Category: News

August 9: Life In Kansas During the Dust Bowl

Diana Staresinic-Deane
A long, dark dust cloud rolls across the land. Text: Dust Cloud Rolling Over Western Kansas Prairie Copyright Potter '35

Saturday, August 9, 2025, 2 p.m. Lane Community United Methodist Church 425 S Oak, Lane, Kansas 66042 Black Sunday – April 14, 1935 – is an unforgettable moment in history. The photographs from that day of the dust storm in southwest Kansas made headlines across America. How did Kansans respond to this challenging moment in history? Using eyewitness accounts and photographs, this presentation explores the impact and the legacy of the drought and the “Dust Bowl” on life in Kansas during the 1930s and beyond. Presenter Katie Keckeisen is the…

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June 27: Sod & Stubble (the movie)

Diana Staresinic-Deane
A man and woman in 19th century Western dress are backlit by a summer sky. Sod & Stubble.

Film based on the book by John Ise Friday, June 27, 2025, 7 p.m. (doors open at 6 p.m.) Ottawa Memorial Auditorium, 301 S Hickory St, Ottawa, KS Purchase Tickets: $10 (plus fees and taxes) Join us for a motion picture retelling of this iconic Kansas story! Based on the book by John Ise (with updated research by Von Rothenberger), Sod & Stubble tells the story of the Henry and Rosie Ise, who homesteaded in Osborne County Kansas in the 1870s and battled through the many challenges of life on the…

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April 27, 2025 – Union Guerillas of Civil War Kansas (online & in person)

Diana Staresinic-Deane
Book cover for Union Guerillas of Civil War Kansas, featuring four portraits of men in 19th century attire

Union Guerillas of Civil War Kansas presented by Paul Thomas and Matt Matthews  Sunday, April 27, 2025, 2 p.m.  FCHS Archives & Research Center, 2011 E Logan St, Ottawa, KS  Or register for Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_hZeBB-whSbyM_aXAzM8m-A Both before and during the American Civil War, ragtag groups of Kansas militants patrolled the Kansas-Missouri border. Known as “Jayhawkers” and later “Red Legs,” they raided anyone they believed sympathetic to secession. For many in the state, these irregular warriors were heroes fighting for a Free Kansas and preservation of the Union; for their victims,…

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April 5, 2025 – Third Annual 5K Run for History (Fun Run/Walk)

Diana Staresinic-Deane
Silhouettes of runners. Text reads 5K Run For History.

Third Annual 5K Run for History (Fun Run/Walk) Saturday, April 5, 2025, 9 a.m.  Old Depot Museum, 135 W Tecumseh St, Ottawa, KS  Register for the race: https://runsignup.com/Race/KS/Ottawa/FranklinCountyHistoricalSociety5K   Follow the historic routes of the AT&SF and Missouri Pacific Railroads past historic neighborhoods, a scenic cemetery, and the Marais des Cygnes River. Whether you want to set your best time or enjoy a stroll with your friends, your $25 registration fee will help support the Franklin County Historical Society. Commemorative t-shirts are guaranteed for all registrations received by March 21.…

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April 23, 2025 – History Trivia Night

Diana Staresinic-Deane
History Trivia Night. Graphic includes neon signs and light bulbs.

History Trivia Night Wednesday, April 23, 2025, 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.  Not Lost Brewing, 229 S Main St, Ottawa, KS 66067 Doors Open at 5:30 p.m. Tickets: https://square.link/u/etM581FU Bring your random history knowledge to the Franklin County Historical Society’s first-ever History Trivia Night! All proceeds will support the Franklin County Historical Society. Play solo or bring a team! Tickets include one beverage; participants are welcome to bring food from other local restaurants. Special thanks to Not Lost Brewing, Shanda Olmsted/Prestige Real Estate, and Kansas State Bank for sponsoring this…

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October 25-26: Paranormal Investigations at Ottawa Memorial Auditorium

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…

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

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…

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

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…

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

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…

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

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…

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