BY GREGORY A. HALL
The Cincinnati Enquirer
FRANKFORT - The oldest executive mansion still in use in the United States isn't the White House at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, D.C. It's the Old Governor's Mansion at 420 High St. in Frankfort, a brick Federal-era building with Georgian features that was referred to in its heyday as "The Palace."
The mansion, now the lieutenant governor's residence, is celebrating its bicentennial this holiday season. Gov. James Garrard, the state's second chief executive, moved into the building in time to celebrate a Thanksgiving meal in 1798.
The current occupant, Lt. Gov. Steve Henry, is starting a campaign to get Kentuckians to appreciate the history of the house and improve it so that it survives another 200 years.
"This is such an important structure for Kentucky," he said. "But yet for political reasons, people are afraid to put money into it."
In fact, the living room carpet is the same that he played on 30 years ago when he visited his boyhood friend from Owensboro, Steve Ford, the son of then-Lt. Gov. Wendell Ford. He remembers the faded yellow color.
The home, currently being featured on the A&E program America's Castles, served as the residence of 33 governors until the present Governor's Mansion opened in 1914.
Nine presidents have visited, including Bill Clinton when he was governor of Arkansas. Other guests have included U.S. Sen. Henry Clay, William Jennings Bryan and the revolutionary general Marquis de Lafayette.
Like the White House's ghost of President Lincoln, this mansion also reportedly has ghosts, the spirits of two former Kentucky first ladies.
Mrs. Christopher Greenup supposedly carries candlesticks through the hallways, said curator Jolene Greenwell.
Gov. Thomas Metcalfe almost didn't get to live in the mansion, which he as a mason helped build. His predecessor, Joseph Desha, refused to vacate because he didn't want the palace turned over to a commoner such as Mr. Metcalfe.
Thanks to a moving company called the militia, Mr. Metcalfe got the keys, Mrs. Greenwell said.
Northern Kentucky's only occupant was Gov. John White Stevenson, a Covington lawyer who served as the state's chief executive from 1867-1871.
His protege and law partner, Covington attorney William Goebel, might have gotten to live there when the legislature overturned the 1899 gubernatorial election. But he was shot walking to the Capitol on Jan. 30, 1900. He became governor the next day but died in a hotel Feb. 3.
After the governor's house moved to the other side of the Kentucky River that bisects the state capital, it became the home of the state police. It fell into disrepair and nearly was demolished on at least two occasions.
"What a mistake it would have been," said Mr. Henry.
The state decided to repair it in 1946. Ten years later, Harry Lee Waterfield became the first sitting lieutenant governor to live there.
Open to the public for tours between 1:30 and 3:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, the home is a showpiece that will be put into the spotlight even more when the Kentucky Historical Society's center opens on the same block next year.
Walls of the mansion are lined with the portraits of the home's former occupants. Although the furniture isn't original, antique Kentucky pieces decorate it now.
"Obviously, this is a very comfortable house to live in," Mr. Henry said.
But the mansion needs work, Mr. Henry said. Carpeting is old, some of it transferred from the current governor's mansion when it was renovated about 20 years ago.
Other repairs, such as improving the electrical wiring, are needed, he said. If the state doesn't fix that voluntarily, Mr. Henry said the fire marshal may force it.
Mr. Henry said he'd like to start an endowment next year to take care of furnishings in the house.
Mr. Henry's time in the house may be limited if Gov. Paul Patton picks a new running mate for the 1999 campaign. Regardless of how much time he has in the home, Mr. Henry said he's going to use it as a pulpit.
"Whatever happens over the next year, I'm going to make sure that Kentuckians know about this treasure," he said, "and how valuable it is to Kentucky."
