Browse Items (335 total)
Sort by:
The Year 1937 Recalled
I was living in Richmond in 1937, but the source of my material for this article is the souvenir program from the Madison County Sesqui-Centennial Celebration, not memory.
From that program we find that the Republican nominees that year were J.H.…
From that program we find that the Republican nominees that year were J.H.…
The Glyndon Hotel
The Glyndon Hotel opened its doors to the public in 1880. Its name is Danish and means "Haven of Rest."
Guests arrived by train and rode up Main Street from the depot via horse drawn street cars. They entered gas lit rooms warmed by open fires and…
Guests arrived by train and rode up Main Street from the depot via horse drawn street cars. They entered gas lit rooms warmed by open fires and…
Christmas at Turn of Century
A look at how Madisonians celebrated Christmas at the turn of the Century shows us some ways in which our customs have changed.
In the year 1900, there were no brightly colored electric lights on Christmas trees and on the streets and houses as we…
In the year 1900, there were no brightly colored electric lights on Christmas trees and on the streets and houses as we…
Madison National Bank
The Madison National Bank was organized January 24, 1870 under the National Bank Act of 1864. It issued its own currency during the latter part of the 19th Century and anyone having any of its notes has a collectors' item. The first directors were…
Madison's Heritage (Ice Co.)
Before the invention of the electric refrigerator the people of Richmond and Madison County were able to have ice for summer use only through a rather difficult process.
In the coldest part of winter when the ice would form in a thick layer on…
In the coldest part of winter when the ice would form in a thick layer on…
Updating the Fire Department
Our Richmond fire department with its several modern trucks and full-time firemen who have been trained in firefighting came from modest beginnings and has gone through several stages of reorganization.
One such occasion of reorganization was in…
One such occasion of reorganization was in…
The Zaring Mill
I looked in the telephone directory and found only two persons listed under the letter Z. A few years ago we could have at least doubled this by finding the listing of the Zaring family and the Zaring Mill.
The mill, which stood on the site of the…
The mill, which stood on the site of the…
Old Mills of Madison
The recent burning of the old Weddle Mill in the Doylesville area put me in mind of an article which I had read in an 1937 edition of the Daily Register. The article was written by J.L. Sowers and I quote:
"Progress of the years has relegated to…
"Progress of the years has relegated to…
Churchill Weavers
One of the graduates of Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1899 was Davie Carroll Churchill. His goal in life was two-fold: to make fine handwoven fabrics and to help others.
Hand-weaving was still done in India and young Mr. Churchill left…
Hand-weaving was still done in India and young Mr. Churchill left…
Madison's Oldest Industry is Pottery
The oldest known industry in Madison County is the making of pottery.
J. P. Grinstead, who learned the potter's trade in Virginia moved to Waco around 1840 and continued the trade. It is believed that Green Clay Smith, later a general in the Civil…
J. P. Grinstead, who learned the potter's trade in Virginia moved to Waco around 1840 and continued the trade. It is believed that Green Clay Smith, later a general in the Civil…
The Berea Post Office
When the Berea College and community leaders returned from exile after the civil war, postal service was reestablished with Schyler Johnson as postmaster. People got their mail out of the "pigeon holes" in a roll-top desk at Johnson's blacksmith shop…
Madison Tobacco Warehouse Co.
Around the turn of the century there were only three buyers of tobacco — American Tobacco Company, Imperial Tobacco Company (British) and Regie Tobacco Company (French). These drove the price of tobacco below cost. The tobacco growers banded…
The Corner Drugstore
The corner drugs store is an American institution and Richmond has had its share. Cornett's, Stockton's, Begley's, and Hinkle's have in their turn attracted the soda and sundae crowd. One of the oldest drugstore corners is the one now occupied by…
Business at End of Civil War
In the months following the end of the Civil War in 1865, business in Richmond was more or less back to normal. With the exception of reports of nearby raids by John Hunt Morgan's men, there had been no military excitement here since the aftermath of…
Where to Find a Doctor in Richmond in the 1880s
Before the Pattie A. Clay Infirmary was established in 1892, there was no hospital in Richmond. Most people who were seriously ill or injured were cared for at their own homes until they either got well or died in their own beds. From time to time…
Old Drugstores
Drugstores were apparently a part of the Richmond business scene from the early years following the incorporation of the city in 1809.
Perhaps the oldest known drugstore location in Richmond is the building on the corner of Main and Second St.,…
Perhaps the oldest known drugstore location in Richmond is the building on the corner of Main and Second St.,…
1937 Survey: Part II
September 3, 1937—“Richmond Well Suited for Moderate Size Industrial Concern"
With a population of nearly 7,000 inhabitants, Richmond -the only urban community in Madison County - presents an ensemble of the county's richness within its city…
With a population of nearly 7,000 inhabitants, Richmond -the only urban community in Madison County - presents an ensemble of the county's richness within its city…
The Holiday Turkey Business
In the early 1900's, Madison County developed into one of the largest turkey raising and processing centers in this area of the country. On several hundred farms and in the backyards of many Richmond residences turkeys were hatched in large numbers…
Christmas Here in 1880
The weekly newspapers in Richmond during the Christmas season in 1880 had none of the large display ads for gifts and decorations that we find this season.
Judging from the space that the newspapers devoted to the various subjects, there was more…
Judging from the space that the newspapers devoted to the various subjects, there was more…
More Information From 1851 Edition of Whig Chronicle
Where Was the Webster House?
Have you wondered just where the Webster House was located in Richmond? Two proprietors, Dudley Webster and Samuel A. Hatch, carry a good size advertisement and say their hostelry is located on Main street in the same…
Have you wondered just where the Webster House was located in Richmond? Two proprietors, Dudley Webster and Samuel A. Hatch, carry a good size advertisement and say their hostelry is located on Main street in the same…
Early Richmond Businesses
Not much is known about the very early businesses in this city. We have some information about stories, stagecoaches, craftsmen and professional leaders from about 1850 on, but for the times earlier than that our knowledge is scant. A quite valuable…
Berea Postoffice- 1937
The September 10, 1937 issue of the Richmond Daily Register featured an article concerning the New Berea postoffice, and it read as follows:
"When Berea's new $53,000 postoffice is dedicated Saturday, the building will be more than a symbol of the…
"When Berea's new $53,000 postoffice is dedicated Saturday, the building will be more than a symbol of the…
Hollywood in Richmond
Hollywood in Richmond? Movie Stars on Main Street? Yes, indeed. It really happened, back in 1937.
From the Richmond Daily Register: "All the fanfare, the brilliance and the realness of a veritable Hollywood Premiere will be reproduced in all its…
From the Richmond Daily Register: "All the fanfare, the brilliance and the realness of a veritable Hollywood Premiere will be reproduced in all its…
Double Disaster in 1909
In the first days of August, 1909, Richmond was dealt a double disaster which left it stunned for a while.
Dark clouds came up ominously about the time people were sitting down to their evening meal on Aug. 5. Before the supper dishes could be…
Dark clouds came up ominously about the time people were sitting down to their evening meal on Aug. 5. Before the supper dishes could be…
Madison's Mallory Springs
Many people know of Hot Springs and White Sulphur Springs. People still go to Red Boiling Springs and Clear Creek Mountain Springs. But how about Madison County's own Mallory Springs?
Located in the Red Lick section of Madison, not far from Big…
Located in the Red Lick section of Madison, not far from Big…
Business District Fire
Amid floods, epidemics and shoot-outs, it seems that once or twice every generation a large part of Richmond's business district would burn down. The block on the south side of West Main between Second and Third was largely destroyed by fire in the…
A Thumbnail History of Madison County
For those readers who are new in our community here is a thumbnail history.
Madison County was formed in 1785 out of Lincoln County and was number seven in line. It was a big county and gave up part of its territory to form Garrard, Estill,…
Phone Rates Actually Fell in 1919
A front page headline in the Register of October 4, 1919, stated "Phones Must Go Back to Old Rate." This surprising development was caused by an unusual set of circumstances.
In the early 1900's, the Cumberland Telephone Co. of Nashville, Tenn., a…
Business Tour Here in 1924
At six o'clock on the evening of Thursday, May 22, 1924, a special L&N train pulled into the Richmond depot. From the ten Pullman cars poured out some 150 CEO's and business managers from Louisville. They were on a tour of Kentucky cities and…
What Happened 30 Years Ago?
Back in 1961 the Richmond Daily Register staff was made up of the following: Keen Johnson, president and publisher; T.B. Challinor, vice-president and general manager; Shelton Saufley, secretary-treasurer and editor; Randall Fields, city editor;…
1924: Richmond at Odds with Fire Insurance Firm
Two-thirds of a century ago, back in 1924, the City of Richmond had a running fuss with an insurance company regarding fire insurance rates for, of all things, the fire department itself.
In December 1917, the city had obtained a $2,500 five-year…
Early Madison County Pharmacists
Mrs. Mary Lilyan Hinkle was the first woman to become a registered pharmacist in Madison County. She and her husband, Woodrow Hinkle, were registered in 1942. J. T. Hinkle, Woodrow's brother, began in 1944. Iris Stratton Willis was licensed in 1949.…
Remembering My Father's Friends
The recent death of Mrs. Ed Wayman brought back a lot of memories of people of Richmond in the 1930s and 1940's. People who were mainly my Father's friends, but who also became mine.
Mr. and Mrs. Wayman came to Richmond about the same time as my…