FRANKFORT, Ky. — The Kentucky Historical Society (KHS) is recognizing 25 individuals and organizations for their contributions to the field of history at the Kentucky History Awards Celebration on June 3. KHS will also recognize the 19 grant-recipient organizations recently receiving funding through the Local History Trust Fund. This funding pool supports the efforts of local history organizations to preserve and share Kentucky stories. Organizations in 15 Kentucky counties received grants totaling $44,443.78. Individual amounts range from $1,790 to $2,500 for research, exhibition expansion, technology updates and programming projects.
This year’s history award winners represent communities from across Kentucky in categories that include a range of disciplines from education to publication, along with special awards named after some of the commonwealth’s greatest historians. Special awards include the Dr. James C. Klotter Lifetime Dedication to Kentucky History Award, the Brigadier General William R. Buster Award, and the Thomas D. Clark Award of Excellence.
“The Commonwealth is fortunate to have over 370 history-related organizations,” said KHS Executive Director Scott Alvey. “From history museums, historic sites and parks to historical societies and Kentucky historians, they play a fundamental role in understanding what it means to be a Kentuckian. The annual Kentucky History Awards recognizes outstanding work done in Kentucky history and the community of public historians who help us see the unfolding story of our past.”
- Thomas D. Clark Award of Excellence: Camp Nelson National Monument
- Volunteer Organization: Fredonia Valley Heritage Society
- James C. Klotter Lifetime Dedication to Kentucky History Award: Michael Morrow
- Brigadier General William R. Buster Award: Jerry Johnson
- Award of Distinction: Joe Craver
- Frank R. Levstick Award for Professional Service: Bill Mulligan
- Kentucky Public History Intern Award: Isaac Bates
- Community Impact Award: Filson Historical Society’s Community Historian Program
- Publication Award – University Press: Slavery and Freedom in the Bluegrass State: Revisiting My Old Kentucky Home by Gerald L. Smith
- Publication Award – Private Press: My Old Kentucky Home: The Astonishing Life and Reckoning of an Iconic American Song by Emily Bingham
- Publication Award – Local Independent Press: Crafting and Casting: The Famed Frankfort Kentucky Reel by Betty Barr and Don Kleier
- Publication Award – Pamphlet/Newsletter: Hart County Historical Society Quarterly Newsletter by Hart County Historical Society Board and Todd Johnston, Editor
- Publication Award – Website: Resurrecting the First American West, The Filson Historical Society, by Patrick Lewis, Danielle Spalenka, and Jennie Cole
- Education Award – Public Programming: Bottling Coca-Cola: A Trolley Tour of Luther Carson’s Life in Paducah, Atomic City Tours
- Education Award – Public Programming: Haunting on the Hill, Capital City Museum
- Education Award – Public Programming: We Are Our History, Riverside, The Farnsley-Moreman Landing
- Education Award – Special Projects: Fredonia Valley Veterans Memorial Dedication, Fredonia Valley Heritage Society
- Education Award – Special Projects: Historical Facts of Cadiz-Trigg County, Kim Fortner and Paul Fourshee
- Education Award – Special Projects: 1964 March on Frankfort, Joanna Hay Productions
- Education Award – Multimedia: Kentucky Deceased: Hauntings of Frankfort, Capital City Museum
- Education Award – Multimedia: Shaker Village App, Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill
- Education Award – Exhibit: What Happened to Jonesville? The Kentucky Folklife Program
- Education Award – Exhibit: The Commonwealth: Divided We Fall, Frazier History Museum
- Education Award – Preservation: Landsdowne Hall Archaeological Project, Gerald Dyson
- Education Award – Preservation: Renovation of the Virginia Theater, City of Somerset
The awards will be presented on Saturday, June 3, at the Kentucky Historical Society in Frankfort as a kickoff event to Kentucky History Day. Breakfast and networking start at 9:00 a.m. ET, followed by the awards presentation at 9:30. Exclusive staff and curator-led tours, gallery talks, informative workshops, and hands-on activities will follow the awards.
