Allow me to introduce myself. I am a volunteer docent at Farmington. For most of my life I taught history in schools around the Louisville area. After spending 42 years in education I decided to finally retire but I had to find some way to satisfy my desire to stay connected with the study of American history. So I decided to get a volunteer gig at Farmington. I have enjoyed that immensely. I get to meet interesting people from literally all over the world. I get to study about a family that was vital to the growth of our community. And I get to further people’s knowledge of the history of our nation.
Volunteering at Farmington has an effect on people. In my case, I have become inquisitive about the people that lived on the plantation. When I first began leading tours of the grounds and the house I had to learn a certain amount about the pre-Civil War Speed family and how they lived. I also was expected to have knowledge about the enslaved people who lived and worked on the property. And, I had to learn a little about architecture, art, agriculture (especially raising hemp), and several other aspects of the people’s lives who inhabited the land.
It is kind of interesting, though, how learning a little about the people and their lives leads one to have more questions. It causes a desire to learn more things about the place they lived and about them. I began thinking about how the questions I had about Farmington, the Speeds, the enslaved people like Diana, their connection to Abraham Lincoln and the hundreds of topics that come up could be used to help anyone learn about the plantation and gain a better understanding of how all of this as influenced our modern world.
Now, it is important from the beginning that you know that I am not an expert on the Speeds, or urban enslavement before the Civil War, or on Abraham Lincoln, or hemp farming, or anything else that you think might be natural for people associated with Farmington to have an extensive amount of knowledge about. As a colleague of mine used to say, “I am just a plain old [retired] history teacher.” I have a lot of gaps in my knowledge.
But, I think I can use that lack of knowledge as a tool for all of us to gain a better understanding about the history of our community and an appreciation for Farmington as a depository for our historic memory.
What I hope to do with these postings is to begin with a question. I have lots of questions but I am sure that if anyone reads these postings they will have questions as well. What I will do is spend some time trying to search for answers to my question and provide several postings about what I am doing to find answers. After an honest attempt to delve into the topic, I will post my final thoughts and then move on to a new question which will often come from readers, I hope.
I look forward to seeing where this project takes me. I hope you will join me on the hunt for a better understanding of Farmington.
My first question: “How did Abraham Lincoln and Joshua Speed meet?”
Dave