The Bellinger Crawford Museum has announced a special virtual NKY History Hour on Tuesday, August 6th at 6:30pm, when author Jessica K. Whitehead will present her book, “The History of the Kentucky Derby in 75 Objects,” which delves into the rich and comprehensive history of America’s longest continuously running sporting event.
In her book, Whitehead embarks on a journey to uncover the accurate history of the Kentucky Derby, taking readers on a personal tour of 75 carefully selected exhibits from the Kentucky Derby Museum. Her exhibits illuminate the significant contributions of black, Latino and women jockeys, owners and trainers, bringing them closer to the center of the Derby’s history.
In this special NKY History Hour, Whitehead will focus on 10 items featured in his book, detailing their historical significance and the stories they tell.
“To understand the Kentucky Derby is to understand the modern American psyche,” explains Whitehead. “The History of the Kentucky Derby in 75 Objects aims to balance well-known and lesser-known stories to provide a more complete and comprehensive history of this iconic event.”
Register online to attend the free presentation by the Behringer-Crawford Museum.
Jessica Whitehead (Photo via BCM)
Connection information for the Zoom session will be sent to you after you register. The event will also be streamed live on BCM’s Facebook page. Recordings of all past episodes can be found at www.bcmuseum.org.
Jessica K. Whitehead is a collections curator at the Kentucky Derby Museum, where she recently authored The History of the Kentucky Derby in 75 Objects, published by the University of Kentucky Press. Outside of the Derby Museum, Jessica has been researching Harlan Hubbard since her days as a student at Hanover College (Class of 2011), where she has curated several exhibitions in the region and wrote the foreword to Harlan Hubbard: Watercolors, published in 2021. Her upcoming biography of Harlan Hubbard, Driftwood: A Life of Harlan Hubbard, is scheduled for publication on February 22, 2025 by the University of Kentucky Press. Whitehead was a founding board member of the newly established nonprofit Paine Hollow in Ohio, where she continues to serve as a consultant for the organization’s artifact collection. She currently serves on the board of directors of the Kentucky Alliance for Museums and Cultural Heritage.
NKY History Hour programs take place every other Tuesday from 6:30-7:30pm and are free to the public. To support NKY History Hour and watch many other fun and thought-provoking programs for free, join BCM today.
Behringer Crawford Museum
