HOPKINS COUNTY, KY (2/21/12)—Hopkins County, as well as the surrounding region and the state of Kentucky in general, is built upon a lengthy and intriguing line of historical heritage. In an attempt to recount some of the interesting history from our area, which might be “new” to many, SurfKY News reporters will be paying a visit to several historical markers and sites over the upcoming weeks. Soon after, we will try and post photos from the site, a description of each site’s significance, and some historical research gathered in relation to the site.
For the fourth installment of “A Nod to the Past,” SurfKY News chose historical marker number 1620 at 304 Union Street near downtown Madisonville, KY: Carlow’s Stone Wall.
Though one would believe the wall in question might be named after a specific person, it is, in fact, named after the area in which it was originally constructed—Carlow, KY.
Commissioned by the Kentucky Historical Society and the Kentucky Department of Transportation, the historical marker displays the following information about the well-crafted partition and its intriguing history:
“This was originally located at Carlow, on main Madisonville-Henderson route. It was built by Thomas J. Jackson in 1857 to enclose his stage coach inn, a general store, Masonic Lodge No. 314 and post office. This work of art, reconstructed here in 1975, is hand quarried, hand cut, and hand carved with all joints friction fitted.”
Whereas some portions of the wall are situated on Union St., the majority of the structure stretches down Madisonville’s Hall St. and around the corner onto South Franklin St. near the historic downtown area. In total, the wall is around one or two city blocks in length and includes two ornate corner pieces that connect onto nearby property, which is, itself, listed on the National Register of Historic Places (see photo above and final photo). What’s more, numbering recently placed on many of the stones suggest that the wall was reconstructed piece-by-piece, matching its exact original design and layout (see photo below).
Though Carlow, KY—as well as the aforementioned businesses/ places/landmarks near the transported wall—seem to have slowly faded out of existence sometime after the Civil War, the reconstructed barrier remains as a reminder of the attention to detail craftsmen put into construction over a century ago. Though the modern age pushes mass production at high speeds, looking at an imperfect, but wholly sound piece of useable art inspires one to question today’s machine-made "perfection."
To view previous "A Nod to the Past" articles via SurfKY News, click the following links:
A Nod to the Past - The Hockersmith House
A Nod to the Past – Wahoo and Mush
A Nod to the Past – Partisan Rangers
Luke Short
SurfKY News
Photos taken by SurfKY News contributor, Jeff Harp, of Focus Photography LLC
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