Northwest Kansas Heritage Tour

Northwest Heritage Tour Brewster Goodland Colby St. Francis Atwood Studley Oberlin Logan Stockton WaKeeney Oakley Ellis Hays Hoxie

Gentle slopes and irrigated fields mark the northwest corner of the state. Dramatic outcroppings such as Monument Rocks in Gove County add interest to the scenery. Museums feature fossil discoveries from the region, prairie art, and a site devoted to losing presidential candidates.

Towns are listed in alphabetical order, followed by information on historical attractions. Use our button bar below to go to the town.

Return to Heritage Tours.

For road maps to each of these sites, we suggest you use Yahoo! Maps.


A C E G H L O S W

A

bullet Atwood

Rawlins County Historical Museum

County history featuring the Eastern European Roman Catholic families who settled in the area.

Location:308 State Street
Telephone: 785-626-3885

bulletBrewster

No museums currently are listed for Brewster.

C

bullet Colby

Prairie Museum of Art and History

Complex on 24-acre site includes largest barn in Kansas, 1930s farmstead, sod house, school, church, and farm machinery. Also included is the Kuska collection of over 28,000 artifacts, including glassware, ceramics, dolls, silver, and textiles.

Location: 1905 S. Franklin Avenue
Telephone: 785-462-4590

E

bulletEllis

Ellis Railroad Museum

Housed in a former city office building the museum features the history of the Union Pacific railroad.

Location: 911 Washington Street
Telephone: 785-726-4493

Walter P. Chrysler Home Museum

Before he moved to Wamego, Walter Chrysler lived in this home in Ellis featuring exhibits on his family and career as an automobile manufacturer.

Location: 102 W. 10th
Telephone: 785-726-3636

G

bulletGoodland

High Plains Museum

Prehistoric tools, mastodons, and mammoths provide an introduction to the museum. The Depression and Dust Bowl exhibits feature life on the high plains. A push button replica of a 1909-1910 helicopter offers a whirling experience.

Location: 1717 Cherry
Telephone: 785-899-4595

H

bulletHays

Ellis County Museum

The 1879 former Presbyterian church features the St. Severin Roman Catholic Church and the life of the Volga-Germans who settled in the area.

Location: 100 W. Seventh
Telephone: 785-628-2624

Fort Hays State Historic Site

An important fort on the Kansas frontier, Fort Hays was the home of several well-known Indian wars regiments such as the Seventh U.S. Cavalry, the Fifth U.S. Infantry, and the Tenth U.S. Cavalry, whose black troopers were better known as buffalo soldiers. Many well-known officers and well known figures of the day are associated with the post including Wild Bill Hickok, Buffalo Bill Cody, General Nelson Miles, General Philip Sheridan, and Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer.

Location: U.S. Highway 183 Alternate
Telephone: 785-625-6812

Sternberg Museum of Natural History

Displays highlighting the Cretaceous era, including walk-through diorama featuring plants and animals from about 80 million years ago (as well as full-sized robotic dinosaurs and trees) and the giant reptiles and birds that lived at or in the Kansas sea.

Location: 3000 Sternberg Drive
Telephone: 785-628-4286

bulletHoxie

Sheridan County Historical Society

Displays feature an early-day hardware store in Hoxie--display cases and merchandise from Mickey Hardware store. In 1983, the Bee Hive schoolhouse was moved to the complex, which visitors can view. This location also features genealogical materials for use by researchers and scholars.

Location: 1224 Oak Avenue
Telephone: 785-675-3501

L

bulletLogan

Dane Hansen Museum

Japanese art objects and a gun exhibit highlight the collection.  Traveling exhibits from the Smithsonian Institution are displayed four to six weeks each year.

Location: 110 W. Main
Telephone: 785-689-4846

O

bulletOakley

Fick Fossil and History Museum

Uncovered from the surrounding area, the fossils on exhibit include a 15-foot Cretaceus fish and a Tylosaurus proriger. Local history also featured.

Location: 700 W. Third Street
Telephone: 785-672-4839

bulletOberlin

No museums currently are listed for Oberlin.

S

bulletSt. Francis

Cheyenne County Historical Museum

Local history featuring prehistoric mammoths, horses from the Ice Age, and exhibits on area wildlife.

Location: West U.S. 36
Telephone: 785-332-2504

bulletStockton

No museums currently are listed for Stockton.

bullet Studley

Cottonwood Ranch State Historic Site

An 1885-1896 stone house that served as headquarters for a Kansas sheep ranch onthe high Plains of northwest Kansas. The Pratt family maintained elements of their English lifestyle.

Location: Five miles west of Morland on K-24
Telephone: 785-627-5866

W

bulletWaKeeney

Trego County Historical Museum

Local history featuring early surveying equipment, history of the Kenney and Warren families who founded the town, and the 1885 Western Kansas World press.

Location: U.S. 283
Telephone: 785-743-2964


Visitors are encouraged to call ahead webmaster to confirm hours, admission, and holiday schedules. To request that your museum be added to this listing, contact our .

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bullet Check Blue Skyways' Kansas Museums page for more sites around the state. See also Link to Kansas for virtual tours of heritage sites.



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Kansas Historical Society
Kansas Historical Society