The Joseph Holt Home in Hardinsburg will host their 15th annual Community Day this Saturday from 9 a.m.to 2 p.m.
Community Day is free and open to the public, and is an opportunity for area residents to take a look into Breckinridge County’s history and to check out the hard work that has gone into preserving this historic home.
“There’s no admission because we want people to be a part of it, and we have had people be a part of this for 15 years to let people come in and see the improvements each year,” said Friends of Holt home President Susan Dyer. “It is massive what we have done as a local community. With 27 grants, we’ve raised $2 million.”
The Holt Home belonged to lawyer, soldier, and politician Joseph Holt, and Dyer says preserving the home means preserving the legacy of an individual whose contributions to keeping the Union together during the Civil War are often overlooked in history books.
“He was Lincoln’s judge advocate general,” Dyer said. “He served four presidents. He had the rank of major general, and being ‘TJ’ that means that he was the top judge advocate. He was Lincoln’s choice for that because he was famous across the nation during the Civil War, and for what he did for our nation. He held it together, being the prosecuting judge.”
Community Day at the Holt Home will feature guided tours, interactive reenactments, a Civil War-era baseball game, a presidential wreath-laying ceremony, music, guest speakers, and more.
Dyer says the home is a testament to the importance of historic preservation.
“If a local community like rural Breckinridge County can save a national treasure, and bring it back as the ‘showplace of Breckinridge County,’ it gives encouragement to communities all across the commonwealth,” Dyer said.
For more information on Community Day, visit the Friends of the Holt Home Facebook Page or www.josephholthome.com.
