Explore arts and culture in Paducah, Kentucky

Set at the meeting point of the Ohio and Tennessee rivers, Paducah owes much of its story to these inland waterways. But a current of creativity also runs through this vibrant western Kentucky city. Paducah’s deep roots in craft and folk art launched the city onto the international stage.

In 2013, Paducah became one of just 9 destinations in the U.S. to join the UNESCO Creative Cities Network. Since then, inventive types from around the country have found their way to this dynamic river town to perform, teach, craft, and create.

“It hasn’t been very hard to attract artists here,” says Rosemarie Steele of the Paducah Arts Alliance. “All they have to do is drive downtown and see the revitalization going on there, see how creative it is, see the murals on our floodwall. Nothing says art-friendly like that.”

Here’s our guide to a creative weekend getaway in historic Paducah.

Settle in at the 1857 Hotel, a stylish boutique property in the heart of Paducah’s historic downtown. The restored 19th-century building once housed a haberdashery and a tractor repair shop. Now, it features 10 airy guestrooms, each with tall windows, exposed brick walls, and vaulted, wood-beamed ceilings. Rates start at $99.

In the mid-1990s, renowned artist Robert Dafford and his talented team of muralists transformed a 3-block portion of the wall into a colorful canvas. Today, Paducah Wall to Wall features 60 larger-than-life murals that tell the city’s story from the pre-colonial era to the mid-20th century, complete with interpretive panels.

Kentucky produces 95% of the world’s bourbon, with the bulk of the hooch hailing from the central part of the state. But you’d be hard-pressed to find a better spot to sample the state’s native spirit than Barrel & Bond.

Paducah Bourbon Society founder Brian Shemwell and fellow whiskey aficionado Tom “Fish” Adams opened this inviting downtown watering hole in 2019. It showcases more than 1,200 different bourbons, including many bottles from the pair’s private collection. (Be sure to designate a driver if you plan to drink alcohol.)

For dinner, head to Cynthia’s Ristorante on historic Market House Square. Chef-owner Bill Gardner puts a fresh spin on Italian classics at this cozy Paducah mainstay. Gardner’s menus rotate weekly, inspired by meats, cheeses, and produce garnered from local purveyors.

Afterward, catch a flick at Maiden Alley Cinema, a nonprofit movie house tucked down a side street. It screens first-run features as well as independent, documentary, and foreign films.

Since 1873, Kirchhoff Bakery has been baking the daily bread for the Paducah community, cranking out gorgeous, golden loaves of everything from challah and sourdough to focaccia, rye, and its famous cranberry walnut.

Pick up a flaky croissant or a gooey cinnamon roll, then head next door to Etcetera Coffeehouse for a signature Spanish latté—a traditional espresso drink lightly sweetened with rich, sweetened condensed milk.

You’ll need an appointment to visit the Hotel Metropolitan, one of Paducah’s most fascinating landmarks. In 1908 a young Black widow named Maggie Steed opened a hotel in Paducah’s Upper Town neighborhood, providing safe haven for African American travelers in the Jim Crow South.

In the following decades, Ms. Maggie’s hotel became a stopover for Black performers on the Chitlin’ Circuit—a network of juke joints, nightclubs, theaters, restaurants, and churches that hosted some of the greatest talents in American music history. Later, the hotel found its way into the pages of the Green Book, a segregation-era guide to travel-related businesses that welcomed African American patrons.

Today, Paducah local Betty Dobson leads tours of the hotel, sharing stories of its guests—Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, and Thurgood Marshall all stayed there—and cultivating an understanding of the Black experience.

Named for its downriver location, Lower Town is one of Paducah’s oldest neighborhoods. After the Civil War, during which most of Lower Town’s buildings were razed, some of Paducah’s most prominent residents called the neighborhood home, filling the streets with an impressive collection of architectural treasures.

Over the years, the neighborhood fell into disrepair. The city implemented its Artist Relocation Program in the early 2000s, incentivizing creative folks from around the country to move to Lower Town. Over time, the once-blighted community transformed into a vibrant arts enclave.

A smattering of unique shops, galleries, and restaurants have since taken up residence throughout this 26-block historic hub. Start at Gallery 5, the studio and home of painter Bill Renzulli and his wife, fiber artist Patience Renzulli.

Around the corner on North Seventh Street, Pinecone Art Gallery showcases the eclectic, mixed-media artwork of Char Downs. Also on North Seventh, self-proclaimed “Mud Poet” Michael Terra creates sculpted pieces that blend pottery and prose at Terra Cottage Ceramics.

For lunch, head to Paducah Beer Werks. Housed in Lower Town’s former Greyhound bus station, this welcoming brewery is a brilliant example of the neighborhood’s many adaptive reuse projects. Sip one of the award-winning beers—don’t miss the flagship Irish Red—alongside addictive fried pickles and house-made pizzas.

Find more local art at the PAPA Gallery (Paducah Area Painters Alliance), which features more than 100 regional painters. Then, take a stroll through Market House Square, home to gems like the Bricolage Art Collective and the Art Guild of Paducah. In each, artists from in and around Paducah find gallery space to showcase and sell their work.

Kick off the evening at the FoxBriar Cocktail Bar, a swank little lounge on Broadway that slings handcrafted cocktails and lovely wines selected by Nick Weeks, the in-house sommelier.

Whistle appropriately wetted, make a beeline to the Freight House. Chef Sara Bradley pays homage to Kentucky’s agricultural bounty and traditional foodways. With an emphasis on shareable plates, Bradley turns out uber-fresh, regional fare with a modern twist. Think marinated beets with ham, pistachios, and honey yogurt; braised pork shoulder with field peas and bacon-fat cornbread; and Kentucky silver carp with fennel couscous and blood orange butter.

Springtime in Paducah means dogwoods. Each year in mid-April, locals and visitors alike can experience these lovely flowering trees along the city’s much-loved Dogwood Trail.

Organized in 1964 by the Paducah Civic Beautification Board, the trail winds for 12 miles through Paducah’s west end. Admire beautiful redbud, weeping cherry, and Japanese maple trees as well as blossoming dogwoods and colorful residential gardens. You can visit the trail day or night thanks to spotlights that illuminate the trees after sunset.

Perhaps shrimp and grits, brown-butter waffles with Nutella and berries, fluffy ricotta pancakes, and eggs Benedict will be on the ever-changing menu at Café de Fae. Longtime Paducah local Jade Valentine opened this whimsical café-meets-boutique in 2022 in Lower Town’s historic Smedley-Yeiser house. She’s been serving up made-from-scratch Southern specialties to a loyal crowd ever since.

The front of the restaurant, which features charming vintage china and mismatched furniture, doubles as a consignment shop. Weekend brunch is served from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Reservations are recommended.

Known as “Quilt City USA,” Paducah’s membership in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network is rooted in its longstanding fiber arts tradition. At the center of that tradition stands the National Quilt Museum. Founded in 1991 by Bill and Meredith Schroeder, who brought national recognition to the art of quilting when they formed the American Quilter’s Society in 1984, the museum is the only one of its kind in the world.

Three galleries feature a rotating display of stunning pieces from the museum’s permanent collection, which includes more than 650 contemporary quilts that belie any fusty notions one might have about the art form. Velda Newman’s large-scale nature designs and a retrospective on the colorful creations of Kaffe Fasset opened 2023’s exhibit schedule.

New York–based journalist Gina DeCaprio Vercesi writes about food, drink, and travel with an emphasis on history and conservation.