On November 20, 1862, Kentucky's Confederate Government filed an ordinance of secession, a legal bill announcing the the government that Kentucky would no longer be part of the union. At the time, Kentucky was split between the Unionists and the Confederates, and state legislature seats would be hotly contested during the years of the war. In November 1862, the Confederate government brought together 300 delegates from 65 counties to votes on secession in Russellville.
However, at the time, secession required either a majority vote from the state legislature or a successful referendum. Because the official state government refused to ratify the document, Kentucky remained a part of the union. But, as demonstrated by the Russellville ordinance, the ties were tenuous: the Unionist majority in the state senate was small, and to protect the status of the state, the Unionists created and passed a bill that declared Kentucky a neutral party. This position led to the labelling of Kentucky as a border state in the Civil War, and made the retaining of Kentucky a high priority for the Union.
You can see a copy of the ordinance here.
-Joanna Slusarewicz
Sources:
http://www.historyorb.com/date/1861/november/20
https://spider.georgetowncollege.edu/htallant/border/bs11/fr-cope.htm
http://www.trimblecounty.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/8F084482-85FB-40D2-A94F-2954A8EDEA86/0/EstablishmentofSpeedLimitsonCountyRoadsinTrimbleCounty.pdf
However, at the time, secession required either a majority vote from the state legislature or a successful referendum. Because the official state government refused to ratify the document, Kentucky remained a part of the union. But, as demonstrated by the Russellville ordinance, the ties were tenuous: the Unionist majority in the state senate was small, and to protect the status of the state, the Unionists created and passed a bill that declared Kentucky a neutral party. This position led to the labelling of Kentucky as a border state in the Civil War, and made the retaining of Kentucky a high priority for the Union.
You can see a copy of the ordinance here.
-Joanna Slusarewicz
Sources:
http://www.historyorb.com/date/1861/november/20
https://spider.georgetowncollege.edu/htallant/border/bs11/fr-cope.htm
http://www.trimblecounty.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/8F084482-85FB-40D2-A94F-2954A8EDEA86/0/EstablishmentofSpeedLimitsonCountyRoadsinTrimbleCounty.pdf