Kentucky African American Heritage Trail: Commemorating and Celebrating Black Kentuckians

When it comes to learning history there is something about the act of walking around a historical site that will drive a lesson home in a way that is nearly impossible to replicate otherwise.

For instance, there are thousands of pages written on the historical importance of places like Camp Nelson in Danville. About how the Union Army used the installation as a vital supply depot, forward operating base and safe haven for enslaved people escaping bondage in the south. Entire books have been written on how Camp Nelson was responsible for recruiting and training regiments of United States Colored Troops which helped hasten the end of the nation’s bloodiest war. All of this can be read and understood without leaving one’s house or classroom.

However, there is a certain perspective that can only be gained while standing on the same ground that turned people who had once been referred to as property, into soldiers fighting for the freedom of all Americans. Or the feeling of heaviness that washes over someone during a quiet walk amongst the pristine rows of Civil War headstones in the Camp Nelson National Cemetery. Each marker a reminder of the ultimate price some had to pay for that freedom.

This emphasis on experiencing history first-hand is what lead to the creation of the Kentucky African American Heritage Trail. The trail includes more than 50 sites located across Kentucky that collectively tell the story of how African Americans overcame, innovated and thrived while playing an essential role in forming the commonwealth and the nation as a whole.

The trail is a collaboration between the Kentucky Department of Tourism, Kentucky Historical Society and the Kentucky Heritage Council, and formed with the purpose of teaching accurate and culturally significant lessons to all visitors. By working together, the trail sites will amplify marginalized voices and contributions while supporting local economies through tourism.

Sites such as the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville. The center not only celebrates the life and personal achievements of one of the world’s greatest boxers, but it also calls attention to Ali’s contributions to global humanitarianism and social justice. Visitors learn about the society Ali was born into and what he overcame to become a champion boxer and a champion for people.

Or the SEEK Museum in Russellville, which shines a spotlight on Kentucky’s “Struggles for Emancipation and Equality” by telling the story of five buildings in a National Register Historic District. These buildings take visitors on a journey through centuries of enslavement, emancipation, racial violence, Jim Crow, and the Civil Rights Movement, all within a few city blocks.

The Kentucky African American Heritage Trail will teach visitors about Black Kentuckians’ individual achievements and narratives in specific places, while helping to connect those stories to the vast and vibrant tapestry that is Kentucky’s story.

The trail can also be found on Apple Maps.  Plan your journey through Kentucky history today.