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Elmwood
Hall is the first permanent home to be built in the City of Ludlow.
The home is located at 244 Forest Avenue.
In 1790, what is today the City of Ludlow was granted to General Thomas
Sandford for his long service to the United States Military. This grant
consisted of approximately 1,200 acres. Sandford built a log cabin on
the property.
In 1818, Thomas D. Carneal traded his land (in what today is Fort Mitchell)
with Sandford. Carneal immediately began constructing a grand Federal
Style summer home on his newly acquired property. History records that
Carneal's slaves did most of the construction work. The building took
four years to be completed. Carneal named the house Elmwood after the
large elm trees that shaded the property.
 Carneal
and his family utilized Elmwood as a summer home until 1827, when the
structure was sold to William Bullock, a wealthy English Catholic. Bullock
visited the home in 1827 and fell in love with the graceful structure,
its pleasant orchards and expansive fields.
William Bullock operated a very successful silversmith store in Liverpool,
England. Beginning in the 1790s, he began collecting historical memorabilia
and curiosities. These collections eventually formed the nucleus of
Bullock's Museum in Liverpool. In 1811, the museum was moved to Piccadilly
Square in London, England. Among Bullock's most prized acquisitions
was the carriage of Emperor Napoleon of France.
 Bullock
intended to establish a model village on his newly acquired property.
He acquired the services of I.B. Papworth, a well-known English architect,
to draw plans for his model city. Bullock planned to call the city "Hygeia,"
a Greek word meaning health. Bullock traveled to England in an effort
to sell lots in his new city. His efforts did not meet with much success.
In 1830, Bullock gave up on his plan and sold Elmwood Hall and 710 acres
of property to Israel Ludlow for $21,380. In 1840, Ludlow sold the Hall
and 42 acres to his brother-in-law, George Kenner (Ludlow maintained
ownership over the rest of the estate).
Elmwood remained a residence until 1920, when the Thomas family purchased
the hall for use as a candy factory for $4,700.00. The Thomas family
operated the candy factory in Elmwood Hall until 1971 when the establishment
was closed. The building has since been used as a private home.
The home's original main entrance faced the Ohio River (north). When
the Webster Subdivision was laid out in c. 1880, Forest Avenue was constructed.
At this time, the main entrance was switched to the south side of the
building. The construction of Forest Avenue also resulted in the demolition
of the home's kitchen wing.
In 1972, Elmwood was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
News Enterprise, July 8, 1971, August 31, 1972, p. 1; Kentucky Post,
May 10, 1902, 1p. 1.
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