Snapshot of Bullitt County in 1919

A century or so ago, the Louisville newspapers would occasionally send a reporter out to neighboring counties to check things out, and return with a "human interest" story for the paper.

In November 1919, such a reporter appears to have visited Shepherdsville, spoken to some folks and local officials, gathered some interesting "facts," and created the article transcribed below.

In this case, the reporter appears to have done a reasonably good job of gathering information, rather than simply listening for the "sensational" tidbits that might come his way.

So here we have a snapshot of life in Bullitt County in 1919.

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Special to The Courier-Journal

Shepherdsville, Ky., Nov. 14. - Bullitt County farmers are busy piling up wealth these days. Everybody who owns a farm, and practically everyone who works on one, no matter how poor he may have been at one time, now has a bank account.

Farm land that formerly sold for $40 to $50 an acre is changing hands at from $200 to #300 an acre, and the end is not in sight.

That there is bound to be a slump sometime nobody is disputing as farm property is bringing abnormal prices; but as long as prices continue to climb everybody in this community seemingly is happy, and the more venturesome are contining to buy at a big figure and sell at a larger one.

Illustrative of the big jump in farm values, a Bullitt County farm that sold for $6,000 just before the world war, brought $20,000 a few days ago.

With practically everybody prospering and "making hay while the sun shines," little thought is being given to matters political in the county. As it has done ever since there has been a Democratic party and Republican part, Bullitt County went Democratic in the recent election, giving Gov. Black a majority of 444 votes. Had not everybody been so busy or had the Republicans attempted to make an agressive fight in the county, the Democrats, in the opinions of leaders in both parties, would have rolled up 650 or 700 majority.

Lifts County Out of Debt.

This county is so safely Democratic that the Republicans never put up a ticket, but twenty-five years ago W. T. Morrow, Republican, was elected County Judge. He made the race as an independent, and was supported by Democrats and Republicans, who admired him for his business qualifications. When he went into office the county was $11,000 in debt, and when he went out she had in the bank to her credit $6,000.

Mr. Morrow is an uncle of William E. Morrow, secretary of the Louisville Board of Trade, and a distant relative of Gov.-elect Edwin P. Morrow.

Notwithstanding the fact that the Governor-elect received 126 more votes in Bullitt County in the recent election than he did four years ago, Gov. Black's majority over him in the county was twenty-six more than was that of A. O. Stanley. The county voted "wet" by 525 votes, although it was one of the first in the State to vote "dry" forty years ago.

Neither county nor town officials are growing rich off the salaries being paid them. So meager are their incomes from the offices held by them that practically all are compelled to look to something else for a livelihood. One of the four Magistrates of the county, M. F. Weller, recently closed his office here, packed his grip and went to Louisville, where now he is serving as motorman aboard a street car, the wages being paid street-car men proving too much of an inducement to be resisted.

The County Judge receives the munificent salary of $600 a year, and the jailer, Frank Monroe is paid $200 a year and "what he can make" feeding prisoners.

In view of the present high cost of food and the fact that jailers are allowed only 75 cents a day for each prisoner whom they feed, Mr. Monroe actually is operating the jail here at a loss, and is preparing to start a movement looking to a change in the law by the next General Assembly that will enable him and other Jailers throughout the State to charge $1.25 a day for each prisoner fed.

Office of Jailer "Lemon."

"Such a lemon is the office of Jailer in this county," Mr. Monroe said, "that my predecessor, Robert Lee, passed it on to my two years ago, one month before the expiration of his term."

Bullitt County residents are not proud of their roads. In fact, they are rather ashamed of them. The high cost of road construction, and the fact that the County Judge and the four County Magistrates constituting the Fiscal Court, are too busy earning a living through private pursuits to give all their time to official duties are said to be contributing causes.

Every male resident of the county between 18 and 45 years old is required to work the roads six days of every year, or hire a substitute, this being one of the few counties in Kentucky that clings to that system.

Dr. B. F. Shields, of Spencer County, will represent the Bullitt-Spencer district in the lower house of the General Assembly during the coming session, and Haynes Carter of Hardin County will represent the Senatorial district made up of Bullitt, Hardin, Larue and Meade counties. Senator Carter is a hold-over member of the upper branch of the Legislature and helped manage the campaign of Gov. Black when the latter was seeking the Democratic nomination for Governor.

Aside from a change in the law affecting Jailers and a revision of the tax law with a view to relieving the tax burden now being borne by farmers, Bullitt County is not expecting much of the coming session of the Legislature. This being an agricultural community however, there is a strong demand on the part of Bullitt County residents for a revision of the tax system.

Bullitt County is split in half by Salt River, that traverses the county from east to west. Although this stream is responsible for the fertility of the "bottom" lands, it goes on a rampage occasionally, overflowing its banks. AS a result of a recent overflow, approximately 150,000 bushels of corn were lost to farmers in the lowlands.

Ten years ago a part of Shepherdsville was under water, and was wholly submerged in 1854 by reason of the flood.

The town is without a Mayor, but is governed through a town board of five members, elected one week ago last Tuesday. Voters of the town neglected to elect a Board of Trustees one year ago, and as a result the legality of the old board from the date of election should have been held until the recent election when it ceased to function was in question. Because of that fact, many persons declined to pay town taxes, and the new board finds itself confronted by several knotty problems.

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