re: #23 ckkatz

Trivia Question - What was Ulysses S Grant’s name?

Bill

Seriously, you gave a pretty good summary of KY during the War Between the States aka the War of Northern Aggression aka the American Civil War, depending on your family history. But the divisions in the state between the Confederacy and Union were more complicated than just regional leanings. Often, families were split among North/South lines, often with brothers on opposite sides fighting each other. Some counties were majority Union, while neighboring counties could be majority Confederacy. Additionally, Louisville and Covington, as well as smaller towns along the Ohio, were key stations on the Underground Railroad.

I lived in Kentucky for nearly 30 years. I’m from New York. Soon after I arrived, I met a woman about my age who, when I told her where I was from, said in a voice thick with derision, “Oh, so you’re a Yankee.” She was not joking around. It was a jarring moment, to realize that 120 years after the end of the war there were still people who hated Northerners.

I imagine there are families in KY who don’t talk about their ancestors who had fought for the other side, or their descendents.