Kentucky Owl's origins date back to 1879 when pharmacist Charles Mortimer Dedman built a distillery on the Kentucky River. This operated until 1916 when, as a precursor to total Prohibition, his stocks were confiscated by federal agents, and moved to a warehouse in Frankfort. This burned down in mysterious circumstances, and C.M. Dedman gave up distilling. Having been acquired by the Stoli Group in 2018, the company is building Kentucky Owl Park on a 420-acre site at Cedar Creek Quarry in Bardstown. This will include a distillery, warehouses, and several visitor attractions. Production will use water from limestone-filtered water drawn from lakes within the quarry.