Louisville Story Program

08/27/2026

08/27/2026

What to expect at the Save Our Stories Festival on Saturday, October 10th...
RSVP link in the comments and on the last picture.

08/18/2026

The Save Our Stories Festival will feature leaders and groups doing amazing preservation and documentary work in our city. You will get the opportunity to learn about resources and tools that can help you with *your* projects, too.

Pictured here are some of the creative folks organizing the event. From left to right: Kofi Darku with Kentucky BIPOCU Filmmakers Association (KBFA), Natalie Woods and Aaron Schweizer with the Louisville Free Public Library Parkland Branch, Nathaniel Spencer with KBFA, Cheketa Tinsley, Maya White, and Darcy Thompson with LSP.

Stay tuned to learn more about the exciting activities that will be available for you to experience at the festival! A tremendous thank you to Lamont Collins with Roots101: African American Museum for partnering and hosting the event on Saturday, October 10.

Check the links in the comments to learn more and to RSVP.

07/23/2026

Today we are going back to the 70s at Nat Brown Sr.'s Studio. Look at these beautiful images that were brought to him for copying!

1) Dated October 19, 1974. Brought in by a Page family member at 101 S. 39th.
2) Dated July 26, 1973. A Fletcher family member at 3630 Garland.
3) Dated July 17, 1973, Qunita Jackson at 505 S. 19th.

As always, let us know if you have any connections to these families. You can scroll back through our page to see even more photographs of Louisvillians who sought out Nat Brown Sr. to make copies of their precious family pictures.

07/15/2026

Community events like the Save Our Stories Festival often rely on partners to help cover the costs, and we are grateful to our event sponsors for making this powerful event possible: Republic Bank, Arthur K. Smith Family Foundation, and The Jack Harlow Foundation!

We are excited for Saturday, October 10th! Join LSP, Roots101: African American Museum, and the Community Archive Workshop Collective for a joyous and celebratory day of community-led preservation and storytelling.

Learn more and RSVP: bit.ly/saveourstoriesfest.
Join the Facebook event: link in our comments.

If you or your company want to join our sponsorship team, please contact us at [email protected].

07/09/2026

Here are more beautiful photos brought to Nat Brown Sr.'s studio for copying. If you happen to recognize any information and could connect these images back to their families, please let us know.

First Image:
Brought in by Carl Haynes at 111 Dumesnil in 1975.

Second Image:
Brought in by Pauline Frazier, date and address unknown.
Original photographer is listed as Dye's Studio, Columbia, TN.

Third Image:
Text below the photo reads, "School Days 1960 '61" and "20th Street Elem." Brought in by Willow Malonen on 4/17/1981.

You can browse our previous posts to see more stunning images saved by Nat Brown Sr. and digitized at the Louisville Story Program.

06/17/2026

John V. Harris (1952 - 2023) - shown in his studio in the last photo here - was a prolific photographer known in his native East End, especially Clarksdale and Sheppard Square, as The Picture Man because he spent so much time photographing life in that area. He was also known for his club photography, and in his later years, he could be found pretty much every day at Cole's Place, playing chess and taking photos. Fellow photographer George Williams nicknamed him "Mr. Polaroid" because Polaroids were his trademark - he even took Polaroids in his studio. His Polaroids live in many, many homes throughout Louisville. We salute Mr. Harris for his work as a documentarian.

Do you have memories of Mr. Harris? Do you have a photo that he took of you? We'd love to hear from you. (Photos courtesy of Mr. Harris' siblings, Mary and Rickey Shoulders)

05/14/2026

When you visit Roots101: African American Museum, make sure to look for records and photographs from our "I'm Glad About It" project! We are grateful for the partnership with such a vital member of the Louisville community. Stay tuned for more exciting news about our work together.

05/07/2026

Here are more photographs that community members brought into Nat Brown's studio to be copied. You can message us or comment below if you know anything about the people mentioned or featured in the images. When we can, we want to return these to families.

1) On the back of this photo includes a message: "To Jean, the one that is more than a part of me. The one I love very much. Forever and a day, Louis"
This may be Luis Earl Taylor, spelled as "Louis" in old Defender clippings but "Luis" in obituary. Brought in by Mr. Earl, 2318 Osage Ave, Louisville, KY 40218. He was a drummer who played in Boogie Morton's band for years and was also a member of Fifth Street Baptist Church.

2) Brought in by Floyd Raven from 235 S. 43rd St, Louisville, KY 40212.

3) Brought in by Ingram Cordia at 2318 S. 35th St, Louisville, KY 40211.

04/28/2026

Kenny Luckett of Luckett's Tack Shop is ready for this week's festivities at Churchill Downs. Here he is holding up "Better Lucky Than Good: Tall Tales and Straight Talk from the Backside of the Track," the book that made him an author. You can learn more about Kenny and his work on the back side by getting yourself a copy. Order now before they race off the shelves - again!

You can order online or visit Kenny's shop to purchase from him.

https://shop.louisvillestoryprogram.org/collections/frontpage/products/better-lucky-than-good-tall-tales-from-the-backside-of-the-track