Popular and Award-Winning Civil War Historian William C. “Jack” Davis Announces November 2026 Speaking Tour in Three Kentucky Cities
William C. “Jack” Davis will speak at 3 Civil War history events across Kentucky in early November 2026. This will mark what our records indicate is his 12th Appearance to the Kentucky CWRT, dating back to his first appearance in January of 1978 (see list below.)
He will speak to us on “The Making Of The Confederate Government,” which will be the third and final event of this trip to Kentucky.
He will speak on “The Orphan Brigade” on Saturday and Sunday in Louisville and Richmond – see details below. He spoke to our March 1982 meeting on that topic, and even you were present for that one, you may want to take this opportunity to carpool with one or more friends to Louisville or Richmond to hear him speak on “The Kentucky Confederates Who Couldn’t Go Home!”
Davis is one of America’s most respected historians and has created a legacy of scholarship and narrative focused primarily on the American Civil War.
Davis is a retired professor of history from Virginia Tech and former executive director of the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies. He is the only four-time winner of the prestigious Jefferson Davis Prize for Confederate History. The speaking tour will focus on the complex human dynamics and leadership crises of the era, presenting insights from his lifetime of research.
Acclaimed Television and Media Contributions
Attendees will recognize Davis from his decades of prominent television and documentary work. His media contributions include:
- Civil War Journal – Served as the senior on-camera consultant and commentator for the highly rated 52-episode History Channel and A&E series.
- C-SPAN Networks – Featured in numerous lectures and academic panels detailing different aspects of the Civil War (currently part of 19 different recordings available on the C-SPAN site.)
- Film Consultations – Worked extensively on historical accuracy and screenplays alongside director Ron Maxwell (Gettysburg and Gods and Generals).
Events
Each engagement will include his formal presentation and an interactive audience Q&A session, and he will be available to sign his books – feel free to bring your favorites for him to sign, as quantities to purchase will be limited.
Event 1: Topic-The Orphan Brigade, at the monthly meeting of the Louisville Civil War Round Table at 6 pm on Saturday, November 7, 2026, at Big Spring Country Club.
Dinner tickets are $40 and must be paid in advance by Monday, November 2 here: www.LouisvilleCWRT.com/meetings
Event 2: Topic-The Orphan Brigade, at the 25th Anniversary of Battlefield Preservation Celebration and Annual Meeting, hosted by the Battle of Richmond Association in Richmond at 5 pm on Sunday, November 8, 2026, at the Lake Buck Lodge on the Blue Grass Army Depot (located on the Richmond Battlefield at 431 Battlefield Memorial Highway, Richmond, KY, 40475 – Take Exit 83 off I-75 (the Buc-ee’s exit) and follow signs to Blue Grass Army Depot (Do not enter BGAD Main Gate! Drive approximately 0.8 mile south on Highway 421 past the Main Gate (towards entrance to Battlefield Park, where Reenactment occurs) and look for entrance on left marked by historical flags and signs.)
Tickets are $25 per person (sponsorships still available) and must be purchased in advance by Monday, November 2 by contacting battleofrichmond1862@yahoo.com or online here:
https://checkout.square.site/merchant/SF6Z3PXZN4N2F/checkout/6BCNFUXEJ7RLQKH7ISJNCGZH
For more information on any of the three events, call George Ridings at (859) 661-3289.
William C. Davis: Kentucky Civil War Round Table Presentations, from KYCWRT Website
- November 2026 – “The Making of the Confederate Government”
- November 2023 – “John Breckinridge and the Flight of the Confederate Government, the Fall of Richmond, His Escape and His Exile: Preparing A Screenplay”
- September 2020 – Virtual meeting – “The letters of General Gabriel Wharton and his wife, Nanny Radford”
- September 2018 – William C. “Jack” Davis – “Loreta Velasquez, the Con Artist and Confederate Impersonator”
- May 2012 – William “Jack” Davis – The Monstrous Regiment of Women
- May 2008 – Jack Davis “Lincoln as Commander-in-Chief: How he Managed his Generals and his Military Establishment During the Civil War”
- March 2004 – William C. “Jack” Davis “What Soldiers Ate”
- September 2001 – William C. Davis, “The Last Days of the Confederate Government”
- May 1994 – William C. Davis, “Jefferson Davis as War Leader”
- May 1984 – William C. Davis, “The Civil War Through the Eyes of the Camera”
- March 1982 – William C. Davis, “The Orphan Brigade”
- January 1978 – William C. Davis, “The Lincoln Conspiracy”
