Help our Quilt Giveaway!

As many of you know, we gave away a beautiful quilt at this year’s Chisholm Trail Day Festival. We would like to thank everyone who bought a chance for the giveaway, as this was a fantastic fundraiser for the museum.

We would love to have another quilt giveaway for next year, however at this time, we do not have a quilt to give away. If any of our members have a quilt they would like to donate for use in this fundraiser, we would greatly appreciate it.

Also, if anyone has other types of items they would be interested in donating for us to use in our fundraising efforts, please let us know.

Heritage Art Show to Begin on February 3

The Heritage Center will host the 5th Annual Heritage Art Show from February 3 through February 10. This show will present works of art from Dickinson County students. 

There will be an opening reception held at the museum on Sunday, February 3, 1:00pm to 4:00pm. Cookies will be served for all who attend.

Kansas Statehood Ball Scheduled for January 26

Come celebrate the 152nd birthday of the state of Kansas at the Kansas Statehood Ball sponsored by the Dickinson County Historical Society on Saturday, January 26 at Sterl Hall in Eisenhower Park from 7:00pm to 10:00pm. 

This will mark the 18th year of this popular event for the whole family. The public is invited to dress in period (1860s) clothing but this is not mandatory. Admission for the dance will be $5.00 per adult, $3.00 for members of the Historical Society, and $2.00 for children (3 to 12 years of age). 

The Kansas Statehood Ball is an educational program provided by the Dickinson County Historical Society. Come and enjoy an evening filled with music and dance. Refreshments will be provided, but we would greatly appreciate any members who can bring a dozen cookies to serve to our guests. Our next newsletter will have more information on this entertaining event.

Holiday Shopping at the Heritage Center

The Heritage Center’s gift shop has a variety of items that may interest you for your holiday shopping needs. We have several books available for purchase that are perfect gifts for the history buff in your family. For local history, Stephanie Mowry Bearce’s pictorial history Abilene, Cowtown Abilene by Stewart Verckler, Abilene’s Carousel by Cecilia Harris, and Past and Present Towns of Dickinson County by Helen Dingler all make excellent reads. For a first-hand account on life in early 20th century Abilene, try Deane Malott’s On Growing Up in Abilene, Kansas.

For Kansas history, the Kansas Sampler Foundation’s 8 Wonders of Kansas Guidebook is a really neat book that features unique looks at over 200 Kansas attractions. We also have books on pioneer life, Bleeding Kansas, Wild Bill Hickok, and the Dust Bowl. Our wide selection of cookbooks is always a good choice too.

For kids, we have coloring books on Kansas and famous Kansans, pencil sharpeners, and antique-style wooden toys, which make great stocking stuffers. Our shop also has the Abilene and Smoky Valley Railroad’s new children’s book Lonesome George and the Steam Engine for sale.

Be sure to stop by the Heritage Center gift shop to see our full selection of merchandise, which includes books, toys, magnets, music, and much more. If you shop at the Heritage Center, you’re not just supporting our local museum, but also our local economy.

"Home Cooking Dickinson County Style" Available December 2nd

The newest edition of the Home Cooking Dickinson County Style cookbook will be available on December 2 in the Heritage Center’s gift shop, but copies can be ordered as well as previous editions of the cookbook.

To order additional copies of this cookbook, the 11^th edition (2011-2012) of Home-Cooking—Dickinson County Style “Capturing the Present and Remembering the Past,” contact Dickinson County Historical Society, 412 S. Campbell Abilene, Ks. 67410; Phone: 785-263-2681   heritagecenterdk@sbcglobal.net

Earlier editions of “Home-Cooking—Dickinson County Style” are also still available at the Historical Society and include:

11^th edition (2011-2012) featuring recipes from: Angie Wilkins, Sandi Dutt & Abby Markley Dutt, Jeanette Myers, Dee Marshall, Marcus Gann, Solomon Parents as Teachers program w/Carrie Hilbert, Dona Myers, David & Mary Ann Bon, Lorraine Geist, Jane Veal, Kerstin Cole, Rhoda Frasier

10^th edition (2010-2011) featuring recipes from: Betty Payne, Marie Balfour, Jim Lillich, Ruth McCurry w/brother Bud, SFC William McGinley, Don & Mary Rickley, Dawn James, James Holland, Linda Cromwell, Mike Jantz, Mealtime w/3 Families (Allen, Tompkins, Robinson), Nicki Danner Anderson

9^th edition (2009-2010) featuring recipes from: Betty Holtzen, Meredith Sleichter, Debbie Howie, Shelia Biggs, Twila Jackson, Lorie Rimmel, Jessica Weissenbach, Carolyn Woellhof, Marsha Scales, Sarah Geiger, Cathy Whitehair, Anita Hummel

8^th edition (2008-2009) featuring recipes from:  Paula Martin, Clarice Emig, FACS w/ Barb Leckron, Pat Berkley, Marsha Weaver, Noreen Zumbrunn, The Perkins Family, Scott Pretzer, Joann Hettenbach, Katie Wieters, Joanna Berry

7^th edition (2007-2008) featuring recipes from:  Joan Taylor, Lease Duckwall, Louise Frey, David McClain, LaVetra Brown, PAT Dine & Learn workshop, Vangie Henry, Nancy Hottman, Peggy McLaughlin, Ila Beemer, Marla Jo Batchelder, Virginia Hoffman

6^th edition (2006-2007) featuring recipes from:  Linda Klucas, Dorothy Holmstrom, Jane Medina, Dennis Medina, Margaret Shouse, Joyce Taylor, Ingeborg Teasley, Jim Howie, Faye Jacobson, Carrie Bauer, Joann Holmes, Shirley Kready.

5^th edition (2005-2006) featuring recipes from:  Phyllis Peterson, Genny Dawson, Marcia Williamson, Bob Burns, Eileen Garten, O.E.S. + interview w/Margaret Furbeck, Orrene Wetzel, Mary Flora, Elaine Sears, Diane Litke, Barry West, Mary Feller.

4^th edition (2004-2005) featuring recipes from:  Mary Jones, Nelda Horan, Gary Cox, Nadine Griffin, Doreen Couture, Mike & Gwyn Johnson, The Anguiano Sisters, Mary Beth Lenhart, Dorothy Veach, Elinor Haas, Richard Danner, Verda Gay.

3^rd edition (2003-2004) featuring recipes from:  Paul Schmitt, Audrey Cooley, Jeanne Freeman, Peggy Meuli, Mabel Bailey, Jim Johnson, Sarah Kuntz, Betty Krenger, Helen Hettenbach, Joan Angst, Jean Mohler, Amy Dodson.

2^nd edition (2002-2003) featuring recipes from:  Ken Brown, Eddie Morris, Evelyn Gugler, Willard & Mavis Davis, Phyllis Newell, Marge Jacobs, Dee Robinson, Paul Whitehair, Lylas Gugler, Sherry Soelter, Agnes Garten, Erika Place.

1^st edition (2001-2002) featuring recipes from:  Bernice Peterson, Alma Lauer, Marge Olson, Stella Diehl, Rethie Foster, Maurine Carl, Helen Pepper, Lucille McCain, Pauline Sims, Aileen Duckwall, Alberta Davis, Dorothy Gay Burton.

All editions of the booklet sell for $4.95 + tax at the Historical Society; mail-order deliveries sell for $8.50. 

Watch for Meta’s monthly food column, Home-Cooking—Dickinson County Style “Capturing the Present and Remembering the Past,” in the Abilene Reflector-Chronicle.  It appears on the last Tuesday of each month.  

Holiday Events Scheduled for December 1st and 2nd

The holiday season is almost here, and the Dickinson County Historical Society has a busy weekend approaching on December 1 and 2. The Dickinson County Heritage Center will be a refreshment stop on the Homes for the Holidays Tour, serving cookies and drinks. The Volkmann Cabin will be open for visitors during the homes tour as well, Saturday (December 1) 4:00pm—8:00pm and Sunday (December 2) 1:00pm—5:00pm. Tickets for the Homes for the Holidays Tour are just $10 and can be purchased at the Dickinson County Heritage Center or the Abilene Visitor Center (not at the homes themselves).

We will also host some other special events on Sunday, December 2. The Home Cooking Dickinson County Style cookbook reception will be held at the Heritage Center at 4:00pm. From 6:00pm to 8:00pm, we will host our annual Christmas in the Cabin event at the Heritage Center. The Volkmann Cabin and Burklund Store will be open for visitors, cookies and hot chocolate will be served, and carousel rides will be given. Thad Beach (pictured above) will also be on hand with his musical Christmas wagon. He will perform Christmas tunes with acoustic folk instruments; everyone is invited to sing along and explore a variety of rhythm instruments. This is always a great event for any age, so bring the whole family and have some fun.

As we mentioned above, we will be serving cookies and refreshments both Saturday and Sunday. We will need 100 dozen cookies to serve everyone, so we are asking for your help. If you can provide one or two dozen cookies (or even more!) we would greatly appreciate your help. Please call us at 263-2681 to let us know how many you would like to provide. We also serve cookies at the upcoming Kansas Statehood Ball and Youth Art Show reception, so the more cookies we receive, the better.

We also need help working our refreshment table during this weekend. On Saturday, we could use two or three people 3:30pm to 6:00pm, and 6:00pm to 8:30pm. We will also need one or two people to sell tickets for the homes tour in the front lobby from 4:00pm to 8:00pm.

On Sunday, we will need two or three people for the refreshment table 12:30pm to 3:00pm, 3:00pm to 5:30pm, and 5:30pm to 8:30pm. We will also need one or two people for the ticket table 1:00pm to 2:30pm and 2:30pm to 5:00pm.

As you can see, this will be a very busy weekend. With your help, we can make it a very memorable time for all who visit the Heritage Center.

Riders on the Orphan Train Program on November 29

On November 29, the Heritage Center will be host to a free program on the Riders of the Orphan Train at 7:00pm.

Between 1854 and 1929 over 250,000 orphans and unwanted children were taken out of New York City and given away at train stations across America. The last train came to Sulphur Springs, Texas in 1929. This “placing out” system was originally organized by Congregationalist minister Charles Loring Brace and the Children’s Aid Society of New York. His mission was to rid the streets and overcrowded orphanages of homeless children and provide them with an opportunity to find new homes in the developing Midwest. Many of the children were not orphans but “surrendered” by parents too impoverished to keep them. This nearly eighty year experiment in child migration is filled with the entire spectrum of human emotion and reveals a great deal about the successes and failures of the American Dream. Through literature, music, archival photographs, film interviews, informal lecture and audience discussion this virtually untold chapter in American history comes alive. The one-hour multi media program including music, video and a dramatic reading of a novel in progress by award-winning author Alison Moore. Although the program is about children it is designed to engage audiences of all ages.

Alison Moore, Humanities Scholar
Alison Moore, MFA, is a former Assistant Professor of English/Creative Writing in the MFA Creative Writing Program at the University of Arizona and a current Humanities Scholar in Texas. She lives in Austin and is completing a novel on the Orphan Trains with a grant from the Texas Institute of Letters and the Dobie/Paisano Foundation of the University of Texas at Austin. She is the author of three books, a new collection of short stories entitled The Middle of Elsewhere (Phoenix International/University of Arkansas Press 2006), Small Spaces between Emergencies (Mercury House, 1992) one of the Notable Books of 1993 chosen by The American Library Association, and a novel, Synonym for Love (Mercury House 1995). In 2004 she received the Katherine Ann Porter Prize for Fiction.

Phil Lancaster, Presenter/Audio-Visual Technician
Arkansas Arts on Tour musician Phil Lancaster (Professor Strings) was born in Texarkana and studied art and music at L’Ecole De Beaux Arts in Angers, France. He became a member of a bluegrass band that traveled and played throughout France and produced an album entitled “Bluegrass Oldies Ltd./Traveling Show.” He also worked as a stage theatre technician for La Coursive Theatre Nationale in La Rochelle, France. After returning to the U.S. he met three Arkansas musicians and the acoustic quartet “Still on the Hill” was formed in Fayetteville. They released their first CD in 1997, the second in 2000. The group performed at national and international festivals. He currently lives in Austin and is a co-presenter of Riders on the Orphan Train. In 2007 he received an Arkansas Arts Council fellowship for Music Composition.

“…the program far exceeded any expectations I may have had, as did the community’s response…this was by far the most well-attended program the library has ever offered….everyone who attended was moved, educated and entertained…your program truly made an impact on our community.
--Cecilia Hurt Barham, Decatur Public Library, Decatur, TX

Dickinson County Historical Society to Gather for our 84th Annual Meeting

The 84th Annual Meeting of the Dickinson County Historical Society will be held on Thursday, November 15 at 6:00pm at the St. Andrew’s Parish Center located at 311 S. Buckeye.

Mr. K’s Farmhouse will cater the evening’s meal, and reservations should be made by Friday, November 9 by calling the Heritage Center at (785) 263-2681.  Cost per plate is $13.50.

Sister Act from Hope will provide musical entertainment for the evening. During the business meeting, we will elect new board members for 2013.

Also this year, we will honor the descendents of the John H. Wood family. The Wood family settled near Solomon around 1875.

We hope to see you at this year’s Annual Meeting. Please contact us at (785) 263-2681 to make your reservation.