Events – Franklin County Historical Society

October 25-26: Paranormal Investigations at Ottawa Memorial Auditorium

August 21, 2024 Diana Staresinic-Deane

FCHS and OMA are partnering to offer you the opportunity to investigate the haunted century-old Ottawa Memorial Auditorium! Click here for October 25 Stage Fright Tickets Click here for October 26 Boos and Brews Tickets Stories of otherworldly activities have haunted the century-old auditorium for decades. This October, ghost hunters will have the opportunity to investigate the rumors themselves. Ottawa Memorial Auditorium and the Franklin County Historical Society are partnering to take investigators behind the scenes at OMA to confirm or refute stories of ghosts in the historic auditorium. Stage…

July 22-31: American Revolution traveling exhibit coming to the Old Depot Museum

June 25, 2024 Diana Staresinic-Deane

Men and women in 18th century clothing. Text reads The American Revolution Experience Traveling Exhibit Now On Tour.

Innovative traveling Revolutionary War exhibit coming to Franklin County The General Edward Hand Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Franklin County Historical Society are excited to announce a traveling exhibit, the American Revolution Experience, will be on display at the Old Depot Museum in Ottawa, Kansas, from July 22 through July 31. The innovative pop-up exhibition includes display panels and interactive digital kiosks that use storytelling, illustration, technology, unique artifacts and primary accounts to connect modern audiences with the people and places that shaped the birth…

July 20: Morning at the Mission: A Program and Tour at the Historic Ottawa Indian Mission & Burying Ground

June 11, 2024June 11, 2024 Diana Staresinic-Deane

Illustration. A woodframe meeting house stands within a wooden fence. Grave markers are visible to the left. Small houses and people are scattered among the trees and fields. Wagons and horses are parked along a dirt road. A stone pillar with a plaque reading Ottawa Indian Mission and Burying Ground: Graves of J Meeker, Founder, Chief Comchau, Notino, The Medicine Man, J. Tecumseh Jones Founder of OU in the foreground.

Morning at the Mission: A Program and Tour at the Historic Ottawa Indian Mission & Burying Ground featuring Kalisha Dixon Pheasant, Chief of the Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma John Mark Lambertson, Historian Saturday, July 20, 2024, 9 a.m. 3375 Osborne Terrace, Ottawa, Kansas, 66067 Tickets: $25 in Advance; $30 at the Gate Current Ottawa University students free with student ID at the gate Founded by Jotham Meeker after the 1844 flood destroyed much of the original 1837 mission site, the Ottawa Indian Mission was home to the Ottawa of Blanchard’s Fork…

August 10: A Creative Guide To Writing Your Family’s Stories (in-person program)

June 4, 2024 Diana Staresinic-Deane

A family--including men, women, and teenaged children--sit and stand around, eating watermelon.

A Creative Guide To Writing Your Family’s Stories presented by Kim Stanley Saturday, August 10, 2024, 10 a.m. FCHS Archives & Research Center, 2011 E Logan St, Ottawa, KS We all love discovering a fantastic tale of our family’s past—whether it be the distant relative who journeyed on the Mayflower, or the grandmother riveted airplanes at a World War II factory. But how do we share these stories in engaging ways? This workshop provides the tools to enrich genealogical research with story and memory so that readers will feel what…

NEW DATE! June 2: A New Deal for Public Art in the Free State (program)

May 17, 2024May 17, 2024 Diana Staresinic-Deane

Text reads New Date! June 2, 2024, at 2 p.m. background image painting of a river with trees along the banks and clouds in the sky

New Date! This program has been rescheduled for June 2, 2 p.m. A New Deal For Public Art In the Free State Sunday, May 5, 2024, 2 p.m. Sunday, June 2, 2024, 2 p.m. FCHS Archives & Research Center, 2011 E Logan Street, Ottawa, Kansas 66067 Register for online access via Zoom Between 1934 and 1943, the U.S. Treasury Department commissioned over 1,600 pieces of public art for newly constructed post office buildings across the United States. In the state of Kansas, twenty-nine of these murals and other artworks were…

April 6: 5K Run For History Fun Run/Walk

March 13, 2024March 24, 2024 Diana Staresinic-Deane

Silhouettes of runners. Text reads 5K Run For History.

5K Run For History Fun Run/Walk Saturday, April 6, 2024 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Old Depot Museum, 135 W Tecumseh, Ottawa, KS 66067 Feel the spirit of the trains beneath your feet as you trace the paths of the AT&SF and the MoPac railroads during our Second Annual 5K Run/Walk, which kicks off at the Old Depot Museum! Whether you set your best time or enjoy a stroll with your friends, your $25 registration fee will help support the Franklin County Historical Society. Register by March 23 and receive…

March 3: Carnegie Libraries of Kansas (program)

February 15, 2024 Diana Staresinic-Deane

A Greek Revival brick and limestone building with basement windows and two stories visible. Two-story columns flank the entrance. The Words "Carnegie Free Library" are lettered on the building. Carnegie Free Library, Ottawa, Kansas, is written in the corner of the image.

Carnegie Libraries of Kansas presented by Christine Steinkuehler Sunday, March 3, 2024, 2 p.m. In person: FCHS Archives & Research Center, 2011 E Logan St, Ottawa, Kansas 66067 Online: Register for Zoom Once the richest man in the world, Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919) donated a substantial portion of his fortune to the construction of more than 2,500 libraries around the world. 65 of those libraries—including 59 public libraries and 7 academic/university libraries—were built in Kansas. In her presentation, Christine Steinkuehler will explore how these buildings democratized access to libraries and created…

February 4: Army of Amazons: Women’s Fight for Labor Rights in Kansas Coalfields (87th FCHS Annual Meeting)

January 3, 2024 Diana Staresinic-Deane

Army of Amazons: Women’s Fight for Labor Rights in Kansas Coalfields presented by Linda O’Nelio Knoll 87th Annual Meeting of the Members of the Franklin County Historical Society Sunday, February 4, 2024, 2 p.m. In Person: FCHS Archives & Research Center, 2011 E Logan St, Ottawa, KS 66067 Online: Zoom or Facebook Live In December 1921, thousands of women in southeast Kansas rose up to fight injustice in the area coalfields. These women were immigrants from Eastern European nations as well as Kansas born. After a months-long strike by the…

New Exhibit: The Photographs of Luke Hoffman, University Student

December 6, 2023 Diana Staresinic-Deane

Image of a young man airbrushing geometric patterns on a canvas. Text reads: The Photography of Luke Hoffman (University students being university students in the 1910s)

During the 1910s, Luke Hoffman was an Ottawa University student pursuing a degree in science and a passion for photography. His photographs capture all aspects of university life between about 1913 and 1917. The Franklin County Historical Society’s new exhibit, The Photographs of Luke Hoffman, University Student, features 23 of Hoffman’s photos. Born in Illinois, Hoffman was the youngest child of German immigrant parents. He moved to Ottawa to attend Ottawa University Academy (a high school program) and Ottawa University. Hoffman was a skilled airbrush artist and graphic designer, and…

November 2 Program: Beyond the Veil: A History of Spiritualism

October 13, 2023 Diana Staresinic-Deane

Beyond the Veil: A History of Spiritualism Thursday, November 2, 2023, 7 p.m. In person: FCHS Archives & Research Center, 2011 E Logan St, Ottawa, KS 66067 Online: Zoom (registration required) or Facebook Live It seems one of the eternal questions that has plagued humanity centers around what happens to us when we die. Most modern religions try to tackle this question, but none did so with more fervor than modern Spiritualism. What started in a cabin in New York with two young girls quickly spread across the globe.…