Henry Clay's Law Office

Henry Clay's Law Office
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Henry Clay's Law Office
Location	176 N. Mill St., Lexington, Kentucky
Coordinates	38°2′58.45″N 84°29′48.98″W / 38.0495694°N 84.4969389°WCoordinates: 38°2′58.45″N 84°29′48.98″W / 38.0495694°N 84.4969389°W
Area	less than one acre
Built	1803
NRHP Reference #	71000340[1]
Added to NRHP	March 11, 1971

Henry Clay's Law Office was the law office of American statesman Henry Clay in Lexington, Kentucky from 1803 to 1810. The building is one of few professional building remaining from that era.^[2]

Clay's law office

Clay received formal legal education at the College of William and Mary in Virginia, studying under George Wythe. Clay prepared for the bar by working with the Virginia attorney general, Robert Brooke, and he was admitted in 1797. As a young lawyer seeking to establish a successful law practice, Clay relocated to Lexington in November 1797.^[3] In 1803, Clay built and occupied the building located on Mill Street near his wife's family residence. The one-story brick structure measures a mere 20 by 22 feet. Clay occupied the office while serving in the Kentucky Legislature and in the United States Senate.^[2]

After Clay

In 1830, the law office was incorporated into a larger building, and the original roof was removed.

The State of Kentucky purchased the building in 1969, and restoration was completed in 1971. The law office is now owned by the First Presbyterian Church.^[2]

References

1. National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
2. "Henry Clay's Law Office". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2008-03-29.
3. "Death of Henry Clay: Sketch of His Life and Public Career", New York Times. June 30, 1852, p. 1

External links

• Henry Clay's Law Office web site

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