Bluegrass region

Before European-American settlement, various cultures of Indigenous peoples of the Americas lived in the region. The pre-colonization state of the Bluegrass is poorly known, but it is thought to have been a type of savannah known as oak savanna, with open grassland containing clover, giant river cane (a type of bamboo), and scattered enormous trees, primarily bur oak, blue ash, Shumard's oak, chinkapin oak, and kingnut hickory. Some of these trees, which are hundreds of years old, still stand in old pastures in the Bluegrass.[5] The thickets of giant river cane, known as canebrakes, created a dense undergrowth that made it impossible to find 10 uncleared acres that were not full of cane.[6] The local indigenous peoples hunted its large herds of bison and other game, especially near mineral licks. The name "Kentucky" likely comes from the word for "meadow lands" in Iroquoian, but has several other possible origins. Europeans adopted the name to apply to the state. "Bluegrass" is a common name given in the United States for grass of the Poa genus, the most famous being the Kentucky bluegrass.[7]

During the decades which followed the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), Americans settled in great numbers in the region. They migrated mostly from Virginia. By 1800 these planters noticed that horses grazed in the Bluegrass region were more hardy than those from other regions; this is due to the soil's high calcium content.[8] Within decades of increased settlement, the remaining herds of bison had moved west. The breeding of Thoroughbred horses was developed in the region, as well as of other quality livestock. Kentucky livestock was driven to Tennessee and other areas of the Ohio River valley for sale.

Planters, supported by slave labor, also cultivated major commodity crops on plantations, such as tobacco, hemp (see Hemp in Kentucky), and grapes (see Kentucky wine). The first commercial winery in the United States was opened in the Bluegrass region in 1801, in present-day Jessamine County by a group of Swiss immigrants.[9] It was authorized by the Kentucky General Assembly.

Since the antebellum years, the region has been a center for breeding quality livestock, especially thoroughbred race horses. Since the late 20th century, the area has become increasingly developed with residential and commercial properties, particularly around Lexington, the business center. Farms are losing ground to development and slowly disappearing. In 2006, the World Monuments Fund included the Bluegrass region on its global list of 100 most endangered sites.

Although Bluegrass music is popular throughout the region, the genre is named after the band Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys, which in turn took their name from the state nickname of Kentucky.