"My great-grandfather, who was referred to as 'Big Joe,' killed the deer on his own farm," Michael related. "Following his death in 1986, my grandfather, John Mayer, moved into the house and eventually relocated the antlers to a large barn on the property. During my visits to the farm in the late '90s, I was always fascinated with the big rack hanging in the barn. And as my interest in deer hunting increased, I was allowed to take the antlers home with me.

Without question, it was the rack's huge size that initially caught Parker's attention. Later, however, the main attraction was simply the fact that his great-grandfather had taken the buck on land that was part of the original homestead. Since the young hunter knew very little about deer records or record books, the idea of having the antlers measured really never crossed his mind.

All of that changed early in the fall of 2004, when Parker's uncle, Darren Giles, an avid deer hunter from Georgia, arrived to do some bow hunting. One look at the giant rack, and Darren immediately proclaimed that the deer would easily qualify for the Boone and Crockett Club's (B&C) record book. The only unknowns were determining exactly how high it would score and where it might rank in the state records.

The answers were provided a couple of months later when the rack was officially measured. Antler statistics from that taping include exceptionally long main beams, each of which measures nearly 30 inches, an impressive antler spread of 24 2/8 inches outside, and 21 7/8 inches inside, and outstanding tine length. For example, the paired G-2s measure 12 7/8 and 11 3/8 inches, the G-3s are 11 0/8 and 10 7/8 inches, and the G-4s tape 11 7/8 and 8 0/8 inches. Additionally, the entire rack exhibits great antler mass.

In regard to scoring, the 6x6 typical frame grosses a tremendous total of 198 0/8 and, after deductions for asymmetry plus two small sticker points, nets a final B&C typical score of 185 3/8. In addition to qualifying for both B&C record books, the buck ranks 19th on Kentucky's all-time list of typical whitetails. Within Nelson County, the deer stands as the biggest whitetail ever recorded.

While it is unfortunate there are no details of Big Joe's hunt, the rack exhibits evidence of what must have surely been an exciting time in the hunter's life. He is known to have owned several shotguns, so it's been surmised that Big Joe was probably hunting with buckshot. The number of times he fired at the giant whitetail will always remain a mystery; however, several pellets from at least one shot struck the buck's right antler.

Luckily, all things considered, the damage was relatively minor. Even so, the base of the right G-4 tine was splintered, the beam was scarred, and at least half of the right brow tine was shot off.