Kentucky Home School for Girls (Louisville, Ky.) Photograph Collection, 1865-1999

Held by The Filson Historical Society

Creator:  Kentucky Home School for Girls (Louisville, Ky.)

Title:  Photographs, 1865-1999

Rights: For information regarding literary and copyright interest for these photographs, contact the Department of Photographs and Prints.

Size of Collection:  1 box, 3 ovsz. photos

Location Number:  021PC45

Historical Note

In 1972, Kentucky Home School for Girls, the Kentucky Military Institute, and Louisville Country Day School merged to form Kentucky Country Day School (KCD). This merger also included Aquinas Preparatory School, which had consolidated with Louisville Country Day a few years earlier in 1967. KCD is a co-ed college prep school in Louisville for kindergarten through 12th grade. KCD was originally located on Rock Creek Drive, adjacent to Seneca Park, but in 1978, the school moved to its current campus on Springdale Road.

Kentucky Home School for Girls

The Kentucky Home School for Girls was founded in 1863 by Belle Peers, daughter of one-time Transylvania University president Rev. Benjamin Peers. The school started with a class of 12 students and over the years grew in size and reputation. In 1879, it moved from Chestnut Street to a larger campus on Third Street. In 1880, the school was officially incorporated. In 1904, Peers retired as principal, and KHS was purchased by Annie S. Anderson and Annie S. Waters.

In 1927, the school moved again, to the Bonnycastle mansion and cottage at 1649 Everett Ave. In 1929 the KHS Holding Corporation purchased an additional property close to Cherokee Park, where students could participate in outdoor activities such as horseback riding, volleyball, baseball, tennis, and archery (KHS was reportedly the first school in the region to introduce archery, importing targets, bows, and arrows from England). This site was also used for annual events such as May Day and the Mountain Fund Bazaar, which raised money to help the blind in rural Kentucky. Other early student activities included gymnastics, folk and aesthetic dancing, hockey, art exhibitions, theater, and the Glee Club, which often placed in the Kentucky State Music Contest.

Of the 180 girls who graduated from KHS between 1911 and 1932, three fourths entered higher education institutions. In 1948, the school moved to 2301 Douglas Blvd., where it remained until 1972, when it merged with the other schools to form Kentucky Country Day School. Some KHS traditions have been preserved at KCD: the KCD piano lab is dedicated to beloved KHS music teacher Amelia Moody, and senior girls still wear white dresses and carry roses at graduation ceremonies.

Kentucky Military Institute

Founded in 1845 by West Point graduate General Robert T. P. Allen, the Kentucky Military Institute was only the third military school in the country. The first classes were held in Franklin Springs, Farmdale, Kentucky. In 1896 the school moved to its campus in Lyndon, and in 1906 the school opened its other campus in Venice, Florida. Students and faculty spent the fall and spring in Kentucky and moved to Florida for the months of January, February, and March to avoid winter weather, shortened days, and seasonal illness.

KMI graduates volunteered in the Spanish-American War and served in Cuba and the Philippines. Approximately 300 alumni and former cadets served in World War I, and over 1,000 served in World War II. In 1984, twelve years after KMI merged with the other schools to form Kentucky Country Day, the KMI honor code was adopted by KCD.

Louisville Country Day School and Aquinas Preparatory School

Louisville Country Day was a college preparatory school for boys, incorporated in 1948 by a group of Louisville business and civic leaders. With donations from 143 Louisville families, the school was opened in 1951 with a campus on Rock Creek Lane. In the first year, 91 students were enrolled in grades 1 through 10. By 1953, the school had expanded to include 12 grades.

In 1967, Aquinas, a Catholic boys’ preparatory school founded in 1957 and comprising grades 1 through 12 and a preschool, was consolidated with LCD. Its campus became known as the Browns Lane Campus, home to preschool and grades 1 through 6, while the Rock Creek Lane Campus maintained grades 7 through 12.

Sources:

https://www.kcd.org/about/history

Pamphlets and historical sketches within the manuscript collection:

• • KHS info: Folder 33-35
  • LCD info: Folder 73-75
  • KMI info: Folder 111
  • Aquinas info: Folder 119

Scope and Content Note

Photographic items document student life at three Kentucky schools, which merged in 1972 to form Kentucky Country Day School. Most photos are from Kentucky Home School for Girls (KHS). They include individual student and faculty portraits, class and graduation group photos, and photos from theater productions, May Day celebrations, Glee Club/choir concerts, and sports events. The collection also includes one folder of photos from the Louisville Country Day School (LCD) and one from the Kentucky Military Institute (KMI).

Three oversized Kentucky Military Institute photographs have been separated from the collection:

• • SCH-153: Company D, second platoon, n.d.
  • SCH-154: Company D, second platoon, n.d.
  • SCH-155: “Company,” first and second platoons, 1938

Related collections:

• • Kentucky Home School for Girls records, 1874-2013 [Filson special collections: Mss. BI K33]
  • KHS, LCD, and KMI yearbooks [Filson library collection]
  • KMI regalia and ephemera [Filson museum collection: 2021.37]

Folder List

Series 1: Kentucky Home School for Girls (KHS)

Folder 1: KHS portrait photographs, ca. 1865-1900

Folder 2: KHS portrait photographs, ca. 1865-1900

Folder 3: Portraits of Annie S. Anderson, 1911-1917 and n.d.

Folder 4: Portraits of Annie S. Waters, n.d.

Folder 5: KHS portrait photographs, 1920s-1967 and n.d.

Folder 6: KHS group class photos, ca. late 1800s-1940s

Folder 7: KHS group class photos, 1950s

Folder 8: KHS group class photos, 1960s

Folder 9: KHS group class photos, n.d.

Folder 10: KHS graduation, 1927-ca.1970s

Folder 11: KHS theater productions, 1929-1966 and n.d.

Folder 12: KHS May Day, 1941-1972 and n.d.

Folder 13: KHS Glee Club / choir, 1944-1957 and n.d.

Folder 14: KHS sports, 1934-1957 and n.d.

Folder 15: 2301 Douglas Boulevard after being emptied, ca. 1972

Folder 16: KHS alumnae event, 1999

Folder 17: KHS miscellaneous, 1940-1972 and n.d.

Series 2: Louisville Country Day School (LCD)

Folder 18: LCD building and class photos, 1959 and n.d.

Series 3: Kentucky Military Institute (KMI)

Folder 19: KMI portraits, class photos, and postcards, 1938-1963 and n.d.