The National tribune., 1895-08-08
SOME THINGS ABOUT LOUISVILLE.

came in the nature of a pension allow
ance. Some years before the Revolu
tionary War Dr. John Connolly, who
had served as Assistant Surgeon witt
the British forces operating against For
DuQuesne, situated where Pittsburs
now is, secured grants for his service:
for 1000 acres of land in Kentucky
Going down the Ohio with his uncle
Gen. George Croghan, British Indian
Agent, be decided that the place where
the falls interrupted the navigation OF
the river was the best one to locate hi;
land and establish town. In 1913 he
sent surveyors to the place, who, accord
ing to the litigation breeding custom OF
those days, ran his lines hither and yon,
so as to make his 1000 acres take in all
the best ground in the neighborhood.
DIR. Connolly took his plat to Williams
burg, then the Capital of the Province
of Virginia, had it duly entered, got out
a prospectus Of his town, and offered lots
for sale at four Spanish dollars each,
with a perpetual quit-rent of 81 per
year each.
The breaking out Of the Revolution
interfered with the town project, and
DIR. Connolly took sides with the Eng
lish, becoming commander of Fort Pitt,
the old French fort at Pittsburg under
It's new name. The patriots soon capt
ured the fort and its commander, and
he remained a prisoner during the
greater part Of the war.
In 177S the noted Lieut. Col. George
Rogers Clark was sent out West by Gov.
Patrick Henry, of Virginia, to protect
the settlers against the Indians, who
were stirred up by the British agents.
He had force of 80 soldiers with him,
and about 30 families, who were going
out to grow up with the country. He
built fort on Corn Island, in the Ohio,
in front of the present site of the city,
left his civilians in it, and went
with his soldiers on his memorable
expedition, which broke the power
of the British in the Upper Mis-
sissippi Valley, and secured all that ter
ritory between the Mississippi and the
Alleganies for the infant colonies. The
important position of Louisville was
recognized, several forts were built on
the mainland, the Virginia Legislature
declared Dr. Connolly's title to the land
forfeited, and created town named
Louisville In honor of Louis XVI,
King Of France, whose troops were then
in this country aiding US TO secure our
independence. The title to the land
was vested in nine trustees, who pro-
ceeded to put the affairs of the young
municipality into shape.
Kentucky was the first State to be adj
mitted to the Union. This was Feb. a,
1871, when she had a population of
1867, or about one-thirtieth what
she has to-day.
The infant metropolis of ." the First
Child of the Union, as Kentucky was
styled, grew and thrived until in 1929
she had a population OF 10000, and
was erected into a city, with a Mayor
and all the municipal furbelows. Her
growth was largely due TO the fact that
all freight and travel up and down the
Ohio and with the Mississippi had to be
transferred around the falls. Her first
great work was the construction of a
canal around the falls, which was finally
completed in 1880, at a cost Of S1,019,-
27I09. We are at loss TO know why
the sum is stated thus exactly, because
that was not a day for accurate book
keeping, especially in public enterprises.
The Government had an interest in the
canal from the first, and in 1874 ac-
quired eomrsete ownership of it, en-
larged if and made it free. The money
expended upon it up TO date has in
creased its total cost to 81, 564,6S0.09.
The canal is 1.9 miles long, and Ga feet
wide The falls which it avoids are q
feet in q miles.
IL the old flush days Of river naviga-
ton Louisville was the distributing CEN