Our Rich History: The Tousey House — 200 years and counting in Burlington

By Raymond G. Hebert, PhD
Special to NKyTribune

Part 4 of an occasional series about Casual & Fine Dining

“The Tousey House is one of the oldest buildings in Boone County and Northern Kentucky as a whole. James Madison was the President of the United States when construction was completed on the building” (Kenton Hornbeck “Burlington’s Historic Tousey House Celebrates Historic Anniversary: ‘200 years is amazing,” LinkNKY, September 28, 2022). Butch Wainscott (the current owner), on the occasion of the 200th Anniversary Celebration, September 22, 2022 (the same day as his 80th birthday), stated of the site, “200 years is amazing . . . There’s not a lot of properties left that are 200 years old. We’re fortunate enough to have this one here” (Hornbeck). Adding to the unique nature of the property was the detail in a different article that “Erastus Tousey bought this land in 1817 for $25 and this home/restaurant was built in 1822” (Jenn Shockley, “These 9 Amazing Kentucky Restaurants Are Loaded with Local History,” Only In Your State, February 26, 2016)

Erastus Towsey (1798–1863), his wife Catherine (1805–1863), and their children occupied this brick (Flemish-bond) Federalist style home. Erastus and his family had four enslaved people. Over the years, the house served as “a livery, tavern, gift shop, boarding house, hotel and consignment shop” (Hornbeck). It fell into disrepair in the 1980s until “former Boone County Judge/Executive Bruce Ferguson and his wife Elizabeth restored the building in 1987, breathing new life into the structure” (Hornbeck). The Ferguson’s brought it back to life.

In the Towsey family heritage there is fascinating story about “enslaved cooks” worth sharing. It began with a letter from a son-in-law to Dr. Benjamin Stephens, Surgeon General of the 22nd KY Union Infantry, apologizing for not visiting recently or even writing. In asking to be remembered to the Towsey family, he added: “I embrace in that category, Aunt Lydia and Martha.” Sadly, Aunt Lydia was the family’s enslaved cook. Her daughter Martha was born in Kentucky before the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, which only freed enslaved people in states that had joined the Confederate States of America. Kentucky was a border state officially, so emancipation would not apply immediately to Lydia or Martha. Following her husband Erastus’s death in 1863—and fortuitously for Lydia, Martha and the other enslaved workers—Catherine freed them (Dawn Woeller, “The History of the Enslaved Cooks of Burlington’s Tousey House Tavern,” The Food Etymologist, September 8, 2017).

Another Towsey enslaved cook with a fascinating story was Henrietta Woods. The Towseys sold her to Henry Forsythe, a riverboat captain from Louisville who in turn sold her to William Cirode, a French hide and fur merchant of Louisville. Upon his death, William’s wife Jane Marie Cirode inherited Henrietta, moved to Cincinnati, and freed her. However, Jane died in 1857, and her greedy children conspired to have Henrietta kidnapped and “sold into slavery into the south.” In a fitting ending, after being “enslaved to work on a plantation in Mississippi for 10 years, [she] returned to Cincinnati about 1868, sued the kidnapper and won $2,500 in damages in 1878 — pretty unheard of for a black female” (Woeller).

More to the present day, in recent years owned by the Wainscotts, the Tousey House Tavern has not forgotten its history while becoming a part of Kentucky’s flourishing Bourbon Trail (the B-Line is Northern Kentucky’s leg of the Bourbon Trail). Local media celebrity Katherine Nero visited the Tousey House in celebrating its place on the B-Line, praising its bourbon selection and adapted menu. Her article opens with these words: “The history is evident as you walk in . . . and so is the general manager Eric Morehead as bragging: “we have nice bourbons, rare bourbon flights, the whole 9 yards . . . antique style bourbons: 80’s, 90’s, there’s even a 1941 bourbon we offer” (“ A Taste of the B-Line with Katherine Nero ”).

Nero adds that “the bourbon doesn’t stop there. It finds its way into the kitchen as well” (Nero). The Shockley article (mentioned earlier about the “9 Amazing Kentucky Restaurants Loaded with Local History) seemed to have a special affinity for the Tousey House (along with the Greyhound Tavern, the other NKY selection in this list of 9). Shockley noted that “great places to eat are always good to know about, and Kentucky restaurants with history even more so.” With a rich history amidst restored surroundings, the Towsey House is the “grand restaurant it is today, serving soups, salads, and sandwiches and delicious entrees such as Bourbon and Brown Sugar Pork Tenderloin, Duck Breast, Walleye Pike and more” (Shockley).

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tousey House has not only survived but flourished, partially because of its history, pride in tradition and sense of place in the Burlington/Boone County community, but also because it has stayed current and meaningful, with its bourbon investment and ongoing touch of class. General Manager Morehead reminds us that “throughout the years, whoever has owned it at their respective period of time, it has meant something for the community as a pillar of history” (Hornbeck).

Butch and Mary Ann Wainscott, along with their children, continue to own and operate the Tousey House Tavern. It is noteworthy and striking that most of the artwork throughout the restaurant was painted by Mary Ann Wainscott. According to their daughter Meggie, “while Dad was running the restaurants (including the Greyhound Tavern), my mother was raising seven children and she would paint and sketch houses from her home, including the portraits of Erastus and Catherine in the entrance way.” It is not surprising that Meggie could add:
“It is an honor and privilege to be part of the Tousey House history. It is a reflection of a time long ago in Boone County. While everything is changing rapidly around us, we hope that Tousey House can take us all back. At least that is our hope for when guests walk through our doors. There is just a special feeling that you get sitting at a table here. You can’t help but look around within the 1822 home (and surrounded by Mary Ann Wainscott’s paintings) and think ‘if these walls could talk’ ” (Meggie Wainscott Martin email to Hebert, August 7, 2024).

Dr. Raymond G. Hebert is Professor of History and Executive Director of the William T. Robinson III Institute for Religious Liberty at Thomas More University. He is the leading author of Thomas More University at 100: Purpose, People, and Pathways to Student Success (2023). The book can be purchased by contacting the Thomas More University Bookstore at 859-344-3335. Dr. Hebert can be contacted at hebertr@thomasmore.edu .

Paul A. Tenkotte, PhD is editor of the “Our Rich History” weekly series and Professor of History and Gender Studies at Northern Kentucky University (NKU). He can be contacted at tenkottep@nku.edu . Tenkotte also serves as Co-Director of the ORVILLE Project (Ohio River Valley Innovation Library and Learning Enrichment). For more information see https://orvillelearning.org/

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