Rest of the Museum

The train takes us into the 20th Century.Time is paid to famous Kansans like William Allen White,Jazz great Charlie Parker,General and President Dwight D. Eisenhower,The multi talented author,film director and photographer Gordan Parks. One dark spot in Kansas History is also covered, in some ways worse the the fact Missourians burned Lawrence twice in a 10 year period, worse than the crime waves of the Daltons,James, gangsters of the twenties. A grim episode , Carrie Nation achieved notoriety going into bars and smashing Kegs of Beer and alcohol. A Talk show host in Topeka expresses my feelings "who would want to hurt and innocent keg of beer." Indeed. I've probably spent more time on this sad episode and sad woman that it deserves, needless to say if in my travels I run across any Museums,murals,statues or childhood homes, I'm passing that one by.


Kansas is the home of the first female mayor of a US City.
Biography of Susanna Salter here:
http://www.kancoll.org/khq/1954/54_3_billington.htm

Kansas also featured one of the first female State officials in the country,Lorraine Elizabeth Wooster
http://cjonline.com/stories/010602/kan_wooster.shtml

http://www.kshs.org/portraits/wooster_lorraine.htm


A section of the Museum covers the 50's to the 80's. Kansas contribution to fast food is chronicled,Pizza Hut,Taco Tico,White Castle,Tony's Pizza and Red Baron Pizza are all Kansas Products. Anyone who lived in Topeka from the 50's to the 80's recognize the sign in the picture. McDonalds on Topeka Blvd (Ave) , long story on whether it's a Blvd or an Ave.It was one of the last of the drive ins in the McDonalds chain, you could order and go back to the car to eat. If it had indoor seating I don't recall.I remember the picnic tables to the east of the restaurant. It was a sad day when the restaurant modernized,but the new restaurant does pay tribute to the old and the sign of course is still with us.One of the original Golden Arches. To go back to the items discarded on the Trials , there is an exhibit with fast food wrappers discarded on highways as well.



A Pop Culture exhibit has everything from a pong game to one of the first home computers. A Newspaper and cups document the Kansas City Royals World Series win in 1985. A George Brett for President bumper is there.TV Camera from the 50's, a plan made by Boeing in Wichita and many,many other things are there. There is a CD from the group Kansas, local boys who made good in the 70's with hits 'Carry on my Wayward Son','Point of No Return' and 'Dust in the Wind'. They are duly honored, but the CD is for "Power", one their worst albums and worst selling.If anybody knows any of the members, couldn't they donate a Gold Album or something from "Leftover" or "Point of No Return" or "Best of ..."



The temporary exhibit is Natural Disasters of Kansas and features an amazing video of Storm Chasers in Mulvane,2004. Some of the best unedited footage I've ever seen of a Tornado dropping from the clouds. The rest of exhibit covers major Tornadoes,flood, fires,snow storms.Pretty interesting. You can go into a booth and record your own stories which the Achieves will have on file.



The Museum is only 1 arm of the Historical Society, I've linked to on line sources, William Allen White's house visited last month is run by the society,they have a wonderful site on Territorial Kansas :
http://www.territorialkansasonline.org/cgiwrap/imlskto/index.php

So It rained, I would have rather been in Pott County looking for Wagon Ruts but it was a pretty good afternoon.