Saving Stories: Wisdom To Kentucky Legislators

Senator Walter Baker

The latest edition of Saving Stories on WUKY features one of the Nunn Center’s interviews with long-time Kentucky Legislator Senator Walter Baker.  In this episode, Senator Baker’s offers very interesting insights into a time in the Kentucky Legislature when bipartisanship was more of a reality for Kentucky legislators and offers advice to future legislators.  Senator Baker was was a Republican in the Senate from 1972 until 1981 and again from 1989 to 1996.  Previously he served in the House from 1968 until 1970.

Listen to Interview on WUKY  (subscribe to the podcast as well!)

Senator Baker’s two oral history interviews (both of which are currently online in their entirety) were conducted as part of the Kentucky Legislature Oral History Project and  detail his career, family, his experiences at Harvard, as well as early experiences interning for Senator Thruston Morton.  Other topics include Baker’s philosophy on politics, campaigning and an overview of several Kentucky governors.

Nunn Center Partnership with Hospice of the Bluegrass Featured on WUKY

The Nunn Center at the University of Kentucky Libraries has recently partnered with Hospice of the Bluegrass on REFLECTIONS, an initiative to use volunteers to conduct oral history interviews with patients under the care of Hospice of the Bluegrass.  Initially, the project is focusing on the Central Kentucky area but will eventually be expanded statewide.  This is an incredible project that I am so proud of.  For questions on how to volunteer, contact Hospice of the Bluegrass volunteer coordinator Turner West: twest@hospicebg.org

The oral history project was featured on WUKY this morning as part of the Storycorps National Day of Listening initiative.  A great chance to shed light on this wonderful local project!  Take a listen below an don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast.

Oral Histories Department Teams With Hospice Of The Bluegrass For New Recording Project , WUKY (2010-11-23) LEXINGTON, KY (wuky) – In observance of Friday’s National Day of Listening project, Dr. Doug Boyd with the Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral Histories in the UK Libraries chats with Alan Lytle about a new project involving volunteers and patients at Hospice of the Bluegrass. © Copyright 2010, wuky

40th anniversary of Kent State protests at UK: Students burn ROTC Building

Courtesy of Special Collections, University of Kentucky

On May 5, 1970, students of the University of Kentucky reacted to the shootings that occurred the day before at Kent State University.  Student protests occurred around the University of Kentucky throughout the day including a protest of the UK Board of Trustees meeting on the 18th floor of Patterson Office Towers. The protests escalated into the evening, and city and state police were called to campus to assist campus police in full riot gear.  After a peaceful memorial march, the protest culminated outside the Buell Armory.  Angry students made speeches, a brick was thrown through a window of the Buell Armory.  At some point during this gathering, a wooden annex to the Air Force ROTC building on the other side of the student center became engulfed in flames–allegedly due to arson.

Listen to latest episode of Saving Stories on WUKY: Kent State Repercussions Felt On UK Campus

On this episode of Saving Stories on WUKY, Alan Lytle and Nunn Center Director Doug Boyd explore oral histories with University of Kentucky student Sue Anne Salmon who was  arrested and incarcerated that night for allegedly burning down the building (and was later released due to insufficient evidence), Joseph Burch the director of campus security at the University of Kentucky, as well as with Louie Nunn who was Governor at the time of the protests and called out the National Guard the next day.

Although several theories are circulated in the oral histories, there was never any definitive proof revealing responsibility for the burning of the ROTC annex at UK.

University of Kentucky’s University Archives and Records Program has extensive records pertaining to this protest, including photographic documentation of the protests that day as well as recordings of the hearings that were held in the aftermath.   Full interviews and a photo/oral history-based digital exhibit are expected to go online very soon so stay tuned!

Saving Stories: Could The Next Supreme Court Justice Not Be A Judge?

Saving Stories and WUKY: Could The Next Supreme Court Justice Not Be A Judge? (2010-04-27).

WUKY aired an episode of “Saving Stories” this week featuring Nunn Center director Doug Boyd discussing oral histories about the Supreme Court Nomination process.   The Nunn Center has a rich collection of oral histories about Supreme Court Chief Justice Fred Vinson as well as Justice Stanley Reed, both from Kentucky.  With the recent news that Justice John Paul Stevens is retiring from the court, there has been much discussion in the media about President Obama potentially nominating a non-judge to the court.  Dr. Boyd brought a clip with him from the Vinson collection discussing the tradition of non-judges serving on the court.

The entire  Stanley Reed collection has been put online on the Kentuckiana Digital Library.

Subscribe to the Podcast “Saving Stories” as well!