Ballard County is located in the northwest portion of the Jackson Purchase where the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers meet.  It was created (93 in formation) in 1842 and named for Captain  Bland Ballard (1759-1853).  Born in Virginia, Ballard came to Kentucky in 1779.  He was a scout for George Rogers Clark’s Ohio expeditions, 1780 and 1882.  As a soldier, he fought in the Wabash Campaign of 1786 and in the battles of Fallen Timbers (1793), Tippecanoe (1811), and River Raisin (1813).  He was elected to the Kentucky Legislature for five (5) terms.  The first county seat, Blandville,  took its name…

Constance Alexander (at left) Constance Alexander was the speaker at our Spring Meeting, April 17th, in the auditorium of the Wrather Museum on the campus of Murray State University. She began by encouraging the audience to explore the possibilities of conducting oral histories of their family members stressing that a rigid method or a list of questions were not needed.    She also made practical suggestions for equipment that could be used for the oral histories and showed some samples.   At the end of her presentation, she provided a handout full of websites containing specific information about conducting oral history…