Overview

Introduction

Bluegrass means a lot of things in the Bluegrass State. There's the grass itself, a lush variety of groundcover—more green than blue—that powers the state's racehorses. There's Bluegrass Country, where most of those horses are raised—a region of immaculate rolling pastures, tidy white fences and large, stately mansions. This is the land of Kentucky's royalty, be they horse or human. And then there's bluegrass music, a folk art from a much different side of the state—the remote and beautiful Appalachian Mountains.

Travelers can experience all the varieties of bluegrass in one vacation—plus a whole lot more. Visit a Civil War battlefield in the morning and ogle Corvettes in the afternoon; hike through the same forests that greeted Daniel Boone or sip a glass of fine bourbon whiskey; enjoy the museums and performances of Louisville along with the geologic wonders of Mammoth Cave. Whatever kind of visit you have planned for Kentucky, keep yourself open to new possibilities: You'll likely find more than you expect.

Geography

Kentucky's most prominent feature is the Appalachian Mountains that run along its eastern border, creating rugged gorges and valleys. The center of the state is the famed Bluegrass Country, with lush pastures spread over rolling limestone hills. To the south and west, the state is made up of hilly terrain known as the Knobs and contains both underground caverns (including Mammoth Cave) and several large lakes that were created by damming rivers. The entire northern border of the state is formed by the Ohio River, and the far western part of the state lies on the Mississippi.

History

Evidence of Kentucky's early inhabitants is found in cave shelters and burial remains in the eastern part of the state. In the west, traces of the ancient Mississippian culture are visible at the Wickliffe Mounds archaeological complex, where remnants of a ceremonial site and a trading center can be visited. In both places, the people hunted, farmed and lived in stockaded villages along the rivers.

The formidable Appalachian Mountains prevented Europeans from settling Kentucky for centuries, though a few hardy traders found their way through gaps in the mountains. The westward expansion was led in part by Daniel Boone, the legendary pioneer who developed the Wilderness Road and led settlers through the Cumberland Gap beginning in the 1770s.

This westward migration was in defiance of a British decree that forbade settlement west of the mountains, and the influx only increased following the Revolutionary War. The settlers and Native Americans soon clashed, and battles continued until 1794, when a key victory over the natives in the Ohio area ended resistance in Kentucky. Though Kentuckians considered an alliance with Spain for a time, they eventually became part of the U.S., achieving statehood in 1792.

The other great conflict to affect Kentucky was the Civil War. The presidents of both sides—Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis—were born in Kentucky about one year and 100 miles apart, and the state's residents were likewise torn between the two sides. Kentucky initially declared itself neutral but ended up being a key battleground where several engagements were fought. The state supplied troops to both the Union and the Confederacy and had a star in both flags, though it never actually seceded from the U.S. because it was under Northern military occupation.

Toward the end of the 1800s, coal mining began to vie with agriculture as the prime force in Kentucky's economy. Its effect was felt both economically and socially, as management and burgeoning labor unions negotiated, argued and sometimes violently battled well into the second half of the 20th century. Today, Kentucky is still a leader in U.S. production of coal. Agriculture and manufacturing also employ many people in the state, and Kentucky farmers are beginning to diversify to overcome their traditional dependence on tobacco farming.

Snapshot

Among Kentucky's main attractions are beautiful mountain scenery, Mammoth Cave National Park, horse farms, horse racing, Louisville, historic sites, Lexington, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Bluegrass Country, rivers and lakes, mountain crafts, Churchill Downs, Red River Gorge, bourbon and southern-style cooking.

Travelers (especially families) who seek beautiful scenery and outdoor activities or are interested in horses and history will love Kentucky. Those who insist on the constant buzz of a big metropolis may find the state less to their liking.

Potpourri

Although the coonskin cap is associated with Daniel Boone, he never actually wore one: He favored the much more practical wide-brimmed hat donned by most of the Quaker pioneers (Boone was born in Pennsylvania and was a member of the Religious Society of Friends). Another pioneer, Tennessean Davy Crockett, did don a coonskin cap.

Kentucky native Bill Monroe (born in Rosine) is considered the father of bluegrass music. (The genre is named for Monroe's band—the Bluegrass Boys.) Monroe was the music's figurehead for more than 50 years and continued to perform regularly until shortly before his death in 1996. Kentucky has also been fertile ground for many country music stars: Loretta Lynn, Tom T. Hall, Dwight Yoakam, Billy Ray Cyrus, the Judds, Ricky Skaggs, Crystal Gayle and many others hail from eastern Kentucky, in the vicinity of U.S. Highway 23. The road has been named the Country Music Highway in their honor.

The McCoys of the famous Hatfield-McCoy feud lived in eastern Kentucky, on the West Virginia border. Members of the clan are buried in Dils Cemetery in Pikeville.

Col. Harland "Kentucky Fried Chicken" Sanders is remembered at the restored Harland Sanders Cafe and Museum in Corbin. This was the original KFC, where chicken and those 11 herbs and spices were first brought together.

The state takes great pride in its host of well-known writers, including Robert Penn Warren, Barbara Kingsolver, Wendell Berry, Bobbie Ann Mason, Sue Grafton, Silas House and Hunter S. Thompson. Other famous Kentuckians include Jefferson Davis, Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln, Kit Carson, Carry A. Nation, Duncan Hines, Harland Sanders, Muhammad Ali, Tom Cruise, Diane Sawyer, Lionel Hampton, Johnny Depp, George Clooney, Rosemary Clooney and Helen Thomas.

Lime—the mineral, not the fruit—is the reason that Kentucky water makes such good bourbon. Some say the best brands are distilled at Bardstown, Clermont, Frankfort, Lawrenceburg and Loretto. Georgetown claims to be the place where the liquor was first made—by a Baptist preacher, no less. Before Prohibition, there were 189 bourbon distilleries operating in Kentucky. Today there are only nine.

Bluegrass is not really blue—it's green. But in the spring, the grass sprouts bluish-purple buds that can give it a blue cast when seen in large fields. Visitors rarely see this, however, because the pastures are always being grazed or mowed.

Kentucky's autumn colors rival those of New England, and you can view them from the state's three official National Scenic Byways and 28 state-designated scenic routes ranging from 1 mi/1.6 km to 144 mi/232 km in length.