Wichita, Kansas had never ever been on my radar as someplace I ever wanted to visit. I pictured hot, dry, cultural wasteland. The slick brochures never tempted me, until this trip. There was something in Wichita called the Old Cowtown Museum that I wanted to see. After Duncan, OK had been pretty much of a big old waste of time, I was suspicious.
Sister and I planned to spend the morning at the Old Cowtown Museum and head home after that. If the Cowtown was a waste, we would head home sooner. The Cowtown was going to add to our background for the book we are planning to write.
We headed downtown and to the west by the river to the Old Cowtown Museum.
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There was a nice trail beside the river, but even at 10 am it was hot, hot, hot in Wichita.
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In a few years the little trees they have planted will have grown so big that it will be difficult to see the river.
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Sister and I planned to spend the morning at the Old Cowtown Museum and head home after that. If the Cowtown was a waste, we would head home sooner. The Cowtown was going to add to our background for the book we are planning to write.
We headed downtown and to the west by the river to the Old Cowtown Museum.
The Old Cowtown was guarded by a bunch of shoot 'em up cowboys. (I am wondering what the conceal and carry laws are in Kansas.)
An authentic chuck wagon sat toward the entrance.
The first building is set up as a trading post. This was the kind of building that was common before the railroad came through because the trees on the prairie didn't hold a candle to the Wisconsin trees that came on the trains.
The interior of the trading post reminded me of others I had seen. Pelts and hides that were traded for needed supplies like traps and gunpowder and coffee. This trading post period was a little earlier than the setting for our story. Old St. Charles just across the river from home has a nice trading post along with the first capital. I will go there if I need more trading post information.
(And here is where I say that I took way too many pictures and I would like to include them on the blog so that if I want to refer to them later, I can find them on line.)
(So this travel piece will continue next week.)