By: Cheri Daniels, KAO Editor/KHS Head of Reference Services & Deana Thomas, KHS Archivist In 1995, the Carpenter Family Papers were donated to the Kentucky Historical Society (KHS). The scope of the collection runs from 1788 to 1928, and includes documents from several members of this family as well as...
By: Michelle Williams, KHS Intern In May of 1825, by invitation of Governor Joseph Desha, Kentucky welcomed its most prominent guest – Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roche Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, known mononymously in the United States as simply Lafayette. Lafayette was the French hero of the American Revolution,...
This past February the Kentucky Historical Society and the African American Genealogy Group of Kentucky teamed up to host a panel session about Kentucky African American research strategies and resources. The panel was comprised of four experts in the field: Dr. Alicestyne Turley of Berea College, Reinette Jones of the Notable...
By: Michael M. Wood “Our Company saw two Indians in the wilderness; but we all got through safe” William L. Farrow in a letter to his wife Betsy, September 22, 1794 Kentucky in 1794 was still in the midst of war. The bloody defeat of the Kentucky Militia at the Battle...
Before Abolition: African-Americans in early Clark County, Kentucky. By Lyndon Comstock. (2017. Pp. 812. $26.95. Paperback. Lexington: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.) ISBN: 978-1-9740-9411-0. The rising interest in genealogy can’t be understated. It’s the second most popular hobby in the United States, the second most visited type of website, and is...
By: Cheri Daniels, MSLS, KHS Head of Reference Services When researching families, we often encounter multiple stories as we dig deeper into the lives of individuals. For those who lived prior to the Civil War, the stories can include an extra layer, and extend into the lives of enslaved families....
Editor’s Note: The research presented in this report was featured in a recent episode of Finding Your Roots on PBS as it followed the ancestry of actress Maya Rudolph. By Kandie Adkinson, Administrative Specialist, Land Office Division, Office of the Secretary of State As Researched by The Harrodsburg-Mercer County Oral...
By: Mary E. Clay This is a story about a surname puzzle. A similar story could be told by many other African Americans trying to find their ancestors. The search for the surnames the ancestors took after they were freed can be a true test of one’s research abilities. This...
In the summer of 2012, KHS acquired letters that made a few headlines. The reason the Watson-Robinson letters garnered such attention was due to the fact that most of the authors were from the African American community prior to the Civil War. While scholars and historians will spend years dissecting...
Slaves Identified in Kenton County, Kentucky Clerk’s and Kenton County Vital Statistic Records, 1840-1865. By Arnold Taylor. (2014. Pp. 58. Spiral Softcover. Lexington: www.slavelawsuits.com) This new title by Arnold Taylor was recently accepted into the library holdings here at KHS. As a transcribed collection of enslaved individuals listed in Kenton...
