SPEAKING
IT’S TIME FOR
SPEAKER SERIES
July 2nd, 2026 - "America's Birthday"
Dr. Thomas Powers - Spring Hill City Hall @ 6:00pm
Dr. Thomas L. ("Tom") Powers grew up on a dairy farm in Virginia, graduated from the University of Richmond, and holds a Ph.D. in history from the University of Georgia. He served on the faculty of the University of South Carolina Sumter, and upon retirement was awarded the title "Distinguished Professor of History Emeritus" by the Board of Trustees. He also was a member of the US Army Reserve, finishing with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He moved to Spring Hill in 2018 and has been an active member of the community, serving currently as Secretary of the Spring Hill Historic Commission and on the Board of Directors of the Spring Hill Genealogical Society.
August 29th, 2026 - "President George Washington"
Dr. Lynn Nelson - Maury County Archives
Lynn Nelson is a Professor of History at Middle Tennessee State University. His research and teaching specialties are in Revolutionary America, the early American frontier, and environmental history. Dr. Nelson has a Ph.D. from the College of William and Mary, a MA from the University of Kansas, and a BA from the University of Chicago. He is the author of "Pharsalia: An Environmental Biography of a Southern Plantation, 1780-1880" (University of Georgia Press, 2007).
September 17th, 2026 - "Constitution Day"
Dr. John Vile - Columbia State Community College, Ledbetter Auditorium @ 6:00pm
John Vile is a graduate of the College of William and Mary who earned his Ph.D. in Government from the University of Virginia and attended seminars sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities at Princeton and the University of Iowa. He has served as Chair of the Department of Political Science at MTSU and (since 2008) as Dean of the University Honors College. Vile is a scholar of the U.S. constitutional amendment process who has written and edited numerous books, essays, chapters, and reviews on the and related topics
October 10, 2026 - "Civil Rights Movement"
Dr. Learotha Williams - Maury County Archives
Learotha Williams, Jr., Ph.D. is a scholar of African American, Civil War and Reconstruction, and Public History at Tennessee State University. He teaches courses at TSU that explore Civil War and Reconstruction history, African Americans in Public Memory, Black Politicians, Civil Rights, 20th Century Black Intellectuals, African Americans in Tennessee, and Slavery and Emancipation in Middle Tennessee. In January 2026, Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell appointed him the Davidson County Historian, making him the first African American to hold the post. Dr. Williams is a native of Tallahassee, Florida, where he earned his doctorate in history from Florida State University in 2003.
November 15, 2026 - "Women's Suffrage Movement"
Dr. Rebecca Dixon - Maury County Memorial Building
Dr. Rebecca Dixon, is a Professor of English and Director of the Women's Studies Program at Tennessee State University. She teaches courses in Post-Colonial Studies and African and African American Literature. She has a Ph.D. and a MS degree in African American Studies from Temple University and a MS in History from Middle Tennessee State University. Her most recent publication is "Race and Reproductive Rights in the Handmaid's Tale."
