Civil War History Day Returns to KHS

On Saturday, September 28, KHS will host its second Civil War History Day. KHS is happy to have Dr. Barton Myers (Washington & Lee University) headline the program this year. He will discuss his work on Border State Unionists, specifically on Kentucky commanders. His talk will feed into the day’s wider discussion about the experience of Kentucky Unionists during the broader Civil War Era, with conversations from National Park Service staff. Doors will open at 9:00 am, with the first talk beginning at 10:00 am. Below you can view a snapshot of the schedule for the day:

9:00 am: doors open, coffee, mingle with KHS staff, and see Civil War artifacts

10:00 am: Dr. Barton Myers, Washington & Lee University, talks about Union military commanders from Kentucky and the Border South

11:00 am: Roundtable discussing the Union Civil War experience in Kentucky (Dr. Myers, and staff from Mill Springs Battlefield National Monument and Camp Nelson National Monument)

12:00 pm: Lunch (boxed lunches available for purchase)

1:30 pm: Mill Springs Battlefield National Monument talk

2:30 pm: The Civil War in Frankfort (KHS Staff)

4:00 pm: Join KET for a special screening of Secrets of the Dead: The Civil War’s Lost Massacre. The episode investigates an incident from Kentucky history known as the “Simpsonville Massacre,” when 22 Civil War soldiers from the 5th US Colored Cavalry on a cattle drive to Louisville were ambushed and slain by outlaws. KHS Historian Dr. James Bartek will participate in a Q&A following the screening. The event is free, but seating is limited, and reservations are required (your Civil War History Day registration includes a seat at the screening).

To register for Civil War History Day, visit: https://history.ky.gov/events/civil-war-history-day-2024 

For a preview of the day and the conversations it could unpack, please check out the transcribed and annotated roundtable from last year’s Civil War History Day: https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/142/article/929839. 

KHS has also made an article and transcribed diary available for free:

• Joy M. Giguere’s article “Young and Littlefield’s Folly”: Fundraising, Confederate Memorialization, and the Construction of the Jefferson Davis Monument in Fairview, Kentucky, 1907–1924” https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/142/article/641533.
• Josie Underwood’s Diary, edited by Nancy D. Baird, https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/142/article/553709.