Kentucky Blue Blood

Sorry genies, I'm not going to be talking about connecting my tree to royalty....you might want to look away.....I'm talking about sports royalty.

March, with a little bit of April mixed in, is the hardest time of year for me. My anxiety levels go sky high, my friendships are severely tested, and I lose sleep staying up to follow basketball scores. As a 7th generation Kentuckian who also happens to be a two-time University of Kentucky graduate, basketball season is intense, to put it mildly.

As much as I bleed blue proudly, I am usually saddened by the black and blue bruises Cats fans have to endure each year. I am well aware that "Haters gonna hate," and team spirit on all sides makes the field a hostile one, but I am really exhausted trying to be a good sport about all the negativity (except for Duke - Duke is our nemesis and always generates negativity - it's a Kentucky rivalry requirement.)

It's clear, for most, if you are not a Cats fan, you are a Cats hater, plain and simple. It can get pretty nasty out there. I am very grateful our mascot is a Wildcat - those claws of ours come in very handy when fighting back. Uh-oh, did you hear that? My claws just came out....

Why does everyone hate us so much?

Is it because of our talent on the court?
Possibly. Jealousy can be a pretty powerful negative force.

Do they hate us because our players are arrogant and have bad attitudes?
They may think this is the case, but in the field of battle, every team out there has cocky players and many need attitude adjustments....we didn't invent any of these perceived characteristics...again, cough, cough, Duke. Besides, many of our players both past and present have been sweet guys off the court. Sure, some have had bad attitudes off the court, but these are young men who have been thrust into stardom and sports royalty. It would be tough for most to ride through that experience with an unscathed personality.

Do they hate us because the fans are crazy and out of control (do I smell roasting couches?)
Possibly. We are completely nuts about our team. Most of us come out of the womb being conditioned to wear Kentucky blue at every occasion, and many can sing the fight song before they can write a sentence. Seriously though, Kentucky blue is appropriate ANYWHERE: bed, work, school, Church, Wal-Mart, the Derby, prom, weddings, etc. Trust me, the merchandising keeps up with the multi-faceted demand.

But let me point out a few things to the haters:

Like several other states in the U.S., we are sports poor. We have a few college teams that are competitive on the national level, and when they make an appearance, they usually make it count. UK basketball is by far, the largest and most successful team we have in this state (sorry Louisville,) but beyond the college level, who do we have?

I may have been born in Kentucky, but I grew up in Ohio, and still wore my blue proudly. But do you have any idea what it's like living in Ohio? There are so many successful teams, I probably couldn't name them all! I grew up with such sports icons as the Reds, the Bengals (don't snicker, they were pretty awesome when I was little,) OSU, Browns, etc....
But just across the river, is a state that has been made fun of at every opportunity. Folks love our greatest two-minute run to the nearest bourbon barrel in May, but once the party is over, they go back to slapping Kentucky around. At this point, I'm no longer talking about basketball.

I have heard every possible stereotypical insult about Kentucky, and each one actually does hurt. The insults hurt because it's a place I love dearly. It's like insulting my family.

The thing is, those who insult Kentucky do so with great joy.

They insult our Eastern Kentucky residents, with "hillbilly" being a favorite label.
Remember the War on Poverty? Every deplorable living condition that could be located was plastered on TV as an example of broad suffering. Sadly, the image stuck, despite any progress made over the past several decades.

They have insulted our accents, which admittedly can be both annoying and charming. BTW, several times lately, I have been called out for NOT having an accent when answering the library reference desk phone, claiming I "must not be from Kentucky" because I don't have a twang.

They continue to insult our intelligence.

They have insulted our history.

They have insulted our familial relationships, citing inbreeding as a rampant problem. One of my dear friends made a genealogy joke recently about Kentucky, reminding us that we don't use Ancestry.com for research, we have our own special database called Incestry.com. Seriously?!

They make fun of past feuding families and the deaths that occurred as a result.

In fact, one of the most jaw dropping quotes I read was from a book by one of my former UK professor: This is Home Now: Kentucky's Holocaust Survivors Speak by Arwen Donahue. In one of the interviews, a new Kentucky resident, recently transplanted from Ohio was asked about their preconceived notions of Kentucky before moving there. He said "While we were still living in Ohio, the Riverfront Stadium was the big issue. They started construction. And they said when they got done with that they were going to build the biggest zoo in the world. They were going to put a fence around Kentucky." Alexander Rosenberg p.144

Unfortunately, some of the exaggerated insults have a grain of truth. In many ways, we have been an economically and socially challenged state. When the New York Times ranked the hardest places to live by county in 2014, Clay County Kentucky got top honors out of the Nation's 3,135 counties. And sadly, the majority of our counties were painted some shade of orange - which meant "doing worse" according to their graph.

But after all the jokes subside, and the haters feel better about themselves for making fun of a state that has had some social challenges in the past, I like to revel in the beauty they cannot see for their blind and often cruel hatred.

I grew up visiting my grandparents' farm in Bourbon County. The green rolling hills represented peace, love, and grand adventures. It is true that Kentucky is land and people rich. We have some of the most beautiful and fertile land in the country. Our people are some of the most hardworking and caring you will find anywhere. A unique mixture of southern charm, hospitality, and a dash of Yankee know-how.

It is in our complexity that one can see our beauty most profoundly. Each region has its merits and quirks of personality. Even in our history, we could not quite choose a side....Officially remaining with the Union, but serving two governments during the Civil War. That's right, two governors, two governments. How's that for state rivalry? And they wonder why the Kentucky/Louisville games get a tad heated. It's still brother against brother on the court.

Oh, and don't forget: BOTH Presidents during the Civil War were born in Kentucky. #historymindblown!

It was at the end of the Civil War that the University of Kentucky was born. A land grant institution, originally called Kentucky University, it grew to be one of the most successful Universities in the region. Much of its success founded on the rich and diverse agricultural resources that had drawn settlers in the late 18th century.

So, for all you haters, that is 150 years of hard earned success that also produced an amazing basketball team as its most enduring legacy. Yep....it's our birthday this year! I know what we all wanted for our birthday...#9! Despite the tragic loss a couple of days ago, we had a raucous birthday celebration with a great season!

Speaking of future banners. One other special thing I have noticed about Kentucky basketball: its ability to inspire. When I moved back to Kentucky 22 years ago, I noticed something that I had never noticed in Ohio.

For roughly nine months out of the year, neighborhoods are full of impromptu basketball teams. As I drive down my humble suburban street, if the weather is even halfway decent, I have to stop to let the group of boys divide so I can continue to my house. The group is always there, most of the year, only changing slightly as they grow or new boys move into or out of the neighborhood. They are diverse in age, social, and ethnic background, but they all dream of one thing: playing for the Wildcats. They are usually decked out in blue and white, and playing their hardest, the competition fierce, yet friendly - building lifelong friendships founded on a longstanding sports tradition.

For those who live in Kentucky, UK is by far the favorite team. It pulls the far corners of the state together to root for a shared cause. Why does UK have that power? Because Kentucky basketball is a tangible example of success, and provides a basis for dreams in a state that has had a tremendous list of challenges to overcome.

So when we get a little crazy over our team, and put the "mad" in March Madness, please don't begrudge us our jubilation and passion. The decades of success deserve to be celebrated, and our pride for our team is unending. C-A-T-S! CATS CATS CATS!

52 Weeks - Genealogy Libraries

I am woefully behind on this year's 52 Weeks blogging challenge. Last year's 52 Weeks of Personal Genealogy was a fun trip down memory lane when I was able to jump in. This year, the new prompts are more about sharing your favorite genealogy tips or resources. With a new job and RootsTech this year, I am just now getting back into my blogging groove. And....as a Librarian, I cannot let this week's challenge go by without a comment or two about my favorite libraries. So, as I sneak in just under the wire for this week's challenge, I will begin by confessing that a couple of these are shameless plugs as I have been very affiliated with two out of the four Libraries I am going to post about. Also these small profiles are about Genealogy Libraries in the Central Kentucky area - PLUS, they are Libraries I am familiar with. If I leave out any special places in this area, this is not intentional, and one can only give an opinion of those places one is knowledgeable about - so feel free to comment if you have experience in other Central Kentucky Genealogy Libraries that I missed.

The Kentucky Historical Society, Martin F. Schmidt Research Library, Frankfort, KY:

This is one of my plugs as I am currently the Senior Librarian/Reference Specialist with this Library. But I must say, I fell in love with this Library the moment they built it, ten+ years ago. When I started my true genealogy journey, many years ago, I begin seeking out genealogy specific Libraries and I have to say this one was the number two spot on my hit list. Back then, they were housed in the Old State Capitol annex and even though it was cramped, it was the place I was first introduced to Ship Passenger Lists and Census records - before ANYTHING was online! When they decided to build the new Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History, they hit a home run! This Center conducts amazing educational programs, houses a wonderful museum area and has the largest Genealogy Library in the state! Among the many features, as quoted from their site:

"Located on the second floor of the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History, the Kentucky Historical Society Martin F. Schmidt Research Library houses over 90,000 published works, dealing primarily with history and genealogy, as well as more than 16,000 reels of microfilm and over 30,000 vertical files of collected and contributed research."

Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, Frankfort, KY:
Whenever I talk about genealogy research in Kentucky, I always include this Library as well. While the previous Library houses the most genealogy specific material (published genealogies, family history files, special collections, etc), this Library houses the most official records on the state/county level. They are THE official repository for the records of Kentucky and should NOT be missed when conducting research in the area or the State! They too have a wonderful facility just up the hill on the Connector in Frankfort - and might I add, both facilities have GREAT parking!

University of Kentucky Libraries, Lexington, KY:

This is my second plug as I worked for this Library system for over 11 years. Now, I know this is not thought of as a genealogy specific Library, but it houses a collection that should be on EVERY Kentucky genealogist's list. They maintain, and reproduce for sale, the largest collection of Kentucky newspapers on microfilm. I detailed how to access their collection in this previous post about newspapers in Kentucky. Might I also add, that they do have a decent collection of genealogy material both in the form of published genealogies (many on the shelf in the main Library) and county compiled records (in their Special Collections Library). They also have wonderful map and photograph collections! I will be speaking on their collection as well as how to access it at the next 2nd Saturday Genealogy Workshop Program on March 10th at the Kentucky Historical Society. BTW, I always like to mention that UK loans these newspapers to Libraries all over the world via Interlibrary Loan, so even those out of state should look into this option!

The John Fox Jr. Genealogical Library, Paris KY:

This little gem is on my list for sentimental reasons. It was the FIRST genealogy Library I visited when I began my research trek. It is very small by comparison, but it is housed in the state headquarters for the Daughters of the American Revolution. The hours are very unpredictable since it is run solely by volunteers, but it is one of those old-school genealogy hubs that provides solid expertise and research help by the dedicated volunteers that are willing to assist. They were very kind and patient when I visited as a budding genealogist in my early 20s, which places them on my list of favorite genealogy Libraries in my area!

Get researching folks! These places will keep you busy!!
C

Aerial Photography & Rural Cemeteries

We all know the unsurpassed usefulness of Google Earth for scrutinizing unfamiliar topography (including historical images), but back in 2002, our family needed older rural images to help in cemetery research. Several cousins from around the country and Canada got together to stage a cemetery intervention or attempted rescue in Bracken County Kentucky. After years of debating and combining genealogical research, a few of the cousins had found remnants of our Brandenburg/Hughbanks family cemetery at the top of a very steep hill near Foster. Due to the remote area of the cemetery, and the unfriendly stance of the current landowner, some of our research involved aerial photography.

Before I give a small report about the Brandenburg Cemetery, let me explore the use of aerial photography for cemetery research. At present, most states have quadrant coverage of current aerial photographs available for free online. Many of these sites are linked to current topographical maps and other studies posted by statewide government agencies. As a general rule, most of these maps and aerial photographs are fairly recent - usually within 10-15 years old depending on the agency posting the information.

However, when many of the older rural cemeteries were begun, they were done so during a time when the areas were much more agrarian. In most cases the land had been cleared for farming and well maintained in that manner for generations. It has only been within the past 30+/- years that these former fields have been abandoned, allowing the regrowth to obscure former markers. Having driven many backroads, I can tell you that a small stand of large clumped trees near a field or in the middle of a field is a strong indication of either a cemetery or sink hole. Sometimes the only clue to go on is the types of trees in the clump to hint at the purpose, until, hopefully, walking closer to the site can offer a view of fence or stone remnants. But what about the cemeteries we can't see from the road, or are not accessible even though we've heard about the possibility of its existence from the locals?

1965 aerial view of Foster and the Kennon Road area prior to the AA Highway construction.

This is when we turned to the older aerial photos available through local state storehouses. In this case we went to the Geology Library (now the Science Library) at the University of Kentucky to peruse through the older photos taken in the 1960s (some counties have photos as far back as the 1930s). In the Northern Kentucky area, farming was still the main occupation on these steep yet rounded hills. Therefore, the aerial photos from this timeframe gave us just enough visual information to see former households, assent routes, and in this case, former topography indicators prior to a state highway construction. These photos are original and in paper form just sitting in giant drawers. The staff had scanning equipment available to scan and send the photos to yourself at no charge.

For our case, they made all the difference. Due to the construction of the AA Highway, the original road had been cut in two, leaving the gradual incline cut off in one direction, and very far away in the other direction. About 20 years after the production of the 1960s photos, someone had purchased the gradual incline side, built a new house and assent in the form of a driveway, but would not allow their new driveway to be used as the egress to the cemetery. In essence, the cemetery had been cut off from any plausible access route. We all hiked straight up a dangerous quarter mile incline to get to the cemetery of our ancestors. Kentucky law states that landowners have to allow family to visit cemeteries, but any law surrounding how they allow access is vague, and since the driveway was new, they basically said, "no - find another way up there". Ironically, when we were up there, they called the local judge to try to have us arrested for trespassing, and the judge was allowed to use the driveway for access. Good times. BTW, the judge could not touch us as he informed the landowner of the law. He was just up there making sure we were family and not troublemakers.

The cemetery was also registered that day by the Kentucky Historical Society as a pioneer cemetery since at least one person buried there was born in the state prior to 1800 (James Hughbanks). We had a great time, even inviting a local preacher to conduct a small re-dedication ceremony, but the cemetery itself was beyond our means to save. The landowner had also parked a 1950s rusted out Chevy in the middle of our cemetery and refused to move it....which meant some of the stones could still be underneath. We found some of the main stones, but many were missing - some were "rediscovered" locally at a hunting club who had used them as stepping stones! We did the best we could....cleaned out brush, placed wooden markers there for later replacement, but funding was never found to properly restore this pioneer site. There is a Findagrave entry with photos of all the stones we found.

The moral of the story is: older aerial photos can be wonderful tools for not only locating cemeteries, but homesteads, access routes, tributaries and other distinguishable markers that could not be seen under current levels of brush. Thanks to cousin Katheryn Maddox Haddad for getting the cousins started on this adventure - we at least got it cleaned up a bit and documented for future generations!

CD

Digitizing Kentucky Newspapers

I was recently asked by a library patron about the progress of digitizing Kentucky Newspapers. This lady was in the process of ordering several newspaper titles on microfilm via Interlibrary Loan, but she was on the phone with me because finding the exact title needed can be a little challenging. Kentucky is only one example, but as a state that many pioneers travelled through, demand for our early newspapers can be quite high. For those of you interested in borrowing Kentucky newspapers, the University of Kentucky loans out their newspaper microfilm via Interlibrary Loan on a daily basis. Depending on your library's location, the cost per title requested can range from free to $20. (International rates can run to $35)

 So, back to the lady's question. As we were locating the titles she needed (ILL requests have to have a title, not just a county plus "newspaper" in the title field), she produced a heavy sigh and asked if we would ever put these microfilmed newspapers online instead of having to go through all this each time - and she was in a location that allowed free loans - which speaks to the limitations of microfilm.

 I told her we were certainly working on it, and tried to explain that transferring microfilm to digital images was very possible, being accomplished as we spoke, but would take many years, and many sources of funding to accomplish - and that's just on behalf of one state. We all are well aware of the LDS Library's efforts at digitizing their collection in Utah, but as a small state with limited resources, I thought it would be helpful to showcase a few online sources already up for those of you interested in Kentucky Newspaper research. Many of these new resources have been possible through nationally funded grants - but the process put in place, and the wonderful images produced will hopefully serve to secure more funding to keep the projects going.

Links to Kentucky Newspapers online:

• The National Digital Newspaper Program: Kentucky Edition - Full of links to their digitized collection as well as a wonderful explanation of how the leap from microfilm to digital is being made.

• Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers - This is where the NDNP digitized Kentucky newspapers are deposited for access. This one is not just for Kentucky, but houses the images produced by other state recipients of the project grant. The images can be explored, cut, saved as images or pdfs - primed and ready for hardcore research!

• Kentuckiana Digital Library - Statewide effort of fully searchable digitized issues not housed in the Chronicling America database. Of course, the Kentuckiana Digital Library is also known for its amazing photographic collection that grows each year.

For Microfilm:

Microfilm Ordering Database from the University of Kentucky - Just in case you would like a fairly complete list of the available Kentucky Newspapers on Microfilm - browsable by county and listed chronologically. This list is for PURCHASING reels of microfilm - that's right, you could own your own copy if you get the urge, but despite its original purpose, it is a wonderful resource for just browsing available newspaper titles - we use it a lot when helping patrons decide which title to order via ILL.

Since I'm not one of the digital experts, here is a video about newspaper digitization efforts at the University of Kentucky.

  

CD
2/25/11

Homage to the Constitution

To mark the birthday of our glorious Constitution (September 17th), I thought a little fun and education were in order! There is not much to say about our Constitution, except maybe, that it totally Rocks! A document that details freedom for a people is something worthy of celebration. There are numerous gatherings today, and different ways to celebrate. The Constitution Center has announced a contest on their Facebook page, encouraging fans to post photos of themselves celebrating this momentous day. At the University of Kentucky, freedom of speech was celebrated by the public reading of banned books. As a way to open this event to those outside the campus community, they fed the live audio into their Second Life Island space. I am including a couple of snaps from this in-world celebration.

For added fun, here are some primary source materials for your perusal. Most of us have looked closely at the first page of that old document, but not many have studied the subsequent pages. Enjoy these images of the original source!

On that last page I can spy a large number of surnames!

And lastly, many of us remember having to memorize the Preamble in school. For those of you who were not fortunate enough to memorize this with the help of that classic School House Rock video, this might have been closer to your experience:

For those of who are a part of that privileged generation, enjoy some classic fun!

Happy Birthday Constitution!

CD

9/17/10

9/11 A Complex Remembrance

As an American, today has to be one of the hardest days of the year to get through. For those who lost loved ones, getting through is not possible on any day of the year. Collectively, it is a day that has tremendous power. Prior to 9/11 I had not encountered an historical event on this scale. My generation had been fairly lucky....we were born after or at the end of Vietnam, the only other war we knew of was the first Gulf War. There were no moments in our decades that produced this level of collective grief and remembrance. After the events of that horrible day, our existence of feeling safe on American soil was over - and our view of world events would be forever altered.

The power of this day is complex. Not long after the event, they removed the images that we had obsessively watched for weeks. We fought this decision, and still do to a degree, but since the removal, we were able to mentally and emotionally return to a semblance of normal life. Every year, I am starkly reminded of the contrast of feelings from September 10th to September 11th. We fight on daily both through politics and war, but we live without the constant reminders of that day. However, when September 11th roles around each year, the images return, and with them, the complex emotions.

We are immediately transported back to a time and place that we can only bear to remember once a year. The images themselves resurrect such powerful emotional responses: fear, anger, intense grief, shock, patriotism. Sadly, in other parts of the world, these images bring happiness and cheers. This contrast in world emotion is why this is such a complex and powerful memory. The entire world witnessed it as it happened, and the entire world grieved or celebrated depending on which pocket of society the cameras happened to film. On either side, this is an event that we have all vowed never to forget.

Ironically, the three thousand we lost nine years ago were only the beginning of the lives that would be lost worldwide and continue to be lost because of radicalism and unadulterated hatred. President Bush described it as 'evil' all those years ago, and he was correct. Despite the political spin that has been put on all of the complex events that spiraled out of that horrible day, and still continue to spiral, I believe in good overcoming evil. Regardless of your views on how evil or good America has acted over the years, her people have collectively stood for and prayed for good, and in the end, we have always exhibited good when it counted. I pray we never lose sight of the good we can achieve and the Republic on which we stand. Our freedoms are worth fighting for and dying for.....although I'm ready for the day when the world recognizes the value of freedom, and the dying for this honor can finally stop.

We choose to remember this day for the loved ones lost, and the many heroes born out of those tragic events, as we watched, helpless. As historians and genealogists, it is also vitally important to remember our own personal memories of that day. We have a responsibility to pass down our experiences to the next generation so they may never forget this day - in all of its complexity of meaning!

For that reason, I join with my fellow GeneaBloggers and record my own memories of that morning:

On the morning of September 11th, 2001, I was working at the University of Kentucky's William T. Young Library. It was a normal morning, and I was working on sending some book requests out to neighboring libraries throughout our state. The first word we heard was from our department head who was out due to illness. She called our office to tell us a plane had hit the World Trade Center in NYC. We were a little surprised at this call, but kept working because in our minds, we visualized a small plane hitting a tower on accident. We could not begin to grasp what had just happened. Not long after that, my Mother, at home on the farm in Bourbon County Kentucky, called my personal line to tell me the same thing, but she sounded much more upset. I still could not understand why everyone was so hysterical. Plane crashes have happened before, and no one had ever called to interrupt work prior to this day. While she was on the phone with me, I could hear my uncle in the background shouting about something, and my Mother told me that another plane had just hit the towers. I can remember my Mother asking if my uncle was sure, and he was shouting that he just saw it hit.

With my Mother's phone call I decided to get online and check out the national news sites for more info. This was the step that concerned me: all of the major news organizations had placeholders for their sites that said the traffic was too heavy and no one could get through. I kept refreshing and CNN finally put up a photo with their traffic notice - it was a photo of the towers with smoke billowing into the sky.

Soon to follow was another call from my Mother telling me the Pentagon had been hit. I remember freaking out a bit at that moment - complete with audible gasp and turning to my co-workers about the newest development. My memory is a tad hazy at this point because soon after, the Library began broadcasting a live TV news feed into the auditorium so we could see what was happening. As a department, we filtered down there one by one when it was convenient - after I got my courier bags packed - and watched in silence at the news coverage.

I remember the concerned faces of those around me, but I have to say I could not watch the screen very much. At this point in the coverage, the film crews were still zooming in on the people trapped at the top of the burning buildings. When they zoomed in on a woman in a skirt that jumped, I could no longer watch.....I had to leave.

It was surreal the rest of the day.....so many reports coming through. We worked the rest of the day, but the e-mail was flying. I had a cousin that lived in NYC, and we were e-mailing family members trying to see if she had been accounted for. I had a dear pen pal in Germany, a young boy at the High School age, and he sent me an e-mail that tore at my heart. He said he and all of his friends were crying for America and that this was the worst thing he had ever seen.

I can also remember my co-worker sending me a link to a naval site posted and maintained by navy wives.....detailing the movements of our Aircraft Carriers all day. As each new report came in....we were riveted. Finally the news agency sites were back up and we could review video of what had happened that morning. I will admit we did not get much work done the rest of the day, and some people went home out of shock, grief, fear, or needing to learn about loved ones in NYC. But for me, I think I was in shock.....I could not absorb what had happened. I watched every report, but almost in a detached manner. In fact it was not for a couple of days that I could eventually cry over the enormity of what had transpired. Once I cried, I remember it being intense, and from then on, every new report about our heroes and victims brought a new tear very easily.

Beyond that day, I can remember well the days that followed. The memorials, the change in shipping rules to Washington D.C.....some of which are still in-tact today. The anthrax scares, the apprehension that this could be repeated....would we ever be safe again?

For posterity, I printed out all of my e-mails from that day to keep alongside the tactile memorials we all kept, such as newspaper headlines, etc. I packed them away and have only looked at them once....when moving to a new house. They are full of memory triggers that, like the anniversary every year, produce a very nauseating feeling in my stomach. It was horrible and an event that has shaped our future path into something we had never thought possible.....but it is important that we remember.....and indeed never let the future generations forget.

One of my favorite pieces in my 9/11 memory box is the published speech that President Bush gave to the American people that night. When remembering history, I love doing so with as many primary sources as possible. The video below is the audio of his speech set to the song that none of us can listen to without being transported back in time to 2001.

With prayers and tears:
CD
9/11/2010

Kentucky's Newest Historical Marker

On Thursday April 15th, the University of Kentucky unveiled the state's newest historical marker: honoring the University's first librarian, Margaret I. King. The marker was purchased by the class of 2009 and placed just outside the lower main entrance to the library that bears her name....affectionately referred to as the King Library. This library was built in 1931 and served as the University's main library until the present structure, the William T. Young Library, was opened in 1998. Currently, the King Library houses the Special Collections and Oral History Center on one side, and the Science Library on the other side. As a librarian, and as someone who has worked in libraries since the age of 16, this newest marker dedicated to a librarian holds a special place in my heart. However, as a two-time UK alum, I can't help but smile at the prospect of this marker serving another very important purpose......no longer will the student tour guides refer to this building as the Martin Luther King Jr. Library. They hear "King Library" and think of the only famous one they know.......now Ms. King will have her rightful honor in the middle of campus, and our students will be reminded of the important role this librarian served! I will let you read of her accomplishments from the new markers themselves.

Enjoy!

C

4/18/10