Folsom

by Gary W. Webb

In a quiet, beautiful valley between the hills of Western Grant County, Kentucky, is snuggled the small community of Folsom.  This valley was said to have been formed by a great glacier which sent the waters of Eagle Creek flowing to the west, leaving its original N. Easterly course flowing toward the community of Elliston.   From the church hill, which faces toward the west, one can see during the evening hours a most beautiful sunset.  This scene which inspires a feeling of great love and concern of God for us, perhaps inspired the early settlers also.

 For knowledge of the founding of this community, we must look back to the early people who lived in this area.  Folsom, originally called Lawrenceburg, was not actually laid out as a community; it just grew out of family togetherness in those early years.  Because a large family named Lawrence lived in this area during the period 1830-1850, the area came to be called Lawrenceburg.   Another pioneer family in the community was the W. H. B. New family.  However, none of the people who now live in or around Folsom bear either of these names.  In the church cemetery there is a marker for a man named P. Jump (born in 1815) many whose descendants still bear the name of Jump.

 Education, like that in most other early nineteenth century settlements, was limited.  One of the first schools in this area was the W. H. B. New School House.  It was here that many of the early dwellers received an education.  This school was presumably built in the period between 1840-1850  Mr. New was evidently a very prominent man in the community in its early years.

 The religious beliefs of Lawrenceburg were probably brought from the settlements in the colonies to this "wilderness" area.  The Vine Run Baptist Church which now stands on the side of a hill east of the community, was organized in June, 1859, at a meeting in the W. H. B. New School house.  Among the early leaders of the church were Joseph Ambrose, J. M. Arnold, and J. T. Elliston.  No church records can be found for the years 1859-1880.  However, the first church building was constructed in 1904, and the present building was completed in 1949.  However, Baptist have not been the only church group in the area.

 Residents of the area were supplied with the necessary items by the general store, a mill, and a blacksmith shop.  The first general store in the area was operated by Bradley and Pettit.  The ownership of the store in Folsom has changed many times.  The early blacksmith shop provided the supplies for transportation for people and goods in those days.  Last, but not least, was the mill.  The mill was owned by Mr. William Pettit who would take a certain amount of ground corn meal in exchange for the grinding of people's corn.  This was called a "toll."

 The present name of Folsom was given to the community of Lawrenceburg about 1914 when a post office was established here.  The name was given in the honor of President Cleveland's wife, whose maiden name was Folsom.  [More on Mrs. Cleveland, at this site]

 One of the most interesting places of Folsom is an old house located on the other side of Ten Mile Creek which is said to have been built before the Civil War; this house is constructed of stone, which makes it very rare in our day.

Just recently, a survey team trying to find a place to store natural gas found what they were looking for under the community of Folsom and the surrounding area; this could start a new trend in this small community.

From a collection of essays written in American Literature Eleven.  The class was taught by Ms. Hazel Ogden of Grant County High School in the 1963-1964 school year, and was typed by the typing classes of Mrs. Mattie Cox.  It is copyrighted by the Grant County Schools, and is used here with their kind permission. We found a copy in UK's King Library.