Paris in Bourbon County, Kentucky — The American South (East South Central)

Paris Cemetery Co. Inc. Trail

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, March 5, 2023

1. Paris Cemetery Co. Inc. Trail Marker

Inscription. The Paris Cemetery Gatehouse is a rare surviving example of Gothic architecture in Kentucky. John McMurtry was the Lexington builder/architect who had worked with Alexander Jackson Davis, New York architect, as the builder of Loudoun House (ca. 1847) in Lexington. Along with Christ Church Cathedral, McMurty, who introduced the Gothic style to Kentucky also designed and built the Lexington Commentary Gatehouse (ca. 1848) in the Gothic style. Lexington's gatehouse was demolished in 1899. The Paris Cemetery Gatehouse completed in 1862 remains as a memorial to McMurty which was his stated goal for the Lexington gatehouse demolished in the year he died. The Gothic gatehouse is appropriate style for the natural landscaped cemetery design becoming popular along in 1840's Kentucky. The design consists of three Tudor arches, wider center openings for carriages with smaller side openings for pedestrians anchored by end wings for the cemetery offices. The center projected section framed with four cross columns are set in the corners of the two square, two story, cemetery office wings. The entry is crowned with four unique elaborate

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cast iron pinnacles which define the vertical proportions of the structure. The Paris gatehouse stands today as a very significant historic structure, a fine example of Gothic architecture and a cultural symbol representing the importance of the cemetery.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Cemeteries & Burial Sites. A significant historical year for this entry is 1862.

Location. 38° 12.12′ N, 84° 15.773′ W. Marker is in Paris, Kentucky, in Bourbon County. It is on Paris Cemetery 3rd Road west of Main Street (Business U.S. 68), on the left when traveling west. Marker is just past the gatehouse at the main cemetery entrance. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1603 Main St, Paris KY 40361, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Bluegrass Region

and in Greater Lexington Area.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, March 5, 2023

2. Paris Cemetery Co. Inc. Trail Marker

Culture

and also the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within one mile of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Bourbon County Confederate Memorial (approx. 0.2 miles away); Famous Inventor, 1877-1963 (approx. 0.6 miles away); Garrett Davis (1801-1872) (approx. 0.6 miles away); Paris Train Depot (approx. 0.7 miles away); First Christian Church (approx. 0.7 miles away); Alexander House / Bourbon County Hemp (approx. 0.7 miles away); Eades Tavern (approx. one mile away); William Holmes McGuffey (approx. one mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Paris.

Also see . . . Paris Cemetery Gatehouse. National Register of Historic Places nomination (PDF) and photographs (separate PDF) submitted for the gatehouse, which was listed in 1978. (National Park Service) (Submitted on March 14, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

Paris Cemetery Gatehouse image. Click for full size.

Drdpw via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0), August 31, 2019

3. Paris Cemetery Gatehouse

Credits. This page was last revised on March 14, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 14, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 560 times since then and 70 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on March 14, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.