April 28, 2025
Metropolitan Blues Allstars, 1982
An early version of the popular Kentucky-based band the Metropolitian Blues Allstars, which in October 1982 included, from left, Rodney Hatfield, Wanda Thompson, Nick Stump, Frank Schaap, Steve Lyon and Stewart Miller. Hatfield also dabbled in acting, appearing in the 1989 Patrick Swayze film Next of Kin, and later focused on visual art. Thompson died the following May while recovering from gallbladder surgery. Stump currently heads the Nick Stump Band. Schaap released a CD in 2009 titled Two Buskers’ Blues. Lyon, whose wife is current Kentucky poet laureate George Ella Lyon, remains active as a keyboardist as a member of Stump’s band. Miller teaches bass at University of Illinois-Chicago and performs at Chicago-area jazz clubs. Photo by Ron Garrison | Staff
Ben Snyder advertisement, 1941
A full-page advertisement in the Dec. 9, 1941, Lexington Leader for the Ben Snyder department store. The store was on East Main Street in downtown Lexington, now the site of the Fayette County courthouse plaza. Click on the image for a closer view.
Kentucky football’s Art Still, 1977
University of Kentucky football player Art Still pressured Vanderbilit quarterback Mike Wright on Nov. 5, 1977, in Nashville. UK won, 28-6. Still was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame on Tuesday in New York. Originally from Camden, N.J., Still played at Kentucky from 1974 to 1977 under coach Fran Curci. He helped the Wildcats to a 19-4 record in his final two seasons. Here is another photo from our archives of Still’s last game as a Wildcat. Photo by Ron Garrison | Staff
Louie B. Nunn’s inauguration, 1967
Louie B. Nunn, right, took the oath of office as he was sworn in as Kentucky’s governor on Dec. 12, 1967, in Frankfort. Administering the oath was Kentucky Court of Appeals Judge Samuel Stanfield. Between them was the new governor’s daughter, Jennie Lou, 15. Nunn’s wife, Beula, Kentucky’s new first lady, was hidden from view behind the governor’s arm. Nunn’s election in 1967 made him the first Republican to hold that office since the end of Simeon Willis’ term in 1947, and he was the last Republican to hold the office until Ernie Fletcher was elected in 2003. Tuesday is the inauguration of Matt Bevins, the first Republican governor since Fletcher. Herald-Leader Archive Photo
Pearl Harbor memorial, 1951
The Lexington chapter of the American War Mothers observed the 10th anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor by placing a wreath in the lobby of Memorial Coliseum in December 1951. From left, Mrs. Thurman Hagan, Mrs. L.H. Horlacher, Mrs. J.S. Carpenter, and Bart N. Peak, guest speaker at the ceremony. Monday is the 74th anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Published in the Lexington Leader on Dec. 7, 1951. Herald-Leader Archive Photo
Steve Beshear announces run for governor, 1987
Then-Kentucky Lt. Gov. Steve Beshear announced his candidacy for governor on Jan. 2, 1987 at Blue Grass Airport. Beshear would finish third in the Democratic gubernatorial primary. He ran for governor again in 2007, beating incumbent Ernie Fletcher. In 2011, Beshear was re-elected as the 61st governor of Kentucky. His last day as governor will be Monday. Photo by Jocelyn Williams | Staff
Stone Temple Pilots and Scott Weiland perform in Louisville, 2002
Stone Temple Pilots and lead singer Scott Weiland performed in a Kentucky Derby Week concert at the Louisville Palace on May 1, 2002. The band was one of the most commercially successful bands of the 1990s. Weiland died Thursday, Dec. 3, 2015. Photo by Mark Cornelison | Staff
Personal fire escape, 1947
F. R. Wilson, a Lexington inventor, demonstrated a portable fire escape with the help of Mrs. James Wells, a Bohmer Flying Service employee, in January 1947. Wilson, a representative of the Imperial Brass Manufacturing Co. in Chicago, said the five-pound device is a foolproof escape gadget that is compressed in a package no larger than a shoe. It consisted of 200 feet of steel cable 3/32nds of an inch thick, a spool on which the cable is wound, a seat harness and a breaking mechanism that had a capacity of 900 pounds. Published in the Lexington Leader on Jan. 21, 1947. Herald-Leader Archive Photo
Dual cleaning hose, 1986
Sanford Vice, a driver for Domino’s Pizza at Arcadia Park and Nicholasville Road, had a job on his hands July 24, 1986, as he tried to deal with a hose that wanted to spray in two directions at once. He was cleaning the parking lot in front of the business. Photo by Jim Wakeham | Staff
James E. Pepper distillery, 1951
The James E. Pepper Co., a Kentucky whiskey distillery on Old Frankfort Pike, in August 1951. The distillery was established in 1776 by Elijah Pepper and was the oldest brand of whiskey in the country until it ceased production in 1958. Herald-Leader Archive Photo
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