Celebrate literary history with walking tour
News release provided by Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government
In celebration of Lexington’s 250th anniversary and the city’s vast literary history, individuals can participate in the free Lexington Writers Walk at 6:30 p.m. on Kentucky Writers Day, April 24, at Gratz Park, 250 W. Third St. Participants will learn about famous writers, orators, printers and publishers who have had an impact on Lexington’s 250 years of history.
“Our community should be proud of our city’s strong history of being home to great writers,” Mayor Linda Gorton said. “Once known as the ‘Athens of the West,’ Lexington has long been a leader in supporting a culture of learning. I’m so thankful our community has this opportunity to learn even more about our creative literary artists.”
The walking tour, first created in 2021, features stories of those who have had a positive impact on literature and the written word while living or working in Lexington. The tour was created, and will be led, by Tom Eblen, a former Lexington Herald-Leader columnist and managing editor, who coordinates the Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame, a joint project between the Carnegie Center and the Kentucky Arts Council.
Participants will receive a copy of Eblen’s illustrated tour booklet. The tour, taking place on Kentucky Writers Day, includes stories about James Lane Allen, Mary E. Britton, Henry Clay, Mary Austin Holley, Belle Brezing and more. More information about the tour is available at online.
The Lexington Writers Walk begins in Gratz Park, located directly behind the Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning. The Carnegie Center, Lexington’s first public library, is a non-profit organization focused on empowering people to explore and express their voices through imaginative learning, and the literary arts.
“While we read or hear that from its early days Lexington was a hub for readers and writers, these statements have no visual context,” said Carnegie Center Executive Director Jennifer Mattox. “The Lexington Writers Walk gives people the opportunity to see sites important to our literary history, where groundbreaking writers lived or worked. It’s a tour that visitors and Lexington residents alike can learn from and appreciate.”
The Carnegie Center is a recipient of a 250Lex Cultural Grant, which is supporting several new and expanded literary programs.
“As a student under Gurney Norman and James Baker Hall, my career was shaped by the literary legacy of Lexington,” said Kip Cornett, 250Lex Commission Co-Chair. “We are blessed to have generation after generation of incredible talent here in our city.”
The 250Lex Commission, co-chaired by Cornett and Dr. Eunice Beatty, has developed a year of events and programming that tell the story of Lexington’s 250-year history.
Find more information and an events calendar at www.250lex.com.
News release provided by Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government
https://www.lexingtonky.gov/news/celebrate-literary-history-walking-tour
