Henry Clay’s Life and Legacy: A Walking Tour of Downtown Lexington

Two hundred years ago, Lexington was at the forefront of commerce, culture, and education on the western frontier, and was known as “the Athens of the West.” It was also home to one of American history’s most important statesmen: Henry Clay, Secretary of State under President John Quincy Adams, and a skillful lawyer who was no stranger to the Supreme Court. On this stroll through Lexington, you’ll experience the city through Henry Clay’s eyes, walking where he walked and seeing what he saw. This walking tour begins right where Henry Clay had his start in Lexington: at his Law Office and first home on Mill Street. You’ll make your way to Transylvania University, where Clay served on the faculty as a professor of law and politics at 28. From there, you’ll see marvelous examples of Lexington’s early architecture in the historic homes and buildings around Gratz Park, a who’s who of Lexington elite in the 1800s. I’ll reveal stories about buildings that were lost to the passage of time, such as the Postlethwait Tavern turned Phoenix Hotel, where the elite did business and socialized. You’ll also find out about Clay’s involvement in the slave trade at key sites such as Cheapside Slave Market (now the Henry A. Tandy Centennial Park) and Megowan’s Slave Jail. On this Henry Clay walking tour, you’ll have the opportunity to: • Explore the places where he worked and rested • Learn how his political career influenced Lexington’s development • Examine how his experiences in Lexington helped form his political ideology • Visit Thomas January’s Hemp House and understand how Lexington’s hemp industry funded its rise to prominence • See the way slavery permeated Lexington’s public life and Henry Clay’s private life • Learn about the beginnings of Kentucky’s famous horse industry on the way to Phoenix Park After passing the Christ Church Cathedral, where Clay became an episcopalian late in his life, the tour finishes back at Henry Clay’s Law Office. By the end of this 75-minute walking tour, you’ll have a new appreciation for the roles played by Henry Clay and his hometown Lexington in the formation of our nation’s history.

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