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Remember that end of the year donations to The Jerry Thomas Art Gallery are tax deductible. Checks may be made out to: The Scott County Historical Society (a 501c3 non-profit organization), denoting "Thomas Gallery" on the memo line. The address is: P. O. Box 155. Prints of Jerry's artwork are available at El Quartelejo Museum, 902 West 5th Street. Thanks!!!
Museum Update
February 2009
Another year is well underway, and we’re looking forward to some very special events in 2009 – particularly the Grand Opening of The Jerry Thomas Art Gallery. Oh, it’s not ready at this writing, but the decorative south façade is finished – and isn’t it eye-catching!Work is beginning now on the interior finishing.There isn’t much to see yet, but you’re welcome to come check out the progress any time you can.
If the work goes smoothly, we expect to have the art gallery open by late spring or early summer. Jerry is working on four new paintings which will be unveiled at the Grand Opening, with prints available for purchase at that time.
GRANT AWARDED!: By now most of you know that we received a major grant from the Department of Commerce, Travel and Tourism, of the State of Kansas. This is a 40-60 grant, which means that the grant will fund 40% of the total grant request of $123,000, and we are responsible for the rest. We are grateful to Marilyn Miller for writing this long and complicated grant, and to all who contributed matching funds to make up our share. That doesn’t mean we’ve raised all the funds we need to complete the gallery - your continuing support is needed and most welcome.
ANNUAL MEETING – APRIL 19THThe annual meeting of the Scott County Historical Society has been scheduled for Sunday, April 19th, at 2 p.m. Several speakers are being considered for the program. This is always an interesting meeting and well-attended. Please put this date on your calendar now and watch www.scottcity.info and The Record for program information.
~ SPRING TEA ~ No date has been chosen yet for the Spring Tea, but we are thinking about it. With Easter late this year, and all the events set for May, we may push the tea ahead to June. (Well, that’s still technically Spring – right?) All ladies who are currently members will receive an invitation so you will get more details later on.ON-LINE CAPABILITY
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UPCOMING DISPLAYS: The next display in the Temporary Gallery will be an exhibit of photos of early day Scott City along with cameras from our collection. This display will open in April. The summer exhibit will be travel memorabilia from our globe-trotting members. (If you are a world traveler with items to share, please let us know) Also, we’ve been told some of you might have photos and memorabilia from the Shallow Water Refinery’s glory days, which would make an interesting display. We’d like to do a display of the early railroad history of Scott City – do you have things to share? Do you have other suggestions? Do you have an unusual holiday collection you would give up for just one Christmas? We’d love to have a list of ideas that would take us through a couple of years of rotating displays.
* * KANSAS DAY * * : The museum hosted all five grades of the Scott City Elementary School on the morning of January 29th. Around 375 children, teachers and aides were rotated through the building by Dennis Siegrist, Patsi Graham, Jan Winter, Larry Hoeme, Jerry Snyder, Don Cotton and Charles Evans. What a thrill to have some of those children back already with their parents! Some of our members need to follow their example and bring their families and visitors out to enjoy our unique museum.
OTHER VISITORS: Our visitor count continues to climb, and we expect it to increase greatly with the opening of the art gallery. Last year we averaged 120 visitors a month, from every corner of the United States and several foreign countries. It helped to have the museum open weekends last summer and we hope to increase our hours this year. When the art gallery is open we’re going to need many more volunteers to help in many different ways. Please be thinking about what you can do to help.
AUDIO TOURS: A small grant from the Kansas Museums Association allowed us to purchase audio equipment to record an audio tour of the exhibit gallery. That tape is now complete and audio tours are available for those who would like to go through the gallery without a personal guide.
BATTLE CANYON IMPROVEMENTS: A new cattle gate is now being installed on the road leading to Battle Canyon, and the addition of a visitor’s registration booth will soon be in place. We’re still lacking directional signs, both on the highway and at the turnoff road. At this point grant funds from the Scott Community Foundation for this project have been expended, so if you have a personal interest in seeing the Battle Canyon project move forward, we’d appreciate your help. And don’t forget that group tours to Battle Canyon, El Quartelejo Pueblo Ruins and other sites in and around the state park may be arranged for by contacting Scott City Travel and Tourism (Barbie Winderlin at 872-4761) or call the museum for information. 872-5912
Museum Begins Jerry Thomas Gallery Addition
Construction has begun on a new addition to the El Quartelejo Museum! The Jerry Thomas Art Gallery will honor our homegrown artist and share his wonderful paintings with the public. Jerry's widespread acclaim and name recognition will bring many visitors to Scott City.
Jerry is a 1977 graduate of Scott Community High School. He is the son of Clyde and Velda Thomas. He is very well known for his wildlife paintings, sports paintings, and his series featuring the military posts of Kansas.
You are invited to make a donation to the Scott County Historical Society to help with this project. Please earmark your gift for the Jerry Thomas Art Gallery. Your generous gifts are vital to allow completion of this great project. You may see the floor plan and get more information about the gallery at the museum.
(7.25.08)
The El Quartelejo Museum is located at 902 West 5th Street (West Highway 96) in Scott City. They are open Monday-Friday 1pm-5pm or by appointment. Call 602. 872.5912 or 620.872.5718 to make an appointment.
The El Quartelejo Museum exhibits mark a timeline of history in Western Kansas. Fifty million years ago this area was covered by an inland sea. The fossil remains of sea creatures and shells are found in the chalk formations in Scott, Logan, Gove, and other nearby counties. Unique formations in Gove County are called The Monument Rocks (see above...) and were used by early travelers as landmarks. The museum has a sandbox with fossils hidden inside for children to discover. A complete fossil of a Gillicus is displayed. (See below...)
Prehistoric Native Americans migrated through Scott County over a period of thousands of years. The natural springs in addition to the bluffs and streams in the Scott Lake area attracted deer, buffalo, antelope, and hunters. Prior to the introduction of horses into America, the dwellings of the native peoples were smaller but still portable.
An important chapter in the history of Native America is told in the recorded story of the Pueblo Indians. They traveled to this area in western Kansas from New Mexico to escape the harsh treatment of the Spanish. This journey took place in the 1600s. This group of Pueblo Indians settled in the Scott State Park area. They were "growers" and used irrigation techniques to water their corn, squash, and other crops. The ruins of a pueblo, El Quartelejo, were first excavated in 1898 and are still visible at the state park, 12 miles north of Scott City.
The last Indian battle in Kansas was fought in Scott County. It is commonly referred to as "The Battle of Punished Woman's Fork". In 1878, a band of Northern Cheyenne Indians, who had been dwelling in Oklahoma, left the reservation, protesting their internment by the US government. They traveled to this location in Scott County, where they planned an attack on the cavalry, which was traveling from Ft Wallace.
Homesteaders began arriving in Scott County in the 1880s. Scott City was founded by a woman - Maria DeGeer from Chicago. She was a woman who was ahead of her time - very talented and educated. Due to lack of trees for lumber, homesteads were built mainly of sod. (See below...)
Important to every young and growing town were blacksmiths and railroads. Scott City was fortunate to have three railroads throughout its history. The several blacksmith shops were gathering places for men, as well as necessary to provide repairs for the area settlers.
