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Kentucky Quarters and My Old Kentucky HomeThe Kentucky Quarters commemorate the first of the frontier states – those beyond the Atlantic seaboard.The design features a large mansion and what appears to be a Thoroughbred racehorse with classic horse farm fencing. The mansion pictured still exists. It was built between 1795 and 1818, near Bardstown Kentucky. It was the home of Judge John Rowan, who named it Federal Hill. However, most folks think of it as “My Old Kentucky Home”, the mansion said to have inspired 19th century song writer Stephen Foster’s composition of the same name. Whether or not this is true, Federal Hill is an outstanding example of the classic pre-Civil War southern mansion. The home has been part of the Kentucky State Parks System since 1936. The other major device on the Kentucky State Quarters is the racehorse. Horse breeding and horse racing are huge in Kentucky. Horse racing was originally conducted on straight, quarter mile stretches of country roads. Racing on circular courses were established by the 1780s. In 1875 the first Kentucky Derby was run at Churchill Downs, which continues each year in May, and is considered the most well known horse race in America.
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