People in Buechel would probably scream -- or worse -- if they looked out their windows and saw the area as it appeared during the early 1800s. Buffaloes were still numerous. . . . Bears were plentiful, and as they made visits up and down Bear Grass creek, would occasionally pounce upon a hog. Wildcats and panthers often exhibited their fondness for young pigs, and it was difficult to preserve sheep from their ravages. But Buechel's rich land lured more farmers, displacing wild animals and launching a history that includes livestock rustling and legal battles.
The area experienced slow growth for 170 years and then a blastoff of development during the 1950s and '60s.
Buechel's development started in about 1790, when George Hikes built its first sawmill, grist mill and wool-processing machine.
An area called Two Mile Precinct -- so named because its northern edge was two miles from Louisville -- included Buechel during the area's early days.
Today, Buechel is roughly bounded by Bashford Manor, Hikes and Six Mile lanes on the north; Breckenridge Lane on the east; Buechel Bank Road on the south; and Newburg Road and Progress Boulevard on the west. The area, which long ago included pastures and vegetable and potato farms, includes the small city of West Buechel.
Buechel got its name in the 1870s, after John Buechel bought a tavern-hotel on Bardstown Road, just south of the Southern Railroad tracks, and set up a post office in it. Visitors called the area "Buechel," and people sent their mail there. The tavern was the halfway house between Louisville and Bardstown. The Buechels sold the tavern in 1951, and it was demolished in 1983 after a fire.
Another landmark was Fanelli's ice-cream shop, which from 1912 to 1983 was at 4119 Bardstown Road. It had the best ice cream around. Another landmark was Bashford Manor Farm, known for thoroughbred horses.
Buechel's boom got a boost when General Electric's Appliance Park opened in 1950. To handle Appliance Park commuters, Buechel Bank Road was widened to four lanes between Newburg Road and Appliance Park in 1951. While land sales skyrocketed, officials announced plans for the Buechel Bypass in 1953, which later fed traffic around Buechel's commercial district instead of backing it up on Bardstown Road. As the boom began, Louisville eyed the fat property-tax pie baking in Buechel and proposed annexing much of the area one day in 1951. Two days later, some residents of West Buechel proposed incorporating their area to stay out of Louisville, where taxes were higher. Buechel folks filed no fewer than six lawsuits to fight Louisville, tying up the matter in court until 1955, when the big city called off the annexation attempt because it had caused bitterness.
The last major development in Buechel was the completion of Bashford Manor Mall, which opened in 1973. By the late 1960s most open areas, were long gone.
DID YOU KNOW:
• Anton Busath, a Buechel man who owned the old Busath's Candy Store at 445 S. 4th St., coated marshmallows with caramel and called them Modjeska caramels during the 1880s. Busath named the candy after a Helena Modjeska, a famous Polish actress who caught his eye when she starred in the drama "A Doll's House" in a downtown Louisville theater.
• Bashford Manor Farm, where Bashford Manor Mall now is, produced three Kentucky Derby winners, Azra in 1892, Manuel in 1899 and Sir Huon in 1906.
In addition, Proctor Knott, named for a former Kentucky governor, finished second by a nose in the 1889 Derby.
On a personal note: I fondly remember many a trip down Buechel Bank Road to Fanelli's ice-cream shop as a kid to get the best chocolate malt on the planet.
This cache is located near the War Memorial in a nano container with just a log book. Bring your own pencil.
This cache placed and maintained by a member of Geocky, InKy and the Heartland Geocachers
