120 on the Road, Chippewa Athlete Joe Guyon in Cool Kentucky, ear X-Tacy Founder John Timmons Previews Top 10 Kentuckians, and More
Abraham Lincoln impersonators pose at Lincoln Days in LaRue County, October 3, 2026.
Jason Berkowitz hits the wrestling mat in Wolfe County, September 4, 2026.
Megan Sleeper shows some youngsters the Frazier’s 120 exhibit in Hardin County, September 17, 2026.
AND THEY’RE OFF!! The Frazier Museum’s 120 on the Road team has officially wrapped up its first month of bringing the Frazier’s 120: Cool KY Counties exhibit to festivals and local events across Kentucky. From the bluegrass to the holler, my co-manager Megan Sleeper and I have traveled far and wide to swap stories, discover local music, meet with locals, share artifacts, and bring our museum to thousands unable to visit the Frazier. So far we’ve visited Wolfe, Hardin, Menifee, Nelson, Morgan, and LaRue counties—with only 114 more to go.
Best of all, we’re not shy about joining the festivities. Wrestling at Wolfe County’s Silver Mine Festival? STILL nursing bruises! Sampling sorghum in Morgan County? A BIG thumbs up! Talking politics with not one but three Abes at Lincoln Days in LaRue County? The more the merrier! Showing off bison poop at the Stephen Foster Story in Nelson County? Megan’s got you covered (metaphorically speaking). All just a reminder that 120 on the Road is, first and foremost, a celebration of Kentucky’s incredibly rich heritage and the communities who create it.
And we’re just getting started! By the time you read this, we’ll have returned from Logan County’s Tobacco and Heritage Festival, hopefully free of tobacco worms. This coming weekend, you can find us in the heart of Eastern Kentucky, joining our friends in Harlan and Pike counties for Harlan Fall Fest and the Mountain Grrl Experience. Next up? Possibly a county near you—so remember to check our website for upcoming dates! Rest assured that wherever the 120 on the Road team finds itself, stories will be spun and songs sung. Come share your own!
In today’s Frazier Weekly issue, the Frazier’s Simon Meiners is nominated for a ROSE Award! The Frazier has a new case of objects from Chippewa athlete and 1930s St. X football coach Joe Guyon. And ear X-tacy founder John Timmons previews his picks for the Frazier’s October 21 program Top 10 Kentuckians.
Thanks for reading!
Jason Berkowitz and Megan Sleeper
Managers of 120 on the Road
Frazier Kentucky History Museum
This Week in the Museum
Vote for the Frazier’s Simon Meiners for a ROSE Award!
Simon Meiners poses with his ROSE Awards invitation, September 24, 2026. Credit: Louisville Tourism.
The ROSE Awards (Recognition of Service Excellence) is one of my favorite annual traditions in Louisville’s attraction and tourism industries. Each year, Louisville Tourism recognizes dozens of finalists in ten different categories for outstanding work. Then, it is up to the voting public to determine the winners. This year our Simon Meiners earned a nomination in the attractions category as an exhibit guide. Today, I’m asking you to vote for Simon.
I nominated Simon for a ROSE Award to recognize his undeniable passion for connecting with people through stories. Simon loves Kentucky history and leads every tour as if our visitors are family. He is warm, open, and proud as he shares interesting anecdotes about our Commonwealth. But, Simon’s tours are in no way one-way conversations.
He leads with curiosity about the interests of our guests, their home states, and what they are looking for during their visit to Louisville. Simon then caters every tour to those interests. The result is a wonderful and warm welcome to the Frazier, to Louisville, and to Kentucky.
I invite you to check out the candidates in every category and to help us push Simon Meiners over the finish line as a 2026 ROSE Award winner.
You can vote once (per email address) in each category! Voting is open now through October 16 at 11:59 p.m.
Andy Treinen
President & CEO
Frazier Adds New Display on a Sports Legend you may not Know!
Joe Guyon case installed in the Frazier’s Cool Kentucky exhibition, October 7, 2026.
Joe Guyon’s Hall of Fame ring on display in the Frazier’s Cool Kentucky exhibition, October 7, 2026.
We have billed it the greatest sports story you’ve never heard of!
We worked to change that with a program on Joe Guyon here at the Frazier Kentucky History Museum last year when his family came in to celebrate here, at Slugger Field, and Rest Haven Cemetery where Joe is buried.
And now many of Joe’s personal items, loaned to us by his family, are on display in the Competitive section of our Cool Kentucky exhibition.
Guyon was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1966, as well as the College Football Hall of Fame. His HOF ring is one of the many items on display.
Guyon also played baseball for the Louisville Colonels until an injury ended his sports career.
He would later coach at all levels, including a stint coaching football at St. Xavier High School.
Many grown adults may remember Guyon from his visits to local ballfields in his Native American regalia but never realized the greatness in their midst.
Local attorney Greg King encountered Guyon that way and later did incredible amounts of research to bring attention to his story and brought it to the Frazier.
Come visit and learn about his Native American roots, his ties to the great Jim Thorpe, his connection to Dwight D. Eisenhower, and more.
His story does everything we hope for at the Frazier: inspire and connect.
Rachel Platt
VP of Mission
Frazier’s Simon to Brainstorm Top 10 Kentuckians on WDRB Mornings
Astronomer Edwin Hubble, 1931. Credit: AP.
Tune in to WDRB between 9 and 10 a.m. today! I will briefly join the anchors at the news desk to discuss the Frazier’s upcoming program Top 10 Kentuckians.
Who would make your list of the coolest, greatest, or most impactful Kentuckians?
I polled the staff for a TikTok and heard a lot of votes for Abraham Lincoln, Colonel Sanders, and Muhammad Ali—among many others.
But I’ve got a dark horse candidate: astronomer Edwin Hubble.
On October 5, 1923, Hubble observed that a star he had photographed the day prior had changed in brightness. He calculated its distance as 1 million lightyears from Earth (it was later found to be 2.5 million lightyears away). Thus, Hubble discovered that Andromeda and other “cloud nebulae” were in fact galaxies beyond the Milky Way. He would go on to show those galaxies are moving away from us. “Hubble’s law” is the observation in physical cosmology that galaxies are moving away from Earth at speeds proportional to their distance.
What was Hubble doing a decade prior?
He was tutoring in Old Louisville!
The Hubble family had moved from Shelbyville to Louisville in 1911, settling at 1318 Brook Street and later at 1287 Everett. In 1913, having graduated from Oxford, the 23-year-old Edwin came home. He ran ads in the Courier Journal promoting his tutoring service: “E. P. Hubble, 1318 Brook St. . . . is prepared to take pupils in mathematics, science, English, history, Latin, German, French, and Spanish.” In August, New Albany High School hired him to teach math, science, and Spanish. He played for the New Albany YMCA basketball team and coached NAHS basketball. He was seen looking at stars with a small telescope and hiking the Knobs of Indiana under the night sky. In July 1914, he accepted a teaching position in Chicago.
Given his role in discovering that the universe is expanding, I nominate Edwin Hubble as a Top 10 Kentuckian.
Now who would make your list? Tell us!
Join us October 21 for Top 10 Kentuckians. Spots are limited, so RSVP now!
Simon Meiners
Communications & Research Specialist
Musicians Bill Monroe, Tim Krekel Contenders for ear X-Tacy Founder’s Top 10 Kentuckians List!
ear X-tacy founder John Timmons delivers bumper stickers to the Frazier’s Cool Kentucky Shop, April 2026.
Bill Monroe, 1952.
We need your voice! Join us October 21 as we try to narrow the list of Top 10 Kentuckians in a fun, educational, and interactive program.
We want the audience to help us debate who should be on the list with a distinguished panel who will add to it.
For instance, in the field of music, we invited ear X-tacy founder John Timmons to come up with his list of deserving nominees. I asked him to give some insight on who he was thinking of so far.
“I've decided to go with a slam dunk and one of my possible choices.
“One of my picks for top five Kentucky musicians would have to be “the Father of Bluegrass”—Rosine, Kentucky, native Bill Monroe. There’s no debating his importance in the history of Kentucky music or the world of bluegrass music.
“Under SERIOUS consideration for one of my picks would have to be the late, great singer, songwriter guitarist, Tim Krekel. This Louisville native never received the recognition he deserved, despite his lengthy list of accomplishments. A short list would include recording and performing with Jimmy Buffett, nine solo album releases including one major label album on Capricorn Records (label-mates with the Allman Brothers). He also had his songs covered by Alan Jackson, Crystal Gayle, Patty Loveless, Martina McBride, Sam Bush, and many others.”
We have other panelists representing history, law, literature and sports! So, by the end of the night what kind of overall list will we have?
Click here to sign up for the program. We can’t wait for this debate to begin, but it only works with your voice!
Rachel Platt
VP of Mission
Cool Kentucky Shop: Make Room for Lincoln
Lincoln merchandise sold in the Frazier’s Cool Kentucky Shop.
Who belongs on the Mount Rushmore of Kentuckians? There are plenty of worthy contenders—Muhammad Ali, legendary musicians, Bourbon makers, and many more. But we think Abraham Lincoln—whose face is on the actual Mount Rushmore!—deserves a spot on the mountain. Born in Kentucky, Lincoln may have left the state as a young man, but his Kentucky roots are a pretty big part of his story! Shop our Lincoln merch in the Frazier’s Cool Kentucky Shop and online.
Celebrate the 35th Anniversary of the Affrilachian Poets with Frank X Walker
The Louisville Review and the Frazier Kentucky History Museum are excited to host a special program on Friday, November 6, at 6 p.m.
We’re celebrating the historic anniversary of the oldest continually running predominantly African American writing group in the country, the Affrilachian Poets.
Founding member Frank X Walker and several other members of that collective will be here. It will start with a talk on the history of the collective, as well as poetry readings.
The first 100 registered guests will receive a complimentary copy of The Louisville Review Number 99, which celebrates thirty-five years of the Affrilachian Poets and fifty years of The Louisville Review.
There will be refreshments and a book signing after the program.
The program runs from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Friday, November 6.
It is free, but RSVPs are required due to limited seating.
Rachel Platt
VP of Mission
WAGS Pet Therapy to Host Educational Seminar Featuring Nationally Recognized Speaker Ann R. Howie
Annie R. Howie.
Animals with volunteers at WAGS Pet Therapy.
Reminder to parents: many area schools are out on Monday and Tuesday, November 2 and 3! We understand the stress of finding childcare, and we’re here to help. Need a place to send the kiddos? Register for our Election Day Pop-Up Camp now! A couple months ago, our summer campers got to work with some of our amazing partners, including the wonderful pet therapy organization WAGS. We’ve asked Jenny Pagni to tell our readers about WAGS’s upcoming animal therapy education seminar featuring Ann R. Howie.—Tori Kennedy, Manager of Youth & Family Programs
A couple months ago, during Camp Frazier’s 2026 Summer Camp, we had the opportunity to work with some amazing partners. A few even brought some furry friends with them to help educate our campers on their organization’s mission, such as the wonderful pet therapy organization WAGS. To thank them for the engaging experience our campers had, we wanted to give them the opportunity to highlight an upcoming educational event of theirs that animal lovers are sure to enjoy! Here’s Jenny Pagni to tell us all about WAGS’s upcoming animal therapy education seminar featuring Ann R. Howie.—Tori Kennedy, Manager of Youth & Family Programs
WAGS Pet Therapy is pleased to host a special educational seminar on November 7, 2026, bringing together volunteers, healthcare professionals, educators, and community members who believe in the powerful impact of the human-animal bond.
WAGS is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization serving Kentuckiana. Members train and evaluate their personal pets to become registered therapy teams, then visit hospitals, schools, libraries, and many other community settings throughout the region. Today, WAGS has over 110 such teams bringing comfort and connection across Kentuckiana. The organization’s mission is to bring pet therapy closer to others, break down barriers to pet ownership, and raise awareness of the impact animals can have on health, independence, and quality of life.
The seminar will feature Ann R. Howie, a nationally recognized leader in the field of animal-assisted therapy. With a unique blend of professional expertise and personal insight, Howie has spent her career helping people better understand the profound relationship between humans and dogs. She played a key role in shaping the emerging field in the early 1990s, serving on the initial task force that helped establish professional standards for the industry. She later worked with Pet Partners to develop training programs, write educational handbooks, and assess therapy animal teams across the country. Howie is also the author of Teaming with your Therapy Dog, and her Therapy Animal’s Bill of Rights has been adopted by visiting-animal programs around the world.
This seminar will offer valuable education for therapy animal handlers, healthcare providers, educators, and community members who want to deepen their understanding of the standards, ethics, and impact of therapy animal work—straight from one of the field’s founding voices.
For tickets and more information, visit kywags.org.
Jenny Pagni
Team Leader, WAGS Pet Therapy
Guest Contributor
Bridging the Divide
Mayan Café Co-owner Anne Shadle on Business for Witches
Front cover of Business for Witches. Credit: Invisible Ink Books.
With Halloween approaching, you can’t help but notice the title of Anne Shadle’s book, Business for Witches. She is the co-owner and General Manager of the award-winning Mayan Café in Louisville. Mayan Café is one of the Frazier’s many catering partners. The book explores her emotional and spiritual journey in one of the toughest businesses around, and how it may require a little bit of magic and meaning along the way! Keep reading to learn more about Anne and mark your calendars for her program here at the Frazier on March 14, 2027.—Rachel Platt, VP of Mission
Hi friends of the Frazier. I am Anne Shadle, co-owner and general manager of Mayan Café and author of the upcoming book Business for Witches. You may know our tok-sel lima beans, but do you know the stories behind our restaurant? Do you know the way we care about our food, our work, and our team?
As a nearly twenty-year-old independent restaurant in this city, Mayan Café has grown intentionally because of my partnership with Bruce, my brother-in-law, who is our founder and chef. In my upcoming book, I shared many of the stories of how I have helped stabilize and grow our business. But being an entrepreneur is more than having the right systems and strategy. It’s the work of an alchemist.
You pull in all of your personal strengths and weakness, and then the business stretches you. When you can accept the challenge to grow both professionally and personally through your business journey, you can ultimately make meaning through your work.
As I have integrated both types of learning, I have realized that this same combination is what made witches of the past so powerful. I share in my book:
“WITCHES DO EVERYTHING.
“They had technical expertise. They were delivering babies. They healed diseases that traditional medical practitioners didn’t understand. They were managing land and property and money at a time when many women hadn’t been exposed to this.
“And they had spiritual depth. Witches have had a direct line to the divine, and their prayers have always been potent.
“They have woven together technical knowledge with spiritual insight in a way that many groups of people don’t. And it’s this integration of what could be seen as disparate subjects that makes them so powerful.”
Witches were simply women, standing in their full power. And so I am calling on their essence and history to share with women, entrepreneurs, and leaders of today. My book is an offering—to those who want to improve their business operating systems, to those who want grow into a stronger, more whole version of themselves and to those who are looking for just a little bit of magic inside of their work.
Please order my book today from Carmichael’s.
Join me at the official launch party at Mayan Café on October 25.
And if you can’t make that, please check out my website for a full list of all the fun book events in the coming months.
Anne Shadle
Co-owner and General Manager, Mayan Café
Guest Contributor
