Happy 275th birthday to you...
Boone descendants on hand to help reveal new historical plaque
Ivy Brashear
Issue date: 11/5/09 Section: News
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He's the man who rescued his daughter from Indians and carried a long rifle at his side, the explorer and statesman-recognized as Kentucky's most famous son.
Eastern faculty, administrators and Madison County Historical Society members met to celebrate Daniel Boone's 275th birthday on Monday, Nov. 2 in front of Eastern's iconic Daniel Boone statue.
A plaque donated by the Madison County Historical Society and now attached to the statue commemorated the event.
"I really think this is a nice thing because it takes him (Daniel Boone) from being a cartoon character to being a real person," William "Bo" Leach, a direct descendant of Daniel Boone, said. "It really puts a human touch to him."
Multiple speakers at the event gave remarks about Boone's importance to Kentucky and the state's citizens, each agreeing that Boone's significance is unrivaled.
"I will admit that my initial opinion of Boone was one of suspicion," history professor Dr. Tom Appleton said. "No one could have been that interesting, that brave, that significant; but, once I made the study of Kentucky history my life's work, I discovered that Boone did indeed merit the esteem in which he is held."
Appleton lauded the characteristics that make Boone so appealing among Kentuckians.
"It isn't only the residents of New Hampshire who embrace the motto of 'live free or die.'" Appleton said. "That was Boone's credo as well."
He alluded to the search for the American dream, a search that Boone himself started for all Americans because of his adventurous spirit.
"Like many of us, Boone was a dreamer," Appleton said, "but one who not only wished for adventure, but who had the courage, or foolhardiness, to pursue it."
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