Frankfort, KY - Spring is here and the Kentucky Historical Society offers events and programs for Kentuckians of all ages throughout April.
What Thou Liv'st, Live Well Play Celebrates Deaf History Month
The Kentucky Historical Society is offering a special production of What Thou Liv'st, Live Well: An Interview with James Morrison Heady in honor of Deaf History Month.
This short play focuses on the life and accomplishments of Heady, a deaf and blind Kentucky teacher, inventor, poet, and author. It will be performed by Mike Hudson, director of the Callahan Museum at the American Printing House for the Blind in Louisville.
The play will take place Friday, April 11, at 2 p.m. ET, at the Kentucky Historical Society's Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History in Frankfort. The performance is free with admission to the center and is part of KHS's Spring Break programming April 8-12. An American Sign Language interpreter will sign during the show.
James Morrison Heady (1829-1915) was born in Spencer County, Ky., the son of a well-to-do physician. Through a series of accidents, he lost his vision and hearing by age 40. He was a friend of both Laura Bridgeman and Helen Keller. Heady served as a fund- raising agent for the American Printing House for the Blind in 1860, prior to the outbreak of the Civil War. His successful efforts during the 1850s to arrange the embossing of John Milton's Paradise Lost endeared him to many in the field of blindness education.
National Deaf History Month, March 13 - April 15, recognizes the contributions of the deaf and hard-of- hearing to American society by commemorating milestones in the history of the deaf. The recognition highlights three important events in American history of the deaf:
- April 15, 1817 - The founding of the first public school for deaf students in the United States, the American School for the Deaf;
- April 8, 1864 - The signing of the charter for Gallaudet University by President Abraham Lincoln establishing a college for the deaf;
- March 13, 1988 - the victory of the Deaf President Now movement when students at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., staged a protest demanding the first deaf president for the university.
For more information about museum theatre at the Kentucky Historical Society, contact Greg Hardison at 502-564-1792, ext. 4454.
Enjoy Spring Break Activities at KHS
During the week of April 8, students can visit the Kentucky Historical Society and enjoy a special week of activities. All events occur at the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History unless otherwise noted.
History Zone for Kids
Each day from 1 to 4 p.m., students and children can enjoy History Zone activities at the Kentucky Historical Society. On Tuesday, April 8, celebrate a belated Arbor Day (April 4) with "Tree-mendous Kentucky!" On Wednesday, April 9, get a little corny for "Corntucky," as you discover the uses of corn and make cornhusk dolls. On Thursday, April 10, learn about the Tuskegee Airmen, and create your own model and paper airplanes. On Friday, April 11, play historic indoor and outdoor (if weather permits) games. Children can also enjoy the KHS History Zone activities from 1 to 4 p.m. every Saturday in April. This month's theme is ""Tree-mendous Kentucky!" where visitors create and decorate a wooden toy from Kentucky's past, plant a tree seed, and learn about the importance of trees as they celebrate Arbor Day and Earth Day.
History Zone is a free program for children ages 5-10 and their families. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Groups of 10 or more must register in advance. For more information, contact Annette Parde, KHS family programs coordinator, at 502-564-1792, ext. 4461.
Museum Theatre
Visitors can also enjoy special KHS Museum Theatre performances during the week of April 8 and throughout the month of April. All performances are free with museum admission. For more information, contact Greg Hardison at 502-564-1792, ext. 4454.
Westward into Kentucky: The Journal of Daniel Trabue
Tuesday, April 8 at 2 p.m.
This performance brings frontier Kentucky to life in this autobiographical drama about westward expansion and Native American conflicts.
Tobacco's Tale: From Bed to Basket
Wednesdays in April, 2 p.m.
A short performance piece preserving the changing rhythms of tobacco farming in Kentucky to the cadence of the auctioneer's call.
Nothing New for Easter: Shopping for Civil Rights
Thursday, April 10 at 2 p.m.
Meet Mattie Eleanor Lewis, an African American teenager living in Louisville in 1961, and listen as she struggles to decide whether or not to get involved in Kentucky's civil rights movement by taking part in a local boycott.
Birds of Passage: Vincent Scopa of "Tallie Holler"
Fridays, April 4, 18, and 25, 2 p.m.
Cultures clash in this short performance about an Italian immigrant's struggle to survive in the coal towns of eastern Kentucky.
In the Veins: Conversations from a Coal Town
Saturdays, 1:30 and 3:30 p.m.
Travel through a Kentucky coal company town as a cast of characters unearths their way of life above and below ground.
For a complete list of KHS events, visit our online calendar.
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An agency of the Kentucky Commerce Cabinet, the Kentucky Historical Society, since 1836, has provided connections to the past, perspective on the present, and inspiration for the future. KHS operates the Old State Capitol, the Kentucky Military History Museum, and its headquarters, the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History. Since 1999, the thirty-million- dollar Center has welcomed more than one million visitors. For more information about the Kentucky Historical Society and its programs, visit the Web site.