PARIS, Ky. (LEX 18) — There's a historic charm everywhere you look in the heart of Bourbon County.
"You cannot see history any more than right here," said Rebecca Lawyer, the co-owner and general manager of the Bourbon County Citizen newspaper.
In this historic town, there's always a story. Some you'd know - others you wouldn't.
"It's like the whole history of Bourbon County is right behind me," Lawyer said while standing in front of dozens of boxes containing newspapers dating back to the late 80s.
It's like a trip down memory lane, not just for newspaper readers but for a family keepsake.
"I liked playing back here, and it was on my bucket list to print something or to get an old press running," Lawyer said, recalling growing up in the newspaper office. Her family has owned it for decades.
She recalls hearing an old letterpress: no copy machine, e-mail, PDFs, and all the things we use today.
"It's just — I don't know," she said with a smile. "You can call it an art form."
The press got passed down from generation to generation.
"I don't know if my dad and granddad are smiling from heaven or saying what in the world is she doing with that press," she said while laughing.
Recently, it printed 150 Secretariat posters ahead of the opening of the new park downtown. She hadn't really used it much — trying to preserve it and keep it safe. This was when she was encouraged to use the press.
"It talks to me because when I hear it run, it's like, 'oh that's the way it sounded,'" she said.
She has hopes for this press. She hopes it can be incorporated into lessons for the community.
"I'd love to be able to print and I'd love to be able to share this craft, if that's what you call it, with students," she said.
