Did you know that Kentucky was NOT a confederate state during the civil war?
I didn't, not until Friday. I have this idea for a historical story set in Kentucky, during the reconstruction period, just after the end of the "War of Northern Aggression". And there is a doctor in it, so I thought I'd see what I could find out about the history of medical schools in the region, and one thing led to another, and all of a sudden, I'm reading that Kentucky was not a confederate state, it was a Union state.
I suspect there are an awful lot of other people out there with the same misconception. Why is that? Well, for one thing, although KY didn't leave the Union, it was still a slave state, and so it was still a big deal for slaves to make it across the Ohio River on their way to freedom. That's why the National Underground Railroad Freedom MuseumNation is in Cincinnati.
Apparently, Kentucky wanted to stay neutral, because they thought they'd be better off financially. Even though a lot of people owned slaves in Kentucky, the economy wasn't as dependent on slavery as the deeper South. It's all very complicated.
So aside from the whole slave thing, why would I think Kentucky had been a confederate state? I am exaggerating here, but it seems like half of everyone in the state with a pick up truck has a confederate flag hanging in their rear window (FYI, the other half have "Dale Earnhardt #3 stickers).
I actually found a book someone wrote about how Kentuckians kind of created a confederate history for themselves after the Civil War, so it's not just me who is confused. And a third of the soldiers from Kentucky fought for the Confederacy, so there was some definite rebel sentiment...but 2/3 is more than 1/3, so you'd think that the majority would have ruled after war, especially since the UNION WON THE WAR (there are those who, apparently, haven't yet been informed that it's over).
Anyway, now that I have THAT straightened out, I am on a quest to learn more about Kentucky. I wonder what else I am misinformed about? Secretariat was really a girl with a strap-on?
Bo and Luke Duke weren't related to Daisy? Wouldn't that have made the series more interesting?
My brain is shutting down.
