Maysville, Kentucky
Encyclopedia
Maysville is a city in and the county seat
of Mason County
, Kentucky
, United States
. The population was 8,993 at the 2000 census
, making it the fiftieth largest city in Kentucky by population. Maysville is on the Ohio River
, 66 miles (106.2 km) northeast of Lexington
. It is the principal city of the Maysville Micropolitan Statistical Area
, which includes all of Mason and Lewis
counties. Two bridges cross the Ohio River from Maysville to Aberdeen, Ohio
: the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge
built in 1931, and the William H. Harsha Bridge
built in 2001.
On the edge of the outer Bluegrass Region
, Maysville was historically important in its settlement. Frontiersmen Simon Kenton
and Daniel Boone
were among the city's founders. Later Maysville was an important port on the Ohio River for the northeastern section of the state. It exported the commodity crops of hemp
and tobacco
, both produced chiefly by enslaved
labor before the American Civil War
. It was once a center of wrought-iron manufacture, sending fancy ironwork
down the Ohio to decorate the buildings of New Orleans, Louisiana
. Other small manufacturers located early in Maysville. Manufacture remains an important part of the modern economy. Under the early leadership of Henry Means Walker, for most of the 20th century Maysville was home to one of the largest tobacco auction warehouse systems in the world.
Maysville was an important stop on the Underground Railroad
, as the free state of Ohio
was just across the river. The abolitionist author Harriet Beecher Stowe
visited the area in 1833 and witnessed a slave auction in front of the county court house in Washington, Kentucky
(then the county seat, since annexed
to Maysville). Stowe included the scene in her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin
, published in 1852.
The annual Rosemary Clooney
Music Festival was founded by the singer in 1999 to benefit the restoration of the Russell Theater. Past performers at the festival include Debby Boone
, Rita Coolidge
, Michael Feinstein
, Roberta Flack
, Alison Krauss
, The Pointer Sisters, and Linda Ronstadt
. WFTM-AM
and WFTM-FM
are the primary local radio stations in Maysville. The AM station plays adult standards
, and the FM plays adult contemporary music.
used to ford the Ohio at this place, beating a broad path into the interior of Kentucky in search of salt lick
s. For thousands of years, various cultures of indigenous peoples
inhabited the area, hunting the buffalo and other game. In the 17th century, the powerful Iroquois Confederacy, based in present-day New York state, drove out other tribes to hold the Ohio Valley as a hunting ground.
European-American settlers' traveling down the Ohio in the 18th century and early 19th century found a natural harbor at Limestone Creek. The buffalo trace, also a well-used trail traveled for centuries by Native Americans
, was a natural path into the bluegrass region, extending all the way to Lexington, Kentucky
. Frontiersman Simon Kenton
made the first settlement in the area in 1775 but was forced out by the western battles of the American Revolution
. Returning in 1784, Kenton built a blockhouse
at the site of Maysville and founded Kenton's Station (frontier fort) at a site three miles (5 km) inland. Kenton met new settlers at Limestone, as the landing place was called, and escorted them inland to his station. In 1786 the village which grew up near Kenton's Station was established by act of the Virginia General Assembly
as the town of Washington
. By this time John May had acquired the land at Limestone and Daniel Boone
established a trading post
and tavern
there. In 1787 the little settlement was incorporated as Maysville, though the name Limestone persisted well into the 19th century.
was organized and Washington was named its county seat, Maysville was still a rude collection of warehouses and wharves, with few dwellings. In 1795 the conclusion of the Northwest Indian War
reduced the likelihood of Indian
attacks from across the Ohio. Maysville began to flourish. Zane's Trace
, a road from Wheeling, Virginia
(now West Virginia), to the bank of the Ohio River opposite Maysville, was completed in 1797 and stimulated ferry traffic across the river. By 1807 Maysville was one of two principal ports in Kentucky; it was still mostly a place through which goods and people passed, having only about sixty dwellings. In 1811 the first steamboat
came down the Ohio from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
, passing Maysville on its way to New Orleans. With the coming of the steamboat, Maysville's population and area expanded rapidly.
In 1829 the Kentucky legislature
authorized the Maysville, Washington, Paris and Lexington Turnpike Road Company to construct a modern roadway along the route of the old Limestone Road. Users would be charged fees for maintenance and paying off the debt to shareholder
s. The act set aside blocks of shares for purchase by the federal government
. Henry Clay
, an influential Kentucky politician
and proponent of the American System
, argued for the Maysville Road and other infrastructure, noting it would be part of a longer road terminating in New Orleans, Louisiana
and proper for federal funding.
In 1830, Congress
passed a bill authorizing the federal government to purchase shares in the turnpike company. President Andrew Jackson
, a bitter rival of Clay, veto
ed the bill, arguing that the project was of purely local benefit. The Maysville Road veto
was one of Jackson's first acts in aligning the federal government with his principles of Jacksonian democracy
.
An attempt to override Jackson's veto
failed, but the controversy over the Maysville Road veto continued for some time. In the event, the turnpike was completed in 1835 with funding from local entities and private investment. It was the first macadam
ized road in the state. Today it is U.S. Route 68
.
. Washington, the county seat, had dwindled in importance after a fire in 1825 and a series of deadly cholera epidemics. A proposal to move the county government from Washington to Maysville was bitterly fought but passed by a slender margin in 1848. Maysville donated its city hall, completed in 1846, to the county for a court house. Today, much of Washington is designated as a historic district
, the Washington Historic District
; it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
The Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge
is a suspension bridge
built in 1931 and originally opened with a toll. Those tolls were removed in 1945 to much fanfare - including celebrations from the local Rotary and Lions club, and a parade in downtown Maysville. It crosses the Ohio River. Its main span is 323 meters (1,060 feet) long, and the total length of the bridge is 607 meters (1,991 feet). It connects Maysville, Kentucky and Aberdeen, Ohio
. It is currently in use and is not slated for demolition as the bridge was closed for refurbishment in 2001 after the William H. Harsha Bridge
was completed.
The Simon Kenton Suspension Bridge opened to traffic at 10:30 AM on Nov. 25, 1931, at a cost of $1.6 million. In 2002, a $5.8 million renovation job replaced the deck of the Ohio River crossing. A fresh coat of battleship gray paint was also applied.
The Russell Theatre
, located on Third Street in Maysville, Kentucky, was the site of the world premiere of Rosemary Clooney
's first film, The Stars Are Singing, in 1953. The Russell Theatre is an Atmospheric theatre
, and featured a large rainbow that would light up before and after the showing of each movie. The theatre is now undergoing the second phase of a restoration project that began in 2008. Organizers plan to revive The Russell as a movie and film venue, with emphasis on themed movie marathons, classics, documentaries, art films and other movies not available at mainstream cinemas.
In the summer of 1998 a series of historical mural
s was begun on the downtown floodwall. Over the next ten years Robert Dafford
and his team painted ten murals exploring the history of Maysville on various sections of the floodwall.
of 2000, there were 7,323 people, 3,856 households, and 2,406 families residing in the city. The population density
was 451.6 people per square mile (174.4/km²). There were 4,416 housing units at an average density of 221.8 per square mile (85.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 86.00% White, 11.54% African American, 0.14% Native American, 0.60% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.50% from other races
, and 1.18% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.86% of the population.
There were 3,856 households out of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples living together, 14.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.6% were non-families. 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.85.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.7% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 23.5% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 85.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,813, and the median income for a family was $37,684. Males had a median income of $31,975 versus $20,775 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $16,836. About 14.4% of families and 18.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.1% of those under age 18 and 16.2% of those age 65 or over.
. The city now extends inland to the former town of Washington
, which was annexed by Maysville in 1990. The city has a total area of 22.25 square miles (57.6 km²), of which 19.91 square miles (51.6 km²) is land and 2.3 square miles (6 km²), or 10.52%, is water. Maysville is at Ohio River mile
marker 408.7, and is 100 miles (160.9 km) downriver from Huntington, West Virginia
and 62 miles (99.8 km) upriver from Cincinnati, Ohio
.
, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Maysville. Amtrak Train 51, the westbound Cardinal, is scheduled to depart Maysville at 11:36pm on Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday with service to Cincinnati
, Connersville, Indianapolis
, Crawfordsville, Lafayette, Rensselaer, Dyer, and Chicago
. Amtrak Train 50, the eastbound Cardinal, is scheduled to depart Maysville at 4:36am on Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday with service to South Portsmouth, Ashland, Huntington, Charleston
, Montgomery, Thurmond, Prince, Hinton, Alderson, White Sulphur Springs, Clifton Forge, Staunton, Charlottesville
, Culpeper, Manassas, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C., before continuing on to New York City.
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Mason County
Mason County, Kentucky
Mason County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 16,800. Its county seat is Maysville. The county is named for George Mason, a Virginia delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention, known as the "Father of the Bill of Rights"...
, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 8,993 at the 2000 census
United States Census, 2000
The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...
, making it the fiftieth largest city in Kentucky by population. Maysville is on the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
, 66 miles (106.2 km) northeast of Lexington
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
. It is the principal city of the Maysville Micropolitan Statistical Area
Maysville micropolitan area
The Maysville Micropolitan Statistical Area , as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in Kentucky, anchored by the city of Maysville...
, which includes all of Mason and Lewis
Lewis County, Kentucky
Lewis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 14,092. Its county seat is Vanceburg. The county is named for Meriwether Lewis.Lewis County is part of the Maysville Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
counties. Two bridges cross the Ohio River from Maysville to Aberdeen, Ohio
Aberdeen, Ohio
Aberdeen is a village in Brown County, Ohio, United States, along the Ohio River. The population was 1,603 at the 2000 census.Aberdeen is connected to Maysville, Kentucky by the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge to downtown Maysville and the William H. Harsha Bridge, a cable-stayed bridge completed in...
: the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge
Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge
The Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge is a suspension bridge built in 1931 that crosses the Ohio River and connects Maysville, Kentucky and Aberdeen, Ohio. Its main span is 1,060 feet long, and the total length of the bridge is 1,991 feet...
built in 1931, and the William H. Harsha Bridge
William H. Harsha Bridge
The William H. Harsha bridge is a cable-stayed bridge carrying U.S. Route 62 and U.S. Route 68 that connects Maysville, Kentucky and Aberdeen, Ohio over the Ohio River. It is named for William Harsha, who represented the area in the US House of Representatives. Construction on the bridge started in...
built in 2001.
On the edge of the outer Bluegrass Region
Bluegrass region
The Bluegrass Region is a geographic region in the state of Kentucky, United States. It occupies the northern part of the state and since European settlement has contained a majority of the state's population and its largest cities....
, Maysville was historically important in its settlement. Frontiersmen Simon Kenton
Simon Kenton
Simon Kenton was a famous United States frontiersman and friend of Daniel Boone, Simon Girty, Spencer Records and Isaac Shelby.-Family and early life:Simon Kenton was alive even before Ohio was a state...
and Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone was an American pioneer, explorer, and frontiersman whose frontier exploits mad']'e him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. Boone is most famous for his exploration and settlement of what is now the Commonwealth of Kentucky, which was then beyond the western borders of...
were among the city's founders. Later Maysville was an important port on the Ohio River for the northeastern section of the state. It exported the commodity crops of hemp
Hemp
Hemp is mostly used as a name for low tetrahydrocannabinol strains of the plant Cannabis sativa, of fiber and/or oilseed varieties. In modern times, hemp has been used for industrial purposes including paper, textiles, biodegradable plastics, construction, health food and fuel with modest...
and tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
, both produced chiefly by enslaved
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
labor before the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. It was once a center of wrought-iron manufacture, sending fancy ironwork
Ironwork
Ironwork is any weapon, artwork, utensil or architectural feature made of iron especially used for decoration. There are two main types of ironwork wrought iron and cast iron. While the use of iron dates as far back as 4000BC, it was the Hittites who first knew how to extract it and develop weapons...
down the Ohio to decorate the buildings of New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
. Other small manufacturers located early in Maysville. Manufacture remains an important part of the modern economy. Under the early leadership of Henry Means Walker, for most of the 20th century Maysville was home to one of the largest tobacco auction warehouse systems in the world.
Maysville was an important stop on the Underground Railroad
Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...
, as the free state of Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
was just across the river. The abolitionist author Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Beecher Stowe was an American abolitionist and author. Her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin was a depiction of life for African-Americans under slavery; it reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential in the United States and United Kingdom...
visited the area in 1833 and witnessed a slave auction in front of the county court house in Washington, Kentucky
Washington, Kentucky
Washington is a village near the Ohio River in Mason County in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is one of the earliest settlements in Kentucky and also one of the earliest American settlements west of the Appalachian Mountains...
(then the county seat, since annexed
Annexation
Annexation is the de jure incorporation of some territory into another geo-political entity . Usually, it is implied that the territory and population being annexed is the smaller, more peripheral, and weaker of the two merging entities, barring physical size...
to Maysville). Stowe included the scene in her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in 1852, the novel "helped lay the groundwork for the Civil War", according to Will Kaufman....
, published in 1852.
The annual Rosemary Clooney
Rosemary Clooney
Rosemary Clooney was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the novelty hit "Come On-a My House" written by William Saroyan and his cousin Ross Bagdasarian , which was followed by other pop numbers such as "Botch-a-Me" Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 –...
Music Festival was founded by the singer in 1999 to benefit the restoration of the Russell Theater. Past performers at the festival include Debby Boone
Debby Boone
Deborah Anne Boone is an American singer and stage actress. She is best known for her 1977 hit, "You Light Up My Life," which spent a then record ten weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and led to her winning the Grammy Award for Best New Artist the following year...
, Rita Coolidge
Rita Coolidge
Rita Coolidge is a multiple Grammy Award-winning American vocalist. During the 1970s and 1980s, she charted hits on Billboard's Pop, Country, Adult Contemporary and Jazz charts.-Career:...
, Michael Feinstein
Michael Feinstein
Michael Jay Feinstein is an American singer, pianist, and music revivalist. He is an interpreter of, and an anthropologist and archivist for, the repertoire known as the Great American Songbook. In 1988 he won a Drama Desk Special Award for celebrating American musical theatre songs...
, Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is notable for jazz, soul, R&B, and folk music...
, Alison Krauss
Alison Krauss
Alison Maria Krauss is an American bluegrass-country singer, songwriter and fiddler. She entered the music industry at an early age, winning local contests by the age of ten and recording for the first time at fourteen. She signed with Rounder Records in 1985 and released her first solo album in...
, The Pointer Sisters, and Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
. WFTM-AM
WFTM (AM)
WFTM is a radio station broadcasting an Oldies format. Licensed to Maysville, Kentucky, USA. The station is currently owned by Standard Tobacco Co.....
and WFTM-FM
WFTM-FM
WFTM-FM is a radio station broadcasting a Soft Adult Contemporary format. Licensed to Maysville, Kentucky, USA. The station is currently owned by Standard Tobacco Company, Inc. and features programing from Jones Radio Network....
are the primary local radio stations in Maysville. The AM station plays adult standards
Adult standards
Adult standards is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations.Adult standards is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly those persons over 50 years of age, but it is mostly targeted for senior citizens...
, and the FM plays adult contemporary music.
History
Early settlement
BuffaloAmerican Bison
The American bison , also commonly known as the American buffalo, is a North American species of bison that once roamed the grasslands of North America in massive herds...
used to ford the Ohio at this place, beating a broad path into the interior of Kentucky in search of salt lick
Salt lick
A mineral lick is a natural mineral deposit where animals in nutrient-poor ecosystems can obtain essential mineral nutrients...
s. For thousands of years, various cultures of indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
inhabited the area, hunting the buffalo and other game. In the 17th century, the powerful Iroquois Confederacy, based in present-day New York state, drove out other tribes to hold the Ohio Valley as a hunting ground.
European-American settlers' traveling down the Ohio in the 18th century and early 19th century found a natural harbor at Limestone Creek. The buffalo trace, also a well-used trail traveled for centuries by Native Americans
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
, was a natural path into the bluegrass region, extending all the way to Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
. Frontiersman Simon Kenton
Simon Kenton
Simon Kenton was a famous United States frontiersman and friend of Daniel Boone, Simon Girty, Spencer Records and Isaac Shelby.-Family and early life:Simon Kenton was alive even before Ohio was a state...
made the first settlement in the area in 1775 but was forced out by the western battles of the American Revolution
Western theater of the American Revolutionary War
The Western theater of the American Revolutionary War was the area of conflict west of the Appalachian Mountains, the region which became the Northwest Territory of the United States as well as the states of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri...
. Returning in 1784, Kenton built a blockhouse
Blockhouse
In military science, a blockhouse is a small, isolated fort in the form of a single building. It serves as a defensive strong point against any enemy that does not possess siege equipment or, in modern times, artillery...
at the site of Maysville and founded Kenton's Station (frontier fort) at a site three miles (5 km) inland. Kenton met new settlers at Limestone, as the landing place was called, and escorted them inland to his station. In 1786 the village which grew up near Kenton's Station was established by act of the Virginia General Assembly
Virginia General Assembly
The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the oldest legislative body in the Western Hemisphere, established on July 30, 1619. The General Assembly is a bicameral body consisting of a lower house, the Virginia House of Delegates, with 100 members,...
as the town of Washington
Washington, Kentucky
Washington is a village near the Ohio River in Mason County in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is one of the earliest settlements in Kentucky and also one of the earliest American settlements west of the Appalachian Mountains...
. By this time John May had acquired the land at Limestone and Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone was an American pioneer, explorer, and frontiersman whose frontier exploits mad']'e him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. Boone is most famous for his exploration and settlement of what is now the Commonwealth of Kentucky, which was then beyond the western borders of...
established a trading post
Trading post
A trading post was a place or establishment in historic Northern America where the trading of goods took place. The preferred travel route to a trading post or between trading posts, was known as a trade route....
and tavern
Tavern
A tavern is a place of business where people gather to drink alcoholic beverages and be served food, and in some cases, where travelers receive lodging....
there. In 1787 the little settlement was incorporated as Maysville, though the name Limestone persisted well into the 19th century.
Growth
In 1788, when Mason CountyMason County, Kentucky
Mason County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 16,800. Its county seat is Maysville. The county is named for George Mason, a Virginia delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention, known as the "Father of the Bill of Rights"...
was organized and Washington was named its county seat, Maysville was still a rude collection of warehouses and wharves, with few dwellings. In 1795 the conclusion of the Northwest Indian War
Northwest Indian War
The Northwest Indian War , also known as Little Turtle's War and by various other names, was a war fought between the United States and a confederation of numerous American Indian tribes for control of the Northwest Territory...
reduced the likelihood of Indian
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
attacks from across the Ohio. Maysville began to flourish. Zane's Trace
Zane's Trace
Zane's Trace is a frontier road constructed under the direction of Col. Ebenezer Zane through the Northwest Territory of the United States, in what is now the state of Ohio. Many portions were based on traditional Native American trails...
, a road from Wheeling, Virginia
Wheeling, West Virginia
Wheeling is a city in Ohio and Marshall counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia; it is the county seat of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area...
(now West Virginia), to the bank of the Ohio River opposite Maysville, was completed in 1797 and stimulated ferry traffic across the river. By 1807 Maysville was one of two principal ports in Kentucky; it was still mostly a place through which goods and people passed, having only about sixty dwellings. In 1811 the first steamboat
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
came down the Ohio from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, passing Maysville on its way to New Orleans. With the coming of the steamboat, Maysville's population and area expanded rapidly.
Maysville Road
Southwest from Maysville, the road followed the former buffalo trace and Native American trail to Lexington. It was called both the Maysville Road and the Limestone Road. It was maintained by the various counties through which it passed with local labor from the county levies. The road was rough and during certain seasons practically impassable.In 1829 the Kentucky legislature
Kentucky General Assembly
The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky.The General Assembly meets annually in the state capitol building in Frankfort, Kentucky, convening on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January...
authorized the Maysville, Washington, Paris and Lexington Turnpike Road Company to construct a modern roadway along the route of the old Limestone Road. Users would be charged fees for maintenance and paying off the debt to shareholder
Shareholder
A shareholder or stockholder is an individual or institution that legally owns one or more shares of stock in a public or private corporation. Shareholders own the stock, but not the corporation itself ....
s. The act set aside blocks of shares for purchase by the federal government
Federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
. Henry Clay
Henry Clay
Henry Clay, Sr. , was a lawyer, politician and skilled orator who represented Kentucky separately in both the Senate and in the House of Representatives...
, an influential Kentucky politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
and proponent of the American System
American System (economic plan)
The American System, originally called "The American Way", was a mercantilist economic plan that played a prominent role in American policy during the first half of the 19th century...
, argued for the Maysville Road and other infrastructure, noting it would be part of a longer road terminating in New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
and proper for federal funding.
In 1830, Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
passed a bill authorizing the federal government to purchase shares in the turnpike company. President Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
, a bitter rival of Clay, veto
Veto
A veto, Latin for "I forbid", is the power of an officer of the state to unilaterally stop an official action, especially enactment of a piece of legislation...
ed the bill, arguing that the project was of purely local benefit. The Maysville Road veto
Maysville Road veto
The Maysville Road veto occurred on May 27, 1830, when President Andrew Jackson vetoed a bill which would allow the Federal government to purchase stock in the Maysville, Washington, Paris, and Lexington Turnpike Road Company, which had been organized to construct a road linking Lexington and the...
was one of Jackson's first acts in aligning the federal government with his principles of Jacksonian democracy
Jacksonian democracy
Jacksonian democracy is the political movement toward greater democracy for the common man typified by American politician Andrew Jackson and his supporters. Jackson's policies followed the era of Jeffersonian democracy which dominated the previous political era. The Democratic-Republican Party of...
.
An attempt to override Jackson's veto
Veto override
A veto override is an action by legislators and decision-makers to override an act of veto by someone with such powers - thus forcing through a new decision. The power to override a veto varies greatly in tandem with the veto power itself. The U.S constitution gives a 2/3 majority Congress the...
failed, but the controversy over the Maysville Road veto continued for some time. In the event, the turnpike was completed in 1835 with funding from local entities and private investment. It was the first macadam
Macadam
Macadam is a type of road construction pioneered by the Scotsman John Loudon McAdam in around 1820. The method simplified what had been considered state-of-the-art at that point...
ized road in the state. Today it is U.S. Route 68
U.S. Route 68
U.S. Route 68 is an east–west United States highway that runs for from northwest Ohio to western Kentucky. The highway's western terminus is at U.S. Route 62 in Reidland, Kentucky. Its eastern terminus is at Interstate 75 in Findlay, Ohio...
.
County seat
By the 1830s Maysville had a population of 3,000 and was the second city in Kentucky after LouisvilleLouisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. Washington, the county seat, had dwindled in importance after a fire in 1825 and a series of deadly cholera epidemics. A proposal to move the county government from Washington to Maysville was bitterly fought but passed by a slender margin in 1848. Maysville donated its city hall, completed in 1846, to the county for a court house. Today, much of Washington is designated as a historic district
Historic district (United States)
In the United States, a historic district is a group of buildings, properties, or sites that have been designated by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects and sites within a historic district are normally divided...
, the Washington Historic District
Washington Historic District (Washington, Kentucky)
Washington Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970, and its borders were increased in 1976....
; it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge
Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge
The Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge is a suspension bridge built in 1931 that crosses the Ohio River and connects Maysville, Kentucky and Aberdeen, Ohio. Its main span is 1,060 feet long, and the total length of the bridge is 1,991 feet...
is a suspension bridge
Suspension bridge
A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders. Outside Tibet and Bhutan, where the first examples of this type of bridge were built in the 15th century, this type of bridge dates from the early 19th century...
built in 1931 and originally opened with a toll. Those tolls were removed in 1945 to much fanfare - including celebrations from the local Rotary and Lions club, and a parade in downtown Maysville. It crosses the Ohio River. Its main span is 323 meters (1,060 feet) long, and the total length of the bridge is 607 meters (1,991 feet). It connects Maysville, Kentucky and Aberdeen, Ohio
Aberdeen, Ohio
Aberdeen is a village in Brown County, Ohio, United States, along the Ohio River. The population was 1,603 at the 2000 census.Aberdeen is connected to Maysville, Kentucky by the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge to downtown Maysville and the William H. Harsha Bridge, a cable-stayed bridge completed in...
. It is currently in use and is not slated for demolition as the bridge was closed for refurbishment in 2001 after the William H. Harsha Bridge
William H. Harsha Bridge
The William H. Harsha bridge is a cable-stayed bridge carrying U.S. Route 62 and U.S. Route 68 that connects Maysville, Kentucky and Aberdeen, Ohio over the Ohio River. It is named for William Harsha, who represented the area in the US House of Representatives. Construction on the bridge started in...
was completed.
The Simon Kenton Suspension Bridge opened to traffic at 10:30 AM on Nov. 25, 1931, at a cost of $1.6 million. In 2002, a $5.8 million renovation job replaced the deck of the Ohio River crossing. A fresh coat of battleship gray paint was also applied.
Russell Theatre
Russell Theatre
Construction of the Russell Theatre was announced by Maysville, Kentucky businessman Col. J. Russell Barbour in 1928. The structure costing $125,000 opened on December 4, 1930 with a showing of the movie “Whoopee,” starring Eddie Cantor...
, located on Third Street in Maysville, Kentucky, was the site of the world premiere of Rosemary Clooney
Rosemary Clooney
Rosemary Clooney was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the novelty hit "Come On-a My House" written by William Saroyan and his cousin Ross Bagdasarian , which was followed by other pop numbers such as "Botch-a-Me" Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 –...
's first film, The Stars Are Singing, in 1953. The Russell Theatre is an Atmospheric theatre
Atmospheric theatre
An atmospheric theatre is a type of movie palace which has an auditorium ceiling that is intended to give the illusion of an open sky as its defining feature...
, and featured a large rainbow that would light up before and after the showing of each movie. The theatre is now undergoing the second phase of a restoration project that began in 2008. Organizers plan to revive The Russell as a movie and film venue, with emphasis on themed movie marathons, classics, documentaries, art films and other movies not available at mainstream cinemas.
Maysville Murals
Mural
A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
s was begun on the downtown floodwall. Over the next ten years Robert Dafford
Robert Dafford
-Life and work:Robert Dafford is a current resident of Lafayette, Louisiana. Dafford has painted over 300 murals across the United States, Canada, France, Belgium, and England. He has been painting murals, signs and fine art paintings for 35 years...
and his team painted ten murals exploring the history of Maysville on various sections of the floodwall.
- 17th century River Valley Hunting Grounds - A Native AmericanNative Americans in the United StatesNative Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
bisonBisonMembers of the genus Bison are large, even-toed ungulates within the subfamily Bovinae. Two extant and four extinct species are recognized...
hunt on the buffalo traceBuffalo TraceBuffalo Trace may refer to:* Buffalo Trace legendary pioneer trail in southern Indiana* Buffalo Trace Distillery maker of bourbon whiskey* Buffalo Trace Council: a division of Boy Scouts of America based in southwestern Indiana...
. - 18th century Limestone Landing - The initial settlement of European-Americans on the future site of Maysville, then known as Limestone Landing.
- Marquis de Lafayette - The 1825 visit of the Marquis de Lafayette to the city, where the city fathers had literally rolled out the red carpet.
- 1850s Sutton's Landing - The antebellum era Maysville riverfront, featuring iconic steam boatsPaddle steamerA paddle steamer is a steamship or riverboat, powered by a steam engine, using paddle wheels to propel it through the water. In antiquity, Paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses were wheelers driven by animals or humans...
on the Ohio River. - Underground Railroad 1850s - The underground railroadUnderground RailroadThe Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...
route through the area before the American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, with a view looking across the river to the John Rankin House in Ripley, OhioRipley, OhioRipley is a village in Brown County, Ohio, United States, along the Ohio River 50 miles southeast of Cincinnati. The population was 1,745 at the 2000 census.-History:...
. - 20th century Maysville Riverfront - The continuing evolution of the waterfront location as steamboats gave way to trains and bargeBargeA barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
traffic. - Market Street - A main street in early 20th century downtown, with a bandstand in the middle of the street .
- Germantown Fair - Held since 1854, the fair featured a wooden grandstand and livestock shows.
- Tobacco barn - A major part of the local agricultural economy, the mural depicts the life of the plant from the field to the harvest to storage in local barns.
- Rosemary Clooney - The last mural, painted in September 2007, honors moments from the life of Rosemary Clooney. The mural highlights her life long friendship with Blanche Chambers, the 1953 premier of The Stars are Singing and her singing career. It was painted by Dafford, Herb RoeHerb RoeHerb Roe is a painter of large scale outdoor murals and classical realist oil paintings. After attending the Columbus College of Art and Design in Columbus, Ohio for a short time, he apprenticed to mural artist Robert Dafford. After 15 years with Dafford Murals, he left to pursue his own art...
and Brett Chigoy. Her brother Nick Clooney spoke during the dedication for the mural, explaining various images to the crowd.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 7,323 people, 3,856 households, and 2,406 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 451.6 people per square mile (174.4/km²). There were 4,416 housing units at an average density of 221.8 per square mile (85.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 86.00% White, 11.54% African American, 0.14% Native American, 0.60% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.50% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.18% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.86% of the population.
There were 3,856 households out of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples living together, 14.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.6% were non-families. 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.85.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.7% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 23.5% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 85.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,813, and the median income for a family was $37,684. Males had a median income of $31,975 versus $20,775 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $16,836. About 14.4% of families and 18.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.1% of those under age 18 and 16.2% of those age 65 or over.
Geography
Maysville is located on the Ohio River at the mouth of Limestone Creek. It occupies the narrow river plain and the steep hills rising from it, giving city the prospect of an Italian hill townHilltowns in Italy
Built upon hills for defensive purposes, surrounded by thick defensive walls, steep embankments, or cliffs, these Italian hilltop settlements provided natural defenses for their earliest inhabitants. In the Middle Ages, earthworks and stone and wooden palisades were typically replaced with massive...
. The city now extends inland to the former town of Washington
Washington, Kentucky
Washington is a village near the Ohio River in Mason County in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is one of the earliest settlements in Kentucky and also one of the earliest American settlements west of the Appalachian Mountains...
, which was annexed by Maysville in 1990. The city has a total area of 22.25 square miles (57.6 km²), of which 19.91 square miles (51.6 km²) is land and 2.3 square miles (6 km²), or 10.52%, is water. Maysville is at Ohio River mile
River mile
In the United States, a River mile is a measure of distance in miles along a river from its mouth. River mile numbers begin at zero and increase further upstream. The corresponding metric unit using kilometers is the River kilometer...
marker 408.7, and is 100 miles (160.9 km) downriver from Huntington, West Virginia
Huntington, West Virginia
Huntington is a city in Cabell and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia, along the Ohio River. Most of the city is in Cabell County, for which it is the county seat. A small portion of the city, mainly the neighborhood of Westmoreland, is in Wayne County. Its population was 49,138 at...
and 62 miles (99.8 km) upriver from Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
.
Transportation
Rail Transportation
AmtrakAmtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Maysville. Amtrak Train 51, the westbound Cardinal, is scheduled to depart Maysville at 11:36pm on Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday with service to Cincinnati
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
, Connersville, Indianapolis
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, Crawfordsville, Lafayette, Rensselaer, Dyer, and Chicago
Union Station (Chicago)
Union Station is a major train station that opened in 1925 in Chicago, replacing an earlier 1881 station. It is now the only intercity rail terminal in Chicago, as well as being the city's primary terminal for commuter trains. The station stands on the west side of the Chicago River between Adams...
. Amtrak Train 50, the eastbound Cardinal, is scheduled to depart Maysville at 4:36am on Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday with service to South Portsmouth, Ashland, Huntington, Charleston
Charleston, West Virginia
Charleston is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is located at the confluence of the Elk and Kanawha Rivers in Kanawha County. As of the 2010 census, it has a population of 51,400, and its metropolitan area 304,214. It is the county seat of Kanawha County.Early...
, Montgomery, Thurmond, Prince, Hinton, Alderson, White Sulphur Springs, Clifton Forge, Staunton, Charlottesville
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
, Culpeper, Manassas, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C., before continuing on to New York City.
Mass Transit
Maysville Transit provides fixed-route and demand-ride bus service throughout city of Maysville. The system is made up of a single fixed route that operates daily, running once an hour between 6:00 AM – 6:00 PM. The city has been running the system since 1960.Notable people
- Ted BerryTed BerryTheodore M. Berry , an American politician of the Charter Party of Cincinnati, Ohio, was the first African American mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio.-Early life and education:...
, first African-American mayor of Cincinnati, OhioCincinnati, OhioCincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's... - Rosemary ClooneyRosemary ClooneyRosemary Clooney was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the novelty hit "Come On-a My House" written by William Saroyan and his cousin Ross Bagdasarian , which was followed by other pop numbers such as "Botch-a-Me" Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 –...
, popular singer and actress - John S. DarroughJohn S. DarroughJohn Samuel Darrough was a Union Army soldier in the American Civil War and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions during a skirmish near Eastport, Mississippi. Born in Kentucky, Darrough moved to Illinois as a child and enlisted in the...
, Civil War soldier and Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
recipient - Alexander Doniphan, general and attorney known for saving the life of Joseph Smith, Jr.
- Heather FrenchHeather FrenchHeather Renee French Henry is a Miss America title holder, personality and fashion designer.Raised in Maysville, Kentucky, Heather French Henry graduated from The University of Cincinnati School of Design, Art, and Architecture & Planning. She competed in pageants through her teens, including the...
, Miss America 2000 - J. Fred HelfJ. Fred HelfJ. Fred Helf was an American composer and sheet music publisher during the early 20th century.Helf was born in Maysville, Kentucky. He went to seek his fortune in New York City at the age of 31. There he composed over 100 songs, some in collaboration with Will A. Heelan.In October 1910 his music...
, composer - Chris LoftonChris LoftonChristopher Franklin Lofton is an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball with the University of Tennessee Volunteers...
, college basketball player - Darius Miller, college basketball player for the Kentucky Wildcats
- William "Bull" Nelson, U.S. Army general
- Barbara PaulBarbara PaulBarbara Paul is an American writer of detective stories and science fiction. She was born in Maysville, Kentucky, in 1931 and was educated at Bowling Green State University and the University of Pittsburgh, among others....
, novelist - Stanley Forman ReedStanley Forman ReedStanley Forman Reed was a noted American attorney who served as United States Solicitor General from 1935 to 1938 and as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1938 to 1957. He was the last Supreme Court Justice who did not graduate from law school Stanley Forman Reed (December 31,...
, U.S. Supreme Court justice - Dave TomlinDave TomlinDavid Allen Tomlin is an American professional baseball coach and manager. During his playing career in Major League Baseball, he was a relief pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds , San Diego Padres , Montreal Expos and Pittsburgh Pirates .He helped the Reds to win the 1972 National League...
, professional baseball player
See also
- Maysville Community and Technical CollegeMaysville Community and Technical CollegeMaysville Community and Technical College located in Maysville, KY, is one of 16 two-year, open-admissions colleges of the Kentucky Community and Technical College System . It was formed in December 2004 from the consolidation of Maysville Community College in Maysville, KY and Rowan Technical...
- St. Patrick's High School (Maysville, Kentucky)St. Patrick's High School (Maysville, Kentucky)St. Patrick's High School, more commonly known as St. Patrick School, or SPS, is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Maysville, Kentucky. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Covington. It houses grades K-12 with an enrollment of 150 in Elementary and 124 in High...
- Kentucky Route 8
- Kentucky Route 11
- List of cities and towns along the Ohio River
- Mays Lick
External links
- City of Maysville Official Web Site
- The Ledger Independent, Maysville's newspaper.
- WFTM, Maysville's radio station.
- Tours of Maysville and vicinity.
- Historical Texts and Images of Maysville
- The Maysville Kentucky Blog. No longer updated as of May 6, 2007.
- Maysville Floodwall Mural Project