"Kentucky: A History of the State" by W. H. Perrin, J. H. Battle & G. C. Kniffin  

(copyright 1887) 

(transcribed by Cathy Schultz)

EDMONSON COUNTY was formed in 1825, and was the seventy-ninth organized in the State.  Hart, Warren, and Grayson contributed to its territory, and it was named in honor of Capt. John Edmonson, a Virginian, who came to Kentucky in 1790 and settled in Fayette County, and who commanded a company of riflemen in Col. John Allen’s regiment, and was killed in the disastrous battle of the River Raisin.  Green River divides the county, flowing from east to west nearly through the center, and with its tributaries affords excellent drainage.  It is bounded on the north by Grayson County, on the east by Hart and Barren, on the south by Warren, on the west by Warren and Butler, and by the last census (1880) had 7,222 inhabitants.  The land is rolling, and in places rough and hilly; upon the whole the county is rather a poor one as regards agriculture, but it is rich in natural wonders and in mineral wealth.  In this county is the world-renowned Mammoth Cave; in different parts of it are mineral springs, and coal is considered almost inexhaustible.  The census of 1880 shows the number of bushels of corn raised to have been 328,159; wheat. 22,858; pounds of tobacco, 450,676, and other crops in similar proportions.

                Brownsville, the seat of justice of Edmonson County, is a small village of only a few hundred inhabitants.  It was laid out in 1828, and was named for Gen. Jacob Brown.  It is situated on Green River, and is near the center of the county.  It is well supplied with churches and schools.  Other villages and post offices in the county are Rocky Hill, Cornelian Springs, and Big Reedy.  None of the towns and villages are of large size.

                Edmonson County is almost without railroads; the Louisville & Nashville passes through the southeast corner – Rocky Hill Station being in this county.  More railroads would go far toward developing the material resources and enriching the county and people.  The land was not settled as early as some portions of southern Kentucky, and being a portion of Warren County originally, its early settlement is closely connected with the latter.

                The Mammoth Cave, one of the greatest natural wonders of the world, and the largest cave ever discovered or explored, is in this county.  It is only half a mile from Green River, and about eight miles from the Louisville & Nashville Railroad.  Visitors usually debark from the road either at Cave City or at Glasgow Junction.  For an excellent historical description of this great wonder of nature, the reader is referred to Appendix A, page 583, of this volume.  But the Mammoth is not the only cave in the county.  There are several others, but of much less note, as well  as other natural wonders.

                Indian Hill is one of those peculiar elevations common in Kentucky.  It is about a mile in circumference, and rises gradually and with great regularity on all sides except one, which is nearly perpendicular, to a height of nearly 100 feel above the level of the surrounding plain.  Upon the summit of the hill were indications of a fortification, and in the immediate vicinity were a number of mounds and burial places.  Not the least curiosity of the place is a fine spring of water issuing from the rock on the brow of the hill.  Dismal Rock, on a small stream called Dismal Creek, is a perpendicular rock rising to an altitude of 160 feet.

JOHN A. BUTTRAM, son of William and Jenny (Parker) Buttram, was born January 24, 1849, in Scott County, Tenn.  His parents, also natives of Scott County, had a family of seven boys and three girls, of whom John A. is the fourth son.  William Buttram was a farmer, and a son of James and Gillie (Keetin) Buttram, who were of Irish and Dutch descent respectively.  John A. was reared on a farm, and at the age of fourteen enlisted in Company H. Fifty-second Kentucky Federal Volunteer Infantry, and served until the close of the war.  He then engaged in farming about one and a half miles from his present place, in Edmonson County.  February 20, 1865, he married Sarah A. Johnson, daughter of John and Mary (Wells) Johnson, and to their union have been born Laura J., Mary E., William D., Edward V, Benjamin C, Marcellus A., Jesse A and Junietta (deceased).  Mrs. Buttram is a member of the Baptist Church.  Mr. Buttram has held the offices of marshal, constable and deputy sheriff of Edmonson County, and is now serving as assessor.  He owns 140 acres of land, seventy of which are under cultivation, and conducts a saw and grist-mill.  He cast his first presidential vote for Gen. Grant.

  JACOB M. DUVALL, son of Gabriel and Ellen Duvall, is the third in a family of three boys and two girls, and was born in April, 1848, in Edmonson County, Ky.  His father, Gabriel Duvall, a son of Jacob and Elizabeth Duvall, was reared on a farm; at the age of nineteen he married Ellen French, and commenced farming in Edmonson County.  At the age of thirty he moved with his family to Jasper County, Ill., where he and his wife both died.  After their death the children were reared by their uncle, Thomas Duvall, who brought them back to Edmonson County, Ky.  At the age of twenty-one Jacob Duvall began for himself; he raised a crop, and in the fall taught school for one term, and has since taught four terms.  In February, 1874, he married Patie Jones, who was a native of Kentucky.  To Mr. and Mrs. Duvall the following children were born:  Vitruly, Iduna, Ulysses, Cora Bellmar, and an infant daughter.  Since his marriage Mr. Duvall has followed farming, and now owns about 600 acres, of which 160 acres are under cultivation; he also trades in stock, and is one of the enterprising men of his community.  He served as sheriff one year by appointment; in politics he is a Democrat.

  L. M. HAZELIP was born in Edmonson County, Ky., July 28, 1832.  He is the sixth in a family of ten boys and six girls born to Merry and Jane (Stranger) Hazelip.  He was reared on a farm, and at the age of twenty began life for himself.  He worked one year for his brother, and then commenced farming on his own account, which he followed for about four years.  He then engaged at shoe-making at Brownsville, which trade he followed for two years; then attended Camden Seminary, Barren County, for five months, after which he returned home and attended school three months.  He then taught three terms of three months each – two terms in Allen County and one term in Edmonson.  Later he commenced the study of law with Veachel H. Jones at Glasgow, Ky., and was admitted to the bar in 1862.  He commenced the practice of his profession at Brownsville, where he still continues, meeting with good success.  Mr. Hazelip’s home is on a farm one and a quarter miles west of Brownsville.  He owns 500 acres, about 225 of which are under cultivation.  By his first marriage, which occurred in 1854, two daughters were born.  His second marriage took place in 1868, with Ester J. Madison, who has borne him six children – three boys and three girls.  Mr. Hazelip was elected county attorney in 1863, and afterward served two terms by appointment.  He was elected to the State Legislature in 1867, and served one term; was elected county judge in 1874, and served two terms.  Politically he is a Republican.  Mrs. Hazelip is a member of the Baptist Church.

  JOHN L. HAZELIP was born January 10, 1849, in Edmonson County, Ky.  He is the fourth of two boys and two girls born to Martin and Elizabeth (Jolly) Hazelip.  The parents were both natives of Edmonson County; the father was a farmer and died in that county; the mother is still living.  John L. attended the common schools, and later the college at Cave City, about fifteen months.  After his return from college he wrote for about two years in the office of the county clerk; was then appointed deputy sheriff, and served about three years: he also served as Deputy United States Marshal one year.  In 1878 he was appointed quarterly court clerk  and served until 1879, during which time and for a short afterward he studied law.  In March, 1879, he was admitted to the bar, and has since been engaged in the practice of law at Brownsville; he is now a law partner of P. F. Edwards, of Bowling Green.  He married October 25, 1881, Alice Rountree, daughter of O. H. and Elizabeth Rountree, and to them have been born Bertha E., July 27, 1882; Lillie R., December 24, 1883, and Dona, August 21, 1885.  Mr. Hazelip and wife are members of the Missionary Baptist Church.  He has been master commissioner of Edmonson Circuit Court for five years.  Politically he sides with the Republicans.

WILLIAM R. HUFFMAN, the eldest in a family of nine children, was born June 29, 1847, in Barren County, Ky., to S. A. and Elizabeth Huffman, natives of Barren County, Ky. S. A. Huffman is of German descent; he was born and reared on a farm, and is still engaged in agricultural pursuits.  At the age of twenty he married Elizabeth Phelps.  Her father, William Phelps, was a native of Virginia, and came to Kentucky at an early date.  William R. Huffman married Elizabeth J. Woosley, a daughter of Joseph Woosley, and to them have been born Annie E., Cordelia A., Albert A., Thomas and James H.  Mr. Huffman went to Booneville, Ind., at the age of twenty, and served as an apprentice three years in a blacksmith shop under James Ellison. From there he went to Smiths Grove, where he started a blacksmith shop and remained one year; then went to Durbin's Precinct, Edmonson County, and engaged at his trade for six months; then came to his present place near Bee Spring, where he is still working at his trade; he also has a store of general merchandise at this place.  Mr. Huffman served eight months as a private in the Federal Army.  For two years he was constable at Bee Spring.  Politically he is associated with the Democratic party.

JUDGE AARON LAWSON was born January 31, 1833, in Barren County, Ky., where he grew up, and in 1857 removed to Edmonson County and located at Brownsville, where he remained until 1868.  He then removed to Horse Cave, Hart County, where he remained two years, after which he removed to his present residence in Edmonson County.  His father, Aaron Lawson,  Sr., was born in Hardin County, Ky., in 1792.  He was a farmer and son of David Lawson, who was born in Kentucky, and was of Irish descent.  Aaron Lawson, Sr., married, about 1812, Elizabeth, daughter of William Rose.  From this union sprang Jonathan, Mary (Williams), Bennett, Catharine (Clark), William (deceased), Thomas M., Elizabeth (Bowles), Sarah (Lawson),  Aaron and Frances M. (Johnson).  Judge Aaron Lawson married, September 9, 1858, Ursula, daughter of John and Margaret (Gott) Walker, of Edmonson County. To them have been born Sarah A., Robert N., Emma, Nettie, John W. and Maggie E.  Judge Lawson began life first as a farmer for one year, and afterward as county and circuit clerk of Edmonson County.  After about seven years spent in this way he again engaged in farming, and was afterward elected county judge of Edmonson County, which position he now holds.  He, his wife and four children are members of the Christian Church, to which he has belonged for about twelve years.  The Judge is a bright member of the Masonic fraternity, in which he has taken the Royal Arch degree.  He is one of the influential men of his county, and in politics is a Democrat and Prohibitionist.
 

JAMES S. LAY was born October 21, 1853, in Warren County, Ky., to John W. and Mary Jane (Dishman) Lay, natives of Jackson County, Tenn., and Warren County, Ky.  He is the eldest in a family of four boys and four girls; two of each lived to maturity.  John W. was a son of Stephen B. and Elizabeth (McNew) lay, natives of North Carolina and Tennessee, respectively.  He came to Warren County, Ky., about 1840, and engaged in farming until 1879, when he located on a farm near Brownsville.  Stephen R. immigrated in an early day with his parents to eastern Tennessee, and after his marriage he moved to Barren County, Ky.; thence to Warren County, Ky., where he is still living, at the age of about seventy-nine; he was a captain in the State militia, and is the son of John Lay, who married Polly Blevins, of North Carolina.  They emigrated to east Tennessee, thence to Kentucky, where they were engaged in farming until their death.  John Lay was a slave-holder and a solder in the war of 1812; he was of English descent. Mrs. Mary Jane Lay was the daughter of James and Esther (Keel) Dishman, natives of Botetourt County, Va., and Warren County, Ky., respectively. James S. was reared on a farm, and after attaining maturity taught school four years in Warrren and Edmonson Counties.  In 1878 he commenced the study of law with Judges J. E. Halsell and Mitchell, of Bowling Green, and was admitted to the bar the same year.  In 1879 he located at Brownsville, and engaged in the practice of his profession, meeting with success.  In August, 1882, he was elected county attorney.  He married, October 25, 1878, Fannie Lewis, of Warren County, a daughter of William M. and Elizabeth Lewis, natives of Warren County, and of French origin.  Mr. and Mrs. Lay are members of the Christian Church, and are the parents of two sons, Clarence C. and Harold A., and one daughter, Vera Shelley.  Mr. Lay was formerly a Granger, and cast his first presidential vote for S. J. Tilden.

  JOHN W. LEWIS, a son of Nimrod and Matilda (Isbell) Lewis, was born January 6, 1837, in Warren County, Ky., and is the eldest in a family of three boys and three girls.  Nimrod Lewis, a native of Virginia, was born in 1802, to Joseph and Nancy (Faulkner) Lewis.  He was reared on a farm, and in 1818 came to Kentucky with his parents.  In 1836 he married, and followed farming up to the time of his death.  He was, or had been, a member of the Methodists and his wife of the Christian Church.  John W. Lewis was reared on a farm, attended the common schools, and enjoyed the benefits of the Craddock fund in connection therewith.  At the age of nineteen he began teaching school in Warren County.  In his twenty-third year, he attended Camden Seminary five months.  This institution was conducted on Methodist principles by Rev. J. P. Murrell.  Since then Mr. Lewis has farmed and taught.  He married, in 1865, Martha J. Hamilton, daughter of Edwin and Millie A. Hamilton, and to their union were born two children:  Benjamin R. (deceased) and Clinton C.  Mr. Lewis is a local preacher in the Methodist Church, of which church his wife is also a member.  Mr. Lewis has been a member of the Masonic fraternity for twenty-two years.  He owns 320 acres of improved land, 120 acres of which are under cultivation.  In politics he is a Democrat, and held the office of constable one term.
 

E. E. PARSLEY, son of John and Mary (Wells) Parsley, was born April 8, 1857, in Monroe County, Ky.  His parents were natives, respectively, of Tennessee and Kentucky and were both members of the Baptist Church.  John was a son of Anthony and Elizabeth Parsley, who were also natives of Tennessee.  He was reared on a farm and on arriving at manhood peddled crockery-ware through Tennessee and Kentucky until he was about thirty-five years of age.  He then engaged in farming, which he followed until his death.  His wife, Mary, was a daughter of Gideon and Elizabeth Wells.  E. E. Parsley was reared on the farm until about fourteen years of age; he then attended school and received the prize for scholarship at an academy taught by J. G. Hardy; later he taught four terms of five months each, and one term of three months.  At the age of twenty-two he commenced farming, which he has since continued.  In 1881 he married Sarah A. Rich, daughter of Riley and Nancy Rich, who has borne him three children: Bertha R. and Dorothy W. (twins), and Ralphord H.  Mr. Parsley held the office of constable six months; and is now road overseer.  He owns about 600 acres of land, in two tracts; in politics is a Republican, and with his wife a member of the Baptist Church.

WILLIAM C. PERKINS was born October 17, 1840, in Clinton County, Ky.  At the age of sixteen years he removed with his parents to Barren County, and after spending four years in Monroe County, one year in Iowa and eight years in Monroe County, in 1873 he located in Rocky Hill Station, Edmonson County, where he now resides.  His father, Christopher Perkins, was born in Garrard County, Ky., in 1804.  When a small boy he removed with his parents to Clinton County, Ky.  He was a farmer and a son of Joseph Perkns, who was also a native of Garrard County, Ky., born about 1770.  He was a farmer and an extensive stock raiser and dealer, besides which he engaged in the distilling business, and owned a hotel and mineral springs near Albany.  His father was a soldier in the Revolutionary war and of English descent.  Christopher Perkins married Miss Rachel Wright, daughter of Ephraim Wright, of Cumberland (now Clinton) County, Ky.  From this union sprang four sons and four daughters, of whom William C. is the fifth child.  William C. married, October 11, 1866, Betty, daughter of Lewis and Rhoda Peck.  To them have been born Bruce, Eugene and Benton.  Mr. Perkins started in life without capital, but by industry and close economy has acquired for himself a competency.  He engaged in various mercantile pursuits until 1873, when he began the dry goods business at Rocky Hill Station, where he has since continued.  He is the owner of fifty-seven acres of well-improved land, in good condition, and a home which is numbered among the best in his county.  He is also a senior partner in a good store well stocked with general merchandise, aggregating in value about $10,000.  He also has a hotel, and has just completed a tobacco factory, which is one of the largest and most attractive in the State, and  has one of the best store-houses on the Louisville & Nashville Railway.  Mr. Perkins is a Charter member of the Masonic fraternity, and in politics a Democrat.

J. J. ROBERTS, son of John and Rebecca (Danaldson) Roberts, was born in Fleming County, Ky., June 8, 1824, and is the third in a family of four boys and one girl.  His parents were both natives of Kentucky.  John Roberts was a farmer, and died when J. J. was quite young.  Mrs. Rebecca Roberts was born in Clark County; her parents were natives of Virginia, and her mother was a relative of Gen. George Robert Clark.  After her husband's death Mrs. Roberts married Joseph Robb, who served as circuit
and county clerk of Lewis County, Ky., under appointment and election for forty-five years.  Subject's maternal grandfather - Danaldson - was a soldier in the war of 1812.  J. J. Roberts lived on a farm with his mother until eleven years of age.  He then resided with his uncle at Flemingsburg, and attended an academy for two years.  He then engaged as clerk for his uncle in a general merchandise store at Rockville, Ind., where he remained until 1853, when he returned to Lewis County and served as deputy county clerk under Joseph Robb until 1855.  He then traveled until June, 1857, when he located at the Mammoth Cave and engaged in the mercantile business until the early part of 1880.  He next went to Glasgow Junction, and thence in August, 1882, to Brownsville, where he engaged in the general merchandise business, which he still follows.  He carries a stock valued at about $1,500, and is doing a good business.  He also owns sixty acres of land near the Mammoth Cave.  July 4, 1861, Mr. Roberts married Mary Hunt, and to their union two children were born:  Mary R., now nineteen, and James W., aged fifteen years.  Mrs. Roberts and daughter are members of the Baptist Church.  Mrs. Roberts is a Democrat, and was appointed postmaster August 8, 1885.

DR. J. R. ROOF, son of N. A. and Ruby Roof, is the eldest in a family of four boys and five girls, and was born January 16, 1822, in Hardin County, Ky.  N. A. Roof was born in Virginia, and was of German descent.  He came to Hardin County, Ky., when a boy with his parents, and followed farming. He married Ruby Rhodes, a daughter of Daniel and Elizabeth Rhodes, and at the time of his death he owned a farm of 192 acres.  Dr. Roof lived on a farm with his parents until he was twenty years old.  He then commenced farming for himself, and followed that occupation until 1863, when he enlisted in the Union Army and served through the war.  He was appointed steward in hospital [sic], and served as such until the close.  On his return home from the army he commenced the practice of medicine in Edmonson County, and still follows that profession.  He married Sallie Skaggs, daughter of James and Elizabeth Skaggs, and to them were born Elizabeth, in 1842; James A., 1844; Nicholas, 1846; Ruby F., 1849; Fereby A., 1851; Martha J., 1855; Mary W., 1857; Kitty A., 1859, and William F., 1862.  Mrs. Roof died in March, 1885, a member of the Missionary Baptist Church.  Dr. Roof lives on and owns a farm of 200 acres three miles southwest of Brownsville.  In politics he is a Republican.

J. B. TOME is the youngest of the two children of James and Elizabeth Tome, and was born in Grayson County, Ky., August 21, 1840.  James Tome, a son of Anderson Tome, was reared on a farm, and at the age of eighteen married Elizabeth Woosley, a daughter of Thomas Woosley.  He engaged in farming in Edmonson County, and at his death owned the farm on which J. B. now lives.  Anderson Tome was born in Virginia; came to Kentucky at an early day, and served as a soldier in the war of 1812.  The
great-grandfather of J. B. Tome fought in the Revolutionary war, and while returning home to Kentucky, after the battle of King's Mountain, was captured and scalped by a band of Indians, who left him, as they supposed, dead.  He recovered, however, and managed to crawl to a road near by, where he was picked up and cared for by a party of soldiers, and lived for many years after.  J. B. Tome lived with his mother until he was nineteen years of age.  He then enlisted in the Confederate Army, with which  he served fifteen months, and participated during that time in several skirmishes.  On his return from the army he engaged in farming, and now owns 200 acres of land, and carries on a store of general merchandise.  In 1865 he was united in marriage with Rebecca Miller, who has borne him eleven children:  Tomas, Arty M., Elizabeth, Clary, Hannibal, Hasdrubal, Hammilker, Laura, Fernando and two infants (twins).  Mrs. Tome is a member of the Christian Church. 

WILLIAM K. WALKER was born February 25, 1842, about seven miles east of Bowling Green, Warren Co., Ky.  When about eighteen months old he was brought by his parents to Butler County, and located at Reedyville, where he remained about thirteen years, and from whence he removed to Edmonson County and began farming for his father near Brownsville.  In 1867 he removed to Horse Cave, and in 1869 to Rocky Hill Station, Edmonson County, where he now resides.  His father, John Walker, was born in 1807 in Virginia.  He was a farmer by occupation, and a son of Robert Walker, who was also a farmer and of Irish descent.  John Walker married, about 1828, Margaret Gott, whose father was a soldier in the war of 1812.  From this union sprang seven sons and three daughters, of whom William K. is the eighth child.  William K. married, September 5, 1868, Louvisa H., daughter of George T. and Louvisa (Patton) Fishback, of Clark County.  To them have been born Maggie A., George T. (deceased), Betsey, Cora, Clarence and Lulu.  Mr. Walker commenced life for himself at the age of twenty-one years, as a farmer and speculator in stock and leaf tobacco.  At the age of twenty-two he began the dry goods business at Brownsville.  After about three years he again embarked in the tobacco business, in which he has since engaged with fair success.  He is the owner of thirty-two acres of well improved and productive land, besides a good house and lot at Rocky Hill station.  He is a member, with his wife, of the Christian Church, and is numbered among the largest dealers of leaf tobacco on the line of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad.  He handles about 500 hogsheads yearly. Mr. Walker is also a member of the Masonic fraternity, and in politics is a stanch Democrat, being chairman of the Democratic County Committee. 

JOSEPH A. WISE was born December 20, 1849, near Cromwell, Ohio Co., Ky. He is second in a family of three children, two of whom are living.  His parents, Philip and Elizabeth (Glazebrook) Wise, were both members of the Christian Church.  Philip Wise followed the business of tanning as a life occupation, and at the time of his death owned 400 acres of land one-quarter of a mile from Brownsville.  He married Elizabeth Glazebrook, daughter of William and Polly T. Glazebrook, the former of English and the latter of Welsh descent.  Joseph A. lived on a farm with his parents until about twenty-four years of age, and since then has farmed for himself.  He attended the common schools until twenty-one years old, and then a school at Smith's Grove for a short time.  He next went to Lexington to the college of arts, and has since taught two years in Edmonson County.  He married, at Lexington, in June, 1874, Louisa Carroll, daughter of Mordecai and Frances Crutchfield, of English descent, and members of the Christian and Methodist Churches, respectively.  Mrs. Wise was the widow of James C. Carroll, and by him had two children:  J. W. and Elliott A.  To Mr. Wise and wife have been born Harry A., March 30, 1875, and Benjamin F., August 11, 1876.  Mr. Wise was elected sheriff of Edmonson County in 1880, and re-elected in 1882.  He resigned in 1883.  He owns a half interest in a 400-acre farm one-quarter of a mile from Brownsville; is a member of the Masonic fraternity and a Republican.

THOMAS J. WOOSLEY was born December 16, 1840, in the western part of Edmonson County.  He is the sixth in a family of four boys and three girls born to Samuel and Rebecca (Blakey) Woosley, natives of Halifax County, Va., and Whitley County, Ky., respectively.  Samuel Woosley was a farmer, of English descent, and came with his parents to Whitley County about 1812
or 1815.  Soon after his marriage he came to Edmonson County, where he was engaged in farming and stock trading.  His first office was that of a constable; he then represented Edmonson and Butler Counties three terms in the Lower House of the State Legislature.  In 1860 he took the census of Edmonson County.  He died in 1865.  His father, Samuel Woosley, came from Virginia; first settled in Whitley County and later in Edmonson Co.  Mrs. Rebecca Woosley was a daughter of Curtis Blakely, of Whitley County. Thomas J. Woosley was reared on a farm, and remained with his parents until twenty-one years of age, when he engaged in farming.  In August, 1875, he was made deputy sheriff of Edmonson County, and filled that office for five years.  In August, 1880, he was elected circuit clerk, and in August, 1882, was elected county clerk, both of which offices he now holds.  He owns a farm of about 250 or 300 acres, partially improved.  Mr. Woosley is a member of the Masonic fraternity.  He cast his first
presidential vote for Gen. MacClellan.