For generations, the old corridor that would become US 41 north
to south through Kentucky had seen everything from stagecoach to train to
automobile. Called the Buttermilk Road at one time, because farmers used to set
the drink out on front porches for horseback travelers though the rural areas.
On the Ohio, Henderson spouted up downriver of Owensboro and made a name for
itself quickly as a tobacco shipping port. Fortunes were made near the
Buttermilk Road as steamboats whistled. Today, the stretch of US 41 in Kentucky
has been supplanted by the Pennyrile Parkway running from Hopkinsville to the
outskirts of town. At Henderson, the parkway traffic dumps off onto a busy 41,
fraught with chain restaurants and chain shopping as Kentucky and Indiana
license plates all make a mad dash across the only bridge for Evansville,
Indiana. The lone slow spot a nearby State Park named for early settler and
famous birder James John Audubon.
Another highway runs east to west, however, and US 60 quietly
asks for a turn off 41. A few blocks west, and the other Henderson starts to
appear like a feature presentation after the previews. It’s an impressive old
metropolitan area with big buildings, big streets, and a big river within view.
Large old houses dating to the 1800s in several styles still align themselves
with the routes from downtown. Trees line medians. Flags wave from poles. Americana
winks.
Historic preservation happened from the start by design. The streets were laid out 150 feet wide, perhaps the widest in
Kentucky, in order to protect the business district from ever burning down all
at once. They didn’t want the fire jumping across the street. It still hasn’t.
In at least a couple places on the sides of brick walls, advertisement from the
early days read faded but clear. “Syrup of Figs Relives Constipation.” The
folks do walk a little lighter downtown.
At least once a year the steamer Delta Queen docks for a
spell and the patrons unload to see the history and shop at the local Simon’s Shoe
Store after grabbing a bite to eat at one of several riverside venues. A heathy
continuation of the trend for old riverboats recognizing the local vibrancy.
Rail travel picked up the pace where the steamboat era left
off. So much so, the new Tourism office was built reflecting the design of an old
depot nearby. Here, one can learn of the blues influence of the area. About the
famous Bon-Ton Chicken. Or about how Grandpa Jones hailed from nearby Niagara. Maybe
how Metzger’s has the best burger in town. Or how the Kentucky horse culture
stretches west, too.
Henderson has always had horses, even a racetrack. But
further west of 41, a stable now for the old guard that once raced to ride
youngsters around and teach horsemanship. Blue Moon Stables was the brainstorm
of a couple who didn’t know horses before deciding to get into horses. Now
years later, a sprawling campus of structures and happy animals. A champion
thoroughbred from the local Ellis Park calling it home and posing for pictures.
Old barns repurposed for eco-gatherings, their century old wood now decorated
from Pinterest inspired ideas. Mason Jars hung in a string of Christmas lights.
Rusty farm tools hanging untouched as symbols of a family’s work ethic. And hundreds
now gather on special days for the life on the farm that only hands-on can
promise.
Part of the culture that mixes with the commerce here equaling
a successful city anywhere. To say that Henderson was Kentucky’s next great
city would be a lie. It aready is a great city.
For more on the charm of Henderson, visit: www.hendersonky.org
-Special thanks to Kyle Hittner while on location in Henderson 
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