i TOUR 1 7 417
. At 94 m. is the junction with an unmarked road.
t Right on this road to BROKE LEG FALLS (camping and fishing privileges,
_ 10¢), 0.5 m., on a creek of the same name. In a wild and primitive setting of
natural beauty BROKE LEG CREEK plunges from an overhanging rock ledge
more than 100 feet high. Below the falls is a quiet ravine enclosed by rocky cliffs.
* Between these rock walls and along the banks of the creek are mountain flowers, 1
` trees, and shrubbery, seldom seen so close to a highway.
State 40 continues over the ridge tops, often permitting excellent
_ views of the valleys below. Immediately after the World War much
»  drilling for oil was carried on in this vicinity. Abandoned equipment
; and a few producing wells are noticeable.
FRENCHBURG, 103.9 m. (246 pop.), the seat of Menifee County,
is a quiet old town in a valley so narrow that the few streets and the
  public square with its town pump occupy practically all available level
; land. Houses are wedged between the narrow sidewalk and the base
of the mountain. A visitor once said it was a place where one can see
.  in only a single direction——skyward.
;  State 40 follows a comparatively level course through a widening
j  valley. A rapid change in terrain, from mountainous heights through
. knobs and then to hillocks, marks the approach into the Bluegrass
‘ plain.
_ MOUNT STERLING, 126.9 m. (934 alt., 4,350 pop.) (see T0ur -
( 16), is at the junction with US 60 (see Tour 16).
; NORTH MIDDLETOWN, 140 m. (400 pop.), was first called
Swinneytown for a settler who had an inn here. In 1818, when it was
; incorporated, the name was changed to Middletown because it was mid-
. way between Paris and Mount Sterling. The "North" was added later
1 to distinguish it from the Middletown in jefferson County.
- XALAPA (L), 141.5 m., is the estate of Edward Francis Simms,
  breeder of thoroughbreds. A stone wall, extending along the highway
i for two miles, surrounds the place and a wide gateway gives access to
 `- miles of driveways bordered with dogwood, hawthorn, oaks, maples,
lilacs, and evergreens. The one-and-one-half-story brick residence is
A covered with Virginia creeper; the front facade has four large windows.
g  Circular steps with old boxwood on each side lead to the small cir-
‘ cular portico, which has slender columns and an ironwork balustrade.
  The paneled doorway has a delicately leaded fan transom and side
, . lights, and there is a handsome Palladian window in the front gable.
A reproduction of an old stone mill contains an immense recreation
Q  room, a ballroom, a guest room, a bath, and a kitchen. The windows
  overlook Stoner Creek, which winds through the estate.
5 The house was built in 182 7-28 by William Thomas Buckner, who
Q came from Virginia in 1820. Henry Buckner, a son, inherited the estate
=   of 880 acres, and, after his return from service in the Mexican War,
I i named it Xalapa in memory of the little Mexican town that the Span-
f  iards called the "Happy Land." The estate was purchased by the