I have both the 1901 (same as 1902) and 1908 versions of W&H mentioning KY Common (one is the actual book, one is a scan). The early version simply had a brief description of the style.
Rod shaped bacterium would be lactobacillus.
I don't see it as an issue. There were Louisville breweries making Berliner Weiss, it ain't much of a stretch to believe yeast having lacto could have made it into a KY Common.