Unearthing the Fashion Collection at the Filson
Image: Dress and cape made by Louisville modiste, Madame Grunder (1846-1920), circa 1897 worn by Laura Jeannette Graham Husbands (1857-1950. This week’s blog post is by Brooks Vessels, University of Louisville Commonwealth Center for Humanities and Society Intern: I was not sure what to expect when I arrived for my first day interning at the Filson Historical Society, but I […]
4/3/1974: Where Were You?
Suddenly the grass is too green. It is lush and inviting, but it isn’t real. Outlines are sharply defined, and objects seem to leap out at you. The air is clear but there is a faintly pink cast to it. There is no breeze, and even the birds are silent. But it is a moment of ominous serenity. For nature […]
Through A Soldier’s Lens, Part 1: Château de Fontainebleau
We’re excited to announce the opening of Through a Soldier’s Lens: Jack Speed’s WWI Photography at the Filson, this Friday, April 6. The exhibit will run from April 6-July 27, 2018 and will showcase the photographs of Jack Speed, a young soldier from Louisville, Kentucky who served in World War I. In this first installment of a four-part series, we […]
Pop-up case shows a sneak peek of our exhibit, “Connecting the Dots – Exploring Your Family History,” coming in August 2018
Some of you may have seen our new exhibit promotions we call pop-up cases. Recently, our registrar Maureen Lane and I put together a pop-up case to promote our upcoming exhibit on genealogy called Connecting the Dots – Exploring your Family History. Maureen and her volunteer Brooks Vessels found a box of beautiful antique lace during inventory. In the box […]
Strike! at Hillerich & Bradsby (c. 1947)
The West Virginia public school teachers who recently struck for higher wages and a cap on health care costs were following in a long tradition of women and men walking off the job site in the coal country on both sides of the West Virginia/Kentucky border. In the middle of the 20th century that tradition of trade union labor actions […]
Wakanda Forever! : Celebrating Louisville’s Innovators & Entrepreneurs
I went with my husband and some friends to see Black Panther this past weekend, which ended up being more of an adventure than we had anticipated. We had pre-purchased our tickets, which meant that Saturday night we had to drive across town in the torrential rain. The streets were inundated by large pools of water, and in the dark […]
Lincoln’s last photograph
We are well into February and are about to celebrate President’s Day next Monday. President’s Day was established in 1885 in recognition of President George Washington, it is still officially called “Washington’s Birthday” by the federal government. While the US did celebrate this day for years, the holiday became known as President’s Day after it was moved in 1971 in […]
Dear Mr. Filson: Louisville’s First Florist?
By Jennie Cole Last week, I received an email inquiry from the Belford Museum in Northumberland requesting information on an Edward Wilson. The museum’s contact person explained that in 1877, Wilson presented a clock to the local Presbyterian Church; the clock is currently at the Museum. Wilson was a local philanthropist in Northumberland in the late 1860s and 1870s, but […]
Cracksmen, Counterfeiters, and Fancy Women: A Glimpse of the Late Victorian Underworld
By James Prichard The criminal underworld of late Victorian Louisville was populated by a colorful mixture of safe crackers, house breakers, counterfeiters, and ruthless killers. The old “Red Light District” centered on Lafayette Street, which disappeared during the construction of Interstate 65. Known locally as “The Chute,” the area featured the establishments of notorious madams, including one with the alluring […]
Building a Healthier Louisville: Dorothy Joseph’s Mental Health Activism
Health is more than just physical well-being. My husband is a doctor and many of the families he encounters do not suffer from physical ailments alone. In recent months, I’ve been struck by the number of my own friends and family who have struggled with mental illness: anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, etc. It might be that I’m paying more attention, […]