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Perryville in Boyle County, Kentucky — The American South (East South Central)
 

The City of Perryville

Perryville • The Battle For Kentucky

— October 8, 1862 —

 
 
The City of Perryville Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, August 18, 2011
1. The City of Perryville Marker
Inscription. The area that became Perryville was first settled between 1776 and 1780 by a group of Virginians led by James Harbison. The settlement became known as Harbison’s Station, and a stockade was built around a cave that exists today behind 403 South Buell Street. Settlers poured into the surrounding region in the decades after Kentucky achieved statehood in 1792.

Perryville was incorporated as a city on January 17, 1817. It was named in honor of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, a War of 1812 naval hero and victor of the Battle of Lake Erie. Buell Street (which runs behind you) was originally the city’s Main Street, and in the 1830s and 1840s a commercial center called Merchant’s Row (today the 300 and 400 blocks of South Buell Street) grew along the Chaplin River.

By 1860 Perryville numbered approximately 350 residents. The Battle of Perryville on October 8, 1862, forever changed this small Kentucky town and remains the definitive event in its history. Union and Confederate infantry fought in the streets, and several buildings were struck by artillery fire or burned. Wounded from both sides sought shelter in the city, and Perryville served as a hospital for several months after the engagement. After the war Perryville’s streets were renamed for Union and Confederate generals.

Perryville continued to prosper into
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the 20th Century. Temperance crusader Carrie A. Nation spent her formative years here, and local legend states that the first taverns she broke up were along South Buell Street. National figures with Perryville ties include Moneta Sleet, Jr., who won a Pulitzer Prize for photography in 1969; singer/songwriter Kendall Hays; singer Eddie Montgomery; and actor George Clooney.
 
Erected by The Perryville Enhancement Project and the Louisville Civil War Roundtable.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Settlements & SettlersWar, US Civil. A significant historical date for this entry is January 17, 1817.
 
Location. 37° 38.952′ N, 84° 57.099′ W. Marker is in Perryville, Kentucky, in Boyle County. Marker is at the intersection of South Buell Street (U.S. 68) and West Third Street, on the left when traveling south on South Buell Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Perryville KY 40468, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. “If You Meet the Enemy, Overpower Him” (here, next to this marker); Perryville in the Crucible of War (a few steps from this marker); Bragg's Invasion of Kentucky (a few steps from this marker); The Battle of Perryville (a few steps from this marker); Merchants' Row / Street Fighting (about
The City of Perryville Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Brandon Fletcher, March 31, 2012
2. The City of Perryville Marker
300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Karrick-Parks House / Harberson's Station (about 400 feet away); First Settlement of Perryville (about 400 feet away); a different marker also named Battle of Perryville (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Perryville.
 
More about this marker. On the upper left is “The official seal of Perryville”.

In the center is a map of “Perryville as it existed in 1876”.

On the upper right is a portrait of “Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry (1785-1819)”.
 
Perryville Markers image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, August 18, 2011
3. Perryville Markers
Karrick-Parks House - c. 1800 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bradley Owen, October 16, 2019
4. Karrick-Parks House - c. 1800
Part of Merchants Row at 403 South Buell Street, the home was used by both Confederate and Union officers before and after the Battle of Perryville.
Johnson Britton House - c. 1845 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bradley Owen, October 16, 2019
5. Johnson Britton House - c. 1845
Located at 207 South Buell Street, the house was damaged during the Battle of Perryville when a cannonball crashed through the north bedroom roof and lodged in the south bedroom door.
Dr. Polk House and Office - c. 1830 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bradley Owen, October 16, 2019
6. Dr. Polk House and Office - c. 1830
This building at 331 South Buell Street housed wounded after the Battle of Perryville and a Confederate surgeon named Karl Langenbecker died here.
J.H.B. Latimer House - c. 1850 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bradley Owen, October 16, 2019
7. J.H.B. Latimer House - c. 1850
This home was used as a hospital after the Battle of Perryville and many of the poplar floors in the upstairs still have blood stains on them. It is located at 216 South Bragg Street.
A.C. Harberson House - c. 1850 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bradley Owen, October 16, 2019
8. A.C. Harberson House - c. 1850
This home at 409 East Third Street was damaged by artillery schrapnel during the Battle of Perryville which is still visible on the interior of the second floor. The house was also used as a hospital.
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on March 6, 2021. It was originally submitted on August 23, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 914 times since then and 23 times this year. Photos:   1. submitted on August 23, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.   2. submitted on September 15, 2015, by Brandon Fletcher of Chattanooga, Tennessee.   3. submitted on August 23, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.   4, 5, 6. submitted on March 4, 2021, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia.   7, 8. submitted on March 6, 2021, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia.

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Mar. 28, 2024