About the Historical Village

The Barton County Historical Society began work on the Historical Village in 1964 on land donated by the Charles Hulme estate.

 

The Museum Building was built in four parts. The West Wing was completed in 1974 and the East Wing in 1976. The West Wing was remodeled in 1980 and 1981 to provide for display areas. In 1999 a 30x60’ addition was completed to provide for meetings, storage, work areas and handicap accessibility. The Ray Schulz Research Library was added in 2006.

 

In 1967 the first building, the former St. Paul Lutheran Church and its appointments from near Albert, Kansas, was moved to its present location on the Village site. The church was built in October, 1898, with limestone quarried from Rush County and hauled the 2-1/2 miles to the building site. Square nails were used in the construction. The 700-pound bell was hung in the steeple in 1905. The church suffered cyclone damage in 1909 but men and horses put it aright. The congregation flourished until the 1960s, but as area population declined, so did church membership. This historic church congregation celebrated its 93rd anniversary in 1964.

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The School House was added to the Village in 1968. It was the old District 50 building that stood about 3-1/2 miles southeast of the Historical Village. The District was organized July 28, 1876.

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The “Waupun” Windmill was restored and donated by Leon McKinney. Manufactured by the Aulthouse-Wheeler Manufacturing Co. of Waupun, Wisconsin, these windmills were sold by the Great Bend Implement Company owned by Fred Zutavern in the early 1900’s. It was erected here in 1975. The site of the windmill is still a water producing well which has good drinking water.

 

The little Post Office, c1871, from Castleton, Kansas, was added in 1971, donated in memory of Mrs. James (Virginia) Boyle. By 1932 there was a decline in the town’s businesses and by 1950 there was little left of Castleton. What was left made a perfect location for the movie town “Sevillinois, Illinois 1895” for the movie “Wait Till The Sun Shines Nellie” filmed in the late 1940s.

 

The little Rock House, the Dodge Homestead, was built by the E.J. Dodge family in 1873. It was moved in 1976-77 stone by stone from its original site near Walnut Creek on Bissell’s Point Road by the Nani-Ba-Zhu Lodge, Order of the Arrow of the Kanza Council of the Boy Scouts of America, directed by Lee Phillips. It was donated by LeRoy Schartz who then owned the original site.

 

In 1968 the Santa Fe Railroad Depot and the entire dock and brick sidewalk, built in 1910 was acquired from Belpre, Kansas. The operator’s room complete with equipment as when it was in operation, was received due to the generosity of the Santa Fe and the American Express Co. The “operator” was made and donated by Mr. and Mrs. Harold Bowlus. Mr. Bowlus was agent in this depot.

 

The Multi-Purpose Building (Red Barn) was added in 1980 as one of eight of its kind in the United States. It is a 36x96x12’ Coop Barn with six (6) “sky lites”.                                       

In 1984 the second barn (Transportation Building), called a Pole Barn because of the type of construction, was added for more implement and vehicle display space. This is a Stockade Building 48x96’.

 

The Blacksmith Shop, 30x60’ rock building was completed in 1990. The original blacksmith shop equipment on display was donated by the Owen Bushnell Estate.

 

The Cook Becker Agriculture Building was added in 2001 to house our existing collection of antique tractors and other farm implements, as well as 8 tractors donated by K.W. Kirkman.

 

The Lustron House, donated in memory of Marion & Edith Weeks, disassembled and reassembled on site in 2005-’06. It is furnished in authentic 1950s decor. Originally built after WW2 in 1950.                                                 

                                        

The latest addition to the village in 2010 is the depot for the little train.

 

In addition to these buildings, items on display have been donated by hundreds of interested people from Barton County, also friends and families from many other places. The Historical Society’s mission is to preserve and display these items as examples of early Barton County History.