A Concise History of Kentucky

by James C. Klotter, Freda Klotter

Kentucky is most commonly associated with horses, tobacco fields, bourbon, and coal mines. There is much more to the state, though, than stories of feuding families and Colonel Sanders' famous fried chicken. Kentucky has a rich and often compelling history, and James C. Klotter and Freda C. Klotter introduce readers to an exciting story that spans 12,000 years, looking at the lives of Kentuckians from Native Americans to astronauts. The Klotters examine all aspects of the state's history―its geography, government, social life, cultural achievements, education, and economy. A Concise History of Kentucky recounts the events of the deadly frontier wars of the state's early history, the divisive Civil War, and the shocking assassination of a governor in 1900. The book tells of Kentucky's leaders from Daniel Boone and Henry Clay to Abraham Lincoln, Mary Breckinridge, and Muhammad Ali. The authors also highlight the lives of Kentuckians, both famous and ordinary, to give a voice to history. The Klotters explore Kentuckians' accomplishments in government, medicine, politics, and the arts. They describe the writing and music that flowered across the state, and they profile the individuals who worked to secure equal rights for women and African Americans. The book explains what it was like to work in the coal mines and explains the daily routine on a nineteenth-century farm. The authors bring Kentucky's story to the twenty-first century and talk about the state's modern economy, where auto manufacturing jobs are replacing traditional agricultural work. A collaboration of the state historian and an experienced educator, A Concise History of Kentucky is the best single resource for Kentuckians new and old who want to learn more about the past, present, and future of the Bluegrass State.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

252 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2008

About the author

James C. Klotter is Professor of History at Georgetown College and State Historian of Kentucky.

Reviews

[Alec · Rating 3 out of 5]

Certainly a concise history, and at times dry. But Klotter's commentary about Kentucky writers was oddly interesting. He did not have to put Irvin Cobb or Jesse Stuart down, but it certainly made me chuckle.

[Fern · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Native American erasure in this book is stroooooong. 5 pages (text not counting large pictures) dedicated to Native peoples presence in KY. According to this author "native americans are not really native to America". The authors speak of native people as naive, stupid, backwards individuals that lucked upon survival. In an aside the authors tell the story of a man whose name we dont know, "if he had a name" (<--they seriously wrote that) put on his "skimpy" clothes, maybe watched his "mate" making pots, walk into Mammoth Cave hunting for minerals and got crushed. They have a society, they have specialized jobs. And you're wondering if he had a name?? Of course he did! They later question, what happened to the indians in the 1750s, they just disappeared! "Its a historical mystery waiting to be solved" (spoiler: they were either murdered, killed by disease, taken, or recognized that colonizers were a threat and left their settlements). The last real mention of Native people came with a description about how Shawnee mothers raised their kids to be tough. Bathed them in cold water every day, even in the winter, so they'd be strong and tough and mean. Like, are you speaking about humans right now?
The erasure is one thing, but speaking about native people as if they are stupid, naive, backwards, silly, emotionless, nameless individuals is not acceptable. This was written in 2008.
I will not finish this book. I'll learn my history from somewhere else, thanks. A history book that tells ALL of KYs history, not just the white part. (I can't even imagine what this book has to say about slaves).

[Josh · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book in anticipation of a trip to the state, and it did about what I hoped: it painted in rather broad strokes a picture of the Bluegrass State and its people. Beyond that, I was disappointed with the slanted treatment that 20th-century events received, with scarcely an awareness that the viewpoints presented aren't universally held. This is especially worrisome given that one of their key target audiences -- high school students -- tends to receive authoritative-sounding statements with little criticism.

[Paul Lunger · Rating 4 out of 5]

From 2008, James & Freda Klotter's "A Concise History of Kentucky" while not being the most concise and detailed history of the Bluegrass State it is one that'll give the reader an overall understanding of what makes the nation's 15th state what it is. From the early days of the 1st settlers who found the Native Americans using the land for hunting more-so than anything else through the political scandals and violence along with the Civil War in the 19th century through the chaos of Jim Crow to the present, the story of Kentucky is a complicated one which was something this person who lives in a state due north was unaware of. The book itself is a decently easy read although the side bar stories done as Kentucky Voices can be a bit of a distraction as well as the seemingly out of order parts of the book that pause to examine parts of the state & its identity in certain timeframes. Overall, though, for anyone looking to learn about Kentucky this is definitely a book to pick up.

[Tyler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book feels like it was written on a fourth grade reading level.
I like many other readers took this book with a grain of salt, knowing it would be a general approach but I didnt know it would be this bad.
Highly simplistic, I used it just to find things to look up in other stuff. A few interesting anecdotes around history.
Totally neglects BIPOC history and contributions in KY, as well as the impact of the exploitation of natural resources on class struggles throughout the state

[Cheshire Cat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Parts were interesting, other parts a bit dry. Good information easy to understand.

[Austin Terrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

🏇🏾🏇🏾

[Ali Crain · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting to read about the history of my state