Elizabeth Barret obit

Elizabeth Barret

November 14, 1951 ~ February 3, 2026 (age 74) 

She was not on the list.

Elizabeth Banks Barret, age 74 of Whitesburg, KY, passed away on February 3, 2026, at her home. She was the daughter of the late Maxwell P. Barret and the late Julia Johnson Barret. She is also preceded in death by her brother, Maxwell P. Barret, Jr.

She is survived by her husband of 51 years, Herby Ellis Smith, their two children: Evan Barret Smith (Jessica Branham) of East Point, KY, and Ada Julia Smith (Jacob Mack-Boll) of Whitesburg, KY; and four grandchildren: Lydia Kate Branham Smith, Elizabeth Laurel Branham Smith, Ada Julia Mack-Boll, and Thelma Astraea Mack-Boll. She is also survived by her three sisters: Julia B. Mitchell of Hazard, KY, Carolyn B. May of Lexington, KY, and Margaret B. Droste of Lexington, KY; her sister-in-law Kendall S. Barret of Lexington, KY; and a host of family and friends.

Liz was born in Hazard. She attended Hazard High and the University of Kentucky where she was a member of Tri Delta sorority.

The day after graduating from UK, Liz began working as a filmmaker at Appalshop, a media arts center in Whitesburg where she met her husband Herby and began a half century of documenting the place she was a part of. She earned many awards including a Guggenheim Fellowship and recognition at the Sundance Film Festival. Elizabeth was the founding director of the Appalshop Archive, where she dedicated much of her efforts at the end of her career.  While she put great energy into her work, Liz took her greatest pride in her children who she lovingly raised and took on numerous cultural exchanges including India, China, Indonesia, Mexico, and throughout Europe and America. Although Alzheimer’s robbed her of the ability to be a grandmother in the way she wanted, she loved her grandchildren deeply.

The family extends heartfelt gratitude to the devoted caregiver Margaret Rudd, and the teams from Village Caregiving and Bluegrass Care Navigators who provided excellent and consistent care.

Services will be held at Letcher Funeral Home with visitation on Friday, February 6, 2026 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm and the funeral on Saturday, February 7, 2026 at 2:00pm with Rev. Ellen Peach officiating. As Elizabeth wished to be cremated, a burial is not scheduled at this time. An after funeral reception will be held Saturday at the Graham Memorial Presbyterian Church in Whitesburg.

Filmography

Quilting Women (1980)

Hand-carved (1980)

Coalmining Women (1982)

Long Journey Home (1987)

Stranger with a Camera (2000)

Awards

2000 Sundance Film Festival - Nominated, Grand Jury Prize - Documentary

2000 International Documentary Association - Nominated, IDA Award - Feature Documentaries

2000 San Francisco International Film Festival - Won, Silver Spire, Film & Video - History

2012: Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts - Photography from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, with Wendy Ewald, for Portraits and Dreams: A Revisitation