The First African-American Mayor of Bardstown, KY: Bill Sheckles

Bill was born and has lived the majority of his life in Bardstown, Kentucky. In 1972, he graduated from Bardstown High School and went on to attend Western Kentucky University, where he lettered four years on the University’s baseball team. He graduated in 1976 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. After managing an insurance company in Bowling Green for seven years, Bill moved back to Bardstown with his beautiful wife, Linda. The two have been married for 44 years, and have two grown children, Megan and Wesley, and one granddaughter, Salaizh.

For more than 32 years, Bill was the sales leader at Conway-Heaton Automotive, and in August 2018, he took an administrative position with the Bardstown City School System. For 8 years, Bill and Linda owned and operated Still Bill’s Restaurant here in Bardstown. He has also spent 18 years as a Bardstown City Councilman, where he has chaired the Safety (Police and Fire Departments) and Housing Committees. He was also an active member of the Utilities Committee and Joint City-County Recreation Board.

Bill’s statewide affiliations include being appointed as an Executive Board Member of the Kentucky League of Cities, Governor’s Appointee to the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council, and the State Personnel Board. He is also a founding member of the Kentucky Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials (KBC-LEO), where he has served two terms as President. Locally, Bill’s many affiliations include:

• Nelson Co Democratic Executive Committee member

• President of Buttermilk Days Foundation

• Past Board Member Bardstown Foundation of Excellence in Public Education

• Trustee/ Treasurer of First Baptist Church of Bardstown

• Past Executive Board Member of LTADD

• Founding Member of Concerned Parents of Nelson County

• Bardstown Kiwanis Club Member since 1988

• Past President of Nelson County NAACP Branch 3106

• Bardstown-Nelson County African American Heritage Museum

• Board Member of Flaget Hospital Foundation Board

In the November 2010 General Election, Bill made history as he was elected as the first African-American Mayor of the City of Bardstown, Kentucky. During his tenure as Mayor, Bardstown gained notoriety in major publications as one of the 50 best places to live in America, and in 2012 was voted the Most Beautiful Small Town in America by USA TODAY. After serving as an Executive Board Officer of the Kentucky League of Cities for two years, Bill again made history in October 2014 when he was elected as the first African-American President of the Kentucky League of Cities. In 2016, Bill was again elected to the Bardstown City Council and has been serving to this day.