The Watkins Museum of History on Thursday is kicking off its 27th annual Civil War on the Border festival. The four days of programming will feature 15 tours, lectures and more in Douglas County.
Glenn Kappelman left his mark on Lawrence in many ways. On Friday, the Watkins Museum of History will honor Kappelman’s legacy with a special program and exhibit.
Watkins Musem/Contributed
The Watkins Museum of History’s annual Summer Games have returned for the whole community. But this year, there’s also an hour each week reserved just for students of the Ballard Center.
Many Lawrence residents don’t realize that North Lawrence has a vibrant and diverse history of its own. Images in a new Watkins Museum exhibit embody that history.
The Watkins Museum of History’s public research room is currently under renovation, but the plans are expanding even more with an additional $100,000 grant.
When Kevin Willmott was in fifth grade, a comic book gave him his first lesson in Black history. Seeing those lessons entwined with entertainment that way helped the Oscar winner make the connection of sharing history with others through storytelling.
The Watkins Museum of History will soon host an exhibit, “Confronting the Past: The Douglas County Community Remembrance Project,” telling the stories of three Black men lynched in Lawrence in 1882 and their memorialization.
August Rudisell / The Lawrence Times
Lawrence historians and preservationists will soon host a dedication of interpretive panels installed at Grover Barn, which served as a stop along the Underground Railroad.
Tricia Masenthin/The Lawrence Times
Exploring the Watkins Museum exhibit, Mike Silverman said, brought back memories of the “thousands of people in Lawrence and throughout Kansas” who fought for LGBTQ+ civil rights and made meaningful change.
Contributed Photo
In her new book, “Constructing the Outbreak: Epidemics in Media and Collective Memory,” Dr. Katherine A. Foss uses 1918 Lawrence as a case study in the role of media and how popular narratives form around major diseases.
