National Distillery

National Distillery

National Distillery

National Distillers

The first known commercial distillery in Jefferson County was built around 1860 by John Mattingly, on the banks of the Middle Fork Beargrass Creek, at Lexington Rd. & Gregory St.

Gregory St. was a block west of the intersection of Lexington Rd. & Payne St., on the north side of the street, the site of an apartment complex today.

This distillery was in a rural area surrounded by farmland, its neighbors were Cave Hill Cemetery (c.1848) to the south, and the Louisville and Frankfort railroad (c. 1850s) to the north.

By the 1880s, there were three large distilleries and eight warehouses, and by 1905, there were five distilleries located near the creek. Dozens of distilleries eventually became associated with the area over the years.

Other industrial complexes were built in the area, including livestock operations and the public workhouse. A mix of turn-of-the-twentieth-century housing developed around the industries and the area became known as Irish Hill.

The oldest known bourbon warehouse structure in Louisville, the Williams Warehouse (c. 1880), is still standing at this location. The Central Warehouse (c. 1885) is connected to it on the right. A now-demolished third warehouse, to the left, created a large complex for aging and storage.

In the early 1890s, the Elk Run Distillery was the first to build on the south side of Lexington Rd. The largest warehouse ever built was located there, on Payne St. It was twelve stories tall, completed in 1918, and demolished for a school building in the 1980s. The Nelson Distillery Warehouse (c. 1896) is still standing at the corner of Lexington Rd. & Payne St.

When Prohibition began in 1920 all of the distilleries were bought and used by the American Medicinal Spirits Co. By the time Prohibition had ended in 1933, all of the buildings had been purchased by National Distillers, and the complex was known as the Old Grand-Dad Distillery.

There was a history of distilling at this location for 154 years, until 1979, when National Distillers was acquired by Jim Beam. Today, the complex of buildings has a variety of uses and is known as Distillery Commons.

National Register of Historic Places

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GALLERY

Cedar Grove

Cedar Grove

Cedar Grove

Cedar Court

In 1925, an architect bought the block, which had been the Cedar Grove Academy, and created a subdivision. Some school buildings were torn down, others were repurposed, turning the largest one into an apartment building, while changing the style to Spanish, making Cedar Grove distinctively different than the rest of Portland.

www.portlandlouisville.com

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2909 Field Ave.

2909 Field Ave.

2909 Field Ave.

2903 Field Ave.

The history of Crescent Hill can be traced back to the original pioneer road of the 1780s. Upgraded as the Louisville-Lexington Turnpike in 1817, it is today’s Frankfort Avenue. With the coming of the Louisville-Frankfort Railroad line in 1849, Crescent Hill became a true suburb. Early structures were joined by splendid homes as many prominent Louisvillians chose the area as the location for their “summer residences.”

In 1853, at the site of the current Crescent Avenue, the Fairgrounds were constructed and for 20 years hosted state and national expositions. The stately Crescent Hill Reservoir and Park were constructed in 1879 and are still a mecca for residents today.

This Italianate residence known as the Milam Tandy House or Judge Emmett Field House was built in 1878. The home features a picturesque wraparound porch and a widow’s walk with balustrade.

www.crescenthill.us

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Louisville Public Warehouse

Louisville Public Warehouse

Louisville Public Warehouse

Louisville Public Warehouse

Built in the late 1800s as an Internal Revenue bonded warehouse to store whiskey that had been purchased by individuals as an investment. The company stored liquor that came directly from a distillery or customs warehouse, the company also bottled whiskey during prohibition.

The eight-story building had their business entrance on Main St. and an warehouse entrance one-story below, on Washington St., facing towards the riverfront wharf.

The clock tower and cast iron roof cresting are what make the building unique to Louisville.

Located one block east of the area known today as Whiskey Row.

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Federal

Federal

Federal

Federal
Named for the classicizing architecture built in the newly founded United States between 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815, the style shares its name with its era, the Federal Period.

The Federal style typically used plain surfaces with attenuated detail, usually isolated in panels, tablets, and friezes. It had a flatter, smoother façade and rarely used pilasters. It was a style influenced by ancient Roman architecture.

At the time, before there were many formally trained architects, a gentleman’s education included the ability to draw a idiomatic classical elevation plan for craftsmen, who where masons and carpenters, and who had knowledge of the classical vocabulary. They produced a vernacular, or localized version, of this style of architecture.

Louisville’s earliest townhouses were created in the Federal style. The few surviving Federalist buildings we have today are of the late Federal style.

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