Cardome - Georgetown, Kentucky
N 38° 13.336 W 084° 34.027
16S E 712969 N 4233275
Home to Gov. James F. Robinson, 1844 until death,age 82, in 1882.The house also served as a Catholic Monastary and Convent until it was sold to the city of Georgetown, which now owns the property.
Waymark Code: WM205F
Location: Kentucky, United States
Date Posted: 08/13/2007
Views: 50
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The word “Cardome” comes from the Latin “Cara Domas” meaning dear home.
The first man to set foot on this property was Colonel John Floyd in June of 1774. For his military service he was granted by the State of Virginia a total of 1000 acres, which included the Cardome property.
By the early 1800’s the property had come into the possession of one of Kentucky’s most prominent families, the Bradfords, who built the first structure on the property in 1821. The property then came into possession of James F. Robinson, who was the Kentucky Federal Governor during the American Civil War. He built an elegant mansion which was located in the center of the current buildings. An interesting historical note is that the first Confederate Governor of Kentucky lived only a few miles from here, also in Georgetown. He was killed in battle at the beginning of the war. Unfortunately the mansion building burned and was torn down in 1986.
The Robinson heirs sold the property to the Sisters of Visitation, a “cloistered” order of nuns, in 1896. Here they founded a girl’s academy that became one of the most prestigious schools of its type in Kentucky. Due to a variety of circumstances that led to declining enrollment, the academy closed in 1969. When the visitation community disbanded in 1987 the property was sold to Community Building Inc., a non-profit organization formed to administer a million dollar gift from Toyota for the purpose of establishing a community center for the people of Georgetown. The site is now owned by the City and serves as a place for many activities including weddings, company picnics and community meetings.
A very aggressive plan is now underway to upgrade the facility, which will include a full service kitchen, bed and breakfast, and a state of the art outdoor amphitheatre.
The Center is open during regular work hours five days a week and can be visited. There are pictures and documents hanging that tell about the history of the Center. The graves of the nuns previously buried here were moved to the St. Frances de Sales Cemetery in Scott County when the Center was sold by the Sisters of Visitation in 1987.