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Commercial History |
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Beattyville - Lee County Chamber of Commerce -- Beattyville, Kentucky 41311 |
Beattyville and Lee County have a rich commercial history. From the earliest times American Natives harvested the resources of the area. The earliest inhabitants were cave dwellers in the Big and Little Sinking Creek area; they hunted and farmed. In latter times, the Shawnee to the north, and the Cherokee to the south, exploited the plentiful game, and often clashed
in this Dark and Bloody Ground - this no-man's land. A major route for these
Indian nations was the Athawominee, or the "Path of the Armed Ones." It
ran from the Cherokee nation in the Carolinas, through the Cumberland Gap,
north to Lake Erie. A branch of this trail ran along the South Fork of the
Kentucky River, through the Beattyville - Proctor area.
In 1750, Thomas Walker explored the Three Forks area,
and specifically Walker Creek. Later, in the 1760s, other explorers and long
hunters, like Daniel Boone, the Skaggs brothers, and James Knox explored
the Kentucky highlands.
The colonial settlement of Kentucky began in the 1770s.
Settlements were located at Harrodsburg on the Dix River, Boonesborough on
the Kentucky River, Boiling Spring, and Logan Station. From Boonesborough,
the Kentucky River and its tributaries provided access to travel deep
into the mountains. These early pioneers hunted and trapped throughout the
Three Forks area. One of Boone's guides, Jacob Miller, eventually settled
in the St. Helens area.
Kentucky became a strategic objective of the British
as the Revolutionary War progressed. The major settlements were targets of
the Indians that had allied with the British. Several expeditions were
raised to protect the frontier, and the recruits were promised Kentucky land
in return for their service.
After the Revolutionary War, many veterans settled in
the mountains of Kentucky. One of these was Archibald D. McGuire; he
fought in the battle of Tippecanoe. He came to the Three Forks area from
the Boonesborough Settlement in 1799. He settled on what is now the James
H. McIntosh farm in the located in Proctor Kentucky, the site of a large
spring.
The major source of income was farming, but in those
early days two new industries appeared -- pine tar and saltpeter production.
The tar-kiln builders lived where the great Yellow Pine forests stood. They
came to harvest the pine knots which lay in rotting fallen trees. They would
pile these into a cone, cover them with dirt, and then burn them. They dug
troughs in the ground to collect the tar that flowed from their earthen kiln,
and shipped it around the world -- much of it being used for the US Navy
and Great Lakes shipping. The NitreGatherers lived near the cliffs. They
searched under the cliffs and in the caverns where they gathered the saltpeter,
a key ingredient of gun powder, which in that day brought a handsome price.
Coal mining started as early as 1810 when Henry Beatty, a founder of Estill
County, and his son Samuel, operated a coal mine.
In 1848 the town of Proctor was established. It was named
after Joseph Proctor, a companion of Daniel Boone, who traveled often in
the area as a circuit preacher. Early Proctor enterprises included hotels,
groceries, carpentry, basket making, boat building, salt gathering, coal
mining, timber operations, and flour milling.
Samuel and Patience Kelly Beatty sold their land along
the Kentucky River to encourage the establishment of a town across from Proctor.
In 1850 "Beattyille" was chartered.
In 1862 the Proctor flour mill was burned by troops
of CSA Colonel John Hunt Morgan as he attempted to stop the
retreat of General George W. Morgan (USA) from
Cumberland Gap.
Lee County was established as Kentucky's 115th county
on March 1, 1870 from part of Owsley, Wolfe, Breathitt, and Estill.
Although never official announced, it was probably named for Confederate
General Robert E. Lee. The first court was held in the Old Howerton
House in Proctor on April 25, 1870. James Madison Beatty , the first
County Attorney, and his wife Josephine, donated land in Beattyville for
a courthouse and jail, and the county seat soon moved to Beattyville.
The Three Forks Region began to evolve as a key economic
center of Eastern Kentucky. It was a center of operations for gathering and
moving the immense natural resources of timber, coal, and oil down the Kentucky
River and along the new railroads being built. The Swan-Day Lumber Co., one
of the largest in the world, operated a large saw mill and lumber yard in
West Beattyville ( known as Slab Town about the turn of the century for the
many homes built of lumber from the mill. ) This great economic expansion
created demand for increased services to include banking, transportation,
real-estate development, and communications.
In 1917 Lee County was the site of an oil boom. However,
it was short lived. In the 1920s, oil, along with timber and coal operations
began to dwindle. In 1929 the depression further hampered commercial
enterprises.
Today Lee County continues to be the location of timber
and oil operations. It has seen the recent development of businesses in
healthcare, data processing, textiles manufacturing, tourism, and
other areas. Agriculture remains an important source of revenue in this
rural community.
Chronology of Significant Commercial Dates In Lee County
History
Historical Links
May 1750
Thomas Walker Explores "Walker's Creek"
ca.1818
Henry Beatty & son Samuel Operate Coal Mines
1840
Billy Booth Water Mill Built on Lower Devil's
Creek
Feb 1846
Proctor Post Office Established
1850
Beattyville Incorporated
Oct 1854
Devil's Creek Post Office Established
Sep 1858
Beattyville Post Office Established
Feb 1859
Bear Creek Post Office Established
Sep 1862
Civil War Skirmish at Beattyville
Jan 1870
Lee County Established, Proctor County Seat
Sep 1871
Old Landing Post Office Established
Mar 1872
Beattyville Incorporated
Mar 1878
Winchester & Beattyville RR Incorporated
Feb 1881
Pryse Post Office Established
Mar 1883
Zachariah Post Office Established
Mar 1883
Lewellen Post Office (St. Helens) Established
May 1883
First Newspaper, The Three Forks Enterprise
Nov 1885
Beattyville Woman's Club Organized
Jun 1887
Jackson and Beattyville Telephone Company
Established
Nov 1887
Beattyville & St. Helens Telephone Company
Established
Nov 1892
Beattyville Telephone and Telegraph Company
Established
May 1888
The Deposit Bank of Beattyville Incorporated
Nov 1888
St. Helens Post Office Established
1889
Kentucky River Lumber Company
Aug 1889
Three Forks Deposit Bank Established
1889
Three Forks Investment Company Prospectus Issued
Sep 1890
Fincastle Post Office Established
1890
Beattyville, Proctor, Booneville Steamboat &
Trans. Co.
May 1891
Richmond, Irvine, Beattyville RR to be Sold
1891
Three Forks Lumber Company Incorporated
1891
Beattyville Fair Company
Oct 1892
Tallega Post Office Established
1892
Beattyville Elevator Company Established
Jul 1893
Primrose Post Office Established
Jun 1894
St. Thomas Church Corner Stone Laid
Oct 1894
Kentucky Union Railway conveyed to Lexington &
Eastern RR
1896
Roberts Distilling Company
May 1896
Beattyville Machine Work Company Established
Nov 1898
Delvinta Post Office Established
Sep 1901
Beattyville Bank Opens
April 1902
Beattyville Telephone Company
Mar 1904
Heidelberg Post Office Established
Mar 1904
White Ash Post Office Established
Mar 1904
Evelyn Post Office Established
Mar 1904
Williba Post Office Established
Dec 1905
Three Forks Ferry Company Established
May 1906
Beattyville and Proctor Bridge Company
Jul 1906
Beattyville Home Telephone Company
Feb 1908
Ida May Post Office Established
May 1908
Bear Track Post Office Established
Jul 1909
Belle Point Post Office Established
Oct 1909
Canyon Falls Post Office Established
Aug 1912
Peoples Exchange Bank Established
Dec 1913
Kentucky Rockcastle & Cumberland RR Inc. in Lee
Co.
Oct 1915
Lexington & Eastern Railway Conveyed to Louisville
&Nashville Railroad
Jul 1917
Fixer Post Office Established
Jun 1919
Big Sinking Post Office Established
Sep 1920
Lee County Commercial Bank
Oct 1920
Leeco Post Office Established
Feb 1922
Swan Day Lumber Co. Incorporated
Feb 1923
Beattyville Kiwanis Chartered
Mar 1924
Beattyville Credit Union
Nov 1926
Athol Post Office Established
Mar 1934
Congelton Brothers and Garrett Ambulance Service
Sep 1935
Lee County Farm Bureau Established
Oct 1940
WBKY- Beattyville's First Radio Broadcast
Feb 1941
Yellow Rock Post Office Established
Dec 1941
Lee County Coop Established
Jun 1956
Last Steam Passenger Train at Beattyville
Jan 1957
Devastating Flood
Apr 1962
Proctor T.V. Established
Jul 1965
Lee County Rescue Squad
1967
Lycoming Shoe Company Opens
Apr 1970
Lee County Personal Care Home Incorporated
1976
Villa Lutz Stained Glass Company Established
1977
Lion Apparel Manufacturing Opens
Mar 1977
Lee County Senior Citizens Incorporated
Sep 1977
Gasoline Truck Explodes and Destroys Sections of
Beattyville
Jun 1979
Sheltowee Trace Dedicated in Honor of Daniel
Boone
Jul 1979
New Courthouse Dedicated
Sep 1981
Beattyville Dental Clinic
Jun 1984
DataCom Opens
Oct 1988
First Woolly Worm Festival
Nov 1989
First Three Forks Tradition Newspaper Printed
Jul 1985
Kentucky Mountain Farms Cooperative, Inc.
Sep 1986
Ashland Oil Shuts Down its Lee County Wells
Nov 1999
Chamber Website Established
2000
Beattyville Website Established 2005 Farmer's State Bank
Nov 2005 Center Villiage Completed
Credits: Much of the information on this page came from Annual Historical Calendars available from the Three Forks Tradition Newspaper, and information for the books, Lee County History, Vol. II, published by the Lee County Historical Society, and Lee County Communities: A Link With Our Past. These publications are available from the Lee County Library. We are indebted also to those individuals who have contributed information directly to us.
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