Kentucky Center for African American Heritage

 

 

  
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4.5
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Elementary School – Grade 4
    

 

 

 

 

 

Smoketown Historical Marker
Smoketown Historical Marker

Core Content Guide

4.1.1
Simple physical, political, and thematic maps, globes, charts, photographs, aerial photography, and graphs can be used to find and explain locations and display information.

4.2.1
Every place is unique and can be described by its human (e.g., language, religion, housing) and physical characteristics (e.g., landforms, climates, water).

4.3.2
Humans usually settle where there are adequate resources to meet their needs (e.g., areas with water, fertile land, protected land, different modes of transportation).

4.4.1
People depend upon the physical environment for food, shelter, and clothing.

5.2.2
People explored and settled America and Kentucky for multiple reasons (e.g., freedoms, opportunities, fleeing negative situations)..

 

 

 

 

 

    

 

4.5 Visit Kentucky's
African American
Heritage Sites

Pre-Visit
As a class, students research historic sites in Kentucky that tell stories about African American history. Students may contact the Kentucky Department of Travel to request their publication, Tapestry: A Visitor's Guide to Kentucky's African-American Heritage (www.kytourism.com). In this publication, students locate the closest historic sites to their school. Students contact a local Convention and Visitors Bureau or historical society for information about additional sites nearby; if possible, students may visit a site.

Students select one site they find interesting and create a brochure to encourage others to visit the site. The site doesn't have to be featured in the tourism publication (Tapestry). The brochure must include directions and a map to the site as well as a summary of its significance. Is the site on the National Register of Historic Places? Brochures should represent every region of the state.

To expand the activity, students investigate the National Register of Historic Places.(Go to the Kentucky Heritage Council, www.state.ky.us/agencies/khc and the National Park Service, www.nps.gov. sites.)
What does this designation mean?
How are properties added to the list?
How many registered sites are there in Kentucky now?
How is the site identified when you visit? What is an historic marker?
Several examples of text from markers at African American sites in Kentucky are available as examples.

Students locate historic markers in their community. (See historic markers listed in the Appendix.) Students investigate key sites for the Underground Railroad in Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana. How are sites on both sides of the Ohio River connected?

In the Museum
As they tour, students look for suggestions of historic sites that they believe are important and that others may find interesting. These sites must relate to the stories of an individual featured in the Center or to events or activities, etc., associated with Kentucky history as told in the exhibits. Students should make notes about their selected "site," even though they may not gather much information about the site itself in the Center.

Post-Visit
Students research the site they have selected, finding if original buildings or features still remain and noting how the site has changed. Is it currently a designated historic site or public space? Students write the text for an historic marker about this property and present information about their site to the class.

After the presentations, students vote on one site they find to be the most interesting or significant. This site should not currently be a designated historic property. As a class, the students can write to the Kentucky Heritage Council to share their research or even initiate the process to nominate this site for the National Register of Historic Places.