Join us for Baton Rouge Weekend!

Join us this holiday weekend December 31st - January 1st on C-SPAN2's Book TV and C-SPAN3's American History TV as we explore the literary life and rich political history of Louisiana's capital city. All weekend long on Book TV you will see interviews with local authors and tour special collections inside Baton Rouge area libraries, and on American History TV (AHTV) we’ll take you to historic sites as we learn about Louisiana’s history and the politics of the “Bayou” state.

We owe many thanks to our cable partners at Cox Communications for their help in making this a successful trip.  Manager of Public Affairs Sharon Bethea and her city partners helped organize the week's community and education outreach events with visits to area schools...Tara High School,  Scotlandville Pre-Engineering Academy, Christian Life Academy, Louisiana State University Laboratory School and Baton Rouge High School.   In addition, Cox hosted a a special public kick-off event which included remarks from Secretary of State Tom Schedler and Director of the Louisiana State Capitol Mary Durusau. Baton Rouge city historians and leaders, Cox officials and local authors attended the event.  The event was held at the Louisiana Old State Capitol.  

Be sure to catch BookTV and AHTV this weekend!  If you miss them on-air--go online!! The pieces are also available to view on the LCV website and C-SPAN’s Video Library. 

Thank you Baton Rouge!

Debbie, Tiffany and Adrienne

BookTV in Baton Rouge

What a week in Baton Rouge!

My week started off talking politics, politics, and more politics.  I spoke with Leo Honeycutt about his recent biography on the rise and fall of former Louisiana governor Edwin Edwards.  I then met up with LSU professor Wayne Parent, author of “Inside the Carnival,” to discuss Louisiana politics in general and how it got its reputation.

The following day, I went to LSU’s Manship School Journalism to interview Robert Mann author “Daisy Petals and Mushroom Clouds” about the 1964 political ad LBJ ran the changed American politics.  Then, Archivist Angela Proctor showed me around the John B. Cade Library at Southern University.  We discussed their slave narrative collection as well as the collection of FBI files they have on Martin Luther King, Jr.

I met up with Greg Langley, book editor at The Baton Rouge Advocate, to talk about the state of the book business and the state of book reviewing.  Later that day, Rachel Emanuel and I met back at LSU to discuss her book “A More Noble Cause” about civil rights attorney A.P. Tureaud.  Tureaud was involved in numerous civil rights cases in Louisiana including the desegregation of LSU.

I finished up my week at Hill Memorial Library in the Special Collections department.  There, Tara Lavar and Elaine Smyth showed two of the libraries most interesting pieces.  The first was a book of outgoing correspondence by William Claiborne, who would eventually become the first governor of Louisiana.  Claiborne was sent to the new territory by Thomas Jefferson after the Louisiana Purchase.  Claiborne was tasked with governing the new territory and its people who were now “Americans.”  The book is filled with letters between Claiborne and various officials, including Jefferson, about some of the difficulties he’s having.

The second item was what they refer to as “The Bloody Book.”  This is believed to have on the table in front of Jean Paul Marat when he was assassinated in 1793.  The book is covered in blood splatter, believed to belong to Marat, though it has never been tested.

Blood splatter – What a great way to end my week in Baton Rouge!

Tiffany

Historical Baton Rouge

Secretary of State Tom Shedler says Louisiana is a melting pot of various cultures and religions.  The Secretary credits the influx of French, Spanish and Canadian immigrants for the state’s diversity.  We certainly got a taste of that diversity during our week in Baton Rouge.  AHTV visited Magnolia Mound, which is one of a few surviving French plantation houses in Baton Rouge.  The house is currently decorated in the French Creole style of architecture to represent what it would have looked like when owner Armand Duplantier and his wife Constance lived there in the late 1700s.

Former Speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives, Hunt Downer, talked to us about the political career and assassination of infamous Louisiana Governor and U.S. Senator Huey P. Long inside the state capitol building where he was shot on September 8th, 1935.

We also took a trip into the vaults of the state’s archives to take a look at some of the city’s oldest documents.  The Archives houses all of the original acts of the state’s legislature in a row of leather bound books.  Also in the inner vaults are some of the documents from the Republic of West Florida, which only lasted a few months before it was dissolved. 

Finally, we also heard some of Baton Rouge’s Civil Rights era stories.  A group of LSU journalism students have teamed up with a local journalist to help investigate some of the state’s cold cases including the death of an African American businessman who died after suffering wounds from a fire that was set in his shop.  Also, one of the nation’s first bus boycotts started in Baton Rouge.  The blueprint of this boycott was used in other more well-known boycotts in Montgomery and Tallahassee in the 1960s.  

Birmingham Weekend is here!

Visit Birmingham over the Thanksgiving Holiday Weekend on C-SPAN2 and C-SPAN3.  Both networks will air the BookTV and AHTV pieces the LCV crew shot in Birmingham earlier this month.  Here are some highlights….

On BookTV on C-SPAN2 – Pulitzer Prize winning author Rick Bragg took a few minutes before his class at the University of Alabama to talk to us about his book, “The Most They Ever Had.” The book is about Jacksonville, Alabama, a mill town where Bragg grew up.  Bragg explained the mill’s impact on the town’s growth and what happened to Jacksonville once that mill shut down.  We also spoke to Carolyn McKinstry, one of the survivors of the 16^th Street Baptist Church bombing in 1963.  McKinstry spoke about her book, “While the World Watched,” and recounts the morning of the bombing, and explains how growing up in a segregated Birmingham had an impact on her life. 

On American History TV on C-SPAN3 – We visited the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute where there is an exhibit dedicated to Dr. Martin Luther King’s, “Letter from Birmingham Jail.”  History professor Jonathan Bass explained Dr. King’s arrest in Birmingham, why he wrote the letter, and spoke about the eight white clergymen to whom the letter was addressed.  Our cameras also toured around Sloss Furnaces, which is a National Historic Landmark and the only 20^thcentury blast furnace in the nation being preserved and interpreted as a museum of industry.  Education Coordinator Heather Guy, showed us how iron was made at the site and why Birmingham was the perfect location to build a blast furnace.

We owe many thanks to our cable partners at Bright House Networks for their help in making this a successful trip.  Director of Public Affairs Robert Smith and his team helped to organize our visit and coordinated several stops for us at local schools like Lawson State Community College, Ramsay High School, Center Point High School and Phillips Academy.  We were also able to speak to Mayor William A. Bell, Sr. and the city leadership during the Birmingham City Council meeting.  One of the highlights of our visit was viewing the premiere of the On The Set Summer Film Camp student made film titled, “The Hop Off,” during its Red Carpet Premiere at the Alabama Theatre.  Bright House Networks sponsored the event, and we loved getting a chance to see all of the students’ hard work and participating in the awards ceremony.

Enjoy the pieces from Birmingham this weekend!  If you don’t catch them on the networks, you can always stream them online at C-SPAN’s Video Library or watch them from our LCV website.

C-SPAN Arrives in Birmingham

The Local Content Vehicles pulled into Birmingham Saturday night.  We have worked closely with our cable partners at Bright House Networks to organize a very busy week in the Magic City, and we are very excited to explore this southern city's rich history and literary culture.

Former Birmingham Mayor "Bull" Connor

We kicked of our visit with an evening tour of some of the city's most notorious landmarks.  Jim Baggett, the archivist at the Birmingham Public Library, walked our cameras through the city's streets on a tour he calls Birmingham Noir. Mr. Baggett shared stories of political intrigue and talked about the scandal that  nearly destroyed former Mayor Eugene "Bull" Connor's career. Mayor Connor held the office in Birmingham from 1957-1963.  We also spoke to Mr. Baggett about the Birmingham Public Library's role in the community.

After last night's tour of Birmingham's darker side, BookTV visited with Jack Reiss, the owner of the Alabama Booksmith this morning.  The book store has been operating for over 20 years and specializes in Alabama authors.

Also this morning, we spoke to an auditorium full of students at Lawson State Community College.  Washington Monthly named Lawson State one the top 50 Community Colleges in the country and the White House recognized Lawson State as a "Champion of Change," because of the College's efforts to build a more educated workforce.  While at Lawson State we interviewed President Dr. Perry Ward (on right) about the schools role in the community.

Civil Rights Leader Fred Shuttlesworth

American History TV (AHTV) is spending the day with history professor Horace Huntley.  Huntley is an expert on the Civil Rights Movement in the city.  He's taking our cameras to the downtown Masonic Temple, which was a center for voter registration efforts in Birmingham.  He will also take us to Fred Shuttlesworth's grave.  Shuttlesworth was at the forefront of Birmingham's Civil rights movement.  He passed away in October 2011.  He was 89 years old.

Knoxville Programs on C-SPAN2 & C-SPAN3

We hope you caught some glimpses of Knoxville on C-SPAN2's BookTV and C-SPAN3's AHTV this weekend!  Our week in the Marble City took BookTV to the University of Tennessee's Body Farm, and behind the scenes of the University's collection of letters and papers written by Andrew Jackson.  BookTV also visited Alex Haley's farm and learned about the author's life after writing his novel, "Roots."

American History TV (AHTV) dug deep into the roots of Knoxville's founding with a visit to one of the city's first houses.  William Blount built Blount Mansion after moving his family to Knoxville in the 1700s. Blount was a signer of the U.S. Constitution and eventually helped Tennessee gain statehood.  AHTV also traveled outside of Knoxville to Vonore, TN where Sequoyah, a Cherokee Indian, created the Cherokee's writing system called a syllabury.

In addition to the historic people and places we learned about on our visit, we also met with several of the area's leaders including the Mayor of Knoxville, Daniel Brown as well as the Mayor of Knox County, Tim Burchett.

If you UT fans weren't able to get away from this weekend's game against South Carolina, you can watch the pieces from Knoxville at anytime online at the Local Content Vehicles website or you can stream the pieces on C-SPAN's Video Library.  Just search the key word "Tennessee."

We would like to give a huge thanks to our partners at Comcast for making our visit to Knoxville such a success.

Next stop... Birmingham, Alabama!

Knoxville through the Centuries

Knoxville's history spans many generations and many critical time periods in our nation's history.  The city was the only capitol of the southwest territory before Tennessee became a state in 1796.  We learned about the beginning's of the city's history during visits to the William Blount Mansion and the James White Fort.

We learned about the impact the Civil War had on Knoxville.  The war literally pitted neighbor against neighbor, because the city did not clearly belong to either the Confederates or to the Union.  This created a divisive sentiment across Knoxville, but a visit to the city's Old Gray Cemetery shows the wounds of war didn't permanently separate Knoxvillians.  You can see Confederate soldiers buried next to Union soldiers. 

The 20th century brought prohibition to Knoxville.  The city went dry before Prohibition became the law of the land, and stayed dry after the repeal of the law. 

These are just a few of the pieces I'm working on for AHTV's Knoxville weekend on C-SPAN3.  Tune in on October 29th and 30th to learn more about these parts of Knoxville's history.

Adrienne

Knoxville's Rich Literary Culture

Is it just me or have some really great authors come out of Knoxville?

I have just finished my week in Knoxville and I couldn't have had a better time.  The weather was perfect, the people welcoming and more authors than I know what to do with.  Local columnist and author Jack Neely spent two days talking with me about some of the great Knoxville authors such as James Agee, Cormac McCarthy and Nikki Giovanni.

I also visited the Alex Haley Farm right outside of Knoxville.  I was able to tour the Langston Hughes Library there as well as speak with Kathy Stookesbury-Long about Alex Haley and the time he spent in Knoxville.

Paul Bergeron met me in front of the Mabry-Hazen House to discuss his book "Andrew Johnson's Civil War and Reconstruction."  Forensic Anthropologist Dr. William Bass talked to me about his memoir "Death's Acre" and how the body farm came to be at the University of Tennessee.  And finally, Fred Brown and Jeanne McDonald discussed how the south shapes its writers from their book, "Growing Up Southern."

Thanks for the great interviews Knoxville!

Tiffany

Welcome to Knoxville!

We started the week as a guest on Knoxville's NewsTalk 98.7 radio host Hallerin Hilton Hill's morning show. We found out that HE is the true C-SPAN Junkie! 


We joined Comcast and the East Tennessee Historical Society for the "Knoxville Week" kick-off event at the East Tennessee History Center.  Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett and City of Knoxville Senior Director of Policy and Communications Bill Lyons welcomed C-SPAN. Dr. W. Bruce Wheeler gave the keynote remarks about the history of Knoxville and its role in the future. Comcast worked with us on coordinating the many logistics for the week...special thanks to Comcast's Russell Byrd, Susan Arp with SRW Associates and the City of Knoxville.  We would also like to thank Cherel Henderson and the staff at the East Tennessee Historical Society for co-hosting a successful event with Comcast and C-SPAN.


We arrived in Knoxville this past weekend and jumped right into the rich history.  We toured Knoxville Civil War sites with Frank H. McClung Museum's Joan Markel and learned about the city's early history at the William Blount Mansion. Blount was one of the signers of the U.S. Constitution.

On the literary scene, we talked with Professor Dan Feller about "The Papers of Andrew Jackson" series. The University of Tennessee Press has just released Volume 8. We met local author Martha Rose Woodward at the Sunsphere where she talk about her book "Knoxville's 1982 World's Fair". She explained how Knoxville was picked to host the world's fair and what impact it had on the city.

On the education front, we visited with the teachers and students at West High School and Farragut Middle School. 


More to come on our visit to Knoxville!!


Debbie, Tiffany and Adrienne

It's time for "Charlotte Weekend" !

Charlotte weekend on Book TV and American History TV is upon us. We've been putting together the wide ranging segments we recorded while in Charlotte earlier this month. Some of the highlights on AHTV on C-SPAN3 are a tour of the Reed Gold Mine, and a profile of Charlotte’s Civil Rights movement with Charles Jones. On Book TV on C-SPAN2, we will hear from several local non-fiction authors including Rick Rothacker, author of "Banktown", where we learn about the rise and struggles of big banks in Charlotte. Too many programs to list here - but be sure to catch Book TV and AHTV this weekend. Check out the videos listed above on this page or visit our C-SPAN Video Library at c-span.org/videolibrary

Special thanks to the City of Charlotte, Mayor Anthony Foxx and Time Warner Cable for “C-SPAN Week” Proclamation in Charlotte – 9/19 to 9/25—such an honor! Thank you!

The Local Content Vehicle staff

Education Week in Charlotte

Special thank you to Time Warner's Dan Ballister, Central Piedmont Community College Associate Dean, Melissa Vrana and Dr. Cindy Moss, Director, STEM Program, with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools for spear heading the educational visits in the Charlotte area.  Our community and educational outreach in Charlotte gave us an opportunity showcase C-SPAN's free online educational resources, the LCV video production initiative and C-SPAN Classroom's 2012 StudentCam contest! 

We kicked off the week with Gordon Bynum's Media and World History upper school classes at Providence Day School where we focused on video production, politics and the media. In addition, lower and upper school Librarians met with me to talk about C-SPAN's free resources for teachers.

Kristin Glaeser at Cochrane Collegiate Academy (Middle School) provided me with an opportunity to talk with her 9^th grade World History students. Principal Pam Espinosa at McClintock Middle School gathered almost two hundred 6th to 8th grade middle school students in their auditorium.  These students were engaged and ready to offer their thoughts on the next presidential election!  

Central Piedmont Community College -- what can I say, they were fantastic!  Lead by Melissa Vrana, Associate Dean, Arts, Communication and Culinary Arts...approximately 230 students met with me inside Tate Hall on Piedmont’s Central Campus. We conducted two sessions that focused on political discourse, C-SPAN's role in the media and how they can utilize C-SPAN's Video Library in their course work. The two groups included students from Political Science, Journalism, History as well as English majors. 

I made a brief stop to Piedmont Middle School where Principal Dee Gardner helped collect several eager students to hear about how they can participate in StudentCam.  

Principal Louise Jones set up presentations for several video production and journalism student groups in Hopewell High School's media center/auditorium located in Huntersville, NC. 

Amanda Bradford Literacy Facilitator at Morehead STEM Academy brought 6th and 7th grade classes who were given an opportunity to learn from each other about what they would like to see President Obama focus on -- the students engaged in a healthy debate about the President and the future of the U.S... They also found out they don't have to wait to vote to get involved...they too just need to pick up a camera and start asking questions to find various points of view!

I think we will see StudentCam entries from our Charlotte middle and high school education community – they have been given this challenge -- so, go Charlotte go!  Visit studentcam.org for more information about C-SPAN's 2012 video documentary contest!!

Thank you all for your time!

Debbie

Charlotte Authors, Bookstores and Libraries - Oh my!

Charlotte's literary community kept me busy! I started off the week speaking with David Radavich, president of the Charlotte Writers' Club.  We met at The Book Mark where we picked a quite little corner and discussed the literary scene in Charlotte.  Next, I went to the intersection of Trade and Tryon where I met up with Rick Rothacker who is a writer for the Charlotte Observer.  He recently released a book called "Banktown" about the rise and struggles of big banks in Charlotte like Bank of America and Wachovia (now Wells Fargo).

I spent a couple days at UNC-Charlotte interviewing two professors.  David Goldfield talked about his book "America Aflame" regarding the Civil War's impact on the nation.  We taped his interview in the beautiful gardens of the University. Then, traveled to the Historic Rosedale Plantation where we heard from Karen Cox about her book "Dreaming of Dixie". I also caught up with Katie McCormick, assistant University Librarian for Specials Collections, to talk about the rare books located in the J. Murrey Atkins Library.

I stopped by Park Road Books and spoke with owner Sally Brewster about her store and readership in the community.  I visited the Mecklenburg Public Library, where Jane Johnson was kind enough to give me a tour and talk to me about the library and rare finds they have in their Carolina Room.

I ended my week with an interview with Kevin Morgan Watson, founder and editor in chief of Press53, an independent publisher.  We talked about the nature of the business and how he competes with larger publishers.

You will get a chance to view these unique video segments during C-SPAN2's Charlotte Weekend on BookTV September 24th and 25th.  They will also be available to view online at www.c-span.org/lcvcontent or C-SPAN's Video Library at www.c-span.org/videolibrary indefinitely!!  Thank you Charlotte!

Tiffany

Distant and Recent History in Charlotte

The last two days in Charlotte offered quite a contrast in history.  I spent Thursday focusing on the 18th century in Mecklenburg County and Friday was dedicated to Charlotte's most recent history including the incredible growth of the city's immigrant population.

The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, or Meck Dec as the locals refer to it, is claimed to be the first ever written declaration of independence from the Crown of England.  History lovers in Charlotte say the Meck Dec occurred on May 20, 1775.  There is some controversy surrounding this document, because some claim the original was burned in a fire.  I learned about General Cornwallis' battle in Charlotte during the fall of 1780.  The final stop Thursday took us to President James K. Polk's birthplace in Mecklenburg County.  The museum and surrounding land is dedicated to the early years of Polk's life.

My final stop Friday morning was at the Levine Museum of the New South where I learned about Charlotte's most recent history, the growth of the banking industry of the city, and Charlotte's growing immigrant population.  Charlotte lays claim to the second fastest growing Latino population in the country. 

I bid a final farewell to the Queen City. I give a big thank you to the folks at Time Warner Cable, who were such a big help in coordinating a successful trip.

Adrienne

C-SPAN Meets CHARLOTTE

Welcome to Charlotte!!!  We joined our long time partner Time Warner Cable for our "Charlotte Week" kick-off event at the Charlotte Museum of History.  Dr. Tom Hanchett gave the keynote remarks about the history of Charlotte and the New South.  The folks at Time Warner Cable worked with us on coordinating the many logistics for the week...special thanks to Mike Smith, Mike Tanck, Dan Ballister and Stephanie Richin for their hard work.  We would also like to thank Angelica Docgue, Mary Turk-Meena, Elizabeth Miller and the staff at the Charlotte Museum of History for co-hosting a successful event with Time Warner and C-SPAN.

We arrived in the Queen City this past weekend and jumped right into the rich history.  We toured the Reed Gold Mine, The Old Mint and the Hezekiah Alexander Home.  We spoke to two men who have fought for civil rights in Charlotte, Charles Jones who participated in sit-ins during the 1960's and James Ferguson, a civil rights attorney who focused on busing.

On the literary scene, we talked with author Rich Rothacker "Banktown: The Rise and Struggles of Charlotte's Big Banks" in downtown Charlotte outside the Bank of America Headquarters. We met with the president of the Charlotte Writers Club about the local area writers and visited the popular independent Park Roads Books store.

On the political front, in the less than a year Charlotte will be home to the 2012 Democratic Convention.  Mayor Anthony Foxx and CEO of the DNCC, Steve Kerrigan provided us with insight into the planning process and the impact the convention will on the city of Charlotte. Bob Morgan, President of the Charlotte Chamber talked to us about the business climate in this growing and changing city.

More to come from this great southern hub!

Debbie

Frankfort Highlights!!

Frankfort weekend on Book TV and American History TV is upon us. We've been busily putting together the wide ranging segments we recorded while in Frankfort earlier this month as well as during our visit in late March.  Frankfort was integral in the start of our LCV project as they were the first city to work with us to test out our new programming and community outreach initiative.  During our visit in March, Frankfort Plant Board Superintendent, Cable/Telecommunications John Higginbotham, General Manager Jim Smith , Frankfort Plant Board members and the city of Frankfort including Mayor Gippy welcomed C-SPAN to Frankfort. They provided us with an opportunity to present C-SPAN’s new LCV initiative and highlight Frankfort Plant Board’s continued commitment to providing C-SPAN in the community. Frankfort Plant Board was the first C-SPAN affiliate to launch C-SPAN in HD.

During my visit in March, I talked with Freddie Johnson a third generation employee at Buffalo Trace Distillery. He tell the story of Prohibition, the first settlers and whiskey production.  Curator Sara Elliot provided us insight into the political climate and events leading up to the assignation of Governor William Goebel—the only governor to be assassinated while in office. Russell Hatter, Frankfort’s historical expert, gave me a tour of Fort Hill overlooking downtown Frankfort where military fortifications were built during the Civil War to protect the city and its pro-Union state government. There, we discovered in 1864 Confederate rebels attacked Frankfort. The community warded off the attack from inside the Fort Boone earthen fort and as a result the state capital remained in Frankfort. And, Dr. Anne Butler talked about Kentucky State University as a Historical Black College and University (HBCU) and its impact in history. We also appreciate all of the assistance we received from Karla Nicholson and the rest of the staff from the Liberty Hall Historic Site.

Adrienne and Tiffany returned in August to tape additional programming for AHTV and BookTV. Tiffany focused on videotaping segments for BookTV. She talked to Lizz Taylor at Poor Richard’s Books about the bookstore and the voracious readers that live in Frankfort and heard from Doug Boyd, Kent Masterson Brown and other authors as they told the stories of Frankfort’s history and Kentucky’s history as a whole. Look for her produced segments on BookTV and right here on the LCV website.

Adrienne videotaped additional historical programming for AHTV which included segments on Supreme Court Justice John Marshall Harlan who is best known for 3 dissents related to Civil Rights cases in which he was the lone man in decent; The Civil Rights Cases in 1883, Plessy v. Ferguson, and the Berea College case in 1908. The Kentucky Historical Society where she went behind the scenes with Trevor Jones to show our audience the Special Collections at the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History. He also provided us with a tour of the Old Kentucky State Arsenal now referred to as the Kentucky Military Museum, a castle-like structure that was once used to house all of the state’s ammunition. She talked with Education Programs Administrator Leslie McWhorter about the architecture and the history of Old State Capitol. This is the third state Capitol building.  Fire destroyed the first two buildings.  This version, completed in 1830, was designed by 25-year old architect Gideon Shyrock.  This is the only pro-Union state capitol occupied by the Confederate army.

I think we all three agree that our time in Frankfort was productive, interesting and fun!  You can’t beat Frankfort’s hospitality.  We want to extend a special thanks to John Higginbotham..his support and continue commitment to C-SPAN helped make the two weeks a huge success!

Be sure to catch Book TV and AHTV this weekend. Or...check out the videos listed above on this page.

Thank you,

Debbie and the rest of the crew…Mark, Adrienne and Tiffany

It's Charleston Weekend

Charleston weekend on Book TV and American History TV is upon us. We've been busily putting together the wide ranging segments we recorded while in Charleston earlier this month. Some of the highlights on AHTV are a look at the progress being made on the Hunley submarine, and also a profile of the Old Slave Mart Museum. On Book TV, our exploration of the rare holdings of the Waring Historical Library will be sure to intrigue many interested in how medicine was practiced in colonial and antebellum times. Too many programs to list here - but be sure to catch Book TV and AHTV this weekend. Or...check out the videos listed above on this page.

Thanks - the Local Content Vehicle staff

Charleston Week

What an incredible week it's been. We've visited fascinating history sites (such as the Slave Mart Museum above) as well as incredible libraries and other literary sites around the city. We've also been able to do community outreach events and have made many friends. Thanks to our friends at Comcast for helping out with the week.

Look forward to spending the next few weeks readying all the segments for Book TV and American History Television - airing the weekend of July 30-31.

-Debbie, Tiffany, and Adrienne

Charleston - Carolina Days

As luck would have it, we're in Charleston at the same time they're having a "Carolina Days" (that's Adrienne after an interview there) festival - celebrating the city's history during the American Revolution. Spent part of yesterday at Washington Park and then the Battery taping interviews about the festival and the Revolution.

The evening was spent at the Charleston Library Society's building at an event sponsored by them, the Preservation Society of Charleston and our Comcast Cable partners. Thanks to everyone for a wonderful night - one that was topped off by historian and author Robert Rosen talking about South Carolina's secession from the Union - very timely as this year begins the marking of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War's beginning - and it started in here when the first shots were fired on Fort Sumter.

Lots more to do - all of this will be on Book TV and American History Television during the July 30-31 weekend.

-Debbie

Charleston, SC

We're in Charleston, SC! Beautiful city, and site of where the Civil War officially began with the shots fired at Ft. Sumter. On Monday, we spent part of the day with renowned historian Bernard Powers from the College of Charleston as he took us around to African-American heritage sites. Later in the day, we visited the Lasch Conservation Center to get an update on the Hunley, the civil war era submarine that was found off the coast of SC. Fascinating.

For Book TV, we spent time visiting Civil War historic sites with "Confederate Charleston" author Robert Rosen. He'll also be the guest speaker at an event we're covering for Book TV on Tuesday night that is sponsored by our Comcast cable partners, the Preservation Society of Charleston, and the Charleston Library Society.

Tiffany, Adrienne, and Debbie

Savannah weekend on Book TV and AHTV

This weekend of June 25-26 we'll feature Savannah on C-SPAN 2's Book TV and C-SPAN 3's American History TV. Lots of editing these past few weeks as we prepare everything for on-air and online. Check us out at www.c-span.org/localcontent for all the segments (like the one pictured above on a visit to the Flannery O'Connor Childhood Home) and events we'll be posting and airing. At last count, 12 produced pieces on AHTV and 10 on Book TV. Lots to cover in Savannah with its rich history, but we've been able to get to most of it. Beautiful city - which I hope shows up as people watch.

Thanks again to our Comcast partners and all of the friends we made in the "Immortal City."

Mark, Debbie, Tiffany, and Adrienne

Savannah!

We have all returned from Savannah. Very busy and fruitful time there in what many call "The Immortal City." Thanks to Comcast Cable partners in the Savannah area - particularly Tina and Tess. Other shout outs go to the folks at the Savannah Book Festival, the mayor's office, the Telfair Museums, Daniel Carey, Chris Floyd, Preston Russell, Charles Elmore, Martha Keber, Michelle Hunter, Vaughnette Goode-Walker, and pictured above l-r Cindy Wallace, Barry Sheehy and Laurie Ross - and many more.

The week saw us visit so many historic sites as well as getting a chance to talk with local area authors. An abundance of stories for us to tell on the weekend of June 25-26 as we'll feature all of this on C-SPAN 2's Book TV and C-SPAN 3's American History TV.

Thank you Savannah!

-Mark

Savannah - Day 3 - June 3

This is a city famous for its preservation movement, and its history dating back to the 1700s. It's also known for its historic cemeteries, both in folklore and in the true stories they tell about Savannah's past. We spent time visiting one of those today - the Bonaventure Cemetery - where we talked with Jerry Fleming, who heads up the city's Department of Cemeteries and Stacy Doty, head of the Bonaventure Historic Society (she's the one on the left in the picture). Very interesting day. Bonaventure has lots of stories to tell.

-Adrienne

Ebb and Flow - Wednesday, June 1 - Savannah

Quite an evening as we spent time with a group of high school students who have re-discovered Savannah - both its history and what it's like to live there today. The students are sponsored by AWOL - for "All Walks of Life." This is a non-profit organization that provides arts and technology education for at risk youths in Savannah. The students' project was to produce videos on Savannah's history - part of the city's official effort - called "Ebb and Flow" - to document Savannah's historic neighbhoroods. Very interesting to hear their thoughts on what they learned about the history of race relations - both in the past and what it's like now - in this formerly segregated city.

-Adrienne

Tampa to Savannah - Tuesday, May 31

Thanks once again to our friends at the Bright House networks in Tampa. All went well with the airing of the Tampa/St. Pete programs over this past weekend on C-SPAN 2's Book TV and C-SPAN 3's American History TV.

We're now on our way from Tampa - picking up our vehicles today - and heading towards Savannah, Georgia. We'll arrive there this evening and begin working with our partners at Comcast Cable tomorrow as we spend a week in the "Immortal City" taping history and book segments as well as hosting community outreach events with our cable partners.

Onward!!

-Debbie Lamb

Tampa featured this weekend on Book TV and American History TV - May 28-29

This weekend (May 28-30) on C-SPAN 2's Book TV and C-SPAN 3's American History TV we'll be featuring the history and literary life of the Tampa/St. Pete area on Florida's Gulf Coast. A big thanks to all the people we met and places that hosted us at the beginnning of the month. Want to call special attention to our friends at the Bright House networks in central Florida. They made our trip possible and were wonderful to work with. THANKS.

The LCV Team

Tampa - Final Day - Friday, May 13

We wrapped up our final day in Tampa with a visit the to historic Tampa Bay Hotel (pictured above and that's us with museum Curator Sally Shifke). This marvel of architecture was built by Henry Plant, a wealthy railroad magnate whose impact on Tampa cannot be minimized - as he brought the railways here and connected north and south Florida.

The Hotel now serves as a museum. We talked with curators and historians about Plant and the hey-day of the hotel at the end of the 19th century. We also taped a piece on Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders - who stayed here and planned their attacks on San Juan Hill in Cuba as part of the Spanish-American War.

Great week!!

-Debbie

Tampa - Thursday May 12 - Book TV

Very interesting interview with Donal Green, author of "Third Party Matters: Politics, Presidents, and Third Parties in American History." Talked about 5 different presidential elections in which 3rd party candidates impacted the outcome the race for the White House. Very timely considering 2012 is on the horizon!

At the end of the day we traveled to Valrico - a suburb of Tampa - to tape an event that is part of the "Hillsborough Reads" program. At this event held at the public library, Tampa historian Ross Lamoreaux talked about Tampa and the Civil War. Again, timely, as this year mark's the 150th of the war. This event will air on AHTV.

-Tiffany

Tampa - Thursday May 12 - American History TV

Today began with a trip to the lost colony of Angola - an escaped slave community that was raided in 1821 after Spain ceded Florida to the U.S. Fascinating story. Florida under Spanish rule was a haven for escaped slaves from Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama. Once the U.S took over Florida, Andrew Jackson ok'd the raid to bring back those who had escaped the U.S. Many were returned to slavery - many also were able to escape and ended up in the Bahamas.

The latter part of our day was spend at the De Soto National Memorial - marking the North American arrival of Spanish Conquistador Hernando De Soto. Another great stop as we learned of De Soto's failed conquest of the new world.

-Adrienne

Tampa - Thursday May 12 - Education and Community outreach

Great day with Hillsborough County Public school students and teachers as well. Coordinating our visit was Jennifer Morley, former C-SPAN fellow and currently a Magnet/Choice specialist with the Hillsborough County Public School System. Through Jennifer's efforts, we started the day at Hillsborough H.S. and spent about 2 hours with students who are part of the Urban Teaching Academy. These kids are interested in teaching as a profession - so it was very useful to hear about the program and for them to learn about our free education services.

In the afternoon, Jennifery and I were at Jefferson H.S. in Tampa as we got an opportunity to make a presentation to and hear questions from a group of about 15 teachers. Great session - lasted almost 2 hours.

-Debbie

Tampa - Wed. May 11 - American History TV

Spent almost all day at MacDill AFB, home of U.S. Central Command - responsible for running the war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. We talked with a Centcom historian as well as a historian about the historian of the air force base itself - which is distinct from Central Command. We also spent time on a security patrol boat in the waters off of MacDill. MacDill is one of the only air forces bases that gets full time water security.
PAO Brian Gatewood was great to work with!!

-Adrienne

Tampa - Wed. May 11 - BookTV

Today was Haslem's Bookstore day! Haslem's is possibly the most well known independent book store in teh Tampa/St. Pete area. It's a huge place - with a very interesting history of family ownership. Talked with co-owner Ray Heintz about the book business and how independents compete with the big chains.

While there, also talked with Margo Hammond, the founder of the Times Festival of the Reading . She's also the former book editor for the St. Petersburg Times. Great interview about the literary scene in the area.

-Tiffany

Tampa - Day 3 - Wednesday, May 11 - Education outreach

Spent the morning and afternoon at Braden River HS in Bradenton, FL, just outside of Tampa. Worked with Dan McLean, the Social Studies Dept. Chair and Co-Sponsor of the Student Government. Got a chance to make presentations and take questions from a good cross section of American Govt, Journalism, and TV production students. Also spent a good hour with about 20 teachers - talking to them about our free service C-SPAN Classroom and also our Peabody Award winning video Library.

In the late afternoon we met up with St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster for an interview about his city - the only city in the country that has an open-air post office apparently. The city also passed an ordinance allowing owners to bring their dogs into some of the restaurants.

-Debbie

Tampa - Day 2 - American History TV

LCV 3 spent the first part of the day at the St. Petersburg History Museum. We talked with a local aviation historian about the first commercial aviation flight ever - which took place in St. Petersburg in 1914 as the "Benoist" boatplane took its first passenger from St. Petersburg across the bay into Tampa - in 22 minutes! In those days, it could take several hours by horse (or by car if you had one) to make it from St. Pete to Tampa.

Spent the afternoon and early evening in historic Ybor City with Emanuel Leto of the Tampa Bay History Center. While there, we taped him in Jose Marti Park, and learned about Marti's role in the Cuban independence movement from Spain - or as most know it as the Spanish-American war.

-Adrienne

Tampa - Day 2 - Book TV

Started off at 9am in the Ybor City historic district of Tampa with Scott Deitche, author of "Cigar City Mafia: A Complete History of the Tampa Underworld." Spent several hours with him as we walked the streets of Ybor and he talked about the corruption that was part of Tampa - mainly when it was a cigar making capital - in the pre-Castro Cuba days. Lots of Cuban immigrants worked here in the cigar factories, as well as other immigrant communities.

Later in the day I met up with Tampa area author David McMullen - author of Strike: The Radical Insurrections of Ellen Dawson.  Ellen Dawson was a communist sympathizer and labor organizer in the 1920s in the U.S. She became the first woman elected to a leadership position in a labor Union. Very good interview and an interesting topic.

-Tiffany

Tampa - Day 2 - Tuesday, May 10

Very good day for Education/Community outreach. LCV 2 spent most of the day at Thurgood Marshall Fundamental Middle School in St. Petersburg. Their principal - Jackson Dallas - is one incredible guy. Very motivated, lots of positive energy - and it is reflected in the student body. By the end of the day, I had spoken with over 200 students in various goverment, history, and journalism classes.
-Debbie

Tampa - Day 1 - Book TV

Spent the morning at the Old Tampa Book Company in the downtown area. Great interview with co-owners David and Ellen Brown. Talked with them about the store itself and the state of book selling and the book industry.

After joining colleagues Debbie, Adrienne and Mark at the Tampa Bay History Center (pictured above) in the afternoon, we all then went to Inkwood Books for an evening with Carla Jimenez, the owner of this small, but very quaint independent book store. In addition to an interview with her, we taped "RawhideDown" author Del Quentin Wilber giving a book talk there.

Evening ended late - but a great start to our first trip!

-Tiffany

Tampa trip - Day one/part one - Monday May 9th

Our first day in the first city on our new BookTV and AHTV tour of 8 southeastern cities with the LCVs. What a day! Spent most of it at the Tampa Bay History Center - working with the folks there and our cable partners in the area - Bright House Networks.

First thing in the morning interviewed Rodney Kite Powell, the curator of the museum there. Talked to him about Tampa during the Civil War as well as other aspects of the city's history. Programs for AHTV.

The afternoon was spent at a welcoming event at the History Center - put together by Bright House and C-SPAN. Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn there as well as Clearwater mayor Frank Hibbard. Also there were many of our local historians, authors, teachers. (All pictured above outside the History Center following the event)

Special thanks to Bright House folks Joe Durkin, Brian Aungst, Renaldo Llano, Andrea White, Kim Maki, Donald Forbes, and Marva Johnson. Great to work with.