ESTILL COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) — Tucked away where the hills morph into mountains sits the city of Irvine, where people care deeply about their community and history.
“The community really comes together to support people, to support the things that matter,” said Yvonne Harrison. “And history matters.”
Harrison spends time as the treasurer of the Estill County Historical & Genealogical Society, which started in May of 1981.
Where do we come from? What is our past? Harrison is driven by those questions in her pursuit of learning the history of Estill County.
“The history of a place will tell you so much,” Harrison said. “It tells you about why people are the way they are, why they look at things the way they do. Looking at how things developed and these family histories is just absolutely fascinating.”
The society holds a library of family records and genealogies and a museum of artifacts. While many things have digital copies these days, Harrison feels that hard copies still have a place in retaining information.
“In current days, I think the kids say that if there’s no pictures, it didn’t happen, it’s just what you say. Well, when you’re doing genealogy research, it’s important that you have your documentation. If you don’t, it’s just made up.”
Harrison pulled out a pictorial history book that showed photos of the people, places, and things from the 200-plus years of history in Estill County. Harrison then walked to the other side of the building, showing off a large collection of artifacts, all donated to the society.
“Any given Saturday,” Harrison said, “they will walk in with boxes of stuff. It’s like Christmas, it’s wonderful. I’ve been standing on the sidewalk, and somebody will drive by in a truck and say, I have something for you.”
One artifact in Estill County that doesn’t fit in the museum is the Fitchburg Furnace. Outside of Irvine, past Ravenna, and deep into a hollow stands the central heating column – the final remains of the furnace.
“150 years ago, this was in operation,” said Skip Johnson, President of Friends of Fitchburg Furnace. “‘I will build here,’ said Frank Fitch. 'I will design a furnace such as these parts have never seen.’ It is the largest of its kind in the world. I mean, it was the state of the art for its time.”
Johnson, a retired history teacher, has worked with the furnace for the past 20 years. He shared that the furnace hoped to bring business to Estill County during the Industrial Revolution after the Civil War. Its rural location made that impossible.
“Logistically, this was a failure. Somewhere, it had to reach a railroad. Speculation was, I build this, there’s going to be a railroad coming. But we had a recession in 1874 and this shut down, never made any money.”
The furnace only operated for four years but has since become an attraction for visitors from around the world. Artifacts like the furnace remind people like Johnson and Harrison what they love about Irvine: the history and the people.
Harrison complimented Kentuckians in Irvine. “People want to make things better. They will help you make things better.”
“The people are the glue that holds us together,” Johnson said. “I just think, that’s what makes us.”
