by Ralph Barnes
Citizens Voice & Times
Sept. 12, 1996
The plan to erect a new bridge across the Kentucky River at Irvine has recently
been a topic of discussion. When construction is completed, Irvine will be
served by twin spans. Having any bridge would have been a marvel to earlier
inhabitants of the community. As incredulous as it seems, Irvine did not have a
bridge during the first century of the town’s existence.
From the beginning the River has been an important factor in the lives of
Irvine’s citizens. The location’s close proximity to the river was a major
consideration in the selection of the site. In addition to providing an
everlasting source for water, the stream brimmed with fish and other
delectables to supplement the pioneer diet.
The waterway also served as a means of transportation for the crude rafts that
delivered Estill farm products, timber and iron ore to points down river.
However, there were some negative aspects to the river. The problem of getting
across the stream could be an arduous task for Irvine’s first residents. In the
early years the river had to be forded and that was a problem during periods of
swift current. It was not always convenient to wait for the river to go down
and urgent business often had to be left undone when the channel was at flood
stage. So it was not long after the county was formed in 1808 that the first
ferry opened.
Several early ferries carried people and cargo across the river during Irvine’s
formative years. The most enduring of these was established in January of 1813
by William Horn.
William’s grandfather, Aaron Horn, died at Fort Boonesborough during the
renowned Indian siege of 1778. His parents, Matthias Horn and Susan Hall, were
married at Boone’s Station in 1782. William Horn’s uncle of the same name is
the patriarch of nearly all of the Horns now living in Estill and Lee counties.
William’s mother was a sister to Edward Hall who was the progenitor of many of
the Halls in Estill and Powell counties. The Horns were the original owners of
much of the property that now contains West Irvine. Matthias and Susan are
believed to be buried in the cemetery behind the Oak Tree Inn on Highway 52.
Horn’s charter to operate a ferry across the Kentucky River required that the
boat be forty feet long by seven feet wide and that it be staffed by two able
bodied men. He further was required to give immediate passage to all people,
messengers and express. The charter could be revoked if the operator failed to
meet the standards.
William Horn operated the ferry until around 1831 when he sold out and moved to
Missouri. Ironically, the Horns also were among the last families to operate a
ferry in Estill County. Simpson Horn, whose great grandfather was a first
cousin to the original ferryman, ran a ferry at Old Landing during the forties
and fifties of this century.
The business was eventually acquired by the White family. The Whites ran the
operation longer than any of the ferry proprietors. Daniel White, progenitor of
the White family in West Irvine, acquired the ferry around 1835 and the family
operated the business until after the Civil War.
When Daniel died in 1849, his wife Ruthy, by all accounts a shrewd business
woman, ran the ferry until she turned the enterprise over to her son Richard in
1862. The White’s residence, often referred to as the ferry house, stood where
the McConkey house now stands near the West Irvine Memorial Gardens. The house
became a target of the Union Army during a Civil War skirmish. The Rebel troops
were positioned around the dwelling during an exchange of fire with the Federal
soldiers defending Irvine. One of the White children, Robert Cobb White, was
wounded in the leg and remained crippled for the rest of his life.
It was while the Whites operated the ferry that the infamous outlaw Ned Hawkins
crossed while being chased by a posse from Madison County and rode away without
paying the fare.
Richard White’s son, Thomas A. White, was the final member of the White family
to actually work on the ferry. Roy White, Thomas White’s oldest son, was the
last direct descendant of Daniel White to live in West Irvine. Roy earned his
own place in history during the first World War. He was the flag bearer for the
initial American contingent to cross the Rhine into occupied Germany at the
conclusion of the War. His position at the head of the troops allowed him to
become the first American to enter Germany. Roy, a highly respected member of
the community, died in 1992 at the age of ninety-seven. Roy’s younger brother,
Charles A. White, continued the family tradition for being in the right place during
great historic events. Charles was at Pearl Harbor during the Japanese bombing
raid that began World War II.
Daniel and Ruthy Henry White are buried in the cemetery behind the Oak Tree
Inn.
Samuel Congleton, probably the last proprietor of the Irvine ferry, was granted
a charter to operate a ferry in 1908. Safety regulations were much stricter
than a century earlier when the first ferry was chartered. New rules required
that the ferry have headlights and reflectors. In addition there had to be two lifeboats
available in case the ferry sank. However, prices remained reasonable. A
one-way fare for a horse and rider was only a nickel. Pedestrian fares were
three cents one way or five cents round trip.
Nearly all of the streams of any width were served by ferries in earlier years.
A person traveling across the county might have to pay several ferry fees. One
of the old barges sank at the mouth of Cow Creek and can still be seen during
periods of low water.
A railroad trestle was built when the railroad came to Irvine during the last
decade of the nineteenth century. Although the railroad owners discouraged
pedestrian traffic, many people used the bridge to cross the river. If a train
came along while they were on the long structure, they jumped onto the concrete
pilings under the tracks until the train passed. The bridge stood until it was
torn down for scrap iron during World War II.
The ferry was eventually replaced by a toll bridge built by a group of
speculators as a business venture in 1910. Many older Estill residents can
remember when the toll bridge was in operation. The tolls for the bridge were
similar to the fees charged by the ferry, but the bridge was much faster and
the ferry eventually ceased operations.
In 1931, the Fiscal Court petitioned the state government to either buy the old
toll bridge and make it a toll free span or to build a new public bridge. The
state opted for a new structure. The new connection across the Kentucky River
at Irvine was opened for traffic in 1940. That span still stands and is known
as the New Irvine Bridge. After waiting more than one and a quarter centuries
to get a decent bridge, someone surely could have come up with a more
imaginative name. In any event, the bridge will need to be renamed in the near
future when the proposed span is erected.
The county built a single lane free bridge that connected Madison Avenue to
South Irvine in the late twenties. But it was a flimsy structure and not safe
for heavy loads. It too was salvaged for scrap iron during the war.
Perhaps the most compelling bridge story is about a bridge that never was. A
sad tale of a bridge constructed across the Kentucky River that never carried
traffic. In the 1930s, a span was built in one of the more remote areas of the
county above Old Landing. Just as the structure was completed a great flood
washed it away. People living near the bridge watched anxiously as drifting
logs and other flotsam piled up behind the bridge. In time the span was
wrenched from its pilings with a great shriek and disappeared into the river.
The project was abandoned, but the great iron pilings remain as edifices to
man’s folly and nature’s power.
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