One chapter of Bartlett’s new book focuses on Whitley County’s own Reed Elliotte
If you’re looking for some good summer reading, or if you’d like to pick up some new ideas for exciting in-state excursions, Marvin Bartlett’s new book, Spirit of the Bluegrass, makes for a great option.
Bartlett is an Emmy Award-winning journalist who has worked in TV news for the past four decades. A native of West Virginia, he worked for WLEX-TV in Lexington for eight years before becoming an anchor for WDKY (FOX 56), also in Lexington, in 1995. He has been there ever since.
With Spirit of the Bluegrass, Bartlett has collected stories that range from fun, to fascinating, to downright freaky. Each tale in the book is based on a real person, place or event that he has encountered during his many years of covering news from one end of Kentucky to the other.
Spirit of the Bluegrass is divided into four sections – Spirited Places, Holiday Spirit, Spirited People and Unexpected Spirit. Let’s take a brief look at just some of the stories found in each section…
Spirited Places included Wigwam Village No. 2 in Cave City. This reviewer found this chapter particularly interesting, considering I once stayed at the Wigwam Village while on a family vacation many years ago. I just recently drove by it while on a weekend getaway with my own family just a couple of months ago, so I was excited to see it included in the book.
For those who don’t know about Wigwam Village No. 2, it was built in 1937 and is one of only three like it left in the nation. The other two, located in Arizona and California, are both located along historic Route 66.
Also included in the book’s opening section are chapters on Pineville’s famous Chained Rock, the Mother Goose Inn in Hazard, the boyhood home of bluegrass music legend Bill Monroe in Nelson County, and Vent Haven, which is the world’s only museum dedicated to ventriloquism, located in Kenton County.
The first chapter of section two, Holiday Spirit, is dedicated to Whitley County’s own Reed Elliotte. Specifically, the chapter covers Elliotte’s fascination with U.S. presidential history and includes photos of him with former U.S. Presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. Elliotte is quoted in the book, saying he would like to become president himself one day. He explained, “I just want to get Democrats and Republicans to come together.”
What an idea!
Other interesting chapters in the Holiday Spirit section include the story of the Wilmore, Ky. “Lawn Mower Brigade,” the Witches’ Tree in Louisville and the legend of the Pope Lick Monster.
In the section titled Spirited People, readers will learn about the intricate wood carvings of London’s own Jim Sams. They will also find chapters on a Burnside man named John Platt, who has amassed a massive collection of audio cassettes, and on Mike Mankel, of Lexington, who makes electric guitars out of old bourbon barrels, among other equally-fascinating individuals.
Finally, in the Unexpected Spirit section, Bartlett gives us a look at some unique locations that include a primate rescue center in Jessamine County, as well as the original Dippin’ Dots factory in Paducah. Did you know that Dippin’ Dots, now a bonafide international ice cream brand, got its start right here in the Bluegrass State in the late-eighties? This reviewer found the story of their origin and subsequent success to be particularly… cool (see what I did there?).
Overall, Spirit of the Bluegrass makes for an informative and entertaining read with chapters that can be consumed in about 5-10 minutes each. It’s definitely a recommendation for the summer reading lists of Kentuckians everywhere, and is available now online and in book stores.
Check it out!
