Historical Society News Update
Summer 2007
At the June 12th meeting members present unanimously approved the
following officers & board:
Officers
1. President—Phil Seyfrit—active member of the Battle of Richmond Association
and program
Chair for the Madison County Civil War Round Table. He works for Curry,
Parsons and Collins Funeral Home in Richmond.
2. Vice President—William G. Adams—Retired professor of geography at Eastern
Kentucky
University and an active genealogist. He was responsible for getting the Beers 1876
map of Madison County published.
3. Secretary—Bill Robinson—An avid history devotee and reporter for the
Richmond Register.
4. Treasurer—Charles Hay—Retired university archivist from EKU. Organized
most Historical
Society publications for the last 20 years. He has been very active with the Battle of
Richmond Association.
Board of Directors
1. Jackie Couture—Assistant University Archivist at EKU and editor of
Heritage Highlights.
2. Dean Whitaker—Member of the Madison County Civil War Round Table and
employed by
Sherwin-Williams in Richmond.
3. Bob Moody—Retired lawyer, archeologist, very active member of the
Battle of Richmond Association, and enthusiastic preservationist.
4. Steve Connelly—Mayor of Berea and a very active historian, who
possesses an M.A. degree in history from EKU.
5. Todd Moberly—History teacher at Madison Southern High School. He is
a very creative historian who works closely with his students in promoting the study
of Madison County history.
Membership as of June 15th: TOTAL—165 (Richmond-102, Berea-8, rest of
Kentucky-8, outof-state-42). Benefactors ($100)-2; Patrons ($50)-7, Other ($30)-1.
Treasury balance as of June 15th: Regular checking—$10,841.03 + a $40,000 CD
at Madison
Bank. TOTAL: $50,841.03. (Other assets not included in the treasury balance
are ownership of Cane Springs Baptist Church, many articles of furniture, etc. on loan to
the Richmond City Museum, numerous copies of the Richmond and Berea Cemetery
inventories, Daniel Boone prints, and 1876 maps of Madison County). A dues form
will be included in this mailing if you have not paid your 2007 dues.
The Historical Society is cosponsoring with Berea Tourist and Convention
Commission and others
a series of historical programs on every Tuesday night at 7:30 in August at the new yet-tobe-named downtown city plaza at Chestnut and Boone Streets in Berea. A beautiful John
G. Fee Memorial sculpture stands in the plaza.
The City of Richmond is working to restore the old brick sidewalk in front of the
Richmond
Cemetery. More than 3,000 bricks will be removed, cleaned, and reused on a newly poured
sidewalk.
With the help of Bob Moody the location of Twitty’s Fort, just off Duncannon Lane,
was saved
from destruction. Working with the property owner, a fence will be erected around the
area and the land is now part of the Richmond Parks and Recreation system.
Work projects at Battlefield Park. At the Herndon property (Pleasant View farm)
the house porch has
been stabilized, new copper guttering, a new roof, brick point and tuck work is finished, a
modern bathroom complex has been built, and a series of walking trails are being
developed. Also, there are two bird blinds, built by an Eagle Scout, on the property. Work
continues on meticulously rehabilitating the Rogers-Tribble House (Quarters 29), which
will be used as the county’s new Visitors Center. Additionally, the county has employed a
museum design firm to develop plans for a museum that will also be located in Quarters 29.
Critical new property around the Mt. Zion church has been acquired by the county. Living
History Day in May was a great success. The Battle Reenactment will be August 25th & 26th.
The Historical Society with other partners is developing an idea to have a Walk of
Fa
significant persons who have contributed to Madison County’s history. The walk will have
a plaque embedded in the sidewalk for each person and be located around the Madison
County Courthouse.
The Historical Society recently formed a Preservation Committee to oversee any
preservation
issues that might arise in the county. Currently, the Madison County Fiscal Court is
developing plans for the historic Miller House. County Judge Executive Kent Clark has
assured the Historical Society that it will have input in planning for incorporating the
facade of the Miller Building into the jail expansion project. Since the building is in
Richmond’s newly formed H-1 Historic District, the county must present its plans to the
city’s Architectural Review Board for public discussion and approval.
After nearly 90 years of operation Berea’s historic Churchill Weavers has been
closed. Fortunately, the
Kentucky Historical Society has purchased the business’s archives and the city of Berea
acquired some
company artifacts at an auction. At least some of this grand old business’s memory will be
preserved.
A committee will be formed to revise our 1957 Constitution and By-Laws.
An issue of our award-winning Heritage Highlights will come out late this Fall.
Remember, the next meeting of the Historical Society will be our annual picnic
on August 4th at
6:00 at the Cane Springs Baptist Church. Rita Smart, a member of the society’s
Preservation Committee, will talk about the current state of historic preservation in
Madison C
Madison County Historical Society, Inc. P. O. Box 397 Richmond, KY 40476 |
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