THE OLD POGUE DISTILLERY, LLC ANNOUNCES HISTORIC ACQUISITION OF RYAN – POGUE HOUSE

The members of the Old Pogue Distillery, LLC, announced today their acquisition of the historic Ryan – Pogue House, a Registered Kentucky Landmark and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Pogue House is located on the hillside above the Ohio River in Maysville, Mason County, Kentucky, formerly known as Limestone Landing, and by most historic accounts the area credited as the “Birthplace of Bourbon” whiskey. The Pogue House overlooks the site where the Pogue Distillery was located on the banks of the Ohio River for eight (8) decades before ceasing operations in the 1950s. The Pogue home was originally acquired in 1890 by H.E. Pogue II, and was known as “Star Terrace”. “This is truly hallowed ground for our family,” said John P. Pogue, Sr., 84 years old, and the patriarch of the Pogue family, which owns the Old Pogue “Master’s Select” Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky brand. “We never imagined that we, as a family, would once again grace the soil where generations of our forefathers lived while working in the Pogue Distillery,” the elder Pogue said. The elder Pogue himself used to visit the home frequently as a child and accompany his father to the distillery.

The Pogue homestead was renovated by well -known preservationist Philip Breen, who also renovated Rose Mary Clooney’s childhood home in Maysville, Kentucky, and is renovating several other historic properties in the Mason County area. “What Mr. Breen has accomplished here is truly remarkable,” Dr. Pogue related. “Fifteen years ago this house was sliding down the hillside.” The Pogue homestead has been restored to its original state when owned by H.E. Pogue II, and Dr. Pogue’s father, H.E. Pogue III. “All of the original flooring, windows, woodwork, fixtures, and architecture have survived and have been restored,” Pogue continued, “complete with the signature porch that has sweeping views of the Ohio River spanning several miles in either direction.” The Pogue house was originally built in 1845 by prominent Maysville hemp merchant Michael Ryan. The home was built in the Greek revival style.

H.E. Pogue II moved into the home in 1890 and the home was the Pogue family home for sixty (60) years, until 1951. “It is humbling to have the family home back in the hands of the Pogue family,” Pogue continued. “There are so many memories in this home and now the current and future generations of Pogues will also be able to create new and lasting memories.”

The Old Pogue Distillery, LLC, plans to move its corporate operations to the home. Plans also include furnishing the home with many of the original distillery items and opening the home from time to time for tours and special events. “Maysville, Kentucky, is an important part of the history of the bourbon business in the Commonwealth of Kentucky,” Dr. Pogue related. “At the end of the 19th century and before Prohibition Maysville boasted numerous distilleries of which the Pogue Distillery was the largest,” Pogue continued. “To be able to have a bourbon- related business, and particularly one of the original Kentucky bourbon whiskey families such as ours, returning to Maysville, is in itself an historic event for the Maysville and Mason County area,” Pogue stated. “We look forward to continuing the Pogue tradition in the bourbon business in Maysville for many decades to come,” Pogue concluded.

Family and friends come together for the historical marking of the Old Pogue Distillery site and the adjacent "Star Terrace", the home to several generations of the family. The Old Pogue Distillery was an important contributor to the growth of the bourbon industry and the commercial development of the community during the 19th and 20th century. Both sites have been officially recognized as significant pieces of history to the state of Kentucky.

The Pogues at the Whisky Fest in Chicago meeting patrons
and sharing history.

~July 29, 2004~

The Pogues reunite in Maysville , Kentucky to celebrate the release of Old Pogue Master's Select Straight Bourbon Whisky. (From left to right: Henry E. Pogue V, Henry E. Pogue IV, John P. Pogue Sr., Robert W. Pogue, Peter H. Pogue, and Paul K. Pogue.)