Constitution Square Historic Site facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Constitution Square Historic Site |
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| Type | County park |
| Location | Danville, Kentucky |
| Area | 3 acres (1.2 ha) |
| Created | 1937 |
| Operated by | Boyle County Fiscal Court |
| Open | Year-round |
Constitution Square Historic Site is a 3-acre park and open-air museum in Danville, Kentucky. It celebrates the early political history of the U.S. state of Kentucky.
From 1937 to 2012, it was a Kentucky state park. It was known by different names, like John G. Weisiger Memorial State Park and Constitution Square State Shrine. In 2012, the park became a county park, controlled by Boyle County, Kentucky. Its name changed to Constitution Square Historic Site.
The park has copies of three important buildings from the past. These include the courthouse where ten meetings took place between 1785 and 1792. These meetings helped Kentucky become a separate state from Virginia. The park also has the original building of the first U.S. post office west of the Allegheny Mountains. Many other old buildings from the early 1800s are also there. The site is part of the Constitution Square Historic District, added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. Fun events like the Great American Brass Band Festival and the Kentucky State Barbecue Festival happen here every year.
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History of Constitution Square
In 1774, pioneers built Fort Harrod, the first lasting settlement in Kentucky. Later, some of these settlers claimed land where Danville, Kentucky is today. In 1784, John Crow gave 76 acres of land to Walker Daniel to create the city of Danville. The city square was set up on this land. It was placed near the east end, not in the middle. This spot was about 500 feet from John Crow's Station. It offered a safe escape if there was an attack.
The Virginia General Assembly created the Judicial District of Kentucky in 1783. Harrodsburg was the first place for the court. But because it didn't have good buildings, the Supreme Court moved to Crow's Station. They ordered a courthouse to be built there. The courthouse was finished in March 1785 on what is now Constitution Square. The court met there until Kentucky became a state in 1792.
After the court closed, the square was not used much. In 1817, the city sold half of the square. They wanted to raise money for a school called Danville Academy. The city trustees later voted to sell the other half for the same reason. It seems Danville Academy was never built. The money was instead used to help start Centre College in Danville.
In 1817, Danville's leaders also let a group of Freemasons use the courthouse for free. Later, the Freemasons bought the courthouse and its land in 1828. A group of Methodists bought the land in 1834. They sold it to a Reverend Adams the next year. Adams bought more land and started a school for girls, but it did not last.
In 1854, the Danville Theological Seminary moved to Constitution Square. The brick courthouse became the main building for the seminary. During the American Civil War, it was used as a hospital. It helped treat wounded soldiers from both sides after the Battle of Perryville. The seminary closed in 1878. The main building got old and was eventually taken down.
How the Park Was Created
On October 15, 1937, Emma Weisiger gave the land for Constitution Square to Kentucky. She did this to honor her brother, John. The state made the land into a park. It was first called Old Public Square, then Constitutional Square. The Danville Chamber of Commerce and the American Legion started building copies of the jail, courthouse, and meetinghouse. These were built to look like the original buildings.
The park was officially opened on April 20, 1942. It was named the John G. Weisiger Memorial State Park. Later, its name changed to Constitution Square State Shrine. During World War II, new building projects were stopped. So, work on the park also paused. Speeches at the opening by Governor Keen Johnson and Centre College president Robert L. McLeod, Jr. talked about the war. They also praised the ideas of democracy. A special plaque was also put up. It honored the people who wrote the first Kentucky Constitution.
After the war ended in 1945, building work started again in 1948. This included fixing and re-roofing buildings. They also added furniture, walkways, signs, and plants to the park. The work was finished in 1955. From 1960 to 1968, a fence was added around the site. New lights and a diorama system were put in. A copy of the original pillory was built. Several buildings were also fixed up. An old brick schoolhouse from the 1800s became the park caretaker's home.
In the 1970s, Centre College president Thomas A. Spragens started projects to improve Danville. One project was to make Constitution Square bigger and fix important parts. Part of First Street was closed for this expansion. The business area for African Americans that faced the Ephraim McDowell House was removed. Grayson's Tavern, Fisher's row houses, the Goldsmith House, and the brick schoolhouse were all fixed up. The Governor's Circle was also added to the site.
A bronze statue of two men shaking hands stands in the middle of the Governor's Circle. This symbol is from the state seal. Plaques honoring each governor of Kentucky are around the statue. The Governor's Circle honors Isaac Shelby, Kentucky's first and fifth governor. Shelby is thought to be the reason Kentucky uses the motto "United we stand, divided we fall". This motto is also on the state seal. The Garden Club of Danville takes care of the plants around the circle.
In 2011, discussions began to transfer control of Constitution Square to Boyle County. The transfer happened on March 6, 2012. The county received a grant to improve the site. This grant aimed to make Constitution Square a center for the area's economy. Improvements included making buildings easier for people with disabilities to use. They also updated electrical and phone systems. A wireless network was installed to make the whole site a Wi-Fi hotspot.
In February 2013, the Kentucky Historical Society put up a historical marker in the park. It honors the African Americans who joined the Union Army during the American Civil War. In May 1864, 250 men, mostly slaves but some freedmen, marched from Danville to Camp Nelson. They were the first to join the army at this site. About 10,000 United States Colored Troops trained there.
On September 10, 2013, Boyle County leaders voted to give $100,000 to a local foundation. This money is for keeping the park well-maintained. The county gets 4% of this money each year to spend on park care.
Buildings at Constitution Square
Constitution Square is located between Main Street and Walnut Street. It is also between First Street and Second Street. It has one original building, the post office. It also has copies of the original courthouse, jail, and meetinghouse. These copies were built to be as real as possible, based on old records.
The Post Office
The post office at the north end of Constitution Square is an original building. It was built before 1792. It was the first U.S. post office west of the Allegheny Mountains. Thomas Barbee was its first postmaster on August 20, 1792. The first mail arrived on November 3, 1792. It was moved to its current spot in 1950.
The Courthouse and Jail
The District of Kentucky and its Supreme Court were created in 1783. When the court moved to Danville in 1785, they ordered a courthouse and jail to be built. Isaac Hite was chosen to build them, and they were finished in 1785. The jail was in the center of the square. The courthouse was between the jail and Walnut Street.
The court held its first meeting in Hite's courthouse on March 14, 1785. They met there until 1792. The Kentucky Council of War also met in the courthouse. Between 1785 and 1792, ten important meetings were held there. These meetings created the first Kentucky Constitution, adopted in 1792. The original courthouse was later replaced with a two-story brick one.
Not much is known about the original jail. Records show it was made of thick logs and had at least two cells. The copy of the courthouse in Constitution Square was finished in 1942. It holds items belonging to Kentucky's first governor, Isaac Shelby. These include his hunting bag, powder flask, and the chair where he died. The courthouse also has a picture of Shelby and some old Native American items.
The Presbyterian Meetinghouse
It is believed that John Crow built a meetinghouse on the square before 1784. But the first meetinghouse mentioned in records was built in mid-1784. It was for Presbyterian minister David Rice. A copy of this meetinghouse was built in Constitution Square in 1942. It is a one-story log building with a small bell tower. Rice's original meetinghouse was used by the first Presbyterian church in Kentucky. The first two Presbyterian ministers in Kentucky were ordained there in 1785.
Grayson's Tavern
Benjamin Grayson built Grayson's Tavern in Danville around 1785. It is an L-shaped building facing Walnut Street. It has an entrance on the south and a side entrance on the west, opening onto Constitution Square. Behind the tavern is the Mary Akin Memorial Herb Garden. It has many herbs grown in the area in the late 1700s and early 1800s. These include chives, fennel, honeysuckle, lavender, rosemary, sage, and thyme. The Garden Club of Danville takes care of it.
The Danville Political Club, a group that debated ideas, often met at the tavern. This club existed from 1786 to 1790. Many members became important political leaders. Eleven of the thirty members took part in the meetings that helped Kentucky separate from Virginia. Some members included Kentucky's first Secretary of State, James Brown, and its third governor, Christopher Greenup.
In 1787, Benjamin Grayson sold the tavern to Robert Craddock. Craddock turned it into his home. The copy of Grayson's Tavern in Constitution Square now holds offices for the Convention and Tourism Bureau and The Great American Brass Band Festival.
The Schoolhouse
Not much is known about the brick schoolhouse. It faces west onto Constitution Square. It is between the Watts-Bell House and Grayson's Tavern. People believe it was built around the same time as nearby buildings. They also think it was a private school. The Danville-Boyle County Convention and Visitors Bureau says it was built around 1820. It was the first brick schoolhouse west of the Allegheny Mountains.
The building has one story and two rooms. It has a stone foundation and brick walls. The entrance is off-center with a window above it. When Constitution Square was a state park, the park manager lived in the schoolhouse. After the park was given to Boyle County, the schoolhouse became a meeting center.
Fisher's Row Houses
Jeremiah Fisher built two row houses in 1817. They are joined by a shared wall and made of brick. These houses are on Second Street and face west onto Constitution Square. Fisher owned and rented them until 1850. After he sold them, they were used as apartments until the 1940s. Before the county bought the park, the Wilderness Trace Art League and Boyle County Historical Society Museum were in these houses. Now, they house the Danville-Boyle County Chamber of Commerce and other local groups.
Watts–Bell House
William Watts built the Watts–Bell House for merchant David Bell in 1816. It seems it was first built for public use. Bell's son, Joshua Fry Bell, who later became a legislator and Lieutenant Governor, grew up in this house. It is on Second Street, between Fisher's Row Houses and Grayson's Tavern. It also faces west onto Constitution Square. It is a two-story house with brick walls. Starting in 1839, the Danville Literary and Social Club met in the house. It now has offices and a meeting room for the Danville-Boyle County Economic Development Partnership.
Alban Goldsmith House
The Alban Goldsmith House was built before 1820. It is a brick house with one and a half stories. It faces west onto Second Street, away from Constitution Square. It is across the street from the Ephraim McDowell House.
Dr. Alban Goldsmith owned the house. He studied medicine with Ephraim McDowell. When McDowell performed the first ovariotomy (a type of surgery), Goldsmith helped him. Goldsmith later helped start the Louisville Medical Institute. In 1827, Goldsmith sold the house to Jefferson Polk. Polk was a newspaper publisher and later a doctor.
The Alban Goldsmith House now has the Constitution Square Museum Store. It also houses the Heart of Danville, a local group that helps the economy.
Events at Constitution Square
In April 1987, Danville's newspaper, the Danville Advocate-Messenger, started the first Rally on the Square. This was a political rally where candidates could speak and meet voters. Since then, the rally happens every four years in April, before the statewide elections. The first rally had a brass band from Centre College. This inspired the city to start the first Great American Brass Band Festival in 1990. The festival has been held every June since then. Constitution Square is one of the places where outdoor performances happen during the festival.
The first Constitution Square Festival was held in 1979. This event happened every year in September. It featured historical reenactments, crafts, food, and music. In 2009, the Kentucky Department of Parks stopped the festival due to budget cuts. But three local groups volunteered to run the festival without state money. They focused more on arts and renamed it the Constitution Square Arts Festival. This event continued until 2011 but was stopped in 2012.
Constitution Square has hosted a charity run every year since 1978. After Danville's Community Arts Center opened in 2004, a local businessman renamed the event Constitution Square 5K Run for the Arts. He organized it to raise money for the arts center. A local artist designs special awards for the winners.
In November 2011, the first Kentucky State Barbecue Festival was held in Constitution Square. This event was very popular. The next year, the festival was moved to September. The Southeast Tourism Society named it one of its Top 20 Events in the Southeast for September 2013.
Images for kids
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The Governor's Circle at Constitution Square
