Lincoln Marriage Temple in Harrodsburg Kentucky

 Here are some recent photos I took of the Lincoln Marriage Temple in Harrodsburg.  Abe Lincoln's parents were married inside!

I've mentioned the Temple here before (here and here).

Harrodsburg Kentucky

 Here are just a few photos I took recently around Harrodsburg Kentucky.

This is a very underrated historic town.  it is beautiful with lots of great antique shops about nicely preserved old buildings!

Old Fort Harrod State Park in Harrodsburg KY

 When we first moved back to Kentucky we ended up hanging out at Fort Harrod a lot.  We really enjoyed the Fort and events there.  We realized recently though that we hadn't visited in some time, so we went there the other day.

It is actually a replica of the original fort which was located at a site right across the street from where the replica stands today.  There is a parking lot at the original site.

The replica itself is pretty cool and historic, and it is coming close to being a century old itself!

Those early explorers who built the original Fort would have been active in the area around the 1770s and the Fort goes along with showing life during that time.

Old pioneer forts do have somewhat of a standard feel after you visit several (gated in, with homes and shops on the inside around the fence, with other buildings here and there inside).

I remember having a cowboys and Indians playset that could have passed for Fort Harrod.  I THINK it was made by Marx and it was great fun.  I am sure a playset like that wouldn't sell today.


Fort Harrod does have some enthusiastic staff talking about life during that period, and they dress the part.  We listened to one fellow talk about gun making.  My late father-in-law used to restore old rifles and would have loved this stuff.  It is interesting hearing about the process, especially the metals and molding process involved.

Another person was doing a demonstration on heating metal to hammer into a dinner bell I believe.  He let volunteers from our group fan the flames.

There was a doll maker here too (you could actually buy the soft, very old style dolls).  She talked a lot about raising children on the frontier, and how a baby crying could create a very bad situation for a family at that time.  Any attacking force could hear the crying....  So parents might keep a doll hidden to bring out and stop crying in these situations.  They would likely take the doll away once everything was clear.  They would want to make the doll a very special toy so that the child would stop crying immediately when they saw it.

The Fort alone is a great place to spend time, but your $6 or $7 admission also includes a lot more.  On the grounds is the historic old Osage Orange Tree, the marriage chapel where Abe Lincoln's parents were married, and there is a GREAT museum!

Unfortunately, they do not allow photos in the museum, but there are some great, pieces.  There is a piece of a tree where "DB" was likely carved by Daniel Boone.  There are some great Lincoln and Civil War displays.  Great vintage guns and musical instruments can be seen here too!

Mary Todd Lincoln House- Lexington KY

Here are a few pictures we took while touring the Mary Todd Lincoln House.  We had been to the nice home before, but we took a friend with us who wanted to check things out.

I think the home always attracts a good crowd, and we probably had 20 people on our tour.

The house has a great history, and it was the home of the future wife of the 16th president in her teenage years.  It went through many transitions after they moved out, and it was pretty much falling apart in the 1970s when it was restored to and transitioned into a museum.  There are photos throughout the home showing how the house looked before the restoration.

Mary and Abe did visit the home, and it is exciting knowing that he spent some time here.  Our guide said that the banister going up the stairs would have been there at that time...  So you can literally touch something that Lincoln himself must have touched.

Original photos of Todd family members are in the house.  Plates and silverware owned by the family are on display.  Ornate bottles used by Mary are on display too.  One of many holy grailish items on display here is a playbill from Ford's Theatre the night of the Lincoln assassination.

Our guide gave a great history of Mary, her family in Lexington, and her life after leaving Lexington.  He covered the story of how most of the Todd family sided with the South during the Civil War.  Of course Benjamin Hardin Helm was brought up.

This is easily one of the most interesting house tours you can take in the state.

Hunt Morgan House, Lexington, KY

Its funny how I am still trying to get around to seeing things literally in my own back yard.  AND, I have actually travelled a bit to see significant sites related to John Hunt Morgan (like this one) but it took me some time to finally get around to seeing the Hunt-Morgan House here in Lexington.

We stopped by recently and had a great guide named Paul.  You could tell that he loved the history of the home, and giving tours.

There is a display at the front relating to hemp., as the home, Paul said, was built using hemp money.  Our guide also talked about the use of slave labor at the home.

The home went through many changes from when it was built in the 1810s, even serving as apartments at one time.  We were shown in one room some very hard to notice places where small marks showed where rooms were divided into smaller rooms.  Two bathrooms were located in one area.  On the outside of the house, if you look closely, you can see where windows were bricked back in when the home was restored.

Pau poined out that the hardward on the doorknob of the front door is original.  There were other family items and parts of the home that were original too.

There is a very nice Civil War display on the second floor that we spent time in after our tour.  Relics directly relating to John Hunt Morgan and Basil Duke were on display.



Here are some pictures from our tour!

Wilson's Nurseries in Frankfort Kentucky

I have a co-worker who is REALLY in to the whole Big Green Egg thing, and she was the one who first told us about Sage Cafe and Wilson's Nurseries.

Wilson's Nurseries is right next to the Sage, they share a parking lot.  We have bought several plants here, and its just a pleasant place to go.  Its pleasant and attractive..  and there are friendly cats walking around too!

Sage Garden Cafe in Frankfort Kentucky

Yeah, I've mentioned Sage here a number of times, but we really love this place.  Here is another yummy meal that we enjoyed recently.  Photos don't do it justice.

Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort Kentucky

I know I have mentioned Buffalo Trace here many times, but we keep finding ourselves there!  We love stopping by!  We have been for several different tours, weddings and other events.

We took a friend from out of town recently for a morning tour and had another great time.

We had our favorite tour guide on this trip too!  Freddie Johnson guided our group, and his family has been involved with Buffalo Trace for multiple generations.  The man made sure we had a great tour!

Our free tour this morning probably lasted about an hour and a half, including a tasting at the end.  Several drinks were sampled, and since our tour cost us ZERO DOLLARS, we really felt like we got a good value.

Here are just a few photos......