Valley View Ferry
Valley View • Fayette, Jessamine & Madison Counties

The Valley View Ferry, established in 1785, predates Kentucky's admission to the Union in 1792 and is widely regarded as the commonwealth's oldest business. The ferry carries vehicles across the Kentucky River from KY 169 to Tates Creek Road. John Craig, a veteran of the Revolutionary War, acquired land in the area in 1780 through a military warrant. In 1785, the Virginia General Assembly granted Craig "a perpetual and irrevocable" franchise to operate a ferry. Daniel Boone, Henry Clay and Ulysses S. Grant have numbered among its passengers. The ferry remained a privately-owned business for over 200 years, passing through the hands of seven successive families until 1991, when it was purchased jointly by the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government and Madison and Jessamine Counties.

Joe & Sherri

•

BACK