The Greatest Half in History! While the Kentucky Historical Society’s mission is to educate and engage the public through Kentucky’s history in order to confront the challenges of the future, we realize that running a challenging 13.1-mile course requires a focus on the present rather than on our historical surroundings. …
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The Greatest Half in History! While the Kentucky Historical Society’s mission is to educate and engage the public through Kentucky’s history in order to confront the challenges of the future, we realize that running a challenging 13.1-mile course requires a focus on the present rather than on our historical surroundings. That is why we have prepared a handy guide on our site to several of the important historical sites along the annual Kentucky History Half Marathon.
The KY History Half is the Commonwealth’s only half marathon that celebrates Kentucky’s history. On race day, you will truly “run through history,” passing fascinating historical sites and monuments including the imposing KY Military History Museum, the classically beautiful Old State Capitol building, and the simply beautiful Garrard-Crittendon house, to name just a few. You will even have the chance to run past the grave sites of Daniel and Rebecca Boone during the Mile of Remembrance portion of the race. And to top things off, this charitable event also offers a fun way to support the educational programming and services of the Kentucky Historical Society in its mission to educate and engage the public through Kentucky history in order to confront the challenges of the future.
The half marathon is a veritable running history of Frankfort, the commonwealth’s capital since shortly after Kentucky became a state in 1792. Five commissioners were appointed on June 20 of that year to choose a location for the permanent seat of Kentucky state government. Customary at the time, hopeful towns — including Legerwood’s Bend, Delany’s Ferry, Petersburg, Louisville, Lexington, Leestown and, yes, Frankfort — offered lists of contributions.
Like a gifted runner, Frankfort won by perseverance. And, according to early histories, the offer of a log house (to be used as a capitol for seven years), several town lots, £50 worth of locks and hinges, 10 boxes of glass, 1,500 pounds of nails, and $3,000 in gold.
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Decent Race with Nice Scenery
I completed this race because my husband and I were going to be in the area and I wanted to check off Kentucky in my pursuit to run a half … MORE
I completed this race because my husband and I were going to be in the area and I wanted to check off Kentucky in my pursuit to run a half in all fifty states.
The course was prettier than I had expected and fairly easy, however I would have appreciated more restrooms and fueling options. The race overview said there would be rest stops at all the aid stations, but I only found two that actually had porta potties.
The aid stations had water and an electrolyte drink but minimal fueling options (granola bars and pretzels were the only options I saw).
Overall it was a decent race and the town was very pretty with lots of great restaurant options for before and after the race!