kansas historical society

Explore " kansas historical society" with insightful episodes like "Tragic Endings", "Tip of the Sword", "Mail Carts", "Gloved Hands" and "Come Sail Away" from podcasts like ""Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History", "Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History", "Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History", "Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History" and "Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History"" and more!

Episodes (74)

Tragic Endings

During his lifetime, many considered George Armstrong Custer an inept braggart. This was proven by his complete failure at Little Big Horn, yet heroic images of him soon appeared in every American bar and saloon. Join us for a discussion of a classic image of Custer's last stand.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usJanuary 11, 2012

Tip of the Sword

Five hundred years ago a rich Spaniard led an army onto the North American plains, searching for a mythical city of gold. According to legend, someone on Francisco Vazquez de Coronado's expedition dropped this sword in present-day Kansas.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usDecember 28, 2011

kansas historical society

Mail Carts

Instantaneous and digital is the preferred method of communication for modern legislative bodies. In the mid-20th century, though, the Kansas Legislature used a more utilitarian method: two wooden mail carts.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usDecember 14, 2011

senate

legislature

mail

house of representatives

capitol

Gloved Hands

The difference between a beautician and a mortician is less than you might think. This episode considers white gloves worn by an African American funeral home director whose mother's beautician beginnings grew into a family-run mortuary.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usNovember 30, 2011

Come Sail Away

During World War I, soldiers stood knee-deep in mud on French battlefields while one Kansas serviceman patrolled the coast of California. Hear about the Navy uniform worn by Effingham native Joe Price.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usNovember 16, 2011

Barberism

Barbering was big business a century ago. It required the right equipment. This segment considers a 1920s salesman sample of a barber chair that was a cut above the rest.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usNovember 02, 2011

Hunter Orange

Modern hunting apparel is emblazoned with bright orange, but this mid-20th century vest isn't brightly colored. We wonder if it was open season on hunters 50 years ago.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usOctober 19, 2011

Bobo

Drive-ins were a cultural milestone in the 1950s. Once food was delivered directly to an automobile, American eating habits were never the same. This episode considers a pair of giant menu boards from Bobo's Drive-In, a Topeka favorite.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usOctober 05, 2011

Disco Dorothy

For many, The Wizard of Oz is a timeless story about a girl from Kansas. For others, it's an old-fashioned tale that needs to be more inclusive. This episode considers album covers from The Wiz, a disco-era adaptation of L. Frank Baum's classic.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usSeptember 21, 2011

Popsicle

Nothing says summer like ice cream. In the 1870s, the Scott Brothers of Topeka built an ice cream empire that lasted a century.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usSeptember 07, 2011

topeka

frozen treats

kansas historical society

scott brothers ice cream company

kansas museum of history

Blue Jacket

The commander of Fort Hays wore this army dress jacket during the 1870s. His years of Kansas service were the culmination of a long and distinguished career.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usAugust 24, 2011

military

kansas historical society

army frontier

fort hays

kansas museum of history

Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie

Bikinis were the bombshell of 1960s fashion--iconic swimwear named for an atomic explosion in the Pacific Ocean. A Kansas woman wore this version while relaxing poolside.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usAugust 10, 2011

swimming

bikini

swimwear

kansas historical society

kansas museum of history

Twisted

Tornadoes have threatened residents of the Great Plains for centuries, but until the late 1800s most Americans had never seen one. That changed when a Kansas farmer captured the first known photograph of a tornado in 1884.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usJuly 27, 2011

Stone-Faced

The second floor of Kansas' capitol features a pantheon of our state's heroes in stone. In this segment we consider four small busts related to this massive installation.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usJuly 13, 2011

kansas historical society

Wrinkled Painting

Some folks take up gardening in retirement. Not so Elizabeth Layton, who spent her golden years painting as a way of dealing with depression. Hear how this little old lady from Wellsville, Kansas, rocked the art world.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usJune 29, 2011

art

painting

wellsville

kansas historical society

contour drawing

Paisley Shawl

Some clothes are well-suited for traveling. A young man smuggled his daughter from Virginia to Kansas using this shawl.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usJune 15, 2011

immigration

immigrants

kansas historical society

leavenworth kansas

cherokee strip land rush

Nerd Outlaws

Every family is a little dysfunctional. Some families are downright criminal. Join curators as they discuss fragments torn from members of the infamous Dalton gang after a foiled heist then go behind the scenes to examine Prohibition-era beer steins.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usJune 01, 2011

kansas historical society

Sacked

Belgium was in a bad place during World War I. German invaders ate its food, and an Allied blockade prevented more from arriving. Kansas farmers came to the rescue with homegrown flour shipped in these sacks.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usMay 18, 2011

kansas historical society

Magic Seeds

Every group has its origin story. In Kansas, the legend is that Russian immigrants brought seeds from the home country (in bottles like this) and created the Wheat State.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usMay 04, 2011

agriculture

immigrants

wheat

kansas historical society

russian germans

Uncivil Wars

African American soldiers were rare during the Civil War, and black officers almost non-existent. Thirty years later, Major John Brown from Topeka led soldiers to Cuba during the Spanish-American War using this saber.

Cool Things in the Collection, Kansas Museum of History

en-usApril 20, 2011

soldiers

african americans

saber

kansas historical society

spanish american war