♥ St. Thomas Seminary ♥
>> Sunday, October 10, 2010 –
History
The area of Louisville where I live is called St. Thomas. It is located just off Seminary Road. I've always thought the location was ironic considering that I was somewhat of a seminary groupie back in San Antonio (several of my closest friends are in or have attended seminary!). Sadly, it never occurred to me to put two and two together that I might be living on land that was once the home of St. Thomas Catholic Seminary! (Photos from http://www.parish-without-borders.net/sts/)
First class of 1952
A few weeks ago, when my dad and I were at the Fork, Cork & Style festival at Churchill Downs, we sat next to a woman and her daughter and struck up some small talk. We were discussing what parts of town we each lived in, and she then told us that there actually was a St. Thomas Seminary that occupied the land at the corner of Brownsboro Road and Seminary Road. I decided to do some of my own research via the internet to see what else I could find out about it.
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find much info. All I was really able to learn from my Google search was that St. Thomas Seminary was opened at 7101 Brownsboro Road in 1952. It was eventually torn down in 1970 and in its place came the present day apartment complex, housing development, and nursing home.
It was torn down in 1987-88 when the property was developed. I lived in Thornhill subdivision on the western edge of the property.
Between 1970 and 1987 it was vacant, the open fields were planted in soybeans and corn. The woods were badly damaged in the 1974 tornado.
Seminary road was constructed also when the property was developed in the late 1980s. Before then KY 22
went straight through past Ballard HS and did not connect with US 42 until the Holiday Manor area intersection.
Some of the woods on the property still exist. Just east of the Overlook apts. is an area known as
"the cliffs" which open on the small valley through which flows a branch of Goose Creek. The developers constructed a wooden path/stairs down from the top of the cliff to an observation platform at the bottom. The portion of the cliffs where the stairs are built is known as "Rusty's stairs" after a Thornhill inhabitant from the 1960's. Much of the woods in the valley formed by Goose Creek remain undeveloped. There used to be a network of trails but I don't know if they still exist. Also there was a geologic formation known as "mushroom rock" that unfortunately was destroyed when the property was developed. Immediately across I-71 is a small pond known as the "fishing hole" in which bluegill and catfish can be found. We used to fish there but the water is probably not safe for fishing now.