However, CWGK is about more than the lives of Kentucky’s five wartime governors. It collates thousands of documents to bring the world of wartime Kentucky to life, reconstructing the experiences of lost voices from this seminal era of American history. By making thousands of documents and biographies available to researchers, CWGK provides insight into the lives of Kentuckians during a period of profound transformation.

At it's core, Civil War Governors of Kentucky looks to accomplish three goals:

First

It aims to restore Kentucky’s dominant, but complicated Unionist experience to the forefront. While there were deep divisions within Kentucky, postwar memorialization, scholarship, and memory-making clouded how many Kentuckians remembered the war. Despite their division, most Kentuckians, white and Black, fought for the Union during the war. 

Second

CWGK animates the lives and experiences of every Kentuckian. The Civil War impacted all Kentuckians, from the Appalachian highlands down the Ohio River to the Mississippi River Valley of the Jackson Purchase. Annotated biographies, interpretive essays, and deep research give context to the experiences of ordinary people who left few historical records.   

Lastly

CWGK showcases how the Civil War impacted everyday life for Kentuckians. By building biographies and presenting documents from all corners of the state, CWGK reveals how the war impacted different individuals as they lived through overlapping crises of secession, war, the destruction of slavery, and the presence of pervasive guerrilla violence.