SOUTHEAST | K EN T UCK Y
LOUISVILLE
KENTUCKY
Great Estates Kentucky’s antebellum mansions reflect nation’s journey BY TAYLOR M. RILEY AND TRACY SCOTT FORSON
OXMOOR FARM The Oxmoor estate has been the home to five generations of the Bullitt family, known mostly for hemp farming. Early ancestors were among the first settlers in Kentucky when Alexander Scott Bullitt moved from Virginia in 1783, nine years before Kentucky achieved statehood, according to estate curator Shirley Harmon. Take a guided tour of the 79-acre property that boasts a grand primary residence, as well as several outdoor structures, including a smokehouse, icehouse and slave cabins. The original home, which is the back of the current main
88
house, was completed in 1791 in a clapboard structure style, similar to Virginia colonial homes. The four downstairs rooms have corner fireplaces and the two upstairs rooms served as bedrooms for the family. Comprising most of the east wing, the grand library is one of the largest residential libraries in the state. Many of the antiques in the home came from Nora Bullitt, whose husband, William Marshall Bullitt, purchased the home — the ownership of which had been divided among relatives — in 1908. Nora acquired pieces from around Europe, including the Sicilian ox cart chandeliers and 16th-century furnishings. “It’s a living history,” says Porter Watkins, a fifth-generation member of the family. “It’s very, very important to know and acknowledge, and in some instances be proud of our histories. We all have them ... it’s who we are.”
MAP ILLUSTRATION: STUDIO GANNETT; ANDY MUELLER
F
ind sprawling greenery, elaborate architecture and the history of the nation at federalist-era homes throughout Kentucky. Once plantations where free labor helped finance the establishment of a young democracy, these properties now tell the stories of America’s foundation and the people who toiled to make it what it is today. Acres of land offer golfing, camping, museums, gardens, magnificent mansions and more.
LOCUST GROVE In Louisville, an 18th-century mansion remains as a reminder of the estate that once flourished there. Now a National Historic Landmark, Presidents James Monroe and Andrew Jackson and explorers Meriwether Lewis and >
GO ESCAPE | SUMMER 2021
Oxmoor Farm
