Frankfort was the first city in the state to have a military building - the State Arsenal - built in 1850. As such, the history of the military in Frankfort dates back to the 1850s, if not earlier. The State Arsenal occupied a strategic place on the side of a hill overlooking the Kentucky River. Weapons were stored in the Arsenal, and it housed offices as well.
National Register Plaque - "This property has been place on the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Department of the Interior The wooden interior of the 1931 building appears to be well-preserved underneath the metal. Part of the building served as barracks and living quarters, while the majority of the building was open, with a dirt floor. This area was used by the soldiers for drilling with their horses, as illustrated by pictures from the 1938 Historical Annual of the National Guard of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The building was constructed in the form of a large barn, with a barrel-vaulted ceiling. The wooden building has metal-and-glass windows on the front facade that are still visible from the inside of the building and appear to be original. The wooden interior of the building, including walls and roof trusses appear to be remarkably intact and in good condition. Today the building is used for storage by the Department of Military Affairs.
Many different units have been stationed in Frankfort since the Kentucky National Guard began. The 1938 Historical Annual of the National Guard of the Commonwealth of Kentucky stated that the unit at Maryland Avenue in Frankfort was formed and Federally recognized November 30, 1921, as Troop A, Fifty-fourth Machine Gun Squadron. The unit was converted into regular cavalry in 1929, when it was reorganized as Troop A, 123rd Cavalry. The cavalry unit was in Frankfort until 1941. After World War II, cavalry units were no longer in existence in Frankfort or any other Kentucky cities, including Glasgow, Hopkinsville, Lexington, and London.
The National Guard units in Frankfort moved to a new armory on Louisville Road/US 60 in 1956-57 because the old buildings on Maryland Avenue did not have adequate office space. The old armory buildings were no longer needed when the cavalry units were disbanded, because they were constructed with large open spaces to allow the soldiers to drill on their horses. The state headquarters of the Army National Guard moved to Frankfort in the late 1950s, where they bought a large plot of land located off Highway 127. This area was named the Boone National Guard Center, and would have offices for all of the Kentucky Army National Guard operations. In 1974, another armory was built on Boone Center, and the Frankfort units moved there. The old armory on US 60 was taken over by the Kentucky State Police Department, where it now serves as offices.
The current armory building at Maryland Avenue was built as an Organizational Maintenance Shop to serve the armory on Louisville Road. The building continued to serve as an OMS shop until a newer one was built at Boone Center in 1975. For a while, the building was used as storage. In 1985, a unit was located at the Maryland Avenue site, and at that time, the old OMS was converted into office space. Renovations took place again in 1995, when the Headquarters of the 1/75th Troop Command was established there.
The Maryland Avenue storage/warehouse building is one of the oldest original armories in the state still standing and is basically unchanged on the interior, with cosmetic changes (some newer metal covering) made on the exterior. The old storage building is eligible for the National Register under Criterion A, for historic associations, and Criterion C, for type of construction. The other buildings are not eligible due to recent dates of construction and/or construction materials.
A stable on Maryland Avenue, located up the road from the Arsenal, served as the home for the cavalry unit, which was organized in Frankfort for twenty years and was one of the earliest National Guard units in the state. The stable was demolished in the early 1980s, but its foundations still remain. The stable was constructed in 1932, and served as the home for the cavalry troops. When built, the cavalry stables were regarded as a show place, featuring concrete aisles and stands, overhead hay racks, and electric-lighted stalls.
Two wooden armory buildings were constructed in 1931, the year before the stable. One of these buildings still stands; the other was demolished in 1976 to make way for the Martin Luther King, Jr. bypass, which was constructed in the late 1970s. A gravel parking lot has replaced the building, which was located up the hill from the current warehouse/old armory.
Maryland Avenue The current armory site includes three buildings - the current armory, a classroom trailer, and an older storage warehouse. The armory and the trailer are currently used by the Guard. The building used as the armory was previously used as the Organizational Maintenance Shop (OMS) for Frankfort. The classroom trailer was moved to the site in 1988, and houses a classroom and a break room. The old storage building on the site was the first National Guard armory in Frankfort. This building was constructed circa 1931.
The current armory building served as the OMS for Frankfort, and was basically a two- bay garage with some office space. The building served as storage until 1985, when a dental unit moved in. At that time, the interior was converted into more office space. The building was renovated again in 1995 when the 1/75th Troop Command moved in. The exterior of the building looks the same; the two garage doors were left, but simply covered by a wall on the inside. The classroom trailer has not had any modifications. The old armory consists of corrugated metal over a wooden frame, and is basically intact on the interior.
Photos and information courtesy Kentucky Heritage Council -- Report No. 25" Inventory and Evaluation of National Guard Armories in the State of Kentucky" - 1999 by Kate Carothers.