Category: News

CANCELED March 13: Pi Kappa Delta Centennial Exhibit Grand Opening Reception

Diana Staresinic-Deane

Pi Kappa Delta: The Art of Persuasion: from Ottawa to the World 1913-2020 Exhibit Grand Opening Reception Friday, March 13, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Old Depot Museum   In order to protect our staff, volunteers, researchers, and visitors, the Franklin County Historical Society is closing our facilities to the public and canceling events through March 29. The Pi Kappa Delta grand opening has been canceled, but the exhibit will open to the public at a later date. For more information, click here. Pi Kappa Delta, the oldest comprehensive intercollegiate…

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January 26: Franklin County’s Civil Conservation Corps topic of this year’s historical society annual meeting

Diana Staresinic-Deane

From 1933 until 1942, the Civilian Conservation Corps employed millions of young, unmarried men in jobs related to conservation and natural resource development as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. Tod Bevitt will explore how the C.C.C. impacted Kansas and Franklin County during their presentation at the 83rd Annual Meeting of the Members of the Franklin County Historical Society on Sunday, January 26, 2 p.m. at Neosho County Community College in Ottawa, Kansas. The Civilian Conservation Corps was arguably one of Roosevelt’s most successful New Deal programs. The…

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Announcing the Laura Ingalls Wilder Commemorative Series

Diana Staresinic-Deane

Library and historical society launch Laura Ingalls Wilder Commemorative Series Ottawa, Kansas—125 years ago, Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family traveled through Franklin County on their way to what would be their permanent home in Mansfield, Missouri. This fall, Ottawa Library and the Franklin County Historical Society are partnering to commemorate the event while exploring Wilder’s impact on Kansas and literature. On August 16, the Wilders entered Franklin County. In her journal, which would later be published as On the Way Home: The Diary of a Trip from South Dakota…

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Franklin County Museum Hopper Weekend returns August 3-4, 2019

Diana Staresinic-Deane
Museum Hopper Weekend on August 3 & 4

Four Franklin County museums are partnering to promote local history on August 3 and 4. Appanoose Museum, the Old Depot Museum, and Richmond Community Museum are returning for the second annual Museum Hopper Weekend to encourage visitors to explore the rich history of Franklin County. New to the event this year is Williamsburg Community Museum. Admission to all four museums is free during Museum Hopper Weekend. Some participating museums are also offering giveaways and refreshments.  Hours, locations, and featured exhibits include Appanoose Museum: 600 Shawnee Road, Pomona (from Pomona, turn…

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June 22: One-day exhibit features more than a century of Franklin County wedding dresses

Diana Staresinic-Deane

Something Old: Franklin County Wedding Dresses, 1848-1971  Saturday, June 22, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.  Carnegie Cultural Arts Center, 501 South Main, Ottawa, Kansas  Tickets: $23 in advance, $25 at the door. Click here to purchase tickets online   Ottawa, Kansas— On June 22, the Franklin County Historical Society will host a one-day exhibit of more than 120 years of bridalwear history to raise funds for the care and management of the historical society’s collection. “Something Old: Franklin County Wedding Dresses, 1848-1971” will be on exhibit at the Carnegie Cultural…

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Exhibit: Imprinting the West: Manifest Destiny, Real and Imagined

Diana Staresinic-Deane

During the 19th Century, Americans were fascinated by the idea of moving west in North America. Printed imagery—lithographs and engravings—played an important role in the dissemination of knowledge and understanding about the West and its inhabitants. More than 40 of these hand-colored engravings and lithographs will be on display at the Old Depot Museum through a new exhibit, Imprinting the West: Manifest Destiny, Real and Imagined, which opens April 6. In 1803, the United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France. This transaction extended the United States’ boundaries by 828,000…

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2019 Dietrich Cabin Hours Announced

Diana Staresinic-Deane

Dietrich Cabin, the 1859 cabin located in Ottawa’s City Park, will be open on the following days: Saturday, April 13, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, April 14, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, May 18, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, May 19, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, June 15, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, June 16, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, August 17, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, August 18, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, September 14, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday,…

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Third Annual Silent Film Event brings “Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde” to the big screen

Diana Staresinic-Deane

The Franklin County Historical Society, Plaza Cinema, and Kansas Silent Film Festival are partnering to bring three fun and spooky films accompanied by live music to the Plaza Cinema, 209 S. Main, Ottawa, Kansas, on Saturday, October 20, at 7:30 p.m. Bill Shaffer, former producer/director at KTWU, will emcee the October 20 event, which starts at 7 p.m. The evening’s lineup includes the short films Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (1920) and Dr. Pycle & Mr. Pryde (1925) and the feature film Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (also 1920). What…

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New exhibit commemorates 130-year-old depot

Diana Staresinic-Deane

Iron, Steel, and Stone: The Life of a Depot Opens Sunday, October 14, 2018 Old Depot Museum, 135 W Tecumseh, Ottawa, Kansas One hundred and thirty years ago, carpenters were putting the finishing touches on the woodwork at the Santa Fe Depot in Ottawa, Kansas. It was a major milestone for a building that was little more than a hole in the ground for more than two years. The Old Depot Museum’s new exhibit, “Iron, Steel, & Stone: The Life of a Depot,” explores how the depot that almost wasn’t…

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Historic sign lights up Old Depot Museum

Diana Staresinic-Deane

Rick Hamman of Coffelt Sign Company puts the final touches on the newly restored 1962 Ottawa sign in the Model Railroad Room at the Old Depot Museum in Ottwa, Kansas. The sign is one of a pair that once served as a beacon for trains arriving at Ottawa’s fifth and final Santa Fe depot, which opened in 1962. Passenger service ended in 1971. Restoration and installation was completed by Coffelt Sign Company of Emporia, Kansas, and funded in part by a grant from the Caroline E. Hewitt Trust.

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