BGuthrie Photos: KY -- Lexington -- Ashland, the Henry Clay estate

KY -- Lexington -- Ashland, the Henry Clay estate:

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Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. ASHLAN_100602_001.JPG: Clay & Abraham Lincoln: Lincoln called Clay "my beau ideal of a statesman, for whom I fought all my humble life." Lincoln voted for Clay in 1832 & 1844. Family of Lincoln's wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, were friends with Clay. Lincoln based his political ideology on ideals of Clay & quoted him in many important speeches. Presented by the Ky. A. Lincoln Bicent. Commission
2. ASHLAN_100602_005.JPG: Ashland: Home of Henry Clay, born April 12, 1777, died June 29, 1852. Served as a state legislator, US rep. & senator, house speaker, secretary of state. He ran for president in 1824, 1832 & 1844. Also an attorney, he practiced law for more than 50 years. He imported and bred fine livestock here, including champion thoroughbreds. Kentucky Historical Society
3. ASHLAN_100602_012.JPG: "Ashland": Historic home of Henry Clay. Orator-Statesman-Patriot. Kentucky's Favorite Son. Born-1777 Died-1852 Historical Markers Society
4. ASHLAN_100602_013.JPG: Agriculture at Ashland: From the time Henry Clay bought his first 125 acres in 1804 until long after his death in 1852, Ashland was an important and successful farm. It produced some of the finest livestock and crops in Kentucky and the nation. Ashland remained a center for agricultural innovation and achievement until it was sold for development in the early part of the 20th century. Henry Clay dreamed of developing a world class farm, and during his lifetime he realized that dream. By 1850, he had acquired over 600 acres and raised many crops. One of the most important was hemp. Ashland became a major supplier of hemp for rope and bagging. Clay also succeeded as a livestock breeder, raising some of the best Thoroughbreds in the country, introducing Hereford cattle to the US, providing some of the finest mules to southern plantations, and raising award winning pigs and sheep. Henry Clay's descendants carried on the tradition of agricultural excellence long after he was gone. Clay's son James took up the breeding and racing Standardbreds and became one of the earliest proponents of that sport in Kentucky. Races were frequently run on his track at Ashland. Henry Clay's youngest son John inherited a part of his father's farm. John Clay's farm, called Ashland on Tates Creek, became one of the most important Thoroughbred breeding farms in the country, producing two Kentucky Derby winners and numerous stakes winners. Henry Clay's grandson-in-law Henry Clay McDowell continued James's success on the trotting track, returning Ashland to national prominence as a Standardbred farm. Henry Clay's great-grandson, Thomas Clay McDowell, capped off a century of Ashland equine success, and is remembered as one of only three people in history to breed, train, and own a Kentucky Derby winner in a single year. His horse Alan-a-Dale won the prestigious race in 1902. Archeological excavations at Ashland suggest this area was the "working" side of the Ashland yard, where barns used for this agricultural operation were located. Excavations uncovered the foundations of several barns.
5. ASHLAN_100602_027.JPG: Gardener's Cottage
6. ASHLAN_100602_035.JPG: Kentucky Suffrage Leader: Madeline McDowell Breckinridge saw woman suffrage as a way to advance social reform. Served as pres. of Ky. Equal Rights Assoc. 1912-15 and 1919-20; vice pres. of National American Woman Suffrage Assoc., 1913-15. Ratification of 19th amendment by Ky. legislature, 1920, largely credited to her efforts. She died same year, after amendment passed. Buried in Lexington Cem. Kentucky Historical Society
7. ASHLAN_100602_040.JPG: Madeline M. Breckinridge: This descendant of Henry Clay and Ephraim McDowell was born 1872 in Franklin Co., grew up at "Ashland," Clay's home; and married Desha Breckinridge, editor of Lexington Herald. Ill with tuberculosis, she promoted its treatment and cure; advanced educational opportunities for poor children in Lexington and entire state; and helped gain voting rights for women.
8. ASHLAN_100602_049.JPG: Gardener's Cottage: Henry Clay's wife Lucretia delighted in her gardens, pleasure grounds and greenhouse. According to an account written by her daughter-in-law, "every thing was kept in the most beautiful order" by a competent white gardener, with his efficient enslaved workers. The Clays' gardener likely resided in this cottage designed by Thomas Lewinski, a noted local architect. Lewinski had previously overseen alterations to Ashland and designed homes for two of Henry Clay's sons. Lewinski would later be the architect of the present Ashland, built by Henry Clay's son James in 1856. An article by the renowned Kentucky architectural historian Clay Lancaster, suggests during Henry Clay's time the cottage may have been embellished with tracery bargeboards on the eaves. Inside, the mantels and upper bannisters are of an early period and may have been transferred from Clay's main house during Lewinski's alterations. During the James Clay era, the cottage likely remained the residence of hired help. It is also possible that James and his wife, Susan, resided here during construction of the new mansion (1853-1856). In August 1863, Susan Clay advertised the cottage as available to rent. In 1866, Ashland passed out of the Clay family and became home of the Kentucky Agricultural and Mechanical College. The cottage, like all the dependencies, was pressed into service to help meet the needs of the students. According to the annual report of the Regent of Kentucky University dated June 23, 1868, the cottage housed sixteen students. They were organized under the name of the "Ashland Batching Club" and lived four to a room in each of the two rooms on the first and second floors. The "ell" or back extension of the cottage housed a dining room and kitchen. Not much mention is made of the cottage during the McDowell era (1882-1920), but it may have been used once again to house hired help. After Ashland opened as a museum in 1950 it served as a residence for an overseer. According to the minutes of a 1951 board meeting of the Henry Clay Memorial Foundation, plans were made to renovate the "James Clay house in the rear" for a groundskeeper. It remained as housing for maintenance staff until the 1980s. The cottage underwent a total renovation in 1992 and was converted to offices, multi-use space and restrooms.
9. ASHLAN_100602_062.JPG: Archeology at the Slave Quarters: Documents tell us of the many slaves who lived at Ashland, but offer little information about where they lived. Some help comes from Clay family oral history, which places the slave quarters in the area where you are now standing. Archeological excavations conducted here since 2000 revealed an extensive area of brick and limestone rubble along with a few posts and below-ground storage cellars. Cellars and posts are an example of what archeologists call "architectural features." They were likely a part of the buildings. The excavations demonstrate that the quarters were made of brick. Some brick fragments show a whitewash treatment to the outside. Fragments of plaster indicate that the interior walls of the brick structures were finished. Many fragments of window glass suggest formal windows. We would like to know how large the quarters were, and if they were subdivided into one or more rooms. Sadly, the remains excavated so far have been so completely demolished that it is not possible to determine the dimensions of the quarters. Future excavations may provide new clues. The number of artifacts found in this area were fewer than the amounts found in other areas of Ashland, perhaps reflecting the relatively lower quantity of belongings and personal effects. Yet the artifacts are quite varied and range from personal items like buttons to a wide variety of decorated ceramic shards and glass vessel fragments. These remains are all we have left of what was probably the slave quarters for Ashland. Additional quarters may have existed in other areas of the plantation that today are part of the Ashland Park neighborhood, founded in the early 20th century.
10. ASHLAN_100602_074.JPG: Slavery at Ashland: Born in Virginia, the son and grandson of slaveowners, Henry Clay recognized early on the importance of slavery to the southern economy. Long before Clay moved to Kentucky in 1797, the slave system had become deeply embedded in the economic and social structure of the South. Yet the slavery issue presented Clay with a problem that had plagued great leaders before him. How could a country whose principles were based in freedom indulge in the practice of slavery? Clay opposed the institution of slavery, but accepted the evil as a matter of practical business. Though he enslaved African Americans, Clay decried the practice, and as early as 1798 published articles advocating the election of delegates to the Kentucky State constitutional convention who would support the gradual emancipation of enslaved African Americans. Clay had as many as fifty people enslaved to work in his house and on his farm during his lifetime, and he had thirty-three at the time of his death. The enslaved to work in his house and on his home took care of all the personal needs of the Clay family. Those working the farm were responsible for maintaining the fields of oats, hemp, and corn, and for tending to Clay's horses, cattle, mules, pigs, and sheep. As a slaveowner, Henry Clay was fairly typical of his era. He controlled every aspect of th lives of those he enslaved from birth to death. Sometimes Henry Clay showed compassion and concern for those he enslaved. This was the case with Aaron Dupuy, one of his longest held enslaved African Americans, for whom he purchased Charlotte, a woman Aaron married in secret. At other times, Henry Clay showed genuine cruelty as was the case when Charlotte sued Henry Clay for his freedom. In response to this suit and the embarrassment it caused Clay, he sent Charlotte to New Orleans to his daughter's home, separating her from the rest of her family for a significant period of time. It is interesting to note that although Clay was harsh with "Lotty" after her suit, he could in fact, have been far worse to her, beating her or selling her away from her family. When Henry Clay died, he left fairly complex instructions determining the future of those of those he enslaved. In his will, Clay directed that members of enslaved families not be separated without their consent. He also left provisions for any children born to his enslaved women after January 1 1850 to be freed at the age of 28 for males, and 25 for females. These enslaved persons were to earn money to help defray the cost of transporting them to the African nation of Liberia, a country Clay helped establish as a place where freed American blacks could settle. Clay bequeathed some of his enslaved persons to his sons John and Thomas. To John, Clay left Harvey, Milton, Henry, and Bob. To Thomas, Clay made the gift of any enslaved African American already delivered to him.
11. ASHLAN_100602_247.JPG: Civil War Action at "Ashland" October 18, 1862 While Confederate armies were retreating from Kentucky after the Battle of Perryville, Colonel John Hunt Morgan operated behind the pursuing Union army. With Colonel Basil W. Duke's Second Kentucky Cavalry Regiment, Colonel Richard M. Gano's cavalry battalion and Colonel William Campbell Preston Breckinridge's cavalry battalion, along with a two-gun section of artillery under Sergeant CC Corbett. Morgan rode from Bryantsville through Lancaster to Gum Springs and Richmond, then toward Lexington. Scouts having reported that two battalions from the Third and Fourth Ohio Cavalry regiments were camped in a woodlot behind the Clay mansion near Lexington and some were in town. Morgan divided his command, Gano's and Breckinridge's battalions, with the artillery, proceeded across the Kentucky River at Clay's Ferry and approached "Ashland" by way of the Richmond Road: Morgan, with Duke's Second Kentucky, crossed the river below Clay's Ferry and then took by-roads to the Tates Creek Pike and approached "Ashland" from the south, while directing two companies toward the town of Lexington to arrest any movement of enemy cavalry there. At dawn, October 18, 1862, Breckinridge's dismounted troopers, attacked the Ohioans who were camped in the woods ahead in this direction from the Richmond Road at left, with Gano's battalion, mounted, forming behind. Corbett's artillery opened fire in this direction from within Breckinridge's ranks, at the same time. Duke's Second Kentucky arrived here, dismounted to the right, and opened fire upon the Ohioan's rear, the Ohioans broke in confusion. Those not killed were captured or scattered. Morgan's cousin, Major George Washington Morgan, was mortally wounded nearby. He died at "Hopemount" in Lexington. Morgan's men captured two companies of the Fourth Ohio Cavalry at the Phoenix Hotel and the courthouse in town. Morgan paroled 290 captured Union officers and men at the Clay Mansion, his command then left Lexington that afternoon to return to Tennessee.
12. ASHLAN_100602_283.JPG: The Ashland Privy: The stones you see mark the outline of a rectangular dry laid limestone foundation excavated by the Kentucky Archaeological Survey in 2002-2005. Today the original foundation is buried under approximately 1.5 feet of soil, which was brought in over the years to meet landscaping needs. The foundation extends seven feet into the ground, forming a large undivided vault. In one area, a layer of brick was found on top of the stone, suggesting the limestone foundation supported a brick building. This vault, and the structure above it, almost certainly functioned as a privy, or outdoor toilet. The artifacts found within it suggest that it was abandoned as a privy sometime around the middle of the nineteenth century -- possibly when the original Ashland mansion was rebuilt circa 1856. At that time it was rapidly filled with dirt and garbage. To your left, you will see an even larger privy still standing today, which likely replaced this one. Exhibits in this building provide background information on privies and include artifacts found within each privy. The artifacts from this earlier privy were very numerous, and include fragments of ceramic vessels, glassware, personal items, and a few architectural remnants. Large quantities of window glass fragments suggest a finely finished building, with windows. Many of the ceramic vessels were nearly complete, following reconstruction back in the archaeological lab. They remind us of the many formal dinners that must have occurred at Ashland.
13. ASHLAN_100602_292.JPG: Ashland Privy
14. ASHLAN_100602_300.JPG: The Smokehouse: The smokehouse was one of the most important buildings on a plantation. In the days before refrigeration, meat was preserved and stored here to accommodate the needs of the family and enslaved workers. A meat-filled smokehouse symbolized the self-sufficiency of a plantation like Ashland. According to an account ledger dated August 12, 1817, Henry Clay paid $76.50 for an "amount of Brick in Smoke house and for other uses." The smokehouse was likely completed about that time. It retained its original form until later generations of the family added the surrounding structure, converting the entire building into a garage and storage area. Although various kinds of meat could be smoked, the smokehouse was mainly filled with "hog meat." Pork was consumed in one form or another by all classes. Hogs were generally butchered in the fall as the cooler weather prevented spoilage. Meat hung in the smokehouse was preserved by a dry salting process. Freshly butchered meat would be rubbed with raw salt and placed in wooden troughs for up to six weeks. Next, they were smoked for about a week using a variety of wood types to give distinct flavors to the meat. The smoke escaped through vent holes and the interior of the building was very dark due to soot blackened walls. It had a dirt floor to lower the risk of fire. No part of the animal was wasted. Hams and sides of bacon were preserved whole and sausages were made from the bits. The head was boiled and combined with spices to make souse or hogs head cheese. Lard was used in cooking, candle making and for lamp oil. The products of Ashland's smokehouse were much admired among their consumers. In a letter dated January 1843 sent from New Orleans, Henry Clay informs his wife Lucretia: "your hams are much praised, there will be no difficulty of selling next fall those you now have on hand."
15. ASHLAN_100602_315.JPG: Icehouses and dairy cellars
16. ASHLAN_100602_320.JPG: The Gas Works System: The Springfield Gas machine was a self-contained automatic gas machine sold by the Gilbert and Barker Manufacturing Company in the late-19th and early-20th centuries. The manufacturer's intent was to provide homes and businesses, was good, safe, and relatively inexpensive gas light. Gas machines operated by forcing air across liquid gasoline, which vaporized and was then piped to burners throughout the house. The system was fueled with gasoline emptied from barrels into a pipe that ran directly into a generator unit, or evaporating tank. As many as twenty-five barrels would be emptied at once, depending on the size of the tank. A pair of pipes ran underground from the generator to the basement. One of the pipes connected to an air pump, the other to a network of pipes that supplied gas to the fixtures in the house. A blower of air pump powered by a suspended weight that had to be wound periodically like a clock was located in the basement of the house. This unit forced air through a pipe to the generator. A system of pulleys and weights drove the air pump. A large stone weight hung from the basement ceiling beams and attached to the shaft of the pump wheel by a wire cable. As gravity caused the weight to drop, the wheel inside the pumpcase turned, forcing air through the connecting pipe into the generator. Due to the explosive nature of vaporized gasoline, the generator was placed underground at a distance from the building or buildings to be lighted. It contained four evaporating pans or chambers, arranged one about the other, containing gasoline. Forced air from the air pump moved through each of the generator's evaporative chambers. As the gasoline vaporized in the chambers, the pressurized gas-air mixture was forced into the horse through the other connecting pipe and then to the fixtures in the house through a network of pipes. The system made it possible for gas to be constantly present at the burners in the light fixtures. As long as the system worked properly, and the burners were closed when lights were not in use, gas would not escape, and a constant pressure of air was maintained in the air pipe, the gas generator, and in the burners in the house's fixtures. Evidence suggests that the Springfield Gas Machine was installed shortly after Henry Clay McDowell and his wife, Anne, Henry Clay's granddaughter, purchased the estate in 1882. The McDowells installed the system because they lived too far from downtown to acquire gas service from the Lexington Gas Works, a coal gas company established in 1853. The McDowell's continued to use gas lighting until after the turn of the 20th century, but by 1906 were having problems with the gas system. In a letter from Henry McDowell, Jr. to his mother, Anne, he writes, "you have put up with the very poor lights at Ashland long enough." The "poor lights" appear to be a direct result of problems that developed with the evaporating tank, and not from the poor performance of the system. He continues, "It is quite probably that some rather inexpensive repairs to the evaporating machine (tank) a new pipe from the tank to the house would give as good light as formerly." The McDowells must have liked the Springfield system very much. In fact, Henry Jr. confessed that electricity didn't strike him favorably and he even suggested putting a new gas system in if repairs couldn't be made to the present one. He soon changed his mind. Ashland converted to electricity in 1907 much to the delight of Henry Jr. who admitted to his mother in early May "I am glad to hear that the electric lights..."
17. ASHLAN_100602_324.JPG: Gas system
18. ASHLAN_100602_368.JPG: Gypsy 1962-1976 The cat who lived at Ashland
19. ASHLAN_100602_390.JPG: Historic Walks: "I am here surrounded with every comfort in the possession of great abundance, and enjoying on my delightful grounds as much happiness as falls to the lot of most men." -- Henry Clay, 1835 For Henry Clay, Ashland served as a refuge from the rigors of politics and business of running the country. It provided an escape, allowing him to gain a fresh perspective on the problems he faced in Washington. In an 1829 letter, Clay mentions returning to his farm in Kentucky "for tranquil consideration" of important issues. Clay frequently took visitors on tours of the estate pointing out different species of trees, some of which he had planted himself. He was presumably referring to Ashland when he sought seeds of the spruce pine to propagate on "a little farm I am improving" in 1806. Nineteenth century visitors to Ashland described "the shady walks of Ashland" and "a serpentine carriageway that leads through the grove to the house and the numerous pathways tastefully arranged" as features that beautified the grounds. The family believed Henry Clay favored one of the walks near the house as a place to stroll and over time it became know as the "Henry Clay Walk." After Henry Clay, his descendants continued to enjoy the walks and paths around the estate maintaining them for their own pleasure and for their many guests.
20. ASHLAN_100602_395.JPG: Original Well Dug By: John Davis of Philadelphia for Henry Clay in 1812 In Constant Use Until the Twentieth Century Restored by: Lexington Kiwanis Club in 1968
21. ASHLAN_100602_469.JPG: The Icehouses & Dairy Cellar: The idea for storing ice became a part of North American life as early at 1665 when Sir William Betheley, the Governor of Virginia, secured a patent to father, make and take snow and ice... and to preserve and keep the same in such pits, caves, and cool places as he should think fit." The icehouse resulted from this forward thinking. Icehouses differed in form and appearance from state to state and region to region. Some shared nothing more than a gabled roof resting on the ground; others were small square buildings with brick walls. Generally, the icehouse was a hole varying in depth from fifteen to thirty feet deep, its sides fortified by bricks, with a brick or wooden roof. A layer of straw or sawdust insulated the bottom and the walls of the icehouse. it would then be filled with large cakes of ice and covered with another layer of straw or sawdust. As the ice melted, it consolidated into one large mass. A drain at the bottom of the pit carried away melting ice water and condensation that collected on the convex roof and tunneled down the sides of the pit. Ice placed in an icehouse in January and February could last until the following October and November. Ashland's icehouses are deep barrel shaped pits about sixteen feet deep with conical roofs. They were constructed after Clay had lived at Ashland for more than twenty years. In a letter dated October 1830, Clay wrote to his son Henry Clay Jr that he was "building of brick a new conical ice house." By this time, the use of ice to preserve food was becoming commonplace in the United States. Fresh fruit and vegetables could be placed on the ice and preserved for weeks. The McDowell family continued to use the icehouses for their farm at Ashland after the turn of the century. In February 1913, Henry McDowell Jr wrote to his mother, Anne Clay McDowell, Henry Clay's granddaughter that he "was glad to learn... that both the ice houses are partly filled. There is still time for ice enough to finish them unless this winter is [to] break all records."
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Wikipedia Description: Ashland, the Henry Clay estate
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ashland is the name of the plantation of the nineteenth-century Kentucky statesman Henry Clay, located in Lexington, Kentucky, in the central Bluegrass region of the state. It is a registered National Historic Landmark.

The Ashland Stakes, a Thoroughbred horse race at Keeneland Race Course run annually since the race course first opened in 1936, was named for the historically important estate.

History of the estate:

Henry Clay came to Lexington, Kentucky from Virginia in 1797. He began buying land for his plantation in 1804.1 The Ashland farm--which during Clay's lifetime was outside of the city limits--at its largest consisted of over 600 acres (2.4 km�). It is unclear whether Clay named the plantation or retained a prior name, but he was referring to his estate as "Ashland" by 1809.2 The name derives from the ash forest that stood at the site. Clay and his family resided at Ashland from c. 1806 until his death in 1852 (his widow Lucretia Clay moved out in 1854). Given his political career, Clay spent most of the years between 1810-1829 in Washington, DC. He was a major planter, owning up to 60 slaves to operate his plantation.

Among the slaves were Aaron and Charlotte Dupuy, and their children Charles and Mary Ann. Clay took them with him to Washington, DC. Their lives have recently gained new recognition in an exhibit at the Decatur House, where they served Henry Clay for nearly two decades. In 1829, 17 years before the more famous Dred Scott challenge, Charlotte Dupuy sued Henry Clay for her freedom and that of her two children in Washington circuit court. She was ordered to stay in Washington while the court case proceeded, and lived there for 18 months, working for Martin Van Buren, the next Secretary of State. Clay took Aaron, Charles and Mary Ann Dupuy with him when he returned to Ashland. When the court ruled against Dupuy and she would not return voluntarily to Kentucky, Clay's agent had her arrested. Clay had Dupuy transported to New Orleans and placed with his daughter and son-in-law, where she was enslaved for another decade. Finally in 1840 Clay freed Charlotte and Mary Ann Dupuy, and in 1844 freed her son Charles Dupuy.

Clay had divided the Ashland estate among three sons. After Clay's death, son James Brown Clay owned and occupied Ashland proper and a surrounding approximately 325-acre (1.32 km2) tract. James Clay rebuilt the house and his family resided there until his death in 1864. His widow Susan Jacob Clay put the estate up for sale in 1866.

Kentucky University purchased Ashland and used it as part of its campus. University founder and regent John Bryan Bowman occupied the mansion. The Agricultural and Mechanical College (Kentucky A & M) was situated on Clay's former farm. Kentucky University split into what became Transylvania University and the University of Kentucky, and sold Ashland in 1882.

Henry Clay's granddaughter Anne Clay McDowell and her husband Henry Clay McDowell purchased the estate (consisting of approximately 325 acres (1.32 km2) and outbuildings). They moved in with their children in 1883. Their eldest daughter Nannette McDowell Bullock continued to occupy Ashland until her death in 1948. She founded the Henry Clay Memorial Foundation, which purchased and preserved Ashland. The historic house museum opened to the public in 1950.

The mansion:

Henry Clay began building his Federal style house c. 1806 (see Federal architecture). He added two wings between 1811-1814, designed for him by Benjamin Latrobe. Inferior building materials, particularly a porous type of brick, resulted in an unstable structure. The building was likely damaged in the New Madrid earthquake and aftershocks of 1811-12, Clay's many repairs could never completely stabilize the house.

Seeing no viable alternative, Clay's son James B. Clay, opted to rebuild the house with the goals of living there with his family and paying fitting tribute to his father. James had the house razed by the end of 1854, and rebuilding was completed by 1857. Local architect Thomas Lewinski designed the new structure, which utilized features of the original house: the footprint and foundation, floorplan, and massing. But Lewinski aided James in updating the house stylistically. With many Italianate features, the resulting mansion is a mix of Federal architecture and Italianate details. Inside, James employed Greek Revival features and decorated the home lavishly (see:Victorian decorative arts with imported furnishings purchased in New York City.

During the Kentucky University period, Regent John Bowman utilized part of the mansion to house and display the University Natural History Museum.

When granddaughter Anne Clay McDowell came to Ashland in 1883, she and her husband remodeled and modernized the house, updating it with gas lighting (later, electricity), indoor plumbing, and telephone service.

The farm:

The cash crop grown on the farm was hemp. Merino sheep and six other species of European livestock were imported and bred on the farm. Clay's record book of his breeding operation, including the Herefords which he introduced, is now displayed at Ashland.

References:

1 Clay's first purchase was a 125-acre (0.51 km2) tract. Contract at Ashland, The Henry Clay Estate. 2 Clay put a notice in a local paper asking for the return of a lost horse and listed his home as Ashland.
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