Oldham County Fun Fact 9

Oldham County Fun Fact 9: Ohio River

This Oldham County Fun Fact 9 is about the Ohio River! Packet boats, similar to the one shown at Westport, piled the Ohio River with cargo and passengers. Most farms that bordered along the Ohio had their own landings to ship goods to Louisville and Cincinnati.

The county seat was first established along the Ohio River in Westport, which became a bustling river city in the early 1800s. Elijah Craig received the area as a land grant on May 22, 1780. He sold the 300 acre grant on April 25, 1796 to Joseph Dupuy and Harman Bowman. As the town continued to grow, warehouses were built along the Ohio River to accommodate hemp, flour, tobacco and pork, items that were shipped to New Orleans. The town was chosen as the county seat in 1823 and a courthouse established in what is now the Westport Methodist Church. The first Fiscal Court met at George Varble’s home in 1824. Westport was known at one time as Liberty.

Visit the Oldham County Historical Society for more Oldham County History.