My Old Kentucky Home State Park: See the Place that Inspired the Song
Among the many sights in historic Bardstown, Federal Hill at My Old Kentucky Home State Park serves as the main attraction. The Georgian-style antebellum mansion located within My Old Kentucky Home State Park, about an hour's drive south from Louisville, reportedly inspired Stephen Foster to write “My Old Kentucky Home” in 1852 after visiting his cousins, the Rowan family, who lived there.
Today, in the gardens surrounding Federal Hill, clarion bells atop the park’s open-air rotunda ring out the melancholy tune, the official state song of Kentucky, at intervals throughout the day. Guests can take in the scenic grounds on their own or stop by the visitor’s center at the park’s entrance for information.
Tours of Federal Hill are offered daily from March through December, with Wednesday through Sunday tours offered in January and February, according to park manager Alice Heaton. Guides who are outfitted in period costume escort visitors on tours of the stately mansion, providing insight into the history and lore of the former plantation.
The 13-room home is furnished with Rowan family heirlooms, which serve as some of the best examples of early American furniture in the nation. The number 13 served as a motif in the home’s construction supposedly to honor the 13 colonies that symbolized America’s independence from Great Britain. The walls measure 13 inches thick, while the front of the house has 13 windows, and 13 steps lead to each floor. Construction was completed in 1796.
In addition to Federal Hill, My Old Kentucky Home State Park features a scenic, peaceful landscape of gently rolling hills and woodlands. A 39-site campground offers utility hookups, a central service building with showers and restrooms, and a nearby grocery store and laundry. Pets are allowed if restrained. The campground is open mid-March to mid-November. A separate playground and picnic area are also part of the park.
Also located within the park, the Kenny Rapier Golf Course features an 18-hole course with bent grass greens and Bermuda grass fairways and tees.
The park’s gift shop includes locally handcrafted items such as pottery, quilts, hand-painted gourds, chairs and benches. Cookbooks, books on local history, Derby items as well as specialty food items such as cheeses, jams and bourbon candies are also available.
Posted on May 2, 2011 by Bobbi Buchanan
