Cracken County Bicentennial

Floor Speech

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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, in the early 1800s, a band of pioneers settled in Kentucky's Jackson Purchase founding what would become McCracken County. At the confluence of the Tennessee and Ohio Rivers, this settlement grew over time into a bustling center for business, agriculture, and the arts. This year, on their bicentennial anniversary, the people of McCracken County will pay tribute to two centuries of rich history and cultural heritage, and today, I am proud to join them as they mark this impressive milestone.

The county was named in tribute to Captain Virgil McCracken, a brave Kentuckian who made the ultimate sacrifice in the Battle of the River Raisin during the War of 1812. Like much of the rest of the Purchase, McCracken County was blessed with fertile land and grew, thanks to its easy access to Kentucky's inland waterways. Dry dock facilities for steam and towboats soon cropped up, while Paducah, the county seat of McCracken County since 1832, became an important railway hub. By the turn of the 19th century, McCracken County formed an integral part of Kentucky's commerce, culture, and governance.

Around this time, the county produced one of our State's most prominent political figures, Alben Barkley. The story goes that Barkley bought a ``one-eyed horse named Dick'' to transport him all across McCracken County during his first campaign for county attorney. But the secret to Barkley's success was less his mode of transportation than his amiable and empathetic personality. Not one to waste time, Barkley quickly found his footing on the national political stage, rising from Congressman to Senator to Senate majority leader to our Nation's 35th Vice President under President Harry Truman. Barkley continues to cast a long shadow on Kentucky's political history, something I am reminded of daily. I mean this quite literally; this son of McCracken County continues to hold a prominent place in my office, his portrait hanging on the wall of my Capitol office, alongside that of Senator John Sherman Cooper.

Another important moment in McCracken's history came in the Cold War, when the community bolstered American security at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, which began production of enriched uranium in 1952. For many years, the plant remained the only operating uranium enrichment facility in the United States. While that work has since completed, the plant's employees remain dedicated to their jobs and the important work they perform each day to transition this facility into the future.

Today, McCracken County remains the heart of America's inland waterways and a center for creativity and folk art that serves as the gateway to west Kentucky's history and opportunity. Kentuckians from all across the Commonwealth travel to Paducah each year, the cherished home of the National Quilt Museum and other famed attractions like the Paducah Riverfront, the Paducah Railroad Museum, the Tilghman Civil War Museum, the Inland Waterways Museum, and the William Clark Market House Museum, the county's oldest museum. It is no surprise that, every year, more and more families decide to call McCracken County home. With the leadership of Judge Executive Craig Clymer, the Paducah Area Chamber of Commerce, and other dedicated Kentuckians, this vibrant community will continue to succeed in our Commonwealth. I ask my Senate colleagues to join me in honoring McCracken County and its 200 years of history and heritage.

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