by Ralph Barnes
Citizens Voice & Times
February 29, 1996
I am a seventh generation Estill Countian. Although I have not lived there for
a long time I still consider Estill County home. My loyalty to my birthplace
must be shared by the thousands of expatriate Estill Countians since so many
are returned to the county for burial. It is no mystery why we love our
homeplace so much. There is no place on Earth that has more natural beauty than
Estill County. The original settlers in the area must have thought they had
discovered Paradise when they first viewed the Kentucky River valley from the
bluffs of the Cumberlands. It is difficult for modern residents to visualize
the county before man created blight despoiled the pristine grandeur that our
ancestors found here.
I have spent the last several years doing genealogical research and have
arrived at the following conclusions.
First: Nearly everyone whose family has been in the county for several
generations is related through blood to the majority of the families in the
county. There is a good chance that an Estill County native can select at
random any person from the streets of Irvine and they probably share a common
ancestor. That may be good news or bad news but it is a fact. The commonality
of our historical experience is an advantage that few communities in America
enjoy. Estill residents are an extended family in the true sense of the term.
Those family bonds should unify all Estill natives into a cohesive force in
support of the 21stCentury concept that is being promoted by Verlon Prewitt and
his group of civic minded citizens.
Secondly: Estill County was rich in natural resources but has realized very
little benefit from the exploitation of those resources. Most of the wealth
generated from the county's bounty flowed to outsiders who had little interest
in the economic viability of Estill County. As a result adequate funding for
the County's infrastructure was always lacking. From a historical perspective
the county has been through a series of boom and bust economic cycles that were
dependent on exploiting nonrenewable resources such as furs, timber, iron ore,
oil and coal.
The fur industry was the first and shortest lived industry in the county. It
took less than a decade to decimate the bulk of the fur bearing animals that
that had roamed the area for a millennium.
The great hardwood forests were mostly decimated by the turn of this century.
The bulk of the logs was not even processed in the county but was floated down
river to Frankfort sawmills.
The iron industry had the most significant impact on the county of any industry
other than farming. The Iron furnaces were major employers in Estill County for
three quarters of a century. Many families in Estill and Powell counties can
trace their ancestry to the influx of iron workers that came here to work at
the iron furnaces that dotted the landscape. That industry collapsed late in
the nineteenth century leaving large numbers of local residents unemployed and
destitute. Again the money went out of the county but the misery and the environmental
destruction were left here for local residents to deal with.
The arrival of the twentieth century brought the railroad to the county to haul
Eastern Kentucky coal. Coal also is a nonrenewable resource, but the supply is
nearly inexhaustible. Railroading seemed to be a secure source of jobs for
county residents for as far into the future as anyone could see. But the
accession of the diesel engine greatly reduced the number of railroad employees
required to keep the trains running. County residents presently employed by the
railroad is but a fraction of the former number. Even though the railroad is no
longer the major employer of Estill Countians, railroad tracks continue to
occupy the most commercially valuable land in the county. The cities of Irvine
and Ravenna are hemmed-in between the mountains and the railroad tracks; a
situation that severely restricts future growth and development for the twin
cities.
The last great economic boom to hit Estill County was the oil boom that began
just prior to World War I and lasted through World War II. It was Estill County
oil that helped fuel the early growth of the present day conglomerate known as
the Ashland Oil Company. Ashland and Lexington got the jobs and benefits and
Estill County was left with polluted streams and a rusting refinery that
probably will be left for the taxpayers to clean up one day.
All of the above mentioned industries were developed to export nonrenewable
resources that eventually played out or succumbed to new technology. Each
economic boom was followed by a bust leaving in its wake poverty, pollution and
blight. The displaced workers were left with the choice of either leaving home
to find work or waiting for another outside enterprise to come to their rescue.
The erratic swings in the economy exacted a heavy price from the county and its
people. But none of the damage created by the exploitation of the natural
resources has been nearly as devastating as the out-migration of the county's
young people. Estill County has been caught in a vicious cycle where millions
of dollars have been spent educating the youth of the county who eventually
must leave home to find jobs. The county realizes no return on its investment
while other areas reap the benefits .
Recently things have started looking up for the county and there now exists a
window of opportunity to break the cycle. At present Estill County has the most
impressive leadership of any that I have seen during my lifetime. Mayor Tom
Williams and Judge Dwight Arvin are trying new and innovative approaches to
improving city and county services. Bankers Johnnie Shepherd and John St Clair
are aggressive in their pursuit of economic opportunities. Representative
Clarence Noland is one of the most respected and effective legislators in the
General Assembly. Ralph McClanahan is an able spokesman for the county on the
Kentucky River Authority. Verlon Prewitt is recognized nationally for his work
in making the American garment industry more efficient and competitive. More
importantly, he is investing his time and money to the Twenty First Century,
Inc. project. Many other civic minded individuals are a part of this impressive
team but space does not permit a complete listing .
In addition to outstanding leadership and scenic splendor, Estill County has
much more going for it. The county has one of the lowest crime rates in the
state. The local newspaper is rated among the best weekly newspapers in
Kentucky. The stretch of the Kentucky River within the county is the least
polluted of the entire river. County schools are gearing up for the new
challenges that will face Estill Countians in the Twenty-First century.
Scattered throughout America are hundreds of Estill natives with special
talents and contacts who will jump at the opportunity to assist their home
county. Why not establish a network of former residents and do a quarterly
newsletter with progress updates.
I applaud the members of the Twenty First Century, Inc. and encourage all
Estill natives in and out of the county to get behind the program. The first
order of business should be to make the county more attractive by encouraging
individuals and businesses to remove or clean-up the abandoned vehicles,
machinery and crumbling buildings that detract from the natural beauty of the
county. Efforts made now to break the poverty cycle and improve the quality of
life will be greatly appreciated by future generations.
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