Joe Bowen estimates this is the tenth home he’s renovated in his 82 years, and he says this one in Hazel Green is the most significant.
“It is a labor of love. And the local people tell me that it's incredible that you own Jesse Taylor Day's house. And I said, folks, I don't own Jesse Taylor Day's house. I get to live in it, and I get to fix it up, and I get to pay taxes on it. But I said it belongs to the town of Hazel Green.”
Three years ago, the Wolfe County man and his wife Linda bought the home built in 1893. The 4,000-square-foot Victorian home sits in the center of the small community of Hazel Green. Built by successful businessman Jesse Taylor Day, his home was a showplace in its time.
But time took its toll.
Bowen says the home sat vacant for 26 years. In stepped the Bowens, who are working hard to not only restore the Day home but also do all they can to revitalize Hazel Green. Linda Bowen described what makes Hazel Green so special, a town of 165 people, located on Highway 191, about a ten-minute drive off the mountain parkway.
“When you come off the parkway, you take exit 46 and make a left, you come on 191, and you can see all the struggles that this area has had. And then there comes a point when you get up close to Hazel Green, maybe three miles out, and you feel this wonderful magic. The sky is bluer, the grass is greener, and it's like you're driving into Ireland. These hills are just rolling, beautiful hills, and it's a magical place to be. I love it.”
Linda mentioned Ireland. As you drive into Hazel Green, you are greeted by a bright blue and green welcome sign that reads, Historic Hazel Green, Celtic Village on the Red.
Celtic Village on the Red refers to the Red River that you drive over heading into Hazel Green. Celtic honors the area’s Irish and Scottish ancestors who immigrated in the 1700s to Appalachia.
Linda says, “The people who started this little community were from the Celtic nation, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Northern France. They came over from Ireland, and they said, I'm home, the music and the storytelling and the love of the land. And so, this is our landing place, mine and Joe's.”
It’s hard to keep Joe Bowen still for very long. By most accounts, he’s led an amazing life full of adventures, travels, and compassion. Bowen grew up in nearby Powell County and served in the US Air Force.
After leaving his military duty, Bowen decided to go on a bicycling adventure. In 1967, he started pedaling in California, and sixteen months and 14,000 miles later, Bowen finished his bike trip back home in Eastern Kentucky. His journey across America had also included stops in Mexico and Canada.
But that wasn’t the end of Bowen’s cross-country travels. In 1980, the construction worker traded his bike for stilts and walked 3,000 miles to raise money for Muscular Dystrophy research.
“I raised $104,000 for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, and Jerry Lewis sent me a plane ticket, and they flew me to Vegas, and I helped open the 1980 telethon.”
Bowen would go on to national acclaim as he carried the Olympic Torch in 1996 and 2002. A second long-distance bike ride was to come. In 2005, the then 62-year-old Bowen embarked on his bicycle for another coast-to-coast trip. This time, he included thousands of Eastern Kentucky schoolchildren on the journey by talking to them by phone and laptop.
Through the years, Bowen raised over $600,000 for charity, had a family that included three daughters, and wrote a book, “Real Winners Don’t Quit.”
Now at 82, he’s helping restore some Eastern Kentucky history. The Day home needed work from top to bottom.
“I spent $32,000 on new windows. But it's not about the money. It's about saving Eastern Kentucky history.” Linda Bowen adds, “It's our heritage. If you weren't Native American Indian, then you came over on a boat, and the people who landed here came in through Virginia, and there was Scott Irish, Welsh, Northern France. And so, this is our heritage. This is a wonderful, free, beautiful America.”
Inside the home, the Bowens found many historical items from the late 1800s, like a pair of ladies’ shoes, a bottle of wine, original fireplaces, and two pianos.
Linda says, “We found a newspaper article from the Hazel Green Herald, and this piano came here from New York by train. It went on an ox cart, and two oxen brought it to the front door, and they brought it in this room, and it has been in this house since 1889.”
Today, the Day house is hard to miss with its new red metal roof, hazelnut brown wood exterior trimmed in Irish green. The front porch is welcoming, and the original iron fence with a gate still stands in front.
The Bowens estimate they are four months from finishing the renovation, with plans to open a bed and breakfast called the Celtic Village Inn. The couple has also started a non-profit to help improve Hazel Green. Tammy Moore, who bought and renovated her home in Hazel Green, says the Bowens have led by example.
“Joe and Linda came in, and they got people inspired. So, we just all jumped on that bandwagon.” Junior Lawson grew up in Wolfe County and lives in Hazel Green.
“They made a difference here in this town. How? So, by all the hard work they've done. They've went around the communities, you know, they've helped other people that's in this community, far as you know, fixing their places up.”
The Bowens envision a “theme” community in Hazel Green that embraces its Celtic roots. The couple formed a non-profit called Hazel Green Kentucky LLC. Linda Bowen explained why it takes a village to pump new life into Hazel Green.
“To help restore this community, to help get Wolfe County off of the poorest county in America's list. So, we are doing things. We're building the community. We're helping our local government. Today, you're the mayor. Next day, he's the mayor. Next day, I’m the mayor. So, the things that the people in the community want to do, we can help them with this non-profit. Like now we're getting ready to plant apple trees and hazelnut bushes. Hazel Green got the name from hazelnuts, and so there's about a dozen families that are going to have apple trees and we're working on restoring our town.”
David Musser of Hazel Green has studied and written about the Celtic roots and how they impact his community.
“The small town of Hazel Green has chosen to celebrate our Celtic roots. It is the first place in America to claim the title of a “Celtic Village.”
This was done to re-energize a once-thriving community and to create an economic engine to benefit the entire surrounding area.
There are numerous “Theme Towns” across America. When they stay true to their mission and resist national chain restaurants and hotels, they are enormously successful in providing local employment and new business creation.
There is a nationwide resurgence of interest in the Celts. There are over 230 Celtic festivals across the country.
More than half of Americans have a Celtic ancestor. This gives the idea of a Celtic Village an enormous drawing power. Hazel Green is just beginning this vision and has much to do to bring it to fruition.
Joe and Linda Bowen got the ball rolling, and the community has embraced the idea. The potential is enormous; not just for one small ‘Celtic Village,’ but for the entire region.”
As for Joe Bowen, his life has come full circle. From growing up in bordering Powell County, to meeting US Presidents and world-famous celebrities like Muhammad Ali, to now improving life in Wolfe County, Bowen relishes honoring those pioneers like Jesse Taylor Day who established Hazel Green.
“It's incredible that I get to be a part of something that was done, that was started a long time ago. This family was a huge success. They were in the lumber business, the coal business and tourism. They owned three hotels in Eastern Kentucky. This was in the late 1800s and early 1900s and people don't know that. They don't know that. This little town is sitting on right next to the Red River, and we are the entrance to the great Red River Gorge.”
So, the next time you are in the area, check out “Historic Hazel Green, the Celtic Village on the Red.”
