Timeline story
Jacob Spears & early "Bourbon" whiskey
Pennsylvania-born Revolutionary veteran Jacob Spears settled near Paris in Bourbon County and was distilling by the 1790s.
Thomas Metcalfe built his stone house ("Stone Castle") around 1790; the farm still holds a springhouse and whiskey storehouse—Kentucky's most complete early distiller's complex. Spears floated barrels down the Licking to the Ohio and on to New Orleans, and he is often credited among the first to market the county's whiskey under the name that stuck: bourbon.
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Published . Last revised .
Chicago
Snowden, Shannon. "Jacob Spears & early "Bourbon" whiskey." Kentucky History Drive. Published September 12, 2026. Last revised September 12, 2026. https://kyhistorydrive.com/stories/jacob-spears-early-bourbon-whiskey/.
MLA
Snowden, Shannon. "Jacob Spears & early "Bourbon" whiskey." Kentucky History Drive, published 12 Sept. 2026, last revised 12 Sept. 2026, https://kyhistorydrive.com/stories/jacob-spears-early-bourbon-whiskey/.
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