Main Street Looking East
Published by the Driskell Brothers of Ghent

An aerial view of Ghent from the College

Aerial of Ghent, taken from atop the Ghent College Building.  That's the Ghent Christian church's steeple.

 

                         

Main Cross Street, Ghent, circa 1910
both, Published by the Driskell Brothers of Ghent

In 1901 the Carrollton Democrat and the Ghent Times jointly ran a five-part history of Ghent

Part 1   Part 2     Part 3     Part 4     Part 5   

 

"Main Street Looking Toward River," Ghent, c. 1920

Street Scene, Ghent,
c. 1910

 The Ghent
Methodist Church

 

 

 An aerial view of Ghent, from Scott's Hill

The Ghent postcard has not been mailed, but is addressed to Miss Ruth Graham, Warsaw, KY, "Hi You kid, You can just bet I did tell C. what you said. Thanks for the pictures. Weren't you really glad I left? My departure seems to have brought you a streak of luck. Well, I am having a dandy time too. Call me up. Lovingly, Agnes

 

Scott-Land Gardens

Grand Opening of Scotland Gardens in Ghent was on July 4, 1934. Under new management at that point, it advertised a "Special Feature - Dancing," from 1 to 6 pm and from 8 pm to ?.   Music was by the Dillebar Orchestra from Louisville. Tickets for both sessions, $1 per couple.  They advertised swimming and picnic grounds would be open.  B. B. Robertson and H. M. Cogswell were the managers.
 

 

 Main Cross Street Before Fire of Dec 8, 1915, Ghent

 

Ghent's Attilla Cox

 

 Rev. S. T. Robinson, Pastor
 of the Second Baptist Church
 in Ghent, Ky. 1943

 

 

My Old Kentucky School, Ghent (Ghent College)
picture on the right is 1935
Gen. Robert E. Lee was invited to speak at it's dedication.  His regrets are here.

 



Lick Creek, near Ghent
While the card says "near Ghent", Lick
Creek runs from Bramlette to Sanders

 

Keene Drug Company's Store Harris Pool Room Ghent Barber Shop. That's
Sim Lowry in the left chair

 

Ghent Baptist Church, Inside and Out
Courtesy Kentucky Historical Society
Visit history.ky.gov regarding rights and reproduction

Ghent Baptist Church

A few words about Ghent Baptist are here.

A second account of the Church's beginnings is here.

The building was dedicated on October 19, 1883

 
 

This house is at the foot of Ferry Street in Ghent, Kentucky (over the hill from the Baptist Church).  There is a deed showing a house stood on the exact same spot as early as 1819, and it might be the same house.  Another memoir of Ghent dated the house to 1840.   It was the Charles Lake Keene Jr. home, later the home of his daughter Nannie Keene and her husband Joshua Morris "Dot" Craig, later the home of Dolly Craig and Henry "Mac" Smith, then it belonged to their daughter Caby Jean Smith Sibley, and is now the home of Caby Jean's son, Tom Sibley.
 

Ghent Christian Church.   History of the Ghent Christian Church is here.  (pdf)

The Walton Craig Home, Ghent 
left, You can see the old Ghent College in the background.  More about the Walton Craig home here.

Thanks to William Davis for the above five images!

 

Map of Ghent from 1883
To get your own Carroll & Gallatin 1883 Atlas, go here

In 1931, there were four chapters of the United Daughters of the Confederacy in the area covered by Northern Kentucky Views:  Newport, Covington, Maysville, and Ghent.  Details on the Ghent chapter are found here.

Free Talking Machines at Driskell's

Architectural detail on Tandy House

There's a web site dedicated to reporting how clean, or dirty, various
power plants are.  Click around on their site, here.  Ghent the
most polluting power plant in Kentucky?  They say yes.

At leest one person in Jent cared about how fokes speled wurds.  More here.

Citizens of Ghent hold a meeting in 1859.  New York Times notices it, and mocks it, in a story here.

Click Here for a history of Ghent from the
Carroll County Tourism site.

A Ghent wedding party takes a steamer to New Orleans, here.

“Carrollton, Ky., February 13. – “Aunt” Peggy Jones died at Ghent, Ky.  She was 124 years old.  Her oldest living child, Charlotte, is over 100 years old. These colored people have always lived in and about Ghent. Charlotte is active, and Aunt Peggy was a wonder for her age.”   From the Cincinnati Enquirer,  February 12, 1901

“The [steamboat] George W. Clark laid here until twelve o’clock last night, in order to accommodate the people of Lawrenceburg, Aurora, Rising Sun and Patriot, who go to attend a celebration of the Order of Odd Fellows at Ghent, Ky.”  From the Cincinnati Enquirer,  April 26, 1877

“The Board of Education [at Newport] last night elected Prof. C. H. Duncan, of Ghent, Ky., Principal of public schools.  Prof. Duncan is nearing the half-century milepost in life’s journey, and has held responsible educational positions at Nashville, Tenn., and at Ghent, Ky.  He is at present in Newport.”  From the Cincinnati Enquirer, July 12, 1901

The steamer Gen. Buell was detained at Ghent and Warsaw by the  Confederate home guard.  In 1866. Read the story here.

"Joshua Wayland, who lives just back of Ghent, killed 600 rabbits with a shotgun during the winter. He shipped most of them to Cincinnati."  Carrollton Democrat, February 8, 1879

It's said that the builder of the new jail in Ghent, sometime in the 1800's, spent some of his earnings for the job on alcohol, became drunk, and was the first man locked up in the jail.

"The Ghent Post Office is being moved into the Gay Griffith Building on the corner of Main Cross and Union Street."  Gallatin County News, Nov. 1, 1934

"While Mr. O'Sullivan was in Ghent, he stopped at the American House, kept by our friend, James P. Cox.  One day, an Irishman from Vevay called at the "American" evidently for the purpose of insulting Mr. O'S. Mr. Cox, seeing what he was at, caught him by the back of the neck, and by the seat of his breeches, and pitched him out in the street, telling him that no man should insult the guests of his house.  It is said that the Vevay Irishman left in a very short time, and is careful now how he talks when he visits Ghent since that memorable occasion."  from the Vevay Reveille, December 19, 1855

"The authorities of Ghent, Ky., together with many citizens thereof, were highly excited on Monday last, and arrested a young man on the charge of being an escaped horse thief, who was entirely innocent of the charge.  The young man was engaged in selling books by subscription.  The legal authorities of Ghent have laid themselves liable to heavy penalties by being too quick on trigger, and this case should be a warning to them in the future."  from the Vevay's Indiana Reveille, July 20, 1859

"A Ghent serenader sang 'I'm thinking love, of thee' when the descent of about four gallons of water from a second story window proved that her papa was thinking of him."  from Carrollton's Daily Democrat, October 13, 1870

"Many of our citizens enjoyed the rare privilege of crossing the river on the ice Sunday last. We noticed a large number of the citizens of Vevay in attendance at the Baptist Church in Ghent, where an interesting sermon was preached by Rev. William Johnson, to a large and attentive congregation."  from the Vevay Reveille, February 13, 1856

The 1908 Carroll County Yearbook says that
Ghent "has always been noted for its high educational attainments, and some of the best informed and brainiest people of Kentucky have their homes there."

“We learn, from the clerk of the mail boat, that Captain Cotter’s battery, which has been encamped near Louisville for some time past, left yesterday morning for Nolin [Ky., south of Elizabethtown].  We are also advised the mails to Ghent, Ky., have been suspended, because of the Secesh proclivities in that town.”  
From the Cincinnati Enquirer,    October 23, 1861

"Ghent, Ky., April 7th - The tobacco barn of Julius Inklie, containing two large crops - 1906 and 1907 - belonging to Inkie and three tenants, was burned by night riders.  Inklie had his interests pooled, but no so his tenants." from Maysville's Daily Public Ledger, April 8, 1908
Read more about night riders and the Kentucky tobacco wars, here.
  "A lively sensation was created last Friday evening by the educated bear kept at the buggy factory.  He got out of his cage and while passing J. K. Pope's store spied a hog and gave chase.  The hog ran into the meat shop and the bear pursued.  As soon as the bruin saw the fresh beef, he ceased pursuit.  He was got back to his cage with some difficulty, and has been docile ever since.  People along the street, especially the ladies in the millinery shop, enjoyed the scene with much zest." from the Carrollton Democrat, September 14, 1878.

“Ghent – March 6, - The town board has
 passed an ordinance requiring all persons
 living within the corporation of this place
 to be vaccinated. There are seven cases
 of smallpox in Carrollton, eight miles below
here.”  from the Williamstown Courier, March 9, 1898

"Warren Mitchell, one of the actors on Leon's Moral Sensation Show broke his leg while practicing on the  trapeze at Ghent last Friday." 
The Warsaw Independent, October 16, 1880.

The Daily Commonwealth, in Covington, carried these items from Ghent in 1883.

The Black Diamond Railroad proposed to cross the river at Ghent.  More here.

"Louisville, September 9. – Colonel Holman, of the First Kentucky Cavalry, captured the soi distant , Colonel Jesse, and 150 men yesterday afternoon.  They were encamped near Ghent, Ky., and being surrounded by Holman, surrendered without firing a gun.” 
The Cincinnati Enquirer, September 10,  1864

Confederate guerrilla chief Col. Jessie was captured in Ghent with 100 of his men on September 8, 1864.  Curiously, he was captured again (?!?) on April 25, 1865 at Eminence, Ky.

 

"Ghent, Ky., opposite our town, is doing a heavy business this Spring in shipping tobacco.  Last week, there were over fifty hogsheads shipped off, and this week the prospect is fair for a larger shipment.  The most of this tobacco, however, is raised in Owen county, and brought fifteen and twenty miles for shipment." 
 from Vevay's Indiana Reveille, May 14, 1858.

"Last Saturday night there was a huge row in the Colored Baptist Church at Ghent during a church entertainment, the participants all being Negroes.  Pistols and knives were freely drawn, but the only one hurt was Al Cheatham, who received a painful but not dangerous cut." 
 - The Daily Commonwealth, November 21, 1883.

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