Westport
Oldham County, Oldham County, Kentucky
Marker Inscription
Westport. First called Liberty, located on 1780 grant to Elijah Craig. Ferry operated here by Levi Boyer early as 1800 formed a link in route to Illinois country. Town became a port to the west-Westport. In the steamboat era, the town was a thriving port for shipping farm produce and receiving merchandise. The first county seat of Oldham, 1823-38, except nine months, 1827.
Erected by Kentucky Historical Society
The Story
First called Liberty and laid out on an Elijah Craig land grant of 1780, this Ohio River town found its purpose in the water. A ferry run by Levi Boyer around 1800 linked travelers toward the Illinois country, and in the steamboat era the renamed Westport became a busy port shipping farm produce and receiving merchandise. It even served as Oldham County's first seat from 1823 to 1838.
Why it matters
Westport captures how river commerce and ferries stitched the early trans-Appalachian West into the national economy before railroads reshaped the map.
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Related people
- · Elijah Craig
- · Levi Boyer
Themes & tags
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