Joseph Proctor

A JOINT RESOLUTION directing the Transportation Cabinet to name the new bypass connecting Kentucky Route 52 and Kentucky Route 89 in Estill County in honor of Joseph Proctor.

We pause to honor a hero and patriot of the Commonwealth, a man in whom "the public's confidence in his purity and integrity was absolute", the Reverend Joseph Proctor.

WHEREAS, Joseph Proctor was born in Rowan County, North Carolina, in 1754; and

WHEREAS, a valiant young man, Joseph Proctor rallied to protect early settlers in North Carolina against uprisings of the Cherokee Nation; and

WHEREAS, Joseph Proctor's early experience fighting Indians proved essential to the citizens of the Commonwealth when he moved to Boonesborough in April, 1778; and

WHEREAS, Joseph Proctor assisted in defending the fort at Boonesborough in August, 1778, during a nine day siege in an attack by 500 Indians led by Canadian officers; and

WHEREAS, being a fearless warrior was only one facet of Joseph Proctor's personality, for, in 1809, he was ordained a Methodist Episcopal minister; and

WHEREAS, Joseph Proctor, along with Thomas Todd, was one of the first families to build a home in what is now Estill County; and

WHEREAS, Joseph Proctor's first home was a cabin on Sweet Lick Creek, now known as Estill Springs; and

WHEREAS, Reverend Joseph Proctor founded two of the earliest churches in Estill County, the first being the Methodist Episcopal Church at the rural community of Kimbrell in 1809, and the second being Proctor's Chapel which was located on White Oak Creek; and

WHEREAS, Reverend Joseph Proctor's ministry was most notable for the weekly prayer meetings he held each Thursday night in Estill County -- after the first courthouse was built and until his death in 1844, Joseph Proctor could be found in the County Clerk's office sharing the gospel; and

WHEREAS, even though Reverend Joseph Proctor was not a native Kentuckian, his contributions to the Commonwealth's early struggles were critical to the state's success for he was instrumental in protecting both the physical and religious lives of those first pioneer families;

NOW, THEREFORE,

Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky:

Section 1. The Transportation Cabinet is directed to name the new by-pass connecting Kentucky Route 52 and Kentucky Route 89 in Estill County the "Joseph Proctor Memorial By-Pass".

Section 2. The Transportation Cabinet is directed to erect signs at each junction of the new by-pass with Kentucky Route 52 and Kentucky Route 89 that read "The Joseph Proctor Memorial By-Pass" within thirty (30) days of the effective date of this Resolution.