Clay County Feuds: The Whites, The Bakers, and The Rest
No other county in Kentucky (a state notorious for its feuds- Hatfield-McCoy, anyone?) was as bloody as Clay County. An extended feud called the "Cattle War"is thought to have been the reason for forming Clay co in 1806, created so legislators could have more jurisdiction over the area of the so-called "war", which was the headwaters of the three forks of the Kentucky River. Clay co in early 1800 was also famous for their salt. General Hugh Lowry White was not the first to open a salt works there, but with his slaves, money, and entrepreneurship he certainly conquered the business. Hugh came to what would eventually be known as Clay co in 1804 from Pennsylvania, after his already wealthy older brother James bought bought the Outlaw/Collins Salt Works. Daniel Garrard showed up in 1806, and the two quickly made Goose Creek salt famous. Hugh not only produced copious amounts of salt; he and wife Catherine Cain also produced a "remarkable family of over-ac...