Thomas S. Pettit

Thomas Pettit was born December 21, 1843, in Frankfort, Kentucky. He was the son of Franklin Duane and Elizabeth (Zook) Pettit. ==Printing career==

Pettit supported himself by working in a print shop. Upon taking control of the paper, he published a series of items vigorously criticizing the Republican Party and its policies during the Civil War. On November 17, 1864, Pettit was arrested on orders from General Stephen G. Burbridge on charges of being "notoriously disloyal" to the Union. The couple had one son, Harvey Blair Pettit. After many years of publishing the Monitor, Pettit sold the paper to Urey Woodson, who changed its name to the Owensboro Messenger (now the Messenger-Inquirer). ==Political career==

In 1868, Pettit was elected assistant reading clerk in the Kentucky House of Representatives, a position he held for six years. Estranged from the Democratic Party by his refusal to identify with them during his race for the House, Pettit became a leader of the Populist Party in Kentucky. Redistricting and an inefficient legislative session were factors in the defeats of several Populist candidates during the 1893 elections. He received the endorsement of Louisville's New South newspaper, one of the largest black newspapers in the state. The American Protective Association (APA), an influential society opposed to Catholicism, endorsed the entire Republican ticket except the party's gubernatorial candidate, William O. Bradley. The APA withheld its endorsement from Bradley because of rumors that some of his family members were Catholic, and the society was thought to favor Pettit until Bradley was reported to have joined the society in September 1895, forestalling their endorsement of Pettit. In the general election, Pettit garnered 16,911 votes, compared to 172,436 for Bradley and 163,524 for Hardin. Although he had not been elected, his presence on the ballot had taken a significant number of Democratic votes from Hardin and resulted in the election of Bradley, Kentucky's first Republican governor. ==Later life and death==

Pettit never again sought public office, but remained interested and active in politics, notably campaigning for William Goebel during the contentious 1899 gubernatorial election. He engaged in clearing and improving land in Daviess County, and the settlement that grew up on this land was named Pettit in his honor. In September 1916, he married Alice Frakes. Pettit died in Owensboro on November 29, 1931. ==Notes==