America: 250 Years
Discover KET programs and resources that explore the semiquincentennial of America’s founding and illuminate Kentucky’s chapters within that history. No one connects Kentucky like KET, and we’re honored to share these stories with you. The American Revolution free screening events are coming to locations across Kentucky — stay up to date at KET.org/Events.
Historian Lucy Worsley Explores One of History’s Most Explosive Breakups
Over two episodes, “The Break Up” and “A Messy Divorce,” Lucy delves deep into the American Revolution, discovering the human drama, radical ideas, and political missteps behind this seismic split, and revealing how losing America changed Britain forever.
Tuesdays at 9 PM beginning April 7 on KET.
Ken Burns’ American Revolution
The American Revolution examines how America’s founding turned the world upside-down.
An expansive look at the virtues and contradictions of the war and the birth of the United States of America, the film follows dozens of figures from a wide variety of backgrounds. The American Revolution opened the door to advance civil liberties and human rights, and it asked questions that we are still trying to answer today.
Kentucky Origins: Battle of Blue Licks
Kentucky Origins, funded in part by the Kentucky Historical Society and the America250KY Commission, is a digital-first series that shares short, engaging stories revealing key turning points and unique chapters in Kentucky’s 250-year history.
The debut episode examines the Battle of Blue Licks, where ignoring Daniel Boone’s caution led to one of the frontier’s most devastating losses — shaping settlement and defense across early Kentucky. Watch the Battle of Blue Licks and more Kentucky Origins episodes on YouTube.
Kentucky Life: The Warrior’s Path
Follow the Warrior’s Path in Kentucky, an ancient route from the Cumberland Gap to the Ohio River, and the struggles and survival that shaped the lives of Native peoples and pioneers who lived along the way.
Lexington: 250 Years
Lexington: 250 Years chronicles the Kentucky city’s establishment and some of its most important moments and events.
Beginning on the banks of Town Branch Creek, this documentary takes viewers on a sprawling historical journey that includes the Civil War, the Great Depression and world wars, the establishment of Transylvania University and the University of Kentucky, and Henry Clay, Mary Todd Lincoln and other notable figures in the city’s history. Narrated by Lexington native and actor Josh Hopkins.
This program combines dramatic re-enactments with commentary by historians and authors to present a look at the personalities, events and resources that have had a profound impact on the shaping of America’s past and present.
Look for an episode about George H.W. Bush on June 19 and 26.
This documentary chronicles Kentucky’s role in the Civil War from 1861 until the Confederate retreat from the state in October 1862.
Daniel Boone and the Opening of the American West
Learn about the life of famed frontiersman Daniel Boone from his birth near Reading, Pennsylvania, in 1734, through his years in Kentucky and to his death in St. Charles County, Missouri, in 1820.
Declarations: Black Americans and the Revolutionary War
Learn about the life of famed frontiersman Daniel Boone from his birth near Reading, Pennsylvania, in 1734, through his years in Kentucky and to his death in St. Charles County, Missouri, in 1820.
Look for this program on June 29.
Dreamers & Doers: Voices of Kentucky Women
This film was inspired by women in the Commonwealth who boldly opened doors in politics, science, education, entertainment, literature, athletics, religion and the military.
For more than a decade, renowned Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr., has helped to expand America’s sense of itself by exploring the ancestry of influential people from diverse backgrounds, taking viewers into the past to reveal the connections that bind us all.
Look for “Secret Lives” on June 30.
Firing Line with Margaret Hoover
This series brings together the brightest minds and freshest voices from across the political spectrum to engage in a contest of ideas.
Look for an episode about the Semiquincentennial on June 28.
Henry David Thoreau helped define modern environmentalism and nonviolent resistance. The author of Walden and Civil Disobedience, his words resonate urgently today as humanity struggles to live in harmony with nature—and each other.
Blending interviews with historians, stories told by descendants of homesteaders and dramatic readings from pioneer diaries and letters, this film paints a picture of the people who struggled with daily life, enduring hardships and successes they celebrated.
A thought-provoking documentary narrated by Ashley Judd examines how Kentucky’s history mirrors the larger American experience. Directed by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Paul Wagner.
Based on the Kentucky Life special “Lincoln: ‘I, too, am a Kentuckian,'” the program explores Lincoln’s early life in Kentucky and its impact on him.
Route 66 Women: The Untold Story of the Mother Road
Learn about the extraordinary lives and achievements of women who overcame gender discrimination and segregation to build fulfilling lives and legacies on America’s most iconic highway. These women transformed their communities and the American West through their hard work, perseverance and ingenuity.
Washington Week with The Atlantic
Moderator Jeffery Goldberg and today’s top journalists discuss Washington’s current political events and public affairs.
Look for a Semiquincentennial special on June 12.
Author and University of Kentucky professor Gurney Norman retraces the route of the famous pioneer trail from Kingsport, Tennessee, to Boonesborough and gets perspectives on the region’s history from a retired forester, a Cherokee teacher, and a Laurel County farmer.
Where the River Bends: A History of Northern Kentucky
Unravel the intricate web of historical events in Boone, Kenton, and Campbell counties. From 100,000 years ago to the present, learn about the events and meet the people who shaped Northern Kentucky.
Educational Resources
Civics and Social Studies Collection
Explore civics and social studies topics in Kentucky and beyond. Activity suggestions, writing and discussion prompts, vocabulary terms and more accompany these videos.
The Shot Heard ’round the World
This collection chronicles the 19 years preceding the American Revolution. The videos introduce students to the people and events in England and the 13 colonies that changed the course of history. Re-enactments bring to life events like the Boston Tea Party and take students from New England to the Virginia frontier.
Unleash your creativity by submitting a poem, short story, graphic novel, illustrated story or persuasive essay to KET’s statewide contest. In honor of America turning 250, KET is including a subcategory of Persuasive Writing: Civics. KET invites young writers to think deeply about civics – what it means to take part, make change and shape the future. Persuasive writing pieces in this subcategory will be eligible for special recognition and prizes.
Social Studies Shorts
Discover this digital series from KET Education that explores social studies and civics topics, from here in Kentucky to the nation and the world. Watch more Social Studies Shorts on YouTube.
Kentucky Life
Old Fort Harrod State Park, Native Dawn Flute Gathering, and More
Discover the living history of Old Fort Harrod, one of Kentucky’s oldest landmarks. The Monarch in Louisville is a place where musicians and artists can hang out, collaborate, and perform; the Native Dawn Flute Gathering celebrates Native American music as well as traditional arts and crafts.
Exploring the American Revolution Through Kentucky Stories
Hero Daniel Goff was an African American soldier who fought in the War of Independence and later settled in Northern Kentucky; the remarkable bravery of the women of Kentucky’s Bryan Station Settlement; Jack Jouett’s heroic act and his Woodford County historic home; and Chip joins the reenactment of the Blue Licks at Blue Licks Battlefield State Resort Park.
Lincoln: “I, Too, Am a Kentuckian”
In a special edition of Kentucky Life, host Dave Shuffett explores the life and career of Kentucky’s most famous native son. Learn about the many Kentucky people and places that profoundly influenced Lincoln with stops at his birthplace and boyhood home, the Mary Todd Lincoln House in Lexington, the Louisville home of close friend Joshua Speed, and other sites.
Passport
KET Passport is an added benefit available to donors in the United States who contribute a qualifying annual tax-deductible gift.
Ken Burns’ two-part, four-hour documentary, “Benjamin Franklin,” explores the revolutionary life of one of the 18th century’s most consequential and compelling personalities, whose work and words unlocked the mystery of electricity and helped create the United States.
Between 1861 and 1865, Americans made war on each other and killed each other in great numbers, if only to become the kind of country that could no longer conceive of how that was possible. What began as a bitter dispute over Union and States’ rights ended as a struggle over the meaning of freedom in America.
Harriet Tubman: Visions of Freedom
Go beyond the legend and meet the woman who repeatedly risked her life and freedom to liberate others from slavery. Born 200 years ago in Maryland, Tubman was a conductor on the Underground Railroad, a Civil War scout, a nurse and spy, and one of the greatest freedom fighters in our nation’s history.
Route 66 Women: The Untold Story of the Mother Road
Learn about the extraordinary lives and achievements of women who overcame gender discrimination and segregation to build fulfilling lives and legacies on America’s most iconic highway. These women transformed their communities and the American West through their hard work, perseverance and ingenuity.