Taylor William Samuels established the family's first commercial distillery in Deatsville, in 1844. Fifty-two years later, in The Nelson County Record, T.W. Samuels was recognized as being in the business longer than any man who ever made whiskey within the confines of old Nelson County. By that time, Samuels whiskey was being sold throughout the county, and his warehouses had a capacity of a whopping 14,000 barrels. This man was also Nelson County's largest landowner and served four terms as its High Sheriff. The whiskey named in his honor is from Heaven Hill.