This image is the cover for the book Our Fellow Kentuckians

Our Fellow Kentuckians

This fascinating volume profiles thirty-nine significant figures in Kentucky history, from Daniel Boone to Loretta Lynn, Muhammad Ali and many others.

For years, Dr. James C. Claypool delivered an annual talk for the Kentucky Humanities Council entitled “Our Fellow Kentuckians,” which profiled a wide array of individuals with ties to the Commonwealth either by birth, residence, or family heritage. This volume expands on that famous talk, offering a rich and varied sampling of the personalities that have made Kentucky the place it is.

From intrepid pioneers and statesmen to legendary athletes, inventors, entrepreneurs, and film stars, the selected individuals were chosen to represent the widest set of demographics. And as Claypool says in his introduction, “like a wine tasting, the sketches offered are meant to give readers a taste for more.”

James C Claypool

James C. Claypool, professor emeritus of history at Northern Kentucky University, holds a PhD in European history from the University of Kentucky. He taught history in Kentucky for thirty-six years, first at Murray State University (1966, 70) and then at Northern Kentucky University (1970, 2002), where he was both its first employee and a dean. A well-known public speaker in Kentucky, he has been a featured speaker with the Kentucky Humanities Council for fifteen years. He is a nationally recognized authority on thoroughbred racing, especially the Kentucky Derby, and on Kentucky music and is published in both fields. He worked as the Smithsonian's Kentucky Derby expert in 1995 and in 2008 as the state coordinator in Kentucky of the Smithsonian's traveling exhibit on the roots of American music. Television and radio programs he has hosted and produced have won a number of regional awards. He has helped edit, coauthored or authored six books and one encyclopedia as well as published articles and encyclopedia entries on art, culture, politics and military history. He and his wife Sharon reside in Park Hills, Kentucky.

The History Press