Kentucky Colonel Articles
The Kentucky Colonel became part of American Conversation as early as the first part of the 19th Century; but the title was not adopted officially by the Commonwealth of Kentucky until 1875.
Embedded Files
Membership is not required to establish a Kentucky Colonel Branch or to be listed in the Kentucky Colonels Handbook
Articles About Kentucky Colonels: There are a great number of articles about the Kentucky Colonel, there are so many in fact we need to objectively classify and distinguish between fiction, non-fiction, humor, parody, law, and the first amendment starting with Daniel Boone who was first recognized in England prior to the beginning of the 19th century. It is clearly understood who the "First Kentucke Colonel" was after reading what is believed to be non-fiction "The Discovery, Settlement and Present State of Kentucke" by John Filson which was published in 1784. An advance signed copy was sent to George Washington by John Filson, who acknowledged Col. Daniel Boone its pioneer and architect.
Documentation on Kentucky Colonelcy
Documentation on Kentucky Colonelcy
Through extensive research across North American libraries and digital archives, we have uncovered a vast and invaluable body of documentation related to the history and legacy of the Kentucky Colonel. Remarkably, the majority of these sources have come to light only after entering the public domain and being digitized as part of the global creative commons.
Today, it is estimated that over 15 million books have been digitized—representing approximately 13 to 15 percent of all titles ever published in the United States. This unprecedented access to historical texts has enabled a deeper and more accurate reconstruction of the Kentucky Colonel’s true origins, significance, and cultural evolution. It also means there is still 85% more to add to this subject.
There are literally 50,000 newspaper articles about the "Kentucky Colonel(s)" that are searchable from Archive.org, the Library of Congress, Newspapers.com, and NewspaperArchive.com. Here on our website we maintain an unordered list of some of the most interesting articles we have discovered since February 2020. In 2025 we prepared an exhibit for judicial notice before the Sixth Circuit with Kentucky Colonels Newspaper Articles [6 Cir Document 72].
There are not quite as many books about Kentucky Colonels as there are Newspapers or Magazines, but there are quite a few, and more are discovered every day as more titles are digitized. Excerpts from noteworthy authors are located in Appendix A (Sources and Origins) [6 Cir Document 46] and Appendix B (Descriptive Quotation Passages) [6 Cir Document 47].
International Stage and Theater
International Stage and Theater
The Kentucky Colonel Archetype was created in the United States based on the ideas of two playwrights in 1830 and 1833 making a parody character representing Colonel Davy Crockett, the term first appears in London newspapers where the 1833 version of the Kentuckian debuted, a month later in the American press referring to Colonel Nimrod Wildfire, see Court Exhibit [6 Cir Document 56].
Magazines and Periodicals
Magazines and Periodicals
There are thousands of sightings of the Kentucky Colonel in magazines and periodicals starting around 1833, by the end of the 19th Century the Kentucky Colonel was a famous archetype among writers like Mark Twain and Opie Read. Most notably the Commonwealth of Kentucky formed the Kentucky Progress Commission in 1927 which acknowledged and defined the Kentucky Colonel, its origin in 1775; with contrary values than those known today. Kentucky Progress Commission [6 Cir Document 69].
Photographic and Image Archives
Photographic and Image Archives
We are working on a gallery of Kentucky Colonel photographs and images being hosted using Google Photos
Additional Research is always being performed here: Internet Archive
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