The Bourbon news. [volume] (Paris, Ky.) 1895-19??, 1898-01-28

Bureau or Agriculture, Labor and
Statistics of the State of :Kentucky has
just been issued by Hon. Lucas Moore,
Commissioner. The report is the most
comprehensive and valuable one yet
made by this Bureau. THE NEWS here
with reproduces from it the sketch of
Paris, written by ex-Mayor W. l..
Yerkes, and the sketch of Bourbon
County, written by Walter: Champ 90
BOURBON COUNTY. =
Formed in 1775 from Fayette county
and named in honor of the famous
House of Bourbon of France, Bourbon
county was one Of the nine counties
organized by the Virginia Legislature
before Kentucky became State. 1t is
bounded on the north by Harrison, the
east by Montgomery, the south by Fay
cite and west by Scott, and is watered
by Stoner. Hinkston, Houston and
Boone creeks and the south fork of
Licking river The county has popu-
lation of Is, 976. Located in the heart
OF the bluegrass region, the gently IN
dulating soil Is wonderfully fertile, pro-
ducing generous yields of wheat, corn,
barley, oats, hemp, tobacco, etc. The
virgin half Of the soil produces about
| 10000 bushels Of bluegrass seed per
year, which sells at twenty-five cents
per buShel from the stripper, and fur
nishes grazing for sheep, giving all an
nual wool clip worth $4,000, for valu-
able horse, mule and hog stock, and for
! $500, 900 worth of fine export beef cattle
every year which grow to an average
weight of l ,450 pounds. scores of the
best race horses the turf has ever known
! were bred in Bourbon county.
The soil furnishes an abundance Cf
| primitive limestone, not susceptible to
! polish, for building purposes. In the
! county are two undeveloped lead
mines-one in Paris and the other near
Millersburg. Near North Middletown
| is an oil well bored during the civil war,
| but it was not worked after Confederate
scouts spiked the borings. Oak, wal
nut, ash, hickory, elm, sugar-tree, wild
cherry, mulberry and box elder lconsti-
! tute liberal timber resources. Walnut
timber is being rapidly cut away,
| SIC, 900 worth having been sold this year
| 1897. Though the soil is finely adapted
fog dairying, UNDERSTANDING and fruit
growing, it is not extensively carried on
The fruit crop averages probably 5000
per year. None of the streams are
! naVigable or could be made so by locks
or dams.
There are two hundred and seventy
ak miles of excellent turnpikes and
thirty-nine miles of dirt roads in the
county-every mile being free. The
roads were acquired by the fiscal court
| by purchase, gift and condemnation
The aggregate cost of the pixies was
$65, 900. The pixies were freed without
lswless or violent act. The rate of
taxation for the purchase and mainteL
/ Gn0s Of turnpikeS is twenty-five cents
on the one hundred dollars. The thirty
eight miles of the Louisville and Nash
! Vile Railroad, comprising branches in
four directions-to Lexington, Coving-
ton, Winchester and Maysville-and the
Frankfort & Gncinnati's kentucky
Aidland) eleven miles, going to George
town and Frankfort, afford competition
and give Bourbon excellent shipping
Facilities. There has been no railroad
construction in the county curing the
past two years. 1t has been pre- DO led to
extend the Frankfort q Cincinnati
road to the mountains of Eastern Ken
lucky.
| In Bourbon are several salt AID sui
phur springs, but none have sufficient
merit to justify being made health
resorts. There are. no water falls or
sraktA screams in the county, though the
waters of Stoner and Hinkston are
utilized in operating the machinery of
several Touring mills Bourbon has no
natural curiosities save few Indian
aaaSGAds. and buffalo trace on Cane
Ridge, but in her soil reposes the re-
mains of Edward Boone, the pioneer and
Indian fighter and brother of Daniel
Boone. Bones of mast dons have been
found in excavations near Paris.
The average price of farm land in
Bourbon is sixty dollars per acre. The
farm hands employed are colored, the
wages being fifteen dollars per month.
There are no foreign colonies in the
county. Bourbon has no fruit or vege-
table canneries or cheese factory.
There is an excellent opening for to-
baccO, hemp, broom-corn manufacture
ing interests and fruit-canning ente,-
prlses. The county furnishes an album
dant supply of these products.
The county seat of BOuI bon is Paris, a
beautiful and enterprising city of about
$500 inhabitants. The city is located
on high ground and Stoner aud Hous-
ton creeks, which flow through the
corporate limits, offer fine advantages
and locations for factories. The city is
healthy and is a delightful place of
residence, having electric lights, water
works, electric fire alarm system, com.
petitive telegraph and telephone COM
munication, ice factory, handsome
business blocks and residences, well ap-
pointed stores, fine theater and school
buildings, and nine churches. The peo-
pie are progressive, intelligent, robust
and hospitable.
The only college in Bourbon is the
Mlllersburg Female College, a fourishine
institution which has been recently
improved and refurnished. The public
schools are in admirable condition
The public fund is supplemented By
local taxation in but three of the county,
districts. The county has no bonded
debt. The rate of taxation is eighty,
seven cents on the one hundred dollars
httY-seveo and One-half for revenue
Nile and one-half for general purposes
and twenty-five cents for turnpikes.