By Stephen D. Bowling

The people of Jackson were excited. 

Many positive developments were occurring simultaneously for the community.

The sounds of dozers, rock trucks, and construction equipment were rarely heard after several months of constant activity across the river from the city.  The new highway, an 8.7-mile section from Vancleve to Jackson, was known as the Mountain Parkway Spur and would become the new Highway 15. Governor Bert T. Combs poured more than $3.5 million into the section to Jackson.

The new road was busy with traffic.  Since the last of the paving in this section was completed on April 19, 1962, construction crews had moved south and were working in the Kragon community, pushing Highway 15 closer to its goal of Whitesburg.

Other work was progressing on the Mountain Parkway.  Combs and Highway Commissioner Henry Ward announced that work on the latest section of the Parkway would also be completed before November 1, 1962.  The state, boosted by a $29 million bond sale, completed the work on the last section in a record sixteen months, extending the highway from Winchester to Salyersville.

A new 20,000 square foot district highway office building, constructed for $400,000, was also completed in Jackson along the new roadway.

Governor Combs announced that he and other dignitaries would officially dedicate the three projects on November 1 in special ceremonies in Jackson and Campton.

Five years after the official opening of the roadway, drivers on the new Highway 15 traveling the Jackson to Quicksand section noticed some new construction just south of Jackson. 

Louise Hatmaker, editor of The Jackson Times, wrote that “We can’t help noting that lots of business is going up along new KY 15 between Jackson and Hazard.  Must be at least four or five new service stations, and according to a rumor, a new restaurant or two…which is especially good news for eating places are mighty scarce on Hwy. 15.”

The new structure quickly rose from the foundation on the east side of the road near the top of the Miller’s Branch and Meeting House Branch Hill.  Many commented on the strange look of the building.  Some said it “looked like two buildings wedged together.”

Around Jackson, word spread that Everett and Emily McClees were building a new restaurant on the new road just outside the city limits of Jackson.  By June of 1968, the building was taking shape.  Many in the community were excited about a new dining choice for Jackson.

The small roadside building included a large kitchen and a “spacious and modern dining room.”

The new restaurant had a quiet, soft opening.  They opened a few hours early on November 20 and were open to the public on November 21 and 22.  To celebrate their grand opening, the owners planned a huge open house on Saturday, November 23.  Kathleen Tharp, one of the cooks, prepared a few of their menu items and offered samples to the hundreds of visitors who stopped by to see the new building.

McClees announced that the new Jackson eatery would be named the Alpine Restaurant.

The staff of The Jackson Times visited the new business for a sneak peek a few days before the opening and reported that the “interior of the new Alpine Restaurant is tastefully furnished to create a pleasing atmosphere for dining.” 

Emily McClees operated the Alpine for less than a year.  She moved to Lexington in the Spring of 1969 and leased the restaurant to George Koutoulas, of LaPorte, Indiana.

He assumed operation of the business on March 9, 1969, and invited the community to come “enjoy a cup of coffee on the house.”  Koutoulas worked hard to make the business “family-friendly” and to keep the business from becoming a “road house” by keeping the “riffraff” run off and the restrooms clean.

In April 1969, the business got a vote of confidence from the community when the Breathitt County Jaycees voted to hold their officer installation at the restaurant.  Fred Landrum, President; Corbett Grigsby, Vice President; Robert Lovely, Treasurer; and other officers were installed and treated to a “fine dinner” on May 9 in the packed restaurant.  The gathering gave a loud round of applause to cook Clara Oaks for her effort on the night.

Despite the good food and nice atmosphere, many believed the restaurant was too far out of town, and as a result, business was slow.  The restaurant closed in the summer of 1969.  It did not stay closed long.

Gay Fugate and her husband, Jerry, announced in October 1969 that she had taken over management of the Alpine and planned to reopen it.  She purchased an advertisement in The Times to announce the opening of a daily buffet from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Fugate invited businesses and organizations to schedule meetings with her.

The First National Bank was one of the local businesses that accepted her offer.  President J. Phil Smith hosted the bank’s annual Christmas dinner for many years at the Alpine.  The Jaycees, the Jackson Woman’s Club, Kiwanis, the Junior Woman’s Club, the Extension Service, and other organizations held frequent meetings in the dining room.  Class reunions for local schools also gathered at the eatery.    

The Fugates operated the Alpine for several years, opening at 6:00 p.m. and closing at 10:00 p.m. each day. She continued the popular daily buffet, known for its great home cooking, but later discontinued the Sunday offering because “hungry after church eaters” cut into her profits.  She added a salad bar with a variety of “fixins.”

The operation and the name of the Alpine restaurant changed in 1979.  The name was changed to Bruce’s Alpine Restaurant, and the new owner, Bruce Wright, took over. The restaurant operated under his control only briefly but suffered from competition with Kentucky Fried Chicken, The Family Diner, and the Tee Pee Restaurant.

By 1980, the Alpine was the meeting place and judging area for the annual Coal Truck Rally during the Honey Festival.  After judging, the truck parade would proceed down Highway 15 and through Jackson before exiting town via Quicksand Road.

The exact date that the restaurant closed is not known, but the site was referred to in The Jackson Times as the “former site of the Alpine Restaurant” as early as February 1981.  In June, the Alpine was listed among the Breathitt County property owners who were delinquent on their county taxes.

In 1981, a new business opened at the former restaurant site.  Frank D. Hickey and Ronald Lee Minix incorporated Pacific Building Supply, Inc. on June 8, 1981, and purchased the property for their new lumber and hardware business.

Pacific Building Supply opened at the former site of the Alpine Restaurant in July.  The owners advertised that they were selling Georgia-Pacific wood products at their location on Highway 15 South.  Hickey added lumber barns and expanded the restaurant building, adding a second floor to display showers, cabinets, and other supplies. The business operated for more than thirty-seven years before it was closed.

Although the Alpine Restaurant is long closed and is only a memory for most, its legacy remains in the name given to the mountain that leads out of Jackson on Highway 15 South. 

The name Alpine Hill first appeared in print on the front page of the April 5, 1972, edition of The Breathitt County Enquirer, a newspaper opened and edited by Charles Hayes.  Hayes reported that residents approached the Jackson City Council to request additional police patrols and caution or stop lights to slow down drivers in the dangerous stretch from “Alpine Hill to the Jackson Cemetery.” 

Several residents who attended the meeting suggested adding turning lanes and widening the roadway as possible measures to control traffic and reduce speeding.  Work on that effort began in 2024 with a $47 million road project through Jackson.

While the restaurant is gone, generations of Breathitt County travelers still refer to Alpine Hill, never knowing the origin of the name.

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© 2025 Stephen D. Bowling