160th Anniversary of Camp Nelson (Civil War for Civil Rights Symposium)
Nicholasville, KY 40356
Join the National Park Service (NPS) for the Civil War for Civil Rights Symposium: “Life, Liberty, and The Pursuit” which marks the nation's 250th Anniversary and the conclusion of the 160th Anniversary of Camp Nelson (2023-26). This special commemoration details the closing of Camp Nelson in 1865-66, the post-war experience of people who sought freedom and refuge here during the Civil War pursuing the ideals outlined during our nation’s founding in 1776, and the living legacy of Camp Nelson in Kentucky and around the country today.
Schedule of Events
10:00 am – 10:05 am: Welcome and Introduction, Ernie Price, Superintendent, Camp Nelson National Monument
10:05 am – 10:15 am: “What Will Be Done with Camp Nelson?: 160th Anniversary of Camp Nelson in 1866,” Steve T. Phan, Chief of Interpretation, Camp Nelson National Monument
10:15 am – 11:15 am: “The Home for Colored Refugees and The Hall Community: Insights from Archival Research,” Oral History, and Archaeology: Dr. Kim McBride
11:20 am – 12:20 (Keynote): “Camp Nelson and Kentucky's Civil War Memorial Landscape,” Dr. Anne Marshall, Mississippi State University
12:20 pm – 1:15 pm: Break (Daughters’ Southern Food Truck on site)
1:15 pm – 1:30 pm: Cultural Resources Updates at Camp Nelson, Abigail Peeples, Resource Manager Camp Nelson National Monument
1:40 pm: 2:40 pm: From U.S. Colored Troops to the Regular Army: The Birth of the Buffalo Soldiers, Brian Shellum, Major, U.S. Army, Retired, and Historian
3:00 pm – 3:45 pm: “Finding The 700: Telling the Stories of Woodford County’s USCTs,” Sioux Finney, Huntertown Community Interpretive Park
4:00 pm – 4:45 pm: “The Pieces They Left of Us: Tracing Camp Nelson’s Legacies on the Commemorative Cultures Project,” Dr. Kristen Treen, St. Andrews University
4:45 pm: Program concludes. Visitor Center and Barracks close at 5:00 pm.
Special Exhibits (10:00 am – 4:45 pm)
“Transposing Landscapes: A Requiem for Charles Young” (Museum)
“Life after The Home: Hall Community Artifacts” (Barracks)
