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Take
a Pilgrimage to Bardstown, Springfield and Lebanon, KY
|
Kentucky’s
Original Holy Land invites you to have a religious experience
|
Central
Kentucky – June 2014 / Newsmaker Alert / The central Kentucky towns
of Bardstown, Springfield and Lebanon – Kentucky’s original Holy Land –
have returned to their religious roots with a new Holy Land Tour and the
completion of a new Holy Land website. Visit www.KyHolyLand.org
to learn about everything there is to see and do on this new experience,
from enjoying free concerts and film screenings to walking the Stations
of the Seven Dolors to spending the night at a Motherhouse surrounded by
serenely picturesque grounds and gothic architecture.
|
 A
frontier sees the light
A
veritable Hallelujah Trail has blazed through central Kentucky since 1775
as religious establishments settled here – many of them the first of their
kind in what was then the American West: St. Thomas Seminary; the Sisters
of Loretto; the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth; St. Joseph Cathedral at
Bardstown; St. Joseph College; St. Mary College; the Dominican Sisters;
as well as Kentucky Good Shepherd Sisters, Jesuit Fathers and the Trappist
monks of Gethsemani Abbey.
See
the home of the “First Bishop of the West,” Benedict Joseph Flaget, who
came to shepherd the newly designated Diocese of Bardstown – the first
inland diocese in the United States and the original mega-church. Buy fudge
and fruitcake laced with fine Kentucky bourbon at the Abbey of Gethsemani.
Shop for books and meditation CDs at the Thomas Merton Bookstore. Enjoy
a Christmas concert at St. Catharine College, Kentucky’s only Dominican
College.
Visitors
to Kentucky’s Holy Land will find dozens of religious attractions, including
churches, cemeteries, Motherhouses and more spread through Bardstown, Springfield
and Lebanon. You can plan your pilgrimage by downloading a map of the Holy
land sites at www.KyHolyLand.org.
There
are lots of hotels, bed and breakfasts and other lodging in the Holy Land,
including the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Motherhouse and the Abbey
of Gethsemani where you can schedule a private retreat. Restaurants include
The Rickhouse at Spalding Hall, formerly the home of St. Joseph’s College
and Seminary – the first Catholic college in Kentucky.
Information
about restaurants and lodging in the area is available by contacting the
tourism offices listed on the website at www.KyHolyLand.org.
Media
Contacts:
Dawn
Przystal, Vice President, 800-638-4877 x 114
Bardstown-Nelson
County Tourist & Convention Commission
www.SampleOurSpirit.com
Carla
Wagner, Director, 270-692-0021
Lebanon
Tourist & Convention Commission
www.VisitLebanonKy.com
Kathy
Elliott, City Project Coordinator/Tourism, 859-336-5440
Springfield
Tourism Commission
www.SeeSpringfieldKy.com
Photo
Shown:
Experience
the rich religious heritage of Kentucky’s Holy Land.
Credit:
Kentucky Holy Land
Hi-
and Low-Res photos available.
About
Bardstown, KY
Located
in the heart of Kentucky Bourbon Country and situated at the trailhead
of the famed Kentucky Bourbon Trail®, Bardstown
is more familiarly known as the “Bourbon Capital of the World.” It is home
to five distilleries, including Barton 1792 and Willett Distillery, and
these three Kentucky Bourbon Trail distilleries: Heaven Hill, Maker’s Mark
and Jim Beam. Major attractions include the outdoor musical, “The Stephen
Foster Story,” My Old Kentucky Home State Park, the highly regarded Civil
War Museum of the Western Theatre, My Old Kentucky Dinner Train, The Kentucky
Railway Museum and Whisky Magazine’s Visitor Attraction of the Year
– the Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History. Additionally, Bardstown has
four 18-hole golf courses, three wineries, two haunted tours and numerous
religious attractions. Fodor picked Bardstown as one of “America’s Best
Small Towns.” It was selected the “Most Beautiful Small Town in America”
in the Rand McNally/USA Today 2012 “Best of the Road” contest and landed
in the top 20 of “America’s Favorite Towns” by Travel + Leisure|–|which
also recognized Bardstown as having one of “America’s Most Beautiful Town
Squares.” In 2013, Bardstown was designated a certified Kentucky Cultural
District, one of only six Kentucky cities to achieve this honor. www.facebook.com/BardstownKY
About
Lebanon, KY
Geographically
located in the center of the state, Lebanon
is the “Heart of the Bourbon Belt,” the epicenter of barrel and bourbon
making. Attractions include Maker’s Mark Distillery, Limestone Branch Distillery,
the Kentucky Cooperage and WhiteMoon Winery. Incorporated as a city in
1815, Lebanon played a crucial role during the Civil War and is today on
the Civil War Discovery Trail. It is also part of Kentucky’s historic Holy
Land, with sites including the Sisters of Loretto Motherhouse. Outdoor
recreation options include the newly expanded Gorley Naturalist Trail at
Fagan Branch Reservoir, Marion County Quilt Trail and several farm tours;
indoors there is the Marion County Heritage Center, Stillhouse Art Museum
and Angelic Hall performing arts center. Shop for antiques, collectibles
and handmade crafts in Lebanon and dine at your choice of 40 eateries –
everything from casual full-service restaurants to home-style cafes to
an old-fashioned soda fountain. Accommodations include the gracious circa
1833 Myrtledene Bed and Breakfast, the modern Hampton Inn and the adventure
lover’s Popes Creek Ranch with tree houses, teepees, platform tents, cabins
and RV Park. www.facebook.com/VisitLebanon
About
Springfield, KY
Travel
the Lincoln Heritage National Scenic Byway (US-31E/US-150) to Springfield,
established in 1793. Learn about President Lincoln’s ancestry, life and
political career at the Lincoln Legacy Museum in the historic 1816 Courthouse
and, across the street, at the 10-foot bronze sculpture, “In Sacred Union.”
Visit Lincoln Homestead State Park, where Lincoln’s parents wed in 1806.
Visitors find a variety of shopping and dining experiences, beautiful horse
farms, local wineries and historic buildings, including the circa 1900
Opera House, home of the Central Kentucky Community Theatre and the Phil
Simms Exhibit. There are historic walking, driving and barn quilt tours,
as well as a scenic drive through the country to Hwy. 458 and the 246-foot
long Mt. Zion Covered Bridge built in 1871. The Kentucky Bourbon Trail
is just minutes away. Accommodations include the award-winning 1851 Historic
Maple Hill Manor Bed & Breakfast, Cinnamon House Bed & Breakfast,
Springfield Inn and Lincoln Suites. www.facebook.com/SeeSpringfieldKY |
