News & Updates
The Kirkpatrick & Co Blog
Bluegrass History & Culture
Morris L. Levy | Building the Bluegrass
Lexington, Kentucky developer, builder, & realtor Morris Levy was a significant shaper of the Bluegrass landscape.
Born in Kiev before the turn of the century, Levy immigrated to Cincinnati before finding work in Lexington as a tailor. By the 1920s, he was immersed in Bluegrass real estate. In 1949, his company, [...]
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July 18, 2024
Magdalen Harvey McDowell | Bluegrass Architects to Know
“In a day woman’s sphere was thought to be confined to the drawing room, the kitchen and the nursery, [she] sought an outlet for her genius in painting, architecture, kindred activities.” Obituary, The Lexington Herald
As a young woman in Louisville
Born in Fincastle, Virginia in 1829, Magdalen Harvey McDowell was a [...]
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July 9, 2024
Why are so many Bluegrass roads “pikes”?
Many of our favorite rural listings can be found on old turnpikes. From Iron Works and Newtown to Pisgah and Greenwich, the Bluegrass is bursting with “pikes.” The origins of early Kentucky travel remains imprinted through the many roads bearing the names of these historic turnpikes.
As the Bluegrass became more [...]
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June 11, 2024
Keene, Kentucky | Historic Bluegrass Hamlet
This small hamlet in Jessamine County was first known as “North Liberty.” It was later renamed “Keene” when several Keene, New Hampshire residents moved there. The vibrant community quickly grew to include a grist mill, hemp factory & rope walks, tailor, hatter & more.
19th century Business Directory Map of Keene, [...]
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May 14, 2024
Herman L. Rowe | Bluegrass Architects to Know
1839-1913
Herman Rau was born in Genoa but educated in his homeland, Germany. After completing his degree in Stuttgart, he made his way to Chicago, anglicizing his name to “Rowe” and meeting his wife, Nellie.
Rowe was invited to supervise the building of “Old Main” at what is now the University of [...]
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May 9, 2024
Martin Geertz | Bluegrass Architects to Know
Martin Geertz 1854-1946
Largely forgotten, the architect Martin Geertz’s handiwork has outlived his legacy in the Bluegrass. Some of his works have even been misattributed in recent years. Arriving in Lexington, Kentucky in the 1870s, Geertz quickly developed a reputation for his versatility, designing buildings including “apartment flats”, lovely estates, cottages, [...]
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April 8, 2024
Paint the Town Chinese Vermillion! Vibrant Historic Paint Colors in Lexington
The Colorful Bluegrass
We’ve always known Lexington, Kentucky is a colorful place to live. We were surprised to find how literally true that was all along. From the earliest days in the “Athens of the West,” residents were enlivening their walls with punchy colors of paint.
Chinese Vermillion. Prussian Blue. Patent Yellow. [...]
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March 7, 2024
Thomas Lewinski | Bluegrass Architects to Know
When Thomas Lewinski arrived in Lexington in 1842, he was among the first professional architects in the region that included Gideon Shryock & John McMurtry. Born in London to a Polish father and English mother, Lewinski had pursued the priesthood before finding he was more suited to military life. The [...]
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February 26, 2024
Meet Alfred Cohen, Famed Bluegrass Muralist
Above, a young Martha Stewart trying her hand at painting a mural at her historic Turkey Hill farm
When marketing a historic home, we are always interested in a home’s decorative details. We document all the unique features as we help our clients seek a new steward. One detail we [...]
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February 18, 2024
Robert McMeekin | Bluegrass Architects to Know
Born on his family’s farm near Armstrong Mill, Robert Ward McMeekin’s forebears had received a land grant from the Virginia Commonwealth before Kentucky’s establishment in 1792. His pride in his homeland is imbued in his work. “I’ve always been preoccupied with the beauty and gracious lifestyle” of the Bluegrass, McMeekin [...]
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December 7, 2023