Place:Russellville, Logan, Kentucky, United States

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NameRussellville
TypeCity
Coordinates36.843°N 86.893°W
Located inLogan, Kentucky, United States
source: Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names
source: Family History Library Catalog


the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Russellville is a city in and the county seat of Logan County, Kentucky, United States. The population is 6,947 at the 2010 census. It is named for General William Russell, a Revolutionary War soldier and frontier leader.

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History

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Between the arrival of first settlers around 1790 and the town's incorporation in 1798, Russellville was known variously as Cook's Station, Logan Court House, Rogues’ Harbour. Settlers decided on the name Russellville to honor war hero General William Russell. It is the county seat of Logan County, one of Kentucky's original counties. Several downtown homes have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In 1862, during the Civil War, Confederate sympathizers met in the Russellville Convention and created a Confederate government for Kentucky. The state legislature had declared its neutrality and the state did not secede. The Southern sympathizers formed an alternate government after the state's government had been taken over by Union supporters. This pro-Confederate government was recognized by the Confederacy, which admitted Kentucky to that nation and placed a star for Kentucky on the Confederate flag.

After the war, Kentucky struggled with insurrectionists, as did other states, as some veterans and former guerrillas were not ready for peace. A gang made up of Cole Younger, George Shepard, and Oliver Shepard (former Confederate guerrillas), along with John Jarrett and Arthur McCoy (former captains under Confederate General Jo Shelby), robbed the Southern Deposit Bank in Russellville on March 20, 1868. The brothers Frank and Jesse James, who later led their own gang, may have participated in peripheral roles.

Today a Russellville bank on the city square has a large mural depicting the robbery. A reenactment of the robbery (called a "play on horseback") is performed annually during the Tobacco and Heritage Festival.

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