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.

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.