Street Scenes, Fort Thomas, Kentucky

City Building & Fire Department

Ft. Thomas, The Midway, 1908
Interesting trivia on card on left is here.

Fort Thomas Avenue, Looking North
from in front of Dietrich's Club House

Fort Thomas & Grand Avenues

Fort Thomas, but where in Fort Thomas?
If you've got thoughts, you can email me here.

The Masonic Building
Fort Thomas Lodge F. & A. M. No. 808

The lodge was organized at the Central School House, at Mt. Pleasant & Bluegrass
on March 30, 1908, and the first meeting at their new temple was on
December 27, 1909. It cost $5,747.04. The rejected an offer for it
from "the Presbyterians" in 1925 for $15,000.

Fort Thomas Business District, 1948

Fort Thomas Business District

Street Scenes, Kentucky Highlands, Fort Thomas, KY

District of the Highlands VFD
"The Chemical Wagon"

Fort Thomas VFD
left, 1929, right 1941
personnel in the right photo are detailed here.

1883 Map of Highlands Area

Looking from Grandview towards the YMCA
note the street car turning around

Street Scene, 1929

Street Scene in Fort Thomas

"A few days ago a large oiled-paper balloon gracefully swept down upon the meadows at Mrs. Cumming's, at Highlands, four miles from Newport, Ky. An examination revealed the legend 'Carrie Lente, East New York, Long Island,' in a lady's chirography." from the New York Times, July 22, 1883.

The New Post Office, 1941
The cornerstone was laid on April 27, 1940.

We know this scene today as the Memorial Parkway

left, Fort Thomas, Kentucky, The Covington Reservoir
center, Fort Thomas, Kentucky, The Covington Reservoir
right, The Reservoir in Military Park
(Same site as card on left)

This is Major Samuel Bigstaff. What did he do, you ask? Well, he came to Newport as a prisoner, having been wounded in the Civil War (he rode with Morgan), married a local girl, became a lawyer, worked for the company that built the Cincinnati Street Railway System, developed the Cote Brilliante section of Newport, created the streetcar lines to Fort Thomas, personally convinced General Sheridan to move Newport Barracks to the Fort Thomas site, laid out the Bonnie Leslie section of Bellevue, built the old Shortway Bridge, built the Inverness Country Club . . . Read the Jim Reis bio of him here. This is the man responsible for Fort Thomas, if not all of Campbell County, being what they are.

This is Joe Ross Bridge, across I-471.

Jack "Bullett Jack" Thoney
Major League Baseball Player from Fort Thomas
You can find his career stats here.

Did you know there was a Fort Thomas in Arizona? Here.

Dispute over building the Highlands / Fort Thomas Post Office, 1894, here.

Remember when they drove Elmore's, Fords, and Herreshoff's in Fort
Thomas? Fort Thomas Auto Registrations, 1910 and 1911, are here.

C. B. Truesdale compiled a legal and incorporation history of Fort Thomas. You can read it here. (pdf) His cover letter, almost as long, is here. (pdf)

"The police of Fort Thomas are to be commended in their effort to stop speeding on the streets of Fort Thomas. Three children have lost their lives in the last 18 months. One child has been severely injured - this child happened to be the child of one of the policemen. The speed limit in the city proper is 15 miles in the congested district and 20 miles on all streets in the city. This safety measure is being rigidly enforced. Signs have been placed in the city limits warning the people of the speed law." from Motour, June, 1930.