Boston, Kentucky
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| Boston, Kentucky | |
|---|---|
| Type | Former community |
| County | Daviess County |
| State | Kentucky |
| Also known as | Burtonville |
| Settled | 1810, by Bassett Burton |
| Post office | Until 1859; briefly again during the Civil War |
| Location | KY 54, 2½ miles northwest of Whitesville |
Boston, first known as Burtonville, was a community in Daviess County, Kentucky, located on KY 54 about two and one half miles northwest of present-day Whitesville.
Burtonville
In 1810, Bassett Burton and his wife Polly Carter purchased a large section of land along what is now the Leitchfield Road. They were soon joined by other families. Burton built a horse-powered grain mill in 1822, and farmers within a fifteen mile radius brought corn and wheat to be ground into meal and flour. The population grew and soon a school was built on Burton's property.
Burton died in 1832, and by this time the settlement was known as Boston. The origin of the name is not known.
Growth and Post Office
By the mid-1830s, Boston boasted a store, a church, the grain mill and school, and several residences. It also had a post office, which remained until 1859 when it was moved to Whitesville.
During the Civil War the post office returned for a time to Boston because of the alleged disloyalty of the postmaster to the Union cause. But shortly after the end of the war, the post office was returned to Whitesville.
Decline
By this time the stores had either closed or moved to Whitesville, as had most of the residents, and Boston gradually disappeared, remembered today only by the name Boston Rd.
Reference to an article by Glenn Hodges