On Aug. 9, I headed out US 27 (Paris Pike) to visit beautiful Bourbon County. This is probably my favorite road out of Lexington. The rolling hills and horse farms can be seen pretty much around the entire perimeter of Lexington, but Paris Pike has a definitive charm about it. Maybe it's the old stone fences...
I had been to Paris, Ky. a couple of times, but I had never been downtown. I was surprised to discover what I always assumed would be a lifeless, typical, small downtown, but it was actually fairly busy and bigger than I expected. There were several antique stores, a variety of different restaurants and some unique shops.
I went into a really big antique shop, called Ardery's Antiques on Main Street which had some really neat items from places all over the world. I also checked out Connie's Creations nearby, where I met Connie Means, the owner. She made many things from glass, such as stained glass decorations, decoupage plates, and cheese trays out of melted wine bottles. I bought a couple of the melted bottles (Ale-8 is for my friend Allison, a true Ale-8 lover).
I then walked down to the courthouse, which was built in 1905, and has been the fourth to stand on this site. This Beaux-Arts building has been referred to as the most beautiful courthouse in the state of Kentucky. It's the most beautiful I've seen... so far :) I'll see if it lives up to its reputation. 
I then came across Duncan Tavern, a house built in 1788 and served as a gathering place for local citizens as well as travelers including well-known early pioneers Daniel Boone, Simon Kenton and Michael Stoner. The building has been in continuous use since that time as a tavern or a boarding house and is now the headquarters of the Kentucky Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Duncan Tavern reopened to the public in 2003 after undergoing four years of extensive renovation.
On my way back, I visited the Paris Cemetery (est. 1847). The entrance to the cemetery had unusual cast iron pinnacles on the gatehouse's four towers. Monuments to honor the county’s fallen soldiers include the Confederate Monument, which can be seen in the photo on the left. One of the more famous people interred at Paris Cemetery is John Fox, Jr., author of Trail of the Lonesome Pine, which was the first book in American literature to sell more than a million copies. The original manuscript of Mr. Fox’s Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come can be seen at the John Fox Jr. Genealogical Library at Duncan Tavern. Getting back on 27 to head home, I stopped at a random horse farm to take some pictures, then some friendly Bourbon County horses said hello to me... or maybe they were just seeing if I had food :)
