The Watkins Museum of History will have an exhibition marking the centennial anniversary of the Haskell Memorial Stadium and Arch’s dedication on campus.
The stadium and arch were dedicated in 1926, and celebrations drew more than 100,000 visitors and Indigenous people from 70 tribes, according to a news release.
Haskell Indian Nations University hosted a two-day centennial celebration and homecoming Friday and Saturday, including a bison harvest and community feed, a powwow, alumni gatherings, history talks and more.
“Lights, Football, Community: Haskell Memorial Stadium Turns 100” will be open from Friday, Sept. 25 through Saturday, Jan. 16 on the second-floor gallery at the Watkins, 1047 Massachusetts St.
The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays.
“The exhibition features promotional items from the museum’s collection, photographs from the Kansas State Historical Society and the Haskell Cultural Center and Museum, and stadium construction photographs and archival documents on loan from the family of Frank McDonald, who led the fundraising campaign,” according to the release.
Kennedy Murphy, Apache Tribe of Oklahoma and Watkins Indigenous Studies intern, said that as a Haskell alum and researcher, the stadium serves as a reminder to him.
“A reminder of the collective history of Indian boarding schools and all their complexities, a reminder of all Haskell Institute students and their experiences, and a reminder of Indigenous resiliency,” Murphy said in the release. “Today, the Haskell Memorial Stadium stands as a reminder of determination, strength, and community. The stadium houses generations of memories and will continue to stand for future generations to create their own memories.”
Andrew Stockmann, the Watkins’ curator of exhibitions, thanked Haskell Cultural Center and Museum Director Travis Campbell, Cherokee, Choctaw and Delaware, for partnering on the project.
“We are honored to showcase the history of Haskell Memorial Stadium, not only the first lighted stadium in the Midwest but also a World War I memorial to the 415 Haskell Institute servicemembers in the Great War,” Stockmann said.
If local news matters to you, please help us keep doing this work.
Don’t miss a beat — get the latest news from the Times delivered to your inbox:
Click here to learn more about our newsletters first
This post is by the Lawrence Times news team.
If you have news tips, questions, comments, concerns, compliments or corrections for our team, please reach out and let us know what’s on your mind. Email us at [email protected] (don’t forget the KS!), or find more contact info and a quick contact form at LawrenceKSTimes.com/contact.
Follow us so you won’t miss the local news that matters most to you:
Latest Lawrence news:
Wulfe Wulfemeyer/Lawrence Times
