come to Carlisle in 1817.
Members of the Nicholas County Middle School History Club will be excited to learn there is much to discover as they delve into the rich history of their community.
