The Bluegrass State is a place with deep roots and culture. Kentuckians are proud of their history and heritage, and that’s evidenced by our well-preserved sites and charming small towns. Today we’re taking a step back (or rather, several steps back) to the turn of the 20th century, a time of big shifts and changes all across the U.S. These nine historic photos offer a snapshot of life in Kentucky in the early 1900s, and showcase that undeniable Bluegrass spirit and pride.
Small towns have long been the heart and soul of the Bluegrass State.
Unknown/Wikimedia Commons Pictured here is a horse-drawn carriage on the streets pf Columbus, Kentucky, circa 1900.
A proud and patriotic people, Kentucky has always been a big player in the U.S. military. The USS Kentucky was an iconic vessel in the early 1900s.
United States Library of Congress’s Prints and Photographs/Wikimedia A 11,520-ton Kearsarge class battleship, the USS Kentucky was constructed at Newport News, Virginia, and commissioned in May 1900. Her first active service was on the Asiatic Station between October 1900 and May 1904. Kentucky also operated along the U.S. east coast and in the Caribbean area from 1905 to 1907.
Kentucky has long been known for its tobacco crops, harvested right from the Bluegrass soil in the western region of the state.
Library of Congress/Wikimedia Commons Here, farmhands work tirelessly hand-harvesting tobacco from a field in Kentucky.
In fact, tobacco was a huge part of the Kentucky economy at the turn of the 20th century; it was the number one crop during most of the 1900s, until being replaced by horses in 1999.
Unknown/Wikimedia Commons Pictured here is a Tobacco Warehouse in Louisville, Kentucky, circa 1906.
Of course, it wasn’t all tobacco in 1900s Kentucky; coal mining also played a huge role in the development of the Bluegrass State.
Library of Congress/Wikimedia Commons
And, of course, tourism has always been big in Kentucky, starting with Mammoth Cave in the 1800s. The Louisville and Nashville Railroad transported tourists to Mammoth Caves until 1886, when Colonel Larkin J. Procter, owner of the Mammoth Cave Estate, established the Mammoth Cave Railroad.
Unknown/Wikimedia Commons It closed in 1926, with the establishment of the Mammoth Cave National Park.
Another must-visit destination in 1900s Kentucky was the Capital Hotel in Frankfort.
Unknown/Wikimedia Commons The Capital City Museum is now located in the former Capital Hotel, and it was here that soon-to-be-governor William Goebel was carried after he was shot by an assassin across the street. Learn more about this unique hotel-turned-museum here.
While 1900s America was a time of immense racial segregation, Kentucky’s Berea College has long been a place of inclusion.
Library of Congress/Wikimedia Commons The first interracial and coeducational college in the South, Berea College has faced fierce opposition over the years, first from armed, pro-slavery militias to segregation imposed by the state legislature. Despite physical, financial, and legal risk, Berea College continued in its mission to educate students of all races. The motto “God has made of one blood all peoples of the earth” has guided this historic institution since opening its doors in 1859. Read more about the town of Berea in this article.
From 1900 to 2021, so many things have changed, but the pride and spirt of the people of Kentucky has remained deep, steadfast, and comfortingly constant.
Unknown/Wikimedia Commons
We hope you enjoyed these intriguing photos of 1900s Kentucky. For more historic photographs of the Bluegrass State, check out these candid photos from the 1920s!
Unknown/Wikimedia Commons
Pictured here is a horse-drawn carriage on the streets pf Columbus, Kentucky, circa 1900.
United States Library of Congress’s Prints and Photographs/Wikimedia
A 11,520-ton Kearsarge class battleship, the USS Kentucky was constructed at Newport News, Virginia, and commissioned in May 1900. Her first active service was on the Asiatic Station between October 1900 and May 1904. Kentucky also operated along the U.S. east coast and in the Caribbean area from 1905 to 1907.
Library of Congress/Wikimedia Commons
Here, farmhands work tirelessly hand-harvesting tobacco from a field in Kentucky.
Pictured here is a Tobacco Warehouse in Louisville, Kentucky, circa 1906.
It closed in 1926, with the establishment of the Mammoth Cave National Park.
The Capital City Museum is now located in the former Capital Hotel, and it was here that soon-to-be-governor William Goebel was carried after he was shot by an assassin across the street. Learn more about this unique hotel-turned-museum here.
The first interracial and coeducational college in the South, Berea College has faced fierce opposition over the years, first from armed, pro-slavery militias to segregation imposed by the state legislature. Despite physical, financial, and legal risk, Berea College continued in its mission to educate students of all races. The motto “God has made of one blood all peoples of the earth” has guided this historic institution since opening its doors in 1859. Read more about the town of Berea in this article.
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