EDITION 1

By Janet Hickey Upton of Genealogy by Janet

In the next few issues of our Northfield News, we will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of Section One of the Northfield Subdivision. From the original plat of Section One, it indicates the area to be from Brownsboro Road to Hunting Road and their intersecting roads of Northfield Dr, Newmarket Road and Glenview Avenue. This area encompassed lots #1 - #54 of the original Northfield Subdivision. What we intend to provide is the land ownership information for this property from the original owners in 1789 to present day. In an effort to complete this historic journey to present day ownership, we will be following the data for the property at 2200 Glenview Avenue, the home of Bill and Janet Upton. Our journey begins with:

James Smalley Bate and wife, Lucy Moore Throckmorton Bate came to Kentucky in 1798 where the Bate combined family held patents for about 3,500 acres. These 3,500 acres, in the same Louisville area today, would be about 4 and a half miles of land. The Bate family was originally from Maryland but moved to Virginia. When James’ father died, the family moved back to Maryland because his mother had 6 children to raise and wanted to be close to her family. James’ wife, Lucy was the great granddaughter of Sir Alexander Spottwood, first Colonial Governor of Virginia. James and Lucy purchased about 1,000 acres of land in the Louisville area in the early 1800’s. This plot extended from the Ohio River to Brownsboro Road. “Berry Hill” construction was begun on this property after 1805. The family had a mill, a factory and a distillery. James died December 17, 1834. His wife Lucy lived at “Berry Hill” until her death in 1851. She was buried at the family graveyard in Glenview, Kentucky. After his mother’s death, “Berry Hill” and the property transferred to their son Gerard Bond Bate. The Civil War took its toll on the Bate family due to the slaves they owned. Consequently, in 1868 Gerard Bond Bate sold the property to James C. McFerran.