In 1872, the family of Joseph H. Wright (deceased) leased a part of his farm to Samuel Carrothers where Carrothers was operating a distillery. After the widow Ellen Wright married William P. Burdett she deeded her interest in the farm to her children. This included the then named Sugar Valley Distillery property. Then in 1883, two of the children, J. E. Wright and Lydia E. O'Neal, exchanged their interest in the farm, minus the distillery property, to their brother James Douglas Wright for his interest in some ground in Louisville.
Then in 1885, at the behest of some of the children, the Bullitt Circuit Court ordered the sale of the distillery property and the proceeds to be divided amongst the seven children. At the sale, James Douglas Wright was the purchaser. In December 1885, he leased the distillery property to D. F. Brooks for a period of five years, as shown below.
Bullitt County Deed Book Z, Pages 512-513
We, James, D Wright, and Lily Wright, his wife of the county of Bullitt and state of Kentucky, owners and fee unencumbered of a attractive land in Bullitt County, Kentucky on which is situated grain distillery number 163 of the fifth district of Kentucky, and bounded as follows:
Beginning at a stake on the west side of the Louisville and Bardstown Turnpike Road, thence west 55 feet to a stake, thence north 417 feet to a stake, thence east 55 feet to a stake, thence south 80 feet to a stake, thence west, 18 feet to a stake, thence south 35 feet to a stake, thence east 18 feet to a stake, thence south 302 feet to the beginning;
Have this day, leased unto D. F. Brooks for the period of five years the above described premises, for distillery purposes and hereby consent and agree that the same may be used by said D. F. Brooks for distillery purposes for said period, subject to all laws of the United States, governing distilleries, hereby expressly stipulating that the lien of the United States for taxes and penalties shall have priority over all other leins or encumbrances and in case of the forfeiture of the distillery premises or any part thereof the title of the same shall be vested in the United States discharged from all encumbrances whatever.
In testmony whereof we have hereunto signed our names this the 31st day of December 1885. (signed) James D. Wright, Lilly Wright.
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The Bullitt County History Museum, a service of the Bullitt County Genealogical Society, is located in the county courthouse at 300 South Buckman Street (Highway 61) in Shepherdsville, Kentucky. The museum, along with its research room, is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Saturday appointments are available by calling 502-921-0161 during our regular weekday hours. Admission is free. The museum, as part of the Bullitt County Genealogical Society, is a 501(c)3 tax exempt organization and is classified as a 509(a)2 public charity. Contributions and bequests are deductible under section 2055, 2106, or 2522 of the Internal Revenue Code. Page last modified: 03 Jan 2026 . Page URL: bullittcountyhistory.org/bchistory/wright-distillerylease-brooks.html
