, 1780 : Historians agree that almost all of Kentucky's original distillers, started distilling in their native colonies - Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia - first. The letter above, for example, is written to a lawyer in Bedford County, Virginia. A citizen is seeking financial assistance because his rye and malt burned on the kiln!
Source: Crowgey, H. (2008) Kentucky Bourbon. They Early Years of Whiskey Making. University Press of Kentucky.