Kentucky History Drive

History is all around us.

Pioneers, Native nations, long hunters, soldiers and distillers. Explore the stories that made Kentucky, on a living map you can travel through time.

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Pennyrile Towns and Civil War Memory

Pennyrile county seats from about 1800, the camp meeting that started the Great Revival, a divided state's Civil War memory at Fairview, and an eight-sided house near Franklin.

Stops

  1. 1. Pennyroyal Area Museum (Hopkinsville)

    PublicPaid admissionLimited hoursTown seated 1797. Paid admission; Tue–Sat hours.

    Hopkinsville's history museum, opened in 1976 in the old downtown post office; its exhibits include the Black Patch tobacco wars and the Night Riders. The town, named for Gen. Samuel Hopkins, began on land donated by Bartholomew Wood. Sources: Museums of Historic Hopkinsville-Christian County: About; Museums of Historic Hopkinsville-Christian County; KHS marker #717: Gen. Samuel Hopkins; Grokipedia: Hopkinsville, Kentucky

    Hopkinsville →

  2. 2. Jefferson Davis State Historic Site (Fairview)

    PublicPaid admissionLimited hoursBorn 1808. State historic site; elevator seasonal, fee.

    A 351-foot concrete obelisk at the birthplace of Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy. Sources: Wikipedia: Jefferson Davis State Historic Site

    10.8 mi, about 13 min from stop 1
    No story yet for this stop.

  3. 3. Russellville historic district

    PublicLogan County seat. Public streets.

    The Logan County seat grew from a spring known as Big Boiling Spring; its 50-block historic district centers on the commercial corridor rather than the courthouse. Sources: Wikipedia: Russellville Historic District; Grokipedia: Russellville, Kentucky

    25.2 mi, about 32 min from stop 2
    Russellville: from Big Boiling Spring to a county seat →

  4. 4. Red River Meeting House and cemetery

    PublicLimited hoursJune 1800. Grounds open; building by appointment.

    Presbyterian minister James McGready organized the camp meeting here on June 13–17, 1800, counted as the first religious camp meeting in the U.S. and a start of the Second Great Awakening. The meeting house is a reconstruction. Sources: Wikipedia: Red River Meeting House

    14.2 mi, about 24 min from stop 3
    No story yet for this stop.

  5. 5. Octagon Hall Museum (Franklin)

    PublicPaid admissionLimited hoursCompleted c. 1860. Museum; limited hours, admission.

    An eight-sided house built by Andrew Jackson Caldwell near Franklin, completed around 1860, with a detached summer kitchen; listed on the National Register in 1980. Sources: Wikipedia: Octagon Hall

    20.6 mi, about 36 min from stop 4
    No story yet for this stop.

Directions cover the public stops only. Access, fees and hours are general; verify before visiting. Context: The Page Site (Lost City) near Russellville is protected and is context only.

Route map