A SMITHSONIAN EXIHIBIT at the Woodford County Library is an opportunity for people in the community to gain a deeper understanding of Native Americans, why we have strong feelings about them, and why they – and images of them – are a big part of our culture, according to library Director Stacy Thurman. (Photo by Bob Vlach)
PANELS IN THE AMERICANS EXHIBIT – opening at the Woodford County Library on Saturday – were put into place Wednesday morning. Library Director Stacy Thurman, back to the camera, helped Adult Services Coordinator Tommy Dennison install the Smithsonian exhibit’s Americans sign. (Photo by Bob Vlach)
By Bob Vlach
Woodford Sun Staff
Families in the community will have an opportunity to learn about the culture and legacy of Native Americans – without leaving Woodford County. A traveling Smithsonian exhibit, “Americans,” is coming to the Woodford County Library this Saturday and continues through May 23.
The exhibit will occupy space just inside the library’s North Main Street entrance – where patrons regularly gather – so the traveling Smithsonian museum can have its “biggest impact and be more immersive,” library Director Stacy Thurman says.
She describes the traveling exhibit as an opportunity for visitors of the library to gain a deeper understanding of Native Americans, why we have strong feelings about them, and why they – and images of them – are a big part of our culture.
“So I think it’s going to start great conversations,” Thurman tells the Sun. “It’s going to really make people think and, maybe, reevaluate their relationships – in their mind – that they already have with Native Americans.”
Understanding the true story of Pocahontas and her lasting impact on history, and debunking myths like those related to Thanksgiving are topics in the Americans exhibit, Adult Services Coordinator Tommy Dennison says. He says there’s also room for interpretation, so everyone can determine how they want to view the exhibit.
Besides experiencing the exhibit, patrons of the library will have an opportunity to learn more about Native Americans during several programs at the main branch library on North Main Street in Versailles.
Those programs include “American Indians in Kentucky: Current Issues” on Tuesday, April 21, from 6 to 7 p.m.; a “Native American Dance Presentation” on Friday, April 24, from 6 to 7 p.m.; and an Author Spotlight: Margaret Verble on Tuesday, April 30, from 6 to 7 p.m.
Those programs and other upcoming programs will bring authenticity to Native Americans by sharing experiences that “speak from their own truth,” says Dennison. He also lauded the Woodford County Historical Society for allowing the library to use its arrowheads for another upcoming program.
Dennison brought the idea of hosting the Americans exhibit to Thurman, but he says Suzanne Conrad, the program and outreach manager at the Midway Branch, made him aware of this opportunity to host the Smithsonian exhibit.
“And this is the great thing about our staff,” says Thurman, “they bring me good ideas and I don’t think I ever say, ‘No.’”
Hosting the Americans exhibit means moving some furniture to make space for what she describes as this “cool experience to have a real Smithsonian exhibit for our Woodford County community.”
With only two days to apply and ongoing relationships in the larger community and Woodford County Public Schools, the Woodford County Library was chosen as one of only seven sites in Kentucky to host the Americans exhibit, Thurman says.
Dennison describes hosting this traveling exhibit as a great opportunity for kids who will never have an opportunity to go to Washington, D.C., to experience a Smithsonian exhibit.
“We’re always looking for opportunities,” says Thurman, “to bring something new to the community.”
Museum on Main Street is part of the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service that brings interactive traveling exhibits, including Americans, to small-town America. “So,” she says, “you wouldn’t find this in a big city.”
Kentucky Humanities was instrumental in bringing the Americans exhibit to the Woodford County Library. In addition to approving exhibit sites, humanities councils across the country worked with Smithsonian and provide matching grant opportunities to publicize exhibits in local communities.