A few weeks ago, I was made aware of a bunch of murals that were painted directly on the city of Covington, Kentucky’s flood walls. Since then, I have personally made a visit to the site, located just across the Roebling Bridge, and was astonished by the high-level degree of the project’s scale and details. I found this to be so amazing that I wish to share what I learned.

The physical description of these murals isn’t too time-consuming to tell. The Roebling Murals at the Covington Waterfront are a series of 18 panels depicting the history of Covington from 800 BC to the present day, painted on the flood wall along the Ohio River and visible from the Roebling Bridge. They were made to fit the scale of the flood walls, making them both bigger and wider than your average person.

Next, the origin of the murals lies in a group known as Legacy – a group founded in the year 2000 that is dedicated to developing young and emerging community leaders in the region. Legacy empowers its members with information and perspective on timely community issues, and fosters leadership skills and personal relationships through monthly meetings, direct community involvement, and public initiatives. They commissioned artist Robert Dafford, one of the foremost mural artists in the United States, to begin this large scale project for the appreciation of the community. Legacy receives its funding for this project mainly from donations by local residents, families, and businesses.

The purpose of these murals is to take pride in Covington’s history. By depicting major events in history from as early as 800 BC to the modern era, Legacy hopes to educate the general public about how their city came to be, what is was like, what important events shaped its path, and the greatness of their current lifestyle. This project also serves to spread the history of the city beyond its own community, as large scale art projects such as this tend to attract attention from around the country.

Thus, I would personally recommend taking a trip down to Covington to see these murals. While I would not say that it is a life-changing experience, it is definitely something that is pretty cool to see. If cost comes to mind in your decision, then fear not for they are free to view.

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