| Early 1700s |
The first Europeans visited the area. |
| 1777 |
Captain John Holder, a companion of Daniel Boone,
first settled the land that would become Floracliff. |
| 1780s |
Eli Cleveland, a shipyard builder, acquired the land. |
| Early 1800’s |
A cabin was built on the property that still stands
today. |
| 1850 |
Bright B. Harris, stone cutter, bought some of the property. A small
quarry provided high grade limestone to area builders. |
| 1859 |
Peter Evans, who built the grist mill at the fork
of Raven Run Creek, bought the property. |
| 1903 |
The cliffs along the Kentucky River were logged. |
| 1910 - 1935 |
The landowners tapped sugar maples for syrup. |
| 1930 |
Kettle Springs was used as a local water source. |
| 1930s - 1950s |
The uplands and floodplain were farmed for corn,
hemp and tobacco. |
| 1958 |
Mary Wharton began purchasing property that would become Floracliff. |
| 1976 |
Mary Wharton gave 109.5 acres as a scenic easement
to the Lexington Fayette Urban County Government (LFUCG). This was
the first use of a scenic easement in the state, done to prevent development. |
| 1981 |
Mary Wharton gave another 48.5 acres to LFUCG as a scenic easement. |
| 1987 |
Incorporation of the Mary E. Wharton Nature Sanctuary
at Floracliff. |
| 1991 |
Mary Wharton died November 28th at the age of 79. |
| 1996 |
Floracliff was dedicated as a Kentucky State Nature Preserve, the
first and only dedicated preserve in Fayette County. |
| 2000 |
The first preserve manager was hired. |
| 2008 |
A research project led by Neil Pederson and Ryan
McEwan results in the discovery of the oldest documented tree in Kentucky
plus eight others that date to the 1600s. |
| 2010 |
Construction and completion of the Winifred W.
Haggart Nature Center |
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