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The city reports and ordinances for Lexington contain a wide variety of information about the people, infrastructure, and businesses.

The Cyrus Parker Jones Funeral Notice collection contains 667 funeral cards of Lexington residents during the years of 1806-1886.


The Daily Argonaut began in 1895 and seems to have ceased publication in 1899. This collection includes scattered issues from 1896, 1897 and 1898.

The Cochran Chronicle appears to be a neighborhood leaflet created by two school children, Philip Borries and Laurence Kraehe, living on Cochran Road in the Chevy Chase area of Lexington, KY in 1960.


The Daily Lexington Atlas ran from December 11, 1847 through November 20, 1848 and was Lexington’s first daily paper, and the first to publish information from the telegraph lines.

The True American was an anti-slavery newspaper started by Cassius Marcellus Clay in June 1845.


The Reporter was published from March 1808-September 1817, by William W. Worsley. It was a Republican paper (Jeffersonian Democratic Republican - liberal at the time).

The Black Community News Collection compiles searchable newspaper articles and ads for local Black community events, schools, social gatherings, church events, obituaries, and wedding announcements in older local newspapers in the librar
Shawntaye Hopkins is the Marketing and Communications Director at the University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law. Before landing at the University of Kentucky, Shawntaye worked as a newspaper reporter, a public relations specialist at another university, and as a communications associate for a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization serving state governments. Shawntaye has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Western Kentucky University. Her hobbies include reading and writing about books, mostly fiction.
Discover everything that's happening this summer at the Library!
We are committed to supporting our democracy by providing nonpartisan voting information, whether you choose to cast an early ballot or go to the polls on Election Day.
With your free library card, gain access to a diverse collection of print books, ebooks, audiobooks, online classes and databases, and more. You can apply for a traditional, wallet-sized card and key chain tag or a digital library card to add to your smartphone’s digital wallet (iOS and Android compatible).
For June, the Blue Grass True Crime Book Club will be reading and discussing Ian Punnett's A Black Night for the Bluegrass Belle: The Murder of Verna Garr Taylor and the Kentucky Honor Code that Gave her Justice.
Books available May 26, in the Kentucky Room!
A local history exhibit commemorating 250Lex from March 21 to July 13 at the Central Library Gallery, 140 East Main Street. The exhibit includes items from the library’s own Kentucky Room collection as well as loans from the Lexington History Museum, Keeneland, the University of Kentucky, and local residents.
Queer, Here, & Everywhere: The Roots of Kentucky’s LGBTQ History is the first comprehensive exhibition of Lexington’s LGBTQ history, showcasing the importance of the queer community in this city
Highlighting key moments and figures in Lexington's LGBTQ history, from Sweet Evening Breeze's drag performances in the 1920s to the passage of the Fairness Ordinance in 1999, this exhibit celebrates the resilience and contributions of the queer community. By shedding light on these often overlooked narratives, we hope to foster a greater sense of belonging for LGBTQ individuals in Lexington while also promoting understanding and appreciation among the broader population.
Learn more about this exhibit here.
Join us for a walking tour of Lexington’s literary history!
Tour Length 1.05 miles
The music clips used in this tour are from “Walking Barefoot on Grass” by Kai Engel, and are used with a CCBY license. It is available here.
Alex Garcia is originally from Los Angeles, California. He attended the University of Kentucky in 2004 and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology in 2008. He then attended the University of Kentucky College of Law and earned his law degree in 2012. After graduating from law school, he began his legal career working at the Fayette Commonwealth’s Attorney Office prosecuting serious felony crimes such as murder, robbery, kidnapping, and assault.
A born-and-raised Lexingtonian, Hunter attended Lexington Catholic High School and graduated with a B.S. in Economics from the University of Kentucky Gatton College of Business and Economics in 2015. He is currently a Senior Associate at BC Wood Properties, a commercial real estate investment company, where he manages 1.8 million square feet of commercial space throughout six states. Hunter has a passion for community involvement, serving on various boards for the Explorium of Lexington, United Way of the Bluegrass, University of Kentucky DanceBlue Marathon, and Make-A-Wish Kentucky.
Kevin Lane Dearinger [Dare-in-jer] [he, his] is a retired Broadway actor-singer and English teacher. His publications include The Theatrical Life of Eleanor Robson Belmont, The Bard in the Bluegrass, Marie Prescott, Clyde Fitch and the American Theatre, several volumes of poetry, two memoirs (Bad Sex in Kentucky and On Stage with Bette Davis), as well as several plays.