Come home to . . .

Bison
Lone Star School
Community Museum

LaCrosse
Barnard Library
Kansas Barbed Wire Museum
Post Rock Museum
Rush County Courthouse
Rush County Historical Museum
Nekoma Bank Museum

Leibenthal
St. Joseph's Kirche

McCracken
St. Mary's McCracken Heritage Association
McCracken Historical Museum

Forts & Trails
Fort Hays - Fort Dodge Trail/Hampton Cemetery
Fort Hays - Fort Larned Trail

The Post Rock Museum is housed in a native stone house built with the same equipment, pioneer ingenuity, and stone it now preserves. The museum includes an authentic stone quarry re-creation and items depicting the history of the post rock unique to this region. The museum is operated by the Rush County Historical Society.
 
 
 
 
 

The Kansas Barbed Wire Museum illustrates the history and legend of the "Devil's Rope". On exhibit are over 2000 varieties of fencing wire; many manufactured between the years 1870 and 1890. Hundreds of antique fencing tools represent the inventiveness of pioneers. The museum also houses the headquarters of the Antique Barbed Wire Society including the newly completed Hagemeier Conference Room and Larry Greer Research Center.
 
 
 
 
 

Housed in the original Timken Santa Fe Railroad depot, The Rush County Historical Museum displays artifacts of interest to the history of the area. Museum collections include medical equipment, photographs and scrapbooks, clothing and uniforms, and many pioneer and early settler household items. The museum is operated by the Rush County Historical Society.
 
 
 
 
 

Moved to the museum complex in LaCrosse from its original site in Nekoma in southwest Rush County, the original wood frame Nekoma State Bank building is being developed into a museum of rural banking. The museum is operated by the Rush County Historical Society.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The Rush County Courthouse was constructed in 1888 following a "tug-of-war" for the county seat. The Romanesque style building is constructed primarily of brick with native stone accents. Prominent features of the building include a circular tower on the southeast corner, a square tower on the northeast, native stone arches over the entrances and stained glass dormers. The building is now listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The first phases of a restoration project have been completed including restoration of most of the main floor offices and the second floor courtroom. The county was awarded two Preservation Trust Grants from the Kansas State Historical Society which allowed for historical restoration of windows on the first and second floors. The building is handicap accessible and features the necessary modern amenities without damage to the structure's historical character.
 
 
 

The Barnard Library is housed in a native limestone building located at 521 Elm Street in LaCrosse. The building was constructed as a project of the Works Progress Administration, a program initiated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt during the 1930s to create jobs in a troubled economy. The Barnard Library is named in honor of Howard R. Barnard, one of the great educators in the history of America's small schools.
 
 
 
 
 

George Ficken Jr. donated land one and one-half miles west of Bison for a German Methodist Episcopal Church and school. Construction began in 1878 with hand-hewn native stone donated by members of the church. It was the first German speaking Methodist Church in Rush County. Rev. C.G. Fritsche, the first resident pastor, cut a lone star on the east gable of the building in reverence to The Holy Land and its Lone Star, Our Lord, Jesus Christ.  Lone Star was used as a church and school until the congregation built a new church one mile north in 1890. The building was sold to school district 34 (later 64) and classes were held at Lone Star School until 1947 when the district merged with Bison. The schoolhouse has since been used as a clubhouse by the Sunshine Extension Homemakers Unit of Bison. Former students and members of the Bison Mens Club donate time and money to help with maintenance and repairs. Currently furnishings and memorabilia are being collected in an effort to restore the interior of the school to its former appearance as a classroom.
 

The Bison Community Museum is located in the Community Building on Main Street in Bison. Many of the contents were donated by area citizens and are retained by the museum as a public trust. The museum displays household items, tools, clothing and personal items used in the first half of the 20th century. Also displayed are artifacts that offer a glimpse into Bisons early history, including a large display of advertising memorabilia, calendars, and thermometers, that attest to the thriving business section once present in Bison. Photographs of early Bison, its residents and events describe the city and surrounding farm life as well as the devastation left by the 1912 tornado. Other items of interest include a small scale replica of a header barge, stone working tools used to cut limestone posts and a postcard collection from the turn of the century. One unusual feature of the museum is a large pitcher collection that was donated by Edith Money, a Bison resident. From time to time the museum features rotating and special exhibits.
 

At first, church services for Liebenthal residents were held in homes or in the open air (weather permitting) whenever an itinerate priest would visit the village. The first Roman Catholic church was completed in 1878. By the early 1900s, a larger church building was needed. From 1902 until 1905, the members of the parish worked to complete the present native stone church. Over two thousand loads of stone were dug from nearby hills, moved by wagon, cut, shaped, stacked and set to form the walls of this beautiful building. The stained glass windows were made by an Austrian/German artist. Twice, fire destroyed all of the wood sections and the roof of the cathedral. It was rebuilt and rededicated in 1921 and 1961 but the interior walls and the altar are no longer as ornately fine as before the last fire. However, the original stone walls are those erected by the Liebenthal forefathers. St. Josephs Kirche stands as one of the most beautiful churches on the Kansas plains.  Located near the church are the rectory and parocial school, both constructed of native stone quarried near the community.
 

The first St. Mary's Church building was constructed in 1886 southwest of McCracken. The original wood structure was replaced with a stone building on the same location in 1906. On July 7, 1922, work was begun on the basement and foundation of the present St. Mary's Catholic Church using stone from the old church. The building was completed in May of 1926. In 1997, following restructuring of the Liebenthal, McCracken, and Timken churches, Mass was no longer held on a regular basis in McCracken. Members of the parish formed the Saint Mary's McCracken Heritage Association in effort to preserve the beautiful building. Currently the building is used for special occasions and services.
 
 
 

Located in the former City Jail on Main Street in McCracken, the museum was dedicated on July 14, 2001. The native stone jail was originally opened in 1901. In addition to housing the jail, the building served as the McCracken City Hall and Fire Department. The museum displays numerous items relative to the history of McCracken as well as a display of the 1973 movie, "Paper Moon," filmed in and around McCracken. For more about McCracken, visit the McCracken Alumni webpage.
 
 
 
 

Also referred to as  the General Winfield Scott Hancock Trail, it served as a road for hauling freight and mail between forts and outlaying encampments.  The trail entered northern Rush County in Big Timber Township east of Highway 183, crossed Sand Creek east of LaCrosse into Section 3-18-18, crossed Walnut Creek in W2 NE4 25-18-18 and crossed into Pawnee County three-quarters of a mile west of Ash Valley.