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Ashland, children, children at play, clay children, george clooney, Henry Clay, Henry Clay Memorial Foundation, historic house museum, hospitality, Kentucky, Lexington Kentucky, Madeline McDowell Breckinridge, magical place, Nannette McDowell Bullock
Children have always found Ashland to be a magical place to play. From Henry Clay’s children and grandchildren, to James and Susan’s brood, to the McDowell girls, the estate’s young occupants delighted in their surroundings. And it was not only the Clay children who grew up at Ashland: generations of African-American children of enslaved or employed parents, too, lived out their young lives there. There are numerous accounts of children visiting and playing at Ashland—from Mary Todd to George Clooney (!)—but those must wait for another day…
For now, here are photos of some of the children who called Ashland home…or playground.

Detail of a popular print of Henry Clay’s Ashland, depicting children at play in front of the mansion

McDowell children at Ashland, from left: William Brock Jr, Henry Clay McDowell Brock, and Alice Dudley McDowell, 1917

Three sisters, Marie, Antoinnette, and Blanche Knight, and “playground supervisor” Myrtle Hummons, 1917 at Ashland

1921 celebration of Madeline McDowell Breckinridge’s life at Ashand’s back lawn. Her sister Nannette had a place in her heart for the children of Lexington’s Lincoln school, for whom she hosted an annual lawn party in memory of Madeline, who had founded the school.