"You know, it was the voice, that remarkable voice that was marked by its resonance, its zeal, its passion, its energy, its persuasive power," former Lt. Gov. Crit Luallen said. "It was that voice, accompanied by that broad smile, that let everyone know Julian Morton Carroll was in the room."
Speakers at an hour-long memorial in the heart of the Capitol remembered Carroll – who served in the state’s top post from 1974-1979 – as the last of a certain breed of old school politician, one that passed legislation through the art of personal persuasion.
Luallen said it was a style that yielded results during Carroll’s long tenure in Frankfort as governor, and a member of the Kentucky House and Senate.
"He more than doubled teacher salaries, provided free textbooks, founded the school building authority to help poor districts build new schools," she said. "He also implemented the modernization of the state's judicial system, that's still seen as a model for the nation. He stopped the damming of the Red River Gorge, one of our most valued assets today."
Carroll rose to the top post at a time when Kentucky governors still dominated the legislative agenda, enabling him to shape a wide array of policies.
Services will be at Elevate Church in Frankfort on Saturday at 11 a.m. Carroll’s burial will follow at Frankfort Cemetery.
He was 92.
