Frankfort is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. It is located 42 minutes away from Taylorsville Lake. Downtown offers many historical landmarks and restaurants. Being the capital; the current capital building is located in Frankfort, in addition, the old capital building has been remodeled and is open for tours. The outskirts of town offer good hiking trails and nature preserves.
Frankfort has a lot of landmarks, but if you’re interested in local activities and meet-ups see what’s scheduled on the calendar of events in Frankfort.
The capital of Kentucky is Frankfort; chosen over Lexington or Louisville in 1904. The Capital Building was completed in 1909 at a cost of $1,180,434. Designed by Frank Mills Andrews in the French Beaux-Arts style they offer tours of the building to visitors.
Just behind the Kentucky State Capital building is the Floral clock. Dedicated on April 10th, 1961 by Governor Bert T. Combs in joint project with the Garden Club of Kentucky. The clock face is 34 ft in diameter and tilted on a 26-degree angle. Bring your coins because under the clock is a 36 ft pool of water that visitors use as a wishing well.
Headquarters of the Kentucky Historical Society; The Thomas D. Clark Center contains tourist information and exhibits. A few exhibits are “A Kentucky Journey – From Bourbon to baseball bats, horse racing to sporty cars” and the “Kentucky Hall of Governors – Get behind the rumors and myths to find the facts about Kentucky’s governors”.
Restored the way it would have looked in 1850, the old state capital building served from 1830-1910. Tour the Greek Revival building designed by Gideon Shryock and learn about how Kentucky politics of the 19th-century.
Visit the nature center to explore Kentucky's diverse regional ecosystems and the wealth of fish, plants, and animals that make this their home. See an Eastern Forest Diorama & get up close to live snakes and giant turtles. Follow our paved, wheelchair accessible trails to see eagles, bison, bears, and more! A picnic area, shelters, and two fully-stocked fishing lakes are on site. Hiking Trails are open daily sunrise to sunset year round. Fishing and hunting licenses available during normal operating hours.
This beautiful park has 250 acres of streams, springs, waterfalls, forested ravines, and other natural and historic features. Trails include walking, biking, nature observation, environmental education and 6 miles of trails with interpretive signs (a portion of trail is handicapped accessible). There are restrooms and picnic facilities
Built in 1912–14 to be the governor's mansion, to designs submitted by Weber, Werner & Adkins of Cincinnati, Ohio. Kentucky's Governor's Mansion is one of only a handful of executive residences in the United States to be open to the public for tours. The Governor's Mansion is both a private home and a public building, thousands of visitors from across the Commonwealth and around the world visit the Mansion every year.
Constructed in 1988 to overlook the state Capitol in Frankfort, the Kentucky Vietnam Veterans Memorial honors 1,106 Kentucky Veterans who served this nation during the Vietnam War. Each Veterans’ name is precisely engraved on the blue-gray granite so the shadow of the sundial pointer touches their name on the anniversary of their death. Thus, each individual is honored with a personal tribute.
The cemetery is the supposed burial site of Daniel Boone and contains the graves of other famous Americans including seventeen Kentucky governors and a Vice President of the United States.