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A Civil War cannonball still sits lodged in a building on Elizabethtown's public square, a souvenir of John Hunt Morgan's Christmas Raid in December 1862. The seat of Hardin County, E-town is a city of about 30,000 in central Kentucky, around 45 miles south of Louisville along Interstate 65, and a natural base for the Lincoln country and Fort Knox.
The town was founded in the 1790s, and Thomas Lincoln, father of Abraham Lincoln, lived and worked here as a carpenter before the future president was born nearby. Later, a young George Armstrong Custer was stationed in town in the early 1870s and boarded at the Brown-Pusey House, now a historic house and library. Streets around the square keep dozens of 19th-century brick homes and churches.
Visitors walk the historic downtown, browse vintage cars at Swope's free museum, and hike or paddle at Freeman Lake Park, where the Lincoln Heritage House stands by the water. The Abraham Lincoln Birthplace in Hodgenville and the General George Patton Museum at Fort Knox are both within a half-hour drive.
The heart of town, ringed by brick commercial buildings around the Hardin County Courthouse. Look up at one storefront to spot a cannonball still embedded in the wall from Confederate General John Hunt Morgan's 1862 raid. Shops, cafes and seasonal events keep the square busy.
A Georgian brick house from about 1825 that served as a boarding house where George Armstrong Custer and his wife Libbie lived in the early 1870s. Today it holds period rooms, a genealogical library and formal gardens that are popular for weddings. Admission is free; hours are limited.
A two-part log and frame house built in the early 1800s by Hardin Thomas, with interior woodwork believed to have been crafted by Thomas Lincoln, Abraham Lincoln's father. It stands in Freeman Lake Park. Tours run seasonally, usually in summer; the grounds can be viewed anytime.
A free museum showing dozens of beautifully restored automobiles from the 1910s to the 1960s, from Model Ts to tailfinned Cadillacs, along with vintage signs and gas pumps. It sits along North Dixie Highway. Allow about an hour, and call ahead since it closes on some weekdays.
A local museum near the public square with exhibits on Hardin County from pioneer days through the Civil War and Fort Knox's growth, including Lincoln family connections, military artifacts and old-time household items. Volunteers are glad to share stories. It is free, with donations welcome.
A small gallery founded by local educator Emma Reno Connor, displaying photographs, documents and artifacts that trace the history of African Americans nationally and in Hardin County. Exhibits include material on local schools, churches and veterans. Call ahead to arrange a visit.
A large city park built around a reservoir on the north side of town, with a paved walking loop, fishing piers, kayak and paddleboat rentals, a playground and picnic shelters. Historic cabins and the Lincoln Heritage House stand near the water. Sunset walks along the shore are a local favorite.
A restored 1942 movie house on Main Street with a glowing neon marquee, now run as a performing arts venue for classic film screenings, concerts, plays and community events. Check the calendar for summer movie nights, and grab dinner on the square before the show.
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Log in to add photosPhoto: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Evilbetty1991 at English Wikipedia, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: Nyttend, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo: JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ MD, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
