The Kentucky home of one of the Commonwealth’s best-known statesmen is participating in Hemp History Week. Ashland, Henry Clay’s Lexington estate, will serve as the home base Wednesday afternoon for the event.
Ashland Curator Eric Brooks said Clay and hemp were intertwined. “Well, there would be no Ashland without hemp. Henry Clay got into the hemp business very early. Henry Clay made a good sum of his money from the hemp business, a lot of what he had at Ashland was the result of revenue he generated from hemp, revenue generated from the enslaved here at Ashland,” said Brooks.
Brooks added the vast majority of hemp in Clay’s day was used for fiber for rope and wrappings for cotton. The Ashland site manager said he believes the well-known Washington political figure would be pleased with hemp’s comeback.
The Lexington home of Clay features a 20 foot by 20 -foot plot of hemp prominently on the grounds. Kentucky Hempster is a hemp advocacy-education group based in Lexington. Co-Founder Alyssa Erickson anticipates the current medicinal focus of hemp will give way to other uses in larger numbers. “I think we’ll see a lot more fiber opportunity and health food opportunity from the seed and fiber, industrial textiles, building and construction materials. There are all sorts of things you can do with the fiber that are more sustainable, better for our earth,” noted Erickson.
The Ashland event begins at 5:30 Wednesday evening.
Here's is more of the interview with Ashland Curator Eric Brooks and Kentucky Hempsters Co-Founder Alyssa Erickson.
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