Cowan

Kentuckian Wes Cowan delivers the dirt on History Detectives, a task he's been doing all his life. The archaeologist, anthropologist and appraiser joins the rest of America's top gumshoes who are back for a seventh season to prove once again that an object found in an attic or backyard might be anything but ordinary.

"History Detectives taps into what I call history-with-a-little-h -- the personal history that each one of us, or our family, passes down from generation to generation," said Cowan, who holds a Ph.D. in archaeology and now owns and operates Cowan's Auctions in Cincinnati. His interest in the past, although it took a rather winding road, led Cowan to spots on two history-soaked staples in the PBS lineup -- first, the popular Antiques Roadshow and later History Detectives, which begins a new season Monday, June 22 at 9/8 p.m. CT on KET1 and KET HD and Saturday, June 27 at 8/7 p.m. CT on KET2.

Cowan relishes his role on both series. "Personally, I get to interview these incredible people," he said. "I get to go places and do things the average American will never be able to do. And I try with every show, every investigation, to let the viewer in on what I'm seeing and why it's so exciting."

This season, History Detectives features a broad range of historical periods, multiple cultures and fascinating personalities. Among the questions the detectives will answer are: Did John Wilkes Booth's father once threaten to kill President Andrew Jackson? Did Thomas Edison build a device for communicating with the dead? Was a gun handed down through two generations of prominent Chicago families used by Al Capone's gang during the St. Valentine's Day Massacre?

History Detectives is produced by Lion Television with Oregon Public Broadcasting.