Friday Shoot My Town
For this week's theme
Shooter's choice
What highlights my town.
Well My Old Kentucky Home is here and the Stephen Foster Story is presented live nightly during the summer months in the beautiful
J Dan Talbott Theatre
but the the oldest attraction in our town is
Old Talbott Tavern
When visitors walk into the Old Talbott Tavern, there' a feeling about the place. It's well kept, but the passage of time is evident in a few creaking floorboards.
There's an air about the place that speaks of people who have come and gone, spending time in the pub and retiring to their rooms before an
early morn departure.
Travelers used to arrive on horseback or in buggies; today they come in automobiles and buses.
Tourists and locals mingle and lives interwine in the "ordinary," a place to rest and receive nourishment before traveling on to their final destination.
The old stone reminder of Bardstown's beginnings still welcomes visitors to the bustling downtown area.
Since the late 1700's, The Old Talbott Tavern on Court Square has provided shelter, food and drink to Kentucky travelers.
Talbott Tavern is said to be the oldest western stagecoach stop in America as the westward expansion brought explorers from the east into Kentucky.
According to legend, figures straight from the history books sought lodging here during their travels; as a young boy Abraham Lincoln and his family stayed here, Gen. George Rogers Clark, Daniel Boone, and exiled French King Louis Phillipe and his entourage stayed here, even painting murals on the upstairs walls. There are noticeable bullet holes in the now faded paintings and Jesse James is said to be responsible for them.
On March 7, 1998 a new chapter was written in the Old Talbott Tavern's history. The Tavern suffered from a devastating fire. An early morning blaze destroyed the roof and most of the second floor. The main floor suffered from smoke and water damage. The well-known murals suffered from heavy damage and have not yet been restored. The Tavern underwent a long period of rebuilding and finally reopened her doors in November of 1999.
In the dining room fried chicken, country ham and Chicken Phillipe are house specialties. For
dessert, chess pie, talbott tavern pie and homemade fruit cobbler are still some of the favorites.
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18 comments:
How nice! I grew up on Stephen Foster's songs. :) And creaking floor boards are just charming!
Such lovely buildings!
historic buildings.
Those two, almost identical except the two windows on top. I wonder why.
What great history! I love when a city preserves the past in this way! Looks like a great place to visit.
Hope you are doing well after your fall. Blessings, Tammy
That tavern has an impressive history. The only thing that would be more impressive is if Elvis were to still be living there. :)
I like old town and this one is beautiful. Thanks for sharing and happy weekend!
Shooters Choice
Historic buildings always have tales to tell.
Chicken Phillipe presumably is name affter that exiled French king.
I think there is nothing more fascinating than old historical buildings. I'm glad you chose this for your theme. Your story was very captivating to read.
It's always fun to hear the mythology of a place. The East coast is full of places where Washington slept. He apparently did a lot of sleeping around. It's rare here on the West coast to have a name attached to a place. I know of a hotel where Black Bart stayed. A stagecoach stop where actress Lola Montez spent one night.
Very interesting about this taverns incarnations.
I too enjoy hearing the history of old buildings. It’s even better to visit and soak up the atmosphere if you can, but this is a great alternative.
You should know perfectly well by now that any lack of theme or connection is instantly excused as long as you give us a photograph of a decent pub in your post.
I'm glad there are still some nice old buildings like that tavern left. It would be fun to go antique shopping there and rest on those benches.
Very interesting! I looked up Bardstown at Google Maps, and I had never heard of Stephen Foster so I googled him and read about his life story. Thanks!
Great post and great tavern history! It's a shame about the destruction, but it's great that the building still stands and is being lovingly preserved, along with its legends.
I love visiting old buildings. great to include the history also. I bet the food is really good there!!
as much as i enjoy seeing the outside, i'm now curious to see it from the inside.
what is chess pie?
:)~
HUGZ
Will see about getting some photos from the inside. Chess Pie is a uniquely southern dish brought from England. It consists of sugar, eggs, vanilla and a small amount of flour.
There are numerous theories of how the name came about so I suggest one google it to learn about it. Of course it is delicious and a no no for me.
QMM
I'd certainly stop and enjoy that pub, or tavern ...and if they were still renting rooms out, a stay there would be pretty nice I'd think...the building reminds me of something I would have seen in England. What a lovely town! Thanks!
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