USA > Kentucky > Franklin County > The history of Franklin County, Ky. > Part 20
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The new capitol was completed October 30th, 1908, and occupied in September, 1909.
In the month of November Capt. L. II. Finnell, a veteran of the Union Army, shot himself through the head, causing instant death. On the same day Mrs. John Leitner, who lived at Thorn Hill, murdered her two little children, aged eight and six years, and then killed herself. Her husband had been drinking for some time and hopeless poverty seemed to have prompted the killing.
A persistent rumor of graft in county affairs prompted an investigation. A committee of citizens composed of Gen. D. W. Lindsey, Geo. B. Harper, Sidney Bedford, R. C. Hieatt and Rev. C. R. Hudson selected the expert accountant to in- vestigate the county books. On September 29th, 1909, the report was made showing the financial condition of the county, in which report it was stated that $7,507.82 had been paid into the county treasury by reason of the investigation and that there still remained due and unpaid a balance of $4,276.71 from former officials of the county.
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
The county officials elected in the year 1908 were as fol- lows: R. C. Hieatt, County Judge; Ben Marshall, Circuit Clerk, Crawford Lee, County Clerk; Wiley Marshall, County Attorney; M. B. Lucas, Jailer ; Lee Buckley, Sheriff, and Har- rison Lee, Assessor. The Magistrates elected for the county were Hiram Stafford, George W. Johnson, Nick Sullivan, R. L. Wiley and James Waldner.
On April 30th, 1909, great damage was done by a storm of wind and rain, fences were blown down, outhouses and stables were destroyed, the roofs on several warehouses of the O. F. C. Distillery were blown off and property in all sections of the county greatly damaged. The government gauge at the Custom House showed that in seven hours two and sixty-two one hundredths inches of rain fell. Elkhorn Creek rose about fourteen feet and the Kentucky river about five feet in that time.
On June 2nd Howe's Show was exhibited in Frankfort and during the evening exhibition a negro by the name of John Maxey, shot and dangerously wounded Bert Bowers, who was in some way connected with the show. About two o'clock the next morning Maxey was taken from the jail to the St. Clair street bridge and hung by a mob. During the promiscuous shooting which followed the hanging a young man by the name of R. J. Weindel was dangerously but not fatally wounded.
During this year the Louisville & Nashville Railroad Com- pany purchased the Highland Road and extended the line to Versailles and there connected with the L. & E. which runs to the mountains of Eastern Kentucky.
On September 4th, during the military encampment at Lake Park, there was a battle between some soldiers and citi- zens, in the lower part of the city known as "Craw," in which two men were killed and three others wounded. Sergeant Ingram Tate and Jeff Cook, a civilian, were killed and Wm. Nickles, Alex McNally and Ed Miller were wounded. The fight took place at Howser's saloon. It commenced in tlie house but the soldiers left the saloon and about fifty of them congregated on the outside, some had revolvers and others
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
rifles. The citizens took refuge in the upstairs rooms and a great many shots were fired by each side; the building and the furniture were almost completely demolished. This battle brought on a crusade against allowing saloons in Craw. The ultimate outcome of which was the discontinuing of saloons in that section of the city.
Senator William Lindsay died at his home in Frankfort on October 15, 1909. Ile was born in Virginia on the 4th of September, 1835, and was educated in the common schools of Virginia. At the age of eighteen he began the study of law and in 1854 he moved to Hickman County, Kentucky, and taught school for several years. In 1858 he was admitted to the bar and commenced the practice. of law at Clinton. In the Civil War he enlisted as a private but he soon became Cap- tain of his company and later in the service became a mem- ber of General Forrest's staff. After the war he came back to Hickman and was elected to represent his district in the State Senate in 1867, and in 1870 he was elected a member of the Court of Appeals. He served eight years on the Court of Ap- peals bench. The last two he was chief justice. In 1877 he resumed the practice of law at Frankfort. In 1890 he was sent to the State Senate from Franklin County and in 1893 he was elected United States Senator to fill out the unexpired term of John G. Carlisle and in 1894 was re-elected for a full term. He filled various positions by appointment from the President of the United States. Judge Lindsay was a leader of men and he was considered one of the greatest of men. He was one of the greatest lawyers this republic has produced. He was broad shouldered and broad minded. He was almost a giant in statue and he was full grown giant in in- tellect. He was remarkable for his simplicity and directness. He was round-headed, smooth-shaved, awkward in gesture, talked very loud when making a public speech ; he lost some of his teeth during the latter part of his life which caused a con- siderable impediment in his speech; he was a portly, handsome man with brown eyes and dark hair. IIe was a great Judge, a statesman and a patriot.
On December the 18th William Cromwell died. He was
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
a practitioner at the Frankfort bar for about thirty-five years, about twenty years of which he was chief clerk of the State Senate. He was a true friend and a good lawyer. His memory and power of endurance were marvelous.
The body of Arthur Goebel, who died in Phoenix, Arizona, arrived at Frankfort, January 31st, 1910, and was laid to rest by the side of his distinguished brother, in the Frankfort cemetery. On the tenth anniversary of William Goebel's death a handsome monument of marble and bronze typifying him as the orator defending the rights of the great common people, was unveiled in the presence of a large crowd. Senator James B. McCreary and Justus Goebel, brother of the dead Governor, were the orators of the occasion. Ex-Governor J. C. W. Beck- ham, as master of ceremonies, made some appropriate remarks and introduced the speakers. The statue is of bronze and it is a good likeness of the dead statesman; it was paid for by popu- lar subscription.
On February the 21st, one of the city street cars collided with an interurban car. The wreck was caused by a dense fog; the result was that several people were severely injured. The motorman, Owen Graves, was so severely injured that he died from the effects of the injuries.
On March the 21st, Roger Warren, a negro convict in the Frankfort penitentiary, sent from Louisville for murder, cut the throat of Melvin Rateliff, another convict, and from the ef- fects of which Ratcliff died. Warren was tried in the Frank- lin Circuit Court and convicted of murder and the punishment fixed at death. The case was appealed and the highest court affirmed the decision. The Governor fixed the 25th of May, 1911, as the day for execution. On that day the Sheriff, Lee Buckley, and his deputies promptly executed the judgment.
Warren was the last man hung under the old law and Charles Howard, convicted in Franklin County for the murder of Ed Rice was the first man sent to the Eddyville penitentiary for electrocution, under the new law.
Thursday, May 26, 1910, the restored Daniel Boone monu- ment was formally unveiled. The women of the Rebecca Bryan Boone Chapter of the D. A. R. started a movement to
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
raise sufficient funds to restore the monument to its original beauty and after many years they raised seven hundred dollars, and the State Legislature appropriated two thousand dollars. A large crowd was present and participated in the ceremonies. The new panels were made by Leopold Fettroheirs, of Cincin- nati; the material used was Italian marble. The panels were an exact reproduction of the old panels.
On June the 2nd the new State capitol was dedicated. A number of distinguished people were present. Gilbert White, the artist who painted the lunettes in the capitol, with his at- tractive young wife was there. United States Senator, W. O. Bradley, was chief orator of the day. There was some political bickerings and much dissatisfaction. A change in the State administration had placed the Republicans in office. The gen- eral idea prevailed that the programme had been arranged and the ceremonies controlled by a few Frankfort sycophants and parasites who had nothing to do with the erection of the build- ing and who were not in sympathy with those who did. One enjoyable part of the day's proceedings was the reunion of the Kentucky Military Institute Cadets at the old K. M. I., six miles from Frankfort. Addresses were made by Dr. William Bailey, Judge W. G. Deering and Col. W. B. Haldeman of Louisville, and Col. C. W. Fowler from the new K. M. I. Dr. U. V. Williams and other Franklin County citizens, who had been students there, responded to toasts on that occasion.
The Governors of twenty-three states met in conference at the new State capitol on the 29th of November; most of them brought their wives with them. The names of the executives who were present are as follows: Gov .- elect Emmett O'Neal, of Alabama; Richard E. Sloan, of Arizona; John F. Shafroth, of Colorado; Frank R. Wecks, of Connecticut; Joseph M. Brown, of Georgia; Charles S. Dineen, of Illinois; Thomas R. Mar- shall, of Indiana, Augustus E. Willson, of Kentucky : Fred- erick W. Plaisted, of Maine, Eben S. Draper, of Massachusetts; Edmond F. Noel, of Mississippi; Herbert S. Hadley, of Mis- souri; Edwin L. Norris, of Montana; John Franklin Fort, of New Jersey ; Woodrow Wilson, Gov-elect of New Jersey ; W. W. Kitchin, of North Carolina; Judson Harmon, of Ohio; Lee
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
Cruce, of Oklahoma; Abraham J. Prather, of Rhode Island; M. F. Ansel, of South Carolina; R. S. Veesey, of South Dakota; William Spry, of Utah; William Hodges Mann, of Virginia, and Francis E. McGovern, of Wisconsin.
The meeting of the Governors was of great interest to the general public and many people from all sections of the State were in Frankfort to see them.
The population of Franklin County in 1910 was less than it was twenty years prior to that time. The population in 1890 was 21,267; in 1900 it was 20,852, and in 1910 was 21,135.
The white population in 1900 was 16,501; colored was 4,- 343. The white population in 1910 was 17,389; colored was 3,746. The increase in white population in ten years was 888 and the decrease in colored population same time was 597.
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
CHAPTER XVI.
The Organization and Growth of the Churches in Franklin County.
A few records of the carly churches in Franklin County have been preserved, and the records of the county court give additional information on the subject.
There is a well founded tradition that the first sermon preached in Frankfort was by Rev. John Gano in 1786. It was during this year chat General Wilkinson prevailed on him to locate in Frankfort. He purchased a lot on the corner of Broadway and High Streets and erected a log house thereon, and lived there until his death, August 10, 1804.
The Baptists have been the strongest denomination, in the county, during its whole history. In the very early history of the country, there were four Baptist preachers who were in- timately connected with the growth and development of the county and who have left the impress of their personality upon the succeeding generations. These four men were John Gano, John Taylor, William Hickman and Silas M. Noel. Since their day there have been but few, if any, who could equal them.
Perhaps the greatest Baptist preacher who ever lived in Frankfort was the Rev. John Gano. He was educated at Princeton College and he was recognized as being the most learned and eloquent preacher in the western country. So great was his fame that people would travel for miles to hear him preach. He was the first chaplain of the Kentucky Legis- lature. There is a tradition of the Baptist Church that Gen- eral George Washington was immersed by him, but there is no documentary evidence to that effect.
In the memoirs of Rev. John Gano, is given a very inter- esting account of the Revolutionary War. Of his first battle, the writer says: "We next fell back to White Plains where Gen. Washington had his main army; here a severe but indecisive battle was fought by about one-third of the armies on either side. Rev. Gano was found in the hottest of the fight, leading
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
and rallying the men like an officer. When it was suggested that the place for the chaplain was in the rear with the sur- geon's staff he said 'I durst not quit my place for fear of damp- ing the spirit of the soldiers by setting a bad example.' So . frequently was he found in the van, in time of danger and so seldom in the rear that he was known as 'the fighting chap- lain of the army.' "
In reference to his preaching in Frankfort, he said, "Church meetings were frequently held at Frankfort, though there was no settled church there of any denomination. Mr. Hickman had at times held services in the assembly room at the State House and Mr. Shannon of the Presbyterian church had consented to preach there part of his time. I agreed to supply them every first and third Sabbath in the month, and did so."
In Smith's History of Kentucky is the following: "John Gano was a great man-great as a busy toiler in the building of our nation, in the building of our Commonwealth, in the build- ing of our civilization, in the building of religion the better life of it all."
There is some question as to where this Christian patriot was buried, but his remains should rest with his compatriots in the State cemetery, with a monument suitably inscribed, erected to his memory.
Rev. John Taylor, who did the first preaching for the Frankfort Church, as its regular pastor, was a man of limited education, but was of a remarkably strong, clear intellect and of a calm, sound judgment. He was a plain, practical and very successful man. He wrote a history of "The Ten Churches," which includes the Frankfort and Buck Run churches.
William Hickman was fifty-one years old when he first came to Kentucky. He was tall and gaunt; his deportment solemn and grave. "He was justly recognized as the first Bap- tist preacher of Kentucky. He preached at Harrodsburg in 1776 and returning later to give forty years in this State, and in this church to the service of his Master."
William Hiekman preached throughout Kentucky. In
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activity, courage and usefulness he was the peer of any man of his day. He baptized more than one thousand converts, five hundred of whom became members of his church. He said of the Fork's of Elkhorn Church, "This church I hope to serve until I am laid in the grave, for they have ever mani- fested their love and esteem to me."
Dr. Silas M.Noel was the son of Theoderick Noel, a Bap- tist preacher, who lived and died in Virginia. Dr. Noel was educated for the law and he practiced his profession for some time, but feeling that he was called to the ministry he came to Kentucky and was ordained as a preacher. His first charge was the church at Big Spring, in Woodford County. At that time he was a young man. Some time after that he resigned the pastorate to accept the position of Associate Circuit Judge with Judge Henry Davridge and Nathaniel Richardson. IIc afterwards became a member of the Frankfort bar and prac- ticed law for some time with success. After two or three years he returned to the ministry, where he became one of the strongest and most successful preachers the Baptists ever had in the State.
In Taylor's History of The Ten Churches, he said, "Mr. Noel's literary accomplishments, together with his zeal in the gospel with his great success therein, has procured him the high appellation of double D. D."
Dr. Silas M. Noel and his descendants have been promi- nent people in the county for more than a century. He was the third pastor of the Frankfort church. During the troublous times of 1824-1825 politics became rampant in the Frankfort congregation and for a while it seemed as though the church would be torn asunder, and a few years later when Alexander Campbell, with his new doctrine, divided almost every Baptist congregation in the western country, Dr. Noel was thought to be the only man who could hold the Frankfort congregation together and refute the arguments of Mr. Camp- bell.
The church government of the Baptist Church is the nearest approach to a pure democracy that has been known in the history of any organization. This Democratic idca, in-
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
tensified to the last degree is an element of weakness to the separate churches, but it is an element of strength to the de- nomination as a whole. Whenever there has been a faction or division in a church the seceding element has withdrawn from the mother church and formed a new organization and built another meeting house. There has never been a time in the history of the county when the number of Baptists, outside of the city, did not exceed the number of members in all the other churches combined.
The churches which composed the Franklin Association in 1911-12, with date of organization, number of members and name of pastor were as follows:
Name.
Date of Organization
Member- ship
Pastor
Bethel
1802
293
L. D. Stucker
Buck Run
1818
77
Rev. Mr. Hill
Cedar Grove
1882
170
Evergreen
1883
100
F. F. Brown
Forks of Elkhorn
1777
131
J. R. Sampey
Frankfort
1816
1030
F. W. Eberhardt
Lebanon .
1825
262
J. A. Davis
Mt. Carmel
1824
240
J. A. Davis
Mt. Pleasant
1790
111
T. J. Singleton
Mt. Vernon
1872
150
E. R. Sams
North Benson
1825
185
W. D. Ogletree
North Fork
1801
252
W. D. Ogletree
Pleasant Ridge
1856
250
Swallowfield
1891
72
J. A. Davis
Union
1810
163
The Mt. Pleasant church was first known as Mt. Gomer. The first church meeting was held in the house of Bledsoe Hayden, on September 25, 1790. This private residence con- tinued to be the place of worship until the church was built in 1791. In 1801 the name was changed to Mt. Pleasant. Frank H. Hodges was pastor of this church for about thirty years.
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
The North Fork church, located at Switzer, has been re- markably free from divisions and dissensions; the only one of any note was about 1830 when the Alexander Campbell reform movement led off a large number of its members.
The South Benson church had a long and useful life. It was organized in 1801, and it continued to prosper until the Alexander Campbell agitation in 1824-1825 when its member- ship was divided. A number of them went to Bridgeport and organized the Christian Church at that place and some went to the Buck Lick church in Anderson County ; but in a few years it recovered from this division and it continued in a prosperous condition for more than half a century. Another discussion arose in 1883 and the split which followed caused the erection of the Evergreen Baptist Church which was organized by the dissenting members. The old South Benson church was sold in 1911 and converted into a tobacco barn.
Bethel Church is the largest Christian organization in the county outside of Frankfort. It has never had any dissension of any note. The Rev. Frank H. Hodges, who was one of the strongest preachers ever located in the county, was pastor of this church for more than fifty years.
The Buck Run church was organized on January 31, 1818. The meeting was held at "Bro. Wilson's." William Hickman was moderator; Silas M. Noel was clerk; John Tay- lor, James Suggett, John H. Ficklin, Mordica Boulware and Theodorick Boulware were the other ministers who were pres- ent. There were twenty-one present who agreed to become members of the new organization. Rev. John Taylor was called for their first pastor. He continued to preach there once a month for about five years and during that time, "a snug little brick meeting house, forty feet long by thirty wide" was built. In a short time after that Rev. William Hickman was called to preach once a month. In 1888 the church building was removed to Woodlake, and later it was removed to the Forks of Elkhorn.
The North Benson church was organized in 1825 and the meeting house erected in a short time thereafter. Several years afterwards this house was razed and another built; which
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
has also been torn down, and during the present decade an up- to-date church has been built on the old site. A number of noted preachers have been called to that station, among them were William Hickman, Jr., W. C. Blanton, Frank H. Hodges and others.
The first pastor called to the Evergreen Baptist Church after its organization in 1883 was Rev. Frank Hungerford, who has been and is an exceptionally strong preacher. It is worthy of note that four of the strongest Baptist preachers who ever had charge of churches in Franklin County were edu- cated for the law, towit: Silas M. Nocl, F. H. Hodges, Green Clay Smith and B. F. Hungerford.
The Frankfort church was organized in 1816 with thir- teen charter members. The first meetings were held in the church building, which was erected in 1812, on the southwest corner of the old capitol square. This building was erected by aet of the Kentucky Legislature. The money with which it was built was the proceeds of a lottery. The trustees of the building were appointed by the Governor. It was intended to be non-sectarian. There was considerable controversy and con- tention among the Presbyterians, Baptists and Methodists over the use of this building which continued from about 1817 to December 1825 when the house burned.
The first Baptist Church was built about 1827 or 1828. This house was burned about 1867.
In 1868 a new building was erected on St. Clair street, which has since been remodeled several times.
The most noted Baptist preachers in Kentucky have been in charge of the Frankfort church, among them are named John Taylor, Silas M. Noel, Porter Clay, the brother of Henry Clay. The controversy between Porter Clay and Peter Dudley shook the church to its foundation. The pastor preferred three charges against Col. Dudley, and he in turn made thirty- one charges against the preacher and later added one other, that of insanity. The trials of these charges took up several weeks and they resulted in no good to the church.
The Rev. A. Goodell was a talented man, finely educated and a pleasant speaker, but his usefulness as a christian min-
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
ister became very much impaired on account of some idle talk which connected his name with that of a young married wo- man, a member of his congregation and with whom gossip said he was very much in love. After some time this lady with- drew from his church and became a regular attendant and an earnest worker in the Methodist Church where she continued the rest of a long and useful life. She was known as an carnest, faithful worker in the Methodist Church, and at the time of her death only a few of her intimate friends knew that she was not a member of that church.
General Green Clay Smith was the pastor in charge of the Frankfort church for several years prior to 1878. He grad- uated at Transylvania University in 1850. He represented his county in the Kentucky Legislature and his district for two terms in Congress. He volunteered as a private in the 4th Kentucky Federal Cavalry; was promoted to Major General for meritorious conduct in the engagement with Gen. Morgan at Lebanon, Tenn., May 5, 1862.
He was Governor of Montana, and nominee for President of the United States on the prohibition ticket. He practiced law for several years before he entered the ministry.
Dr. J. M. Lewis was a man of recognized ability and a most eloquent speaker.
Rev. W. C. Taylor was a strong, eloquent preacher who was greatly loved by all the people of Frankfort, irrespective of re- ligious tenets.
F. W. Eberhardt, the pastor in charge (1912), is regarded as one of the strongest preachers of that denomination in the State. The Frankfort church is in a flourishing condition. Its membership is larger than ever before. The meeting house is crowded at every service.
The first Presbyterian Church organized in the county was in 1795. It was located near what is now the Anderson County line. It was known as the Upper Benson or Little Ben- son Church. Rev. Samuel Shannon was the first preacher in charge. The church building, erected about 1796, was 28x40 feet. It was built of hewed logs and chinked with an excellent quality of mortar. The work was done by the friends of the
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THE HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY.
organization, and the material used was taken from the adjoin- ing woods. The roof was made of clabboards and fastened on with hand-made wooden pegs. The building has stood for more than a century. It has outlived the church organization. Many noted pioneer preachers visited it, and regular preachers were in charge of it for more than half a century.
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