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Private First Class Albert Thompson, Jr.
This photograph of Private First Class Albert Thompson, Jr. was taken in a photography studio while he served in France during World War I. In October 1917 the National Army assigned Thompson to the...
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Huxies: Sales Tax Tokens in Kansas
Four months into Walter Huxman's first and only term as governor, the Kansas Legislature passed the Human Retailers' Sales Tax Act in April of 1937. Like many states, Kansas' traditional streams of...
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School Photograph Collection, Lecompton, Kansas
School class photographs document the lives of children as well as the schools built to educate them. This is a late 19th-century portrait of students at the Glenn School, a one-room schoolhouse that...
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Louis Palenske Collection, Wabaunsee County
The following is a post by guest writer Greg Hoots. In May of 2016 the Wabaunsee County Historical Society (WCHS) was awarded a grant from the Kansas State Historic Records Advisory Board (KSHRAB)...
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The Legacy of Frederick Douglass in Kansas
Born a slave in Maryland, Frederick Douglass became one of the most famous intellectuals of his time. Douglass, like his colleague John Brown, was a leader in the antislavery movement, and the two...
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Prohibition faces push back by Volga Germans
By: Haley Suby, Digital archivist Emigrating from Russia to Kansas in the late nineteenth century, Volga Germans brought their culture and language to the United States and sought to preserve them....
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2018 Highlights
By: Haley Suby, Digital ArchivistOver the past eleven months, the Kansas Historical Society has been working hard to bring you digitized images that represent the past, present and future of Kansas and...
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The Wonderful Wizard of Oz turns 80!
By: Haley Suby, Digital Archivist In the United States eighty years ago, the Wizard of Oz, "America's greatest and best-loved homegrown fairytale" graced the silver screens. MGM based the film on the...
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#MarthaMakesHistory: A New Project From the State Archives
By: Megan Rohleder, Senior ArchivistAs part of 19th Amendment centennial commemorations, staff members at the Kansas Historical Society have been working to create a digital program that will highlight...
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Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Kansas suffrage
Between 1896 and 1900, the Kansas Equal Suffrage Association (KESA) published four poems and one article by writer and women’s rights advocate Charlotte Perkins Stetson (later Gilman) in their official...
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Sen. Edmund Ross and the Impeachment of Pres. Andrew Johnson
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistWhen the word ‘impeachment’ enters political discourse, the name of a mostly unknown junior senator from Kansas is usually not far behind. In May 1868,...
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Confederate Memorialization in the Free State
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistAs communities across the country grapple with the legacy of the Civil War and the memorialization of Confederate leaders, we decided to research that...
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Absurd Humor
By: Lauren Gray, Head of Reference Humor is universal, yet constantly evolving – from the well-honed satire of Jonathan Swift to the sprightly dancing sausage of Snapchat, every generation embraces its...
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Spooky Season
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceTrick or Treating may be discouraged this year due to the public health crisis, but that doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate Halloween. In days past, whether Kansans lived...
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The 1924 World Series
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistWith the Los Angeles Dodgers’ recent World Series victory bringing an end to Major League Baseball’s shortest season since 1878, we decided to highlight...
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Mayflower Descendants in Kansas
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceThanksgiving. Much has been written about this uniquely American holiday and much can be said about its mythos and origins. Regardless of the “true” story of the first...
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The 12 Days of Archives
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday seasonDay 1: PuzzlesIt hardly seems like it’s been a year since last Cyber Monday. This weekend kicked off the official start of...
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The 12 Days of Archives
By Lauren Gray, Head of Reference Share the gift of history this holiday season Day 2: Magnets[Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series] Remember when we used to go on vacation and buy...
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The 12 Days of Archives-Day 3
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday season.Day 3: Greeting cards(Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series) Nothing says a socially distant “hello” like sending...
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The 12 Days of Archives-Day 4
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday season.Day 4: The Memory Game(Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series) While 2020 is a year that most of us would rather...
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The 12 Days of Archives-Day 5
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday season.Day 5: Coasters(Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series)Uncle Phil (and his coffee cup ring stains on the good...
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12 Days of Archives-Day 6
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday seasonDay 6: Bookmarks(Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series) We have to confess – we’re bookmark nerds around here. And...
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12 Days of Archives-Day 7
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday season.Day 7: Stationery(Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series)Ah, letters. Where would we be without them? Oh, that’s...
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12 Days of Archives-Day 8
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday season.Day 8: Wall Clock(Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series)It’s about time this post came around. We’ve been watching...
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12 Days of Archives-Day 9
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday season Day 9: Calendars[Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series] If you’re already over 2020 (and we so don’t blame you),...
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12 Days of Archives-Day 10
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday season.Day 10: Playing Cards(Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series)You’re never lonely with a deck of playing cards in your...
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12 Days of Archives-Day 11
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday season.Day 11: Decorative Collages (for any space)(Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series)If our Netflix guru Marie Kondo...
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12 Days of Archives-Day 12
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceShare the gift of history this holiday season.Day 12: Recipe Books(Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series)As we conclude our 12 Days of Archives series, the staff...
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State Capitol Pediments
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistIf you took one of our behind-the scenes tours last year, the following items may look familiar. These four drawings, which we recently digitized, are...
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The Spring of His Discontent: William T. Sherman in Shawnee County
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistRecently, I was asked to weigh in on a question which instantly piqued my interest: did one of the country’s most famous Civil War generals, William...
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Happy Valentine's Day!
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceValentine’s Day is just around the corner (at least we don’t have to worry about getting restaurant reservations this year)! We put together some of our favorite love...
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Spring Into the Archives
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceFlowers blossoming, trees budding, grass sprouting in abundance (the persistent sound of lawnmowers, the air rife with pollen) – when spring comes to Kansas, the world...
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Preserving Memories
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceDid everyone spend 2020 spring cleaning? Our reference desk has received several questions lately about what to do with family heirlooms and documents, so if you’ve...
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Mary White
By: Sarah Parsons - Reference ArchivistBeing a child in a well-known family can be difficult in spite of the benefits it brings. As the daughter of famous Kansas newspaper editor and author William...
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Alice Nichols and The Nichols Journal
By: Katie Keckeisen, Collections Archivist"[Kansas] is so often referred to – or rather used – as a synonym for all that is mediocre in thought and scenery. I know the beauties of both because they...
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Kansas Olympians
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistWith the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in full swing, we decided to take a look at some past Kansans who have left their marks on the Olympic Games. By our...
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Femme Fatales of the Frontier
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistEvery once in a while, an item in the collection piques our interest and we can’t help but investigate further. Such was the case with the below...
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Fort Simple
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistFollowing Quantrill’s bloody raid on Lawrence in August 1863, many Kansans wondered if Border Ruffians would next target Topeka. The capital city was...
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Happy Thanksgiving!
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceAs we all know, Thanksgiving is a holiday to gather, share, and be thankful. The last year has given us few opportunities to gather, and even fewer to share, so we are...
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Christmas in the 1870s
A reminiscence of Harriet E. Adams, sister of Zu Adams, from Topeka, KS written June 20, 1928. Harriet Adams is recalling a memorable Christmas from her childhood. She is recalling a memory from the...
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Antiquated and Amusing Advertisements
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistAs the Super Bowl recently reminded us, advertisers nowadays use a number of gimmicks to sell their products to consumers, from talking animals and...
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Some Bunny in Kansas Loves You
By: Lauren Gray-Head of ReferenceIn celebration of spring finally arriving, here is a short history of Rabbits on the range. Bunnies: children love to chase them, hawks love to hunt them, and farmers...
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Kansas: The Sunflower State
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceAsk anyone what their favorite road trip snack is, and sunflower seeds will likely appear somewhere between corn nuts and Doritos. While the spit-and-flick motion is...
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Kansas Travelogues
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceA picture may be worth a thousand words, but it often doesn’t tell the full story. In the days before cell phones and cameras, tourists would keep travelogues during...
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Political Campaign Slogans
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistPresident William Henry Harrison did not leave behind many long-lasting legacies when he died suddenly of pneumonia in 1841, except of course, a reminder...
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Wintertime in Kansas
By Lauren Gray, Head of Reference The weather outside may be frightful, but we can still find ways to enjoy the winter season. Over the years, Kansans have learned to embrace our state’s harsh but...
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The Western Tuskegee
By: Ethan Anderson, Government Records ArchivistFor nearly 60 years the city of Topeka was home to one of the premier institutions for Black learning in the state of Kansas: the Kansas Technical...
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Abbie Bright
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceAbbie Bright is a name most of the Kansas Historical Society staff will recognize, if only because her writing was so extensive that she shows up in virtually every...
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Newspapers: Our National Conscience
By: Lauren Gray, Head of ReferenceUpon entering our Research Room at the State Archives, one of the first things you’ll see is row upon row of gray metal cabinets. Inside each of these cabinets are...
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Romance in the 1880s
By: Cordell Moats, Digital ArchivistToday we can communicate instantaneously with others all around the world, but in the 1880s communication relied heavily on letters such as the ones contained in the...
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