I am pleased to present to the Kentucky Civil War Roundtable our speakers for the upcoming 2024/2025 Season. Beginning on September 9, 2024, we will have two speakers: Bryan Bush, the Manager of the Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site, and Harold Edwards, the most active individual in the restoration of the Perryville Battlefield, and the longest sitting member of the Perryville Battlefield Commission. They will discuss The Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, as it was on October 8, 1862, and as it looks today.
On November 25, 2024, we will be totally entertained by Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant, starring Dr. E.C. “Curt” Fields, Jr. of Collierville, Tennessee. You cannot miss this program; it is one of the most talked-about programs in Civil War circles.
Then, on March 17, 2025, we will hear from Dr. Caroline E. Janney, the John L. Nau Professor of the History of the Civil War at the University of Virginia. She will speak about her remarkable and award-winning book and its riveting story, Ends of War: The Unfinished Fight of Lee’s Army after Appomattox. It will be a memorable evening.
On April 28, 2025, we will hear from Donna Dodd Terrell, a long-time lawyer in the U.S. District Court in Lexington, Kentucky, who will speak on the “Lionesses of White Hall”, the women in the Life of Cassius Marcellus Clay. After hearing the remarkable story of Cassius Marcellus Clay as set forth by Mel Hankla last year, here will be the story of the women in Cassius Clay’s life. It will be a story you will never forget.
On May 12, 2025, we will hear from Phillip Seyfrit, the Madison County Historical Property Director, on the Battle of Richmond, Kentucky, as it was on August 29 and 30, 1862, and as it looks today. The lectures will mirror, for The Battle of Richmond, what we heard in September from the principal actors in the restoration of the Perryville Battlefield.
OUR SPEAKERS
BRYAN BUSH: THE BATTLE OF PERRYVILLE “AS IT WAS ON OCTOBER 8, 1862”
A native of Louisville, Kentucky, Bryan graduated from Murray State University with a degree in History and Psychology and received his master’s degree from the University of Louisville in 2005. With a passion for history, especially the Civil War, Bryan has been a member of numerous historical and preservation societies and Roundtables and has written for numerous magazines such as Kentucky Civil War Magazine, North/South Trader, The Kentucky Civil War Bugle, The Kentucky Explorer, and Back Home in Kentucky.
In 1999, Bryan published his first book, The Civil War Battles of the Western Theater. Since then, he has published fourteen books on the Civil War and the history of Louisville such as Louisville During the Civil War: A History and Guide, Favorite Sons of Civil War Kentucky, and The Men Who Built the City of Progress: Louisville During the Gilded Age.
An avid reenactor for more than fifteen years, Bryan served on the Board of Directors of the Old Bardstown Museum and Village: The Battles of the Western Theater Museum in Bardstown and was a Board Member for the Louisville Historical League and is the official Civil War guide for Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville. In December 2019, Bryan became the Park Manager for the Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site.
HAROLD EDWARDS: THE BATTLE OF PERRYVILLE; “AS IT LOOKS NOW”
A native of Danville, Kentucky, educated in the Boyle County Schools and the University of Kentucky, Harold has had a life-long interest in Kentucky frontier and Civil War History. Living near the Perryville Battlefield, Harold has had a passion for preserving the town of Perryville as well as the lands that make up the Perryville Battlefield.
Currently, Harold is in his sixteenth year serving on the Perryville Battlefield Commission. He is in his third year on the Mainstreet Board of Perryville, Kentucky. He is the Vice Chairman of the Boyle Landmark Trust and has just received the Ida Lee Willis Award for Historic Preservation.
He is currently working on the preservation of the Dye House on the Perryville Battlefield, a two-story structure that briefly served as the headquarters of Confederate General Simon B. Buckner before becoming a field hospital. Bloodstains can still be seen on the floors beneath the windows inside the house where the surgeons worked, operating on the wounded and amputating limbs.
Harold is also working on the Crawford House, situated on the Harrodsburg Road, just outside of the town of Perryville, a marvelous structure that served as Confederate General Braxton Bragg’s Headquarters before and after the battle.
Once again, we look forward to gathering for the 2024-2025 Roundtable with a series of inspirational speakers and comradery with fellow members. The Board continues to review and discuss ways to make the organization financially secure for its long-term success. To address part of the ongoing budget deficits, the Board will be implementing changes in the pledge campaign.
When you receive this year’s Dues invoice you will notice a chance to increase your pledge over and above the basic membership. We are happy to keep the membership dues unchanged for our next year’s program. We will be including an additional opportunity to support YOUR Roundtable, as an additional giving level allows members to become a Supporting Member or Sustaining Member. The recent survey stated that members wanted Dues to remain fixed and this allows all members a basic membership as well as opportunities for additional giving. Just as a reminder, your Dues payments are tax deductible.
This is one of the changes the Board is implementing because we ended with around a $5,000 deficit at year’s end. The new year projections still reflect a negative balance in this same range.
The Roundtable received a $10,000 bequest from long time member Richard Marshall. These types of gifts go a long way in making the Roundtable financially secure.
The Board will continue to review other income flows as we address our long-term success. Thanks to our members and feel free to bring other ideas to the table for YOUR organization.
The KCWRT is set to start its 72 nd year of existence in 2024. Founded in 1953 by William H. Townsend, it initially met in the library of his law firm, Stoll, Keenon, and Park in the First National Building at the corner of Main and North Upper Streets.
Your KCWRT Board of Directors has met twice since our last meeting to discuss several topics of import to the KCWRT. More information on topics that pertain to the Roundtable are set forth in this newsletter and may be mentioned at the September Meeting.
I ran across the following and wanted to share it with you all. From the archive of Frances Keller Swinford Barr, an article appeared in the March 19, 1960, Lexington Herald or Leader on March 16, 1960, which stated:
“On Friday, March 18, 1960, the Honorable Joseph Bradley, acting on a resolution from the KCWRT, dismissed 52 indictments for treason, invading Kentucky, and concealing state arms. All of the accused were Confederates. Kentucky never left the Union although many areas took opposing sides. Commonwealth Attorney Paul Mansfield, who requested the dismissal of the Indictments, told the court the defendants, from their graves, waive their right to be in Court. William H. Townsend, president of the Civil War Round Table, also appeared in Court and read the resolution asking for the defendants’ names to be cleared.”
Hello Members! I hope you all have enjoyed a safe and healthy summer and are looking forward to meeting up again in September. I know I’m looking forward to seeing you all and catching up with you.
Probably the most surprising thing to happen to the KCWRT was the bequest we received from one of our previous members, Richard Marshall. Mr. Marshall passed away in 2021 and was retired from IBM and a farmer. He had many interests, one of them being the Civil War and was thoughtful enough to remember our Organization in his Will. His remembrance could not come at a better time and the Board is especially grateful for his generous donation. ■