As the United States approaches its semiquintennial, communities across Northern Kentucky are celebrating with parades, fireworks displays and festivals honoring the nation’s history.
Northern Kentucky is home to dozens of historic sites that have played an important role in shaping that history.
For the upcoming Independence Day Celebration on July 4, LINK nky has highlighted five historic sites and landmarks that locals should visit over the holiday weekend.
Battery Hooper Park – Fort Wright
Battery Hooper Park is a 17-acre historic park that preserves one of the best remaining Civil War fortifications built to defend Cincinnati during the Confederacy’s invasion of Kentucky.
Perched atop a hill in Fort Wright, Battery Hooper Park is one of the few places in Northern Kentucky where visitors can walk the grounds of an original Union Army position.
In September 1962, Union Major General Lew Wallace ordered thousands of soldiers and civilian volunteers, including women and children, to erect an eight-mile defensive line stretching from Ludlow to Fort Thomas. Confederate forces led by Major General Henry Heth had advanced into Northern Kentucky as part of the Kentucky campaign.
To protect the Confederate Army from attacking Cincinnati–then the sixth-largest city in the United States–the military personnel and civilian volunteers dug rifle pits, erected forts, and cut trees to fortify their position. In addition, the Black Brigade of Cincinnati, a battalion-brigade of around 700 African-Americans, contributed to construction efforts.
Ultimately, the work helped stave off the invasion, as the Confederate Army retreated two days after being outmanned.
The Hooper Battery is named for Cincinnati banker William Hooper, who donated money to the construction of the defensive installations.
From 2005 to 2021, the James A. Ramage Civil War Museum was open on the grounds. The museum told the history of Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky’s involvement in the Civil War, as well as paying homage to the Black Brigade of Cincinnati.
Battery Hooper Park is located at 1402 Highland Ave. in Fort Wright.
Big Bone Lick State Historic Site – Boone County
Commonly known as the birthplace of “American Vertebrate Paleontology,” Big Bone Lick State Historic Site outside Union is famous for its Ice Age-era megafauna fossils, such as mammoths, giant sloths, ancient bison and mastodons, among others.
The site, home to a wealth of fossils, was a naturally occurring salt spring that attracted large Ice Age animals. Many animals were trapped in the marshes around the springs, leaving behind fossilized remains that can be viewed in the park today.
Prior to European settlers coming to the site, Native Americans used the area as a hunting ground because animals were naturally drawn to the salt springs.
Founding father and former President Thomas Jefferson also had a personal fascination with the site. In 1807, following Meriwether Lewis and William Clark’s famous expedition across the American frontier, Jefferson instructed Clark to visit Big Bone Lick to recover fossils for study. Clark recovered over 300 fossils and teeth, many of which Jefferson personally studied.
Today, the park is home to a museum where visitors can observe Ice Age-era fossils and life-size replicas of prehistoric animals, a herd of American bison, 4.6 miles of walking trails, and a 62-space campsite with utility hookups, showers, a playground and a camp store.
Big Bone Lick State Historic Site is located at 3380 Beaver Road in Union.
Fort Thomas Military & Community Museum and Tower Park – Fort Thomas
Fort Thomas has played an important role in American military history, as the city is named after the military fort that bears its name.
Fort Thomas, named after Union Army Gen. George H. Thomas, was a U.S. Army post active from the late 19th century until the mid-20th century, supporting major American military campaigns during that time.
The U.S. Congress initially authorized the construction of the post in 1887 after repeated flooding damaged the Newport Barracks. The site was chosen for its high bluffs overlooking the Ohio River.
In the coming decades, the post served as an important military installation and a training and mobilization center during the Spanish-American War, with soldiers stationed there later deploying to the Philippine-American War.
During World War I and II, Fort Thomas expanded to include an induction center, hospital, and training facility serving thousands of service members. After World War II, the installation was converted into a Veterans Administration hospital before the Army permanently closed it in 1964.
Today, much of the Army installation has been preserved as Tower Park, which features one of Greater Cincinnati’s most notable collections of historic military architecture. The historic 102-foot limestone water tower, constructed in 1890, is now part of a community park.
The tower is surrounded by the former officers’ quarters near Alexander Circle, the original parade grounds, and other military structures. Cannons captured during the Spanish-American War are displayed in front of the tower.
Tower Park also features miles of walking trails, a playground and basketball courts, among other amenities.
In addition, the Fort Thomas Military & Community Museum chronicles the establishment of Fort Thomas, daily life on the military reservation, and the installation’s role in the Spanish-American War and both World Wars. Admission is free.
Tower Park is located at 900 S. Fort Thomas Ave. in Fort Thomas.
John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge – Covington
If you’re from Greater Cincinnati, odds are you’ve mentioned to someone from out of town that the Roebling Suspension Bridge was the prototype for the Brooklyn Bridge.
The bridge, which still stands today, is one of Cincinnati’s most iconic landmarks. Opened in 1867, it spans the Ohio River, connecting Covington to Cincinnati. At the time of its opening, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world and the first permanent bridge to cross the Ohio River.
Designed by German-born engineer John A. Roebling, the bridge’s construction began in 1857 but was halted by the Panic of 1857 and the American Civil War. Before its completion, most people crossed the Ohio River by ferry.
Later on, William Roebling, John’s son, used many of the same engineering techniques and design principles his father had used to build the Brooklyn Bridge. The iconic bridge’s similarities include massive stone towers and a wire-cable suspension system.
Today, the bridge serves as a transportation route for cars and pedestrians. It has been designated a National Historic Landmark, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and recognized as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
The NKY side of the Roebling Suspension Bridge is located at 1 Roebling Way in Covington.
Old Boone County Courthouse – Burlington
The Old Boone County Courthouse is one of Northern Kentucky’s oldest administrative buildings.
Although the most recent iteration of the historic courthouse was completed in 1889, the site has housed a courthouse since 1799, making it one of the oldest continuously used seats of county government in Kentucky.
Boone County was established in 1798 and originally held court in a log courthouse. That building was replaced in 1817 by a larger, 2-story brick building. Later, the Old Boone County Courthouse was completed in 1889 for $19,740. The courthouse was designed by the McDonald Brothers, a Louisville-based architectural firm, and constructed by the McGarvey Brothers of Cincinnati.
For decades, the courthouse served as the center of county government, housing courtrooms, county offices and public meetings.
In 1979, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a contributing property in the Burlington Historic District. After a new Boone County Justice Center and government offices were built nearby, the historic courthouse was restored and repurposed for community use. Today, the Boone County Historic Courthouse serves as a public event venue for weddings, meetings, receptions and community gatherings.
The Boone County Historic Courthouse is located at 2950 Washington St.
