Published: May 08, 2008 07:07 pm            

Celebrating our centerpiece

Somerset — Fountain Square, a historical centerpiece of downtown Somerset, will be the site of a centennial celebration at noon today. The spirit of what is now a sparkling oasis has been the “heartbeat” of Somerset almost from the time the community was first settled in 1798 by Thomas Hansford and several members of the Jasper family.

In reality, the public square, without a fountain, was present as early as 1800 when the area was an ungraveled and unpaved expanse just north of the fabled Town Spring, around which Somerset was born. The square’s evolvement was traced by the late George Joplin III, former publisher and president of the Commonwealth Journal, who looked backward nearly 200 years at development of the square. Many of the historical anecdotes in this article were taken from Joplin’s writings.

The public square was given credence when the first permanent courthouse was constructed about 1808 on the west side of what was then an open but undeveloped space. The new courthouse was a center of justice for 30 years until it was destroyed by fire.

As the struggling town grew from infancy, the center of government was around what is now Fountain Square. However, the business district was in South Somerset in the vicinity of the former Southern Railway Depot. There was a lively taxi business, even electric streetcars, leading from the square to the depot. Passenger trains were a main mode of transportation from city to city during that period.

The square was still “naked and bare,” according to Joplin’s historical record. However, from the beginning, the square was gathering place for public meetings, evangelistic revivals, political rallies and street carnivals.

In later years, Fountain Square hosted “Cow Day,” a nationally recognized celebration of June is National Dairy Month. People stood shoulder to shoulder, enjoying the festivities, shopping for bargains and waiting for a Jersey heifer to be given as the grand prize.

The centennial celebration at noon today is based on a date when the square was upgraded and a fountain installed. A committee of county justices and town commissioners was formed in 1893 to plan for a fountain on the public square.

Some 15 years later — in 1908 — this was accomplished when a group called the Commercial Club raised $1,250 from citizens and businesses. This, along with appropriations from Pulaski Fiscal Court and Somerset Town Council, was used to pay for developing the square and installing a fountain.

Today at noon Congressman Hal Rogers, R-Somerset, will be the keynote speaker with special guest speakers including Somerset Mayor Eddie Girdler and Cornelia Cooper as the community pays tribute to a spot of tranquility in the center of town. It will be a birthday party with cake, ice cream, music and more.

It’s difficult to imagine, but Fountain Square, a kaleidoscope of color, has struggled at times to survive. Passing years took its toll and original Catalpa trees matured, grassy areas weathered and the fountain developed leaks.

About this time, Senator and Mrs. John Sherman Cooper offered to restore the square as “a gift to the people of Somerset and Pulaski County.” However, acceptance of the Coopers’ offer was delayed because of litigation to determine ownership of the square.

Those were the days before the Ky. 80 bypass was built and all traffic from the north headed to Lake Cumberland followed Mt. Vernon Street through downtown Somerset.

Getting around Fountain Square, especially on summer weekends and holidays, was a frustrating experience. Many city officials advocated doing away with the square and eliminating traffic jams by taking Mt. Vernon Street straight through the center.

The county objected and a friendly lawsuit was filed to determine whether the city or county owned the property. A special judge ruled in favor of the city and plans were made to bulldoze the street though the square.

Fiscal court appealed the decision and the Kentucky Court of Appeals overturned the lower court ruling early in 1963. The high court said the county had jurisdiction over the square.

Some time had passed since the Coopers had offered to restore the square. After the favorable ruling, the county asked if their offer was still good.

It was, and work to restore the square began in 1963. The project was completed and the upgraded park was dedicated in November of that year. A statue of Cooper, a former county and circuit judge in Pulaski County and U.S. Senator and ambassador, stands watch over a renovated fountain and an explosion of color in the downtown flower garden.

There was an almost unmentionable shady side to Fountain Square. The flaw is not about the fountain; not about the square; but wrongful uses put to the public gathering place.

Thankfully, those days are long gone. It’s been years since vandals “soaped” the fountain, creating mountains of shimmering suds that clogged the pump. Maybe it’s a rite of passage, but the art of having destructive fun has evolved into more sophisticated ventures.

For a short period during the late 1960s and early 1970s, Fountain Square became a focal point for rowdy celebrations on Halloween and at midnight on New Year’s Eve. Somerset police put a stop to the boisterous behavior by blocking traffic from the square from 10 p.m. until 1 a.m. to prevent undisciplined partying.

Like the Statue of Liberty, Fountain Square with its welcoming benches beckons to the tired and the poor, even the huddled masses. For example, the square for a brief period served as a living quarters for a street person. He plugged in a refrigerator at a fountain electrical outlet and slept on the benches.

And maybe, worst of all, private celebrations to mark a personal milestone included a drive the wrong way around the fountain. By the time police arrived, celebrants were long gone.

Today, as local officials pause to pay homage to the passage of time, it no doubt will be laudation of a “Little Town that Could.” The “huddled masses” will stand with the statue of the great and humble John Sherman Cooper. They will feel the heartbeat of the Queen City of the Cumberlands, now a mini-metropolis that grew from the seeds of sturdy pioneers who first put the fountain in its place.

        

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