General William Orlando Butler, whose Wikipedia page is here.

Home of General William O. Butler, 713 Highland Avenue

The Butler Home, above, and the Turpin Home, below, are both on the National Register of Historic Places. Their NRHP applications have many pictures, outside and in, with history and architectural details. Both are pdf's.

 

Maj. Thomas L. Butler Home, a.k.a. The Turpin Home
center, c. 1910; right, c. 1930's

Butler home acquired by park in 1933.

 

Inside the Turpin House

A CCC-built view, c. 1933	The Dam at the Lake, 1944

 

Two early artists conceptions of the Butler Park Lodge. The one on the left is 1955, and the right is 1961.

 

Efficiency Cabins at Butler Park

 

Lake and beach from dam, c. 1956	Beach and swimming area, c. 1956	Picnic Area	Swimming Crib at Bathing Beach

 

Shelter House and Picnic Area	Lake Butler, 1941	Lake Drive Efficiency Cabin, 1955	Observation Point

 

Entrance, 1933	Park Entrance, 1951	Entrance c.1945	Entrance, C. WWII

 

Boat Dock And Lake	Trading Post	Observation Point	The Stable

 

Pony Ring	Swimming Area	Cabin at Butler Park	Entrance, 1952

 

The Lake at Butler after being filled. At the time, called Lake Weiblie.
from a Facebook post by Amy Baglan

1933 Lake View	1933 Lake View

 

 

Butler Home, c. 1930's

Shelter House in the summer	Shelter House in the snow	Lake at General Butler	Swimming Area at General Butler

 

Scenic Overlook Construction, c. 1930's, and use, c. 1960's

October, 1967
from a Facebook post by Jeff Kramer. That's him and his sister Ginny

Fishing at Camp Kysoc	Butler Park Ponies		Butler Park Tennis

The Golf Course	Paddle Boats	Entrance to Lodge	Beach

Butler Park Camping	Camping, 1967	Camping	Lake Drive Cabins

The Lodge at Night	A Room in the Lodge	Dining Room	Inside at the Lodge

Interior of the Lodge	Interior of the Lodge	Interior of the Lodge	Pool at back of the lodge

Lake in 1975	Beach at the lake	Pool at the Lodge

Dining Room	Miniature Golf at Butler	Back of the Lodge	Interior of the Lodge

“A beautiful view overlooking the golf course with lodge in the background.”

The Committee In Charge of the General Butler Park Dedication	Tandy Ellis and Perry Gaines at Butler Dedication

Thirty five sheep and two beeves were barbecued at the 1931 dedication of the park.

“A gentleman from Carrollton informs us that Gen. Wm. O. Butler not only declines the Governorship of Nebraska, but does it rather indignantly.  The worthy General is reported to have declared that he wouldn't be Governor of Nebraska even if they were to offer him the whole territory as his salary.”  from the Louisville Weekly Journal, July 5, 1854

New enclosed shelter house	View from the Observation Point, circa 1945	Man made lagoon

 

WPA dining hall

Construction at Butler Park	Camp Butler, where many of the National Youth Administration  ( WPA ) workers who helped build the Park were housed.   That's the 11th St entrance to the park on the left. Thanks to Bill Davis for the image on the left.

Caretaker's cabin	New custodian's home  at Butler Park	Caretaker cabin with snow

 

Rustic stone wall preserving cemetery and park	Home of Maj. Thomas Butler, Mansion Museum	Shelter House

 

August, 1931
This is the group who went to Frankfort for the deed ceremony
 to convey the land to the state to create a park.

Kentucky State Parks published an annual in 1935 with a short piece on each state park.  Butler's pics are above, and the story is here.	Before the Park opened, Kentucky Progress wrote this article on the Butler family. (pdf)
“Wednesday being the anniversary of the day on which the Battle of New Orleans (Wikipedia) was fought, the band serenaded Gen. W. O. Butler to remind him that he was there.  They played an American, an English, and a French national anthem.  The General, who is yet straight and soldierly, made them a short speech, thanking them for the compliment, and stated that he well remembered the day and had also had some little transactions with each of the nations represented by the airs played.”   clipping from unknown newspaper, dated 1879
The Butler Park's web site is here
Gen. William O. Butler speaks for his candidate in the 1860 election, here.	Parks expands by 100 acres in 1939.
The program from the dedication of the Butler-Turpin home is here. (pdf)	Who's who in the Butler Family, here.
W. O. Butler's obituary is at this site.	Kentucky made the Butler property a park on August 12, 1931.
Officially, today, it's General Butler State Resort Park; it was dedicated as Butler Memorial State Park.