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By James Gardner

Clark County Public Library

When most people think of October, they think of trick-or-treating and jack-o-lanterns, but the first week of October brings something new yet historical to the library. Local History Week is making its triumphant return. Along with a cavalcade of speakers discussing the stories and people that defined Kentucky, you can also get a meal for each local History program you attend by purchasing a ticket. Tickets are $10 per night, or you can just attend the program, but be sure to purchase your tickets by Sept. 22. To register for the program and purchase your ticket, just come to the reference desk. Here’s a list of the speakers that are part of this year’s Local History Week:

• On Monday, Oct. 2, Kentucky Chautauqua: An Exclusive Presentation of Kentucky Humanities presents “Jean Ritchie: Damsel with a Dulcimer.” Presenter Rachel Lee Rogers speaks as Jean Ritchie. “The Mother of Folk” and her dulcimer playing got her signed to Elektra Records in 1952 and she recorded more than 35 albums while embodying her Kentucky heritage.

• On Tuesday, Oct. 3, Winchester’s own Jerry Cecil will discuss “Sears Kit Houses of Winchester.” From 1908 to 1940 Sears, Roebuck, and Co. sold over 70,000 homes through their mail-order Modern Homes program. Offering over 447 different house styles that catered to individuals’ tastes and budgets, many of these homes can still be seen in Winchester.

• On Wednesday, Oct. 4, Marie Mitchell and Mason Smith will present “Haunted Kentucky: Six Spirited Bluegrass Spooks.” In an exclusive presentation of Kentucky Humanities, Mitchell and Smith discuss their travels as they researched a book about paranormal activity in the commonwealth, from a Bardstown Inn that is said to be haunted by the notorious Jesse James to an Eastern Kentucky University theater where the ghost of a thwarted thespian performs.

• On Thursday, Oct. 5, Kentucky Chautauqua: An Exclusive Presentation of Kentucky Humanities presents “Lilley Cornett: A Voice in the Forest.” Presenter David Hurt speaks as Lilley Cornett. Cornett, who owned 500 acres of old-growth timber on Pine Mountain, gets some savagely funny revenge on the timbercutters and industrialists forcing overnight change to a once stable area.

Dinners will begin at 6:15 each night, and the programs themselves will start at 7 p.m. For more information about the programs (or the menus!), contact the library at (859) 744-5661. And here are some more programs for the library this week:

• On Tuesday, Sept. 12 at 6 p.m., Ron Kibbey’s Comedy Classics presents a 1946 film about Ma and Pa Kettle. The Kettles and their fifteen children are about to be evicted from their rundown country home when Pa wins the grand prize of an automated modern home in a slogan contest. A jealous neighbor accuses Pa of stealing the slogan and a young reporter comes to the rescue. Popcorn and drinks provided.

• On Wednesday, Sept. 13 at 2 p.m., the Kentucky Picture Show features Sean Connery as superspy James Bond. In this outing, Bond willingly falls into an assassination plot involving a naive Russian beauty in order to retrieve a Soviet encryption device that was stolen by S.P.E.C.T.R.E. Popcorn and snacks will be provided. The film is rated PG.

• Saturday, Sept. 16, from 10 to 11 a.m. is our monthly Saturday Swap of house plants and seeds. Bring house plants or seeds of your own to swap for different ones.

• There will be a Friends of the Library meeting on Thursday, Sept. 21, at 6:30 p.m. in the Brooks Community Room. The Friends of the Library had been an integral part of the library up until about 2013. Most of the organization has emphasized raising funds for the summer reading programs and activities for young readers.