Harrodsburg's 200th Anniversary Commemoration Monument

Harrodsburg 200th Anniversary Commemoration Monument

Dedicated on June 16, 1974, this monument honors the 200th anniversary of the founding of Harrodsburg, the first permanent English settlement in Kentucky. On June 16, 1774, Captain James Harrod led a party of 32 men into the Kentucky wilderness to establish what was then known as Harrodstown. Their names—etched into the monument—commemorate the original pioneers whose courage and leadership laid the foundation for the Commonwealth’s earliest frontier community.

A unique distinction of this monument is its dedication by astronaut Neil Armstrong, the first human to walk on the moon, alongside Claude Brusse, a direct descendant of James Harrod. Their participation symbolically links Kentucky’s earliest explorers with the modern era’s greatest adventurers. The monument stands today at Old Fort Harrod State Park, serving as a tribute to the bravery, endurance, and legacy of the settlers who helped shape Kentucky’s history.