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The Jack Jouett House Historic Site

255 Craig's Creek Road, Versailles, KY  40383~(859) 873-7902~www.jouetthouse.org~info@jouetthouse.org

Open April-October:  Mon., 10 am-Noon; Fri., Noon-5 pm; Sat., 10 am-5 pm; Sun., 1-5 pm.

Tours are also available by appointment throughout the year.

2017 CALENDAR OF EVENTS*

*All details are subject to change.  Please call ahead or visit our website and facebook page for updates.  All events are sponsored by the Woodford County Fiscal Court and the Woodford County Heritage Committee unless otherwise noted.  Information on the Jack Jouett Archaeology Project can be found at www.jouetthouse.org/Learn/Archaeology/Distillery Project.   (04/22/17 Printing)

April 1 (Sat.)—SEASON BEGINS—See above schedule for operating hours.  Tours are also available by appointment.

April 29 (Sat.)—VOLUNTEER FAIR—Come and see how you can get involved at the Jack Jouett House! Our Visitor Center will be set-up to showcase the different teams and ways you can use your interest here. This includes information on becoming a tour guide/docent, helping with our gardening and grounds, getting to help with special events, and research or archives. There will also be information about joining the Jack Jouett Archaeology Project if you have always wanted to try being an archaeologist. Time:  Drop-in anytime between 2pm and 5 pm, Jack Jouett House Historic Site Visitor Center.  Admission:  Free.  

May 7 (Sun.)—COLLECTIONS OPEN HOUSE—We are showing off the brand-new items in our collection! Steve Menefee, our resident Matthew Harris Jouett expert, will be giving a brief talk on a portrait that has never been on public display until now- Colonel Solomon P. Sharp. Colonel Sharp, famous for his part in the “Kentucky Tragedy” will be on display in the Jack Jouett House for the 2017 season. You will also have the chance to be the first to see the ivory miniature of Edward Spillsbee Coleman on display. There will be light refreshments. Time:  Talk begins at 2 pm, Jack Jouett House Historic Site Visitor Center.  Admission:  Free.  

May 20 (Sat.)—PRESERVATON DAY WITH THE DRY STONE CONSERVANCY— In celebration of Historic Preservation Month, the Dry Stone Conservancy will be holding a workshop to repair damage done to the stone wall surrounding our cemetery. Visitors will be able to observe this historic preservation work, and there will be a talk on preservation techniques. You will also get the chance to see our recently uncovered historic spring house, and hear about our upcoming spring preservation work. *Please note, to work on the stone wall you must be a volunteer with Dry Stone Conservancy and signed-up through them.*Time:  TBD, Jack Jouett House Historic Site Visitor Center.  Admission:  Free.   Presented in partnership with the Dry Stone Conservancy of Lexington.

June 3 (Sat.)—JACK JOUETT PATRIOT DAY:  The Tale of Simon Kenton—Join us as we celebrate the 236^th

Anniversary of Jack Jouett’s ride to save American Independence. Mel Hankla, as a part of the Kentucky Chautauqua program, will present Simon Kenton.  Thinking he had killed a boy, Simon Kenton fled from Virginia  at age By the time he was 20, Kenton had fetched up on the Kentucky shore of the Ohio River in what is now Mason County. He carved out a remarkable career as an explorer and frontiersman. A self-appointed welcomer-in-chief, he greeted early settlers as they arrived in what was then the far west Time:  2:00 pm, Jack Jouett House Historic Site Grounds.  Admission:  Free.  Presented in partnership with the Kentucky Humanities Council, Inc.

               July 22 (Sat.) REVOLUTIONARY KIDS DAY—Experience life in Revolutionary America with an afternoon of fun children's activities, crafts, games, and period demonstrations by Revolutionary War-era costumed re-enactors.  Meet Revolutionary War soldiers.  Visit colonial tradespeople.  Watch musket demonstrations.  Spend time socializing with friends at a children's tea party.  Special children's historic house tours, pony rides, and a petting zoo will also be available.  Time:  Noon—5:00 pm, Jack Jouett House Historic Site Grounds.  Admission:  Free.

Aug. 12 (Sat.)—MATTHEW HARRIS JOUETT DAY:  The Women with the Shawl—Our annual tribute to this other famous resident of the Jack Jouett House will include a talk by Steven Ray Menefee. 400-500 have been attributed to Matthew Harris Jouett during his career. In 1818, he painted Mrs. William Dallam and her daughter. Mrs. Dallam was wearing a colorful paisley shawl in the portrait. Tradition says that Jouett, being a close friend of the subject, often borrowed this shawl for portraits he painted of other women.  Mr. Menefee will give a talk about these portraits, collectively known as “The Women with the Shawl”. There will also be a presentation by Tim Tomes on the Jouett painting The Dead Christ Mourned (The Three Maries), painted in 1824. Owned by the Cathedral of the Assumption since the mid/late 19th century and now part of the Archdiocese of Louisville Archives Collection, Jouett’s largest and only religious work has not been available for public viewing for nearly 40 years. Plans to restore this Kentucky masterpiece are underway. Time:  2:00 pm, Jack Jouett House Historic Site Visitor Center.  Admission:  Free. 

Sept.  (TBD)—DIGGING OUT 2016:  Jack Jouett Archaeology Project Update—Archaeologist Nick Laracuente will review what we’ve done and learned during the 2016 season, with a display and discussion of some of the recovered artifacts.  A reception following the program will give guests and Archaeology Team members an opportunity to interact and celebrate.  Additional sponsors are the KY Heritage Council and the KY Distillers’ Association.

Sept. 28 + 29 (Thurs. + Fri.)—FRONTIER DAY—(Note:  This is a closed event, open to Woodford County 4th grade students only.)

Oct. 21 (Sat.)—BRINGING A CEMETERY BACK TO LIFE— If you’ve ever been interested in historic cemeteries, this interactive workshop is for you. Starting with a lecture on how to document, clean, and repair historic tombstones, there will then be a chance to put these skills to use by helping us clean and repair our historic cemetery, established circa 1842. Time: 2:00 pm, Jack Jouett House Historic Site Visitor Center. Admission: Free.

Oct. 30 (Mon.)—SEASON ENDS—Our regular tour season ends in October, but tours by appointment are available November-March. Call the Jack Jouett House Historic Site to schedule a visit!

*All details are subject to change.  Please call ahead or visit our website and facebook page for updates.  All events are sponsored by the Woodford County Fiscal Court and the Woodford County Heritage Committee unless otherwise noted.  Information on the Jack Jouett Archaeology Project can be found at www.jouetthouse.org/Learn/Archaeology/Distillery Project.   (04/12/16 Printing)

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