Cadiz in Trigg County, Kentucky — The American South (East South Central)

Wendell Holmes McRidley

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, December 1, 2025

1. Wendell Holmes McRidley Marker, Side One

Inscription. Born into slavery in 1842, Rev. Dr. Wendell Holmes McRidley was a leading social reformer in Ky. until his death in 1932. With his wife Annie McRidley, he est. the Cadiz Normal & Theological College in 1887, which educated hundreds of African American teachers and ministers before it closed in 1915. He also founded the Cadiz Informer, a weekly newspaper.

Reverse Side
During an era when discrimination severely limited Black people's access to political power, Rev. Dr. McRidley also practiced law and served as a Ky. delegate to two Republican national conventions. He pastored the Second Baptist Church of Cadiz for 51 years. The McRidleys are buried in unmarked graves at the United Brotherhood Cemetery.

Erected 2024 by Kentucky Historical Society • Kentucky Department of Highways. (Marker Number 2665.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Education. A significant historical year for this entry is 1842.

Location. 36° 52.208′ N, 87° 49.92′ W. Marker is in Cadiz, Kentucky, in Trigg County. It is at the intersection of Line Street and Hayden Street,

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on the right when traveling north on Line Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Cadiz KY 42211, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Kentucky’s Jackson Purchase.

It is also in the American Midwest,

in the 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 Culture

and also the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 7 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Courthouse Burned (approx. 0.6 miles away); Trigg County Confederate Memorial (approx. 0.6 miles away); Trigg County War Memorial (approx. 0.6 miles away); County Named, 1820 (approx. 0.6 miles away); Site of Burnett Home (approx. 0.8 miles away); First Court of Trigg County (approx. 4 miles away); Trigg Furnace / Iron Made in Kentucky (approx. 6.2 miles away); Empire Furnace / Iron Made in Kentucky (approx. 6.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Cadiz.

Wendell Holmes McRidley Marker, Side Two image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, December 1, 2025

2. Wendell Holmes McRidley Marker, Side Two

Wendell Holmes McRidley Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, December 1, 2025

3. Wendell Holmes McRidley Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on December 22, 2025. It was originally submitted on December 11, 2025, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 61 times since then and 36 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on December 11, 2025, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.