25th Neewollah
Creator: Neewollah, Inc.
Date: October 26-29, 1983
This program describes events at the 1983 Neewollah festival in Independence, Kansas. Neewollah is a celebration that began in 1919 with alternative activities for kids. Neewollah (Halloween spelled backwards) is the oldest and largest annual festival in Kansas. For 100 years, Independence has been celebrating with parades, queen's pageant, musical theatre productions, carnival, street acts, food vendors, and much, much more. It started out small, centered around parades held on October 31. Except for years of interruption in the mid-20th century, due to the Great Depression, World War II and lack of financial support, the festival has grown from a one-day celebration to a now nine-day festival. Digitization funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission through the Kansas State Historical Records Advisory Board.

Albert Green, World War I soldier
Date: 1918
Around 1919, the Kansas State Historical Society and the American Legion solicited biographical information from returning veterans (primarily members of the 35th and 89th infantry divisions) and the families of those who died in service, notably from the Gold Star Mothers. Each veteran or family member was asked to provide letters, photographs, a biography, and military records. This file contains information on Albert J. Green. Green died on October 11, 1918 from influenza while at home on furlough.

Alfred M. Landon's Notification Day Parade, Topeka, Kansas
Date: July 23, 1936
View of an Independence, Kansas marching band. The band was performing in Kansas Governor Alfred M. Landon's Notification Day Parade in celebration of the notification of his nomination to run as the Republican party's candidate in the 1936 presidential election. Landon was defeated in November by a landslide vote for incumbent Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Alfred M. Landon's Notification Day Parade, Topeka, Kansas
Date: July 23, 1936
View of an Independence, Kansas marching band. The band was performing in Kansas Governor Alfred M. Landon's Notification Day Parade in celebration of the notification of his nomination to run as the Republican party's candidate in the 1936 presidential election. Landon was defeated in November by a landslide vote for incumbent Franklin D. Roosevelt.

An appeal for help in behalf of the colored refugees in Kansas
Creator: Rust, Horatio Nelson, 1828-1906
Date: January 22, 1881
This flyer, distributed by the Southern Refugee Relief Association of Chicago, Illinois, describes the dire situation of the African-American refugees relocated in Kansas. The secretary of this association, Horatio N. Rust, had taken this opportunity to pass along information relayed to him by Elizabeth Comstock, an aid worker in Topeka. Comstock was thankful for the donations of food and other goods, but asked for more assistance in feeding, clothing, and sheltering these refugees. The flyer also includes short excerpts of letters by agents of the refugee association who had direct knowledge of the emigrants' situation.

Art Work on Eastern Kansas
Creator: Western Photogravure Company
Date: 1900
This pictorial book gives a brief overview of eastern Kansas. This is part ten of twelve. Views of the Melan Arch Bridge in Topeka, Plymouth Congregational Church in Lawrence, Independence High School, and the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad depot in Parsons are some of the featured photographs.

Art Work on Eastern Kansas
Creator: Western Photogravure Company
Date: 1900
This pictorial book gives a brief overview of eastern Kansas. This is part seven of twelve. The stockyards in Kansas City, Kansas, the Soldier's Home in Leavenworth, and Ft. Scott High School are some of the featured photographs.

Art Work on Eastern Kansas
Creator: Western Photogravure Company
Date: 1900
This pictorial book gives a brief overview of eastern Kansas. This is part six of twelve. The Blue River in Manhattan, the Montgomery County courthouse in Independence, and a street scene in Fort Scott are some of the featured photographs.

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company depot, Independence, Kansas
Creator: Killam, H.
Date: September 04, 1965
This photograph shows the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company depot in Independence, Kansas. The one-story "prairie style" station features a hipped roof with a semi-hexagonal operator's bay and a matching bay at the waiting room end. The depot no longer stands.

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company depot, Independence, Kansas
Date: Between 1910 and 1914
This photograph shows a group of people standing in front of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company depot in Independence, Kansas. The one-story "prairie style" station features a hipped roof with a semi-hexagonal operator's bay and a matching bay at the waiting room end. The depot no longer stands.

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company depot, Independence, Kansas
Creator: Kelley, F.O.
Date: Between 1910 and 1914
This photograph shows a street view of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company depot in Independence, Kansas. The track view would show a one-story "prairie style" station with a hipped roof and a semi-hexagonal operator's bay with a matching bay at the waiting room end. The depot no longer stands.

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company depot, Independence, Kansas
Creator: Killam, H.
Date: June 18, 1955
This photograph shows the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company depot in Independence, Kansas. The one-story "prairie style" station features a hipped roof with a semi-hexagonal operator's bay and a matching bay at the waiting room end. The depot no longer stands.

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company's freight depot, Independence, Kansas
Creator: Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway Company
Date: May 1931
This photograph shows the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company 's freight depot at Independence, Kansas. The depot was built in 1872.

Atlas and plat book of Montgomery County, Kansas
Creator: Kenyon Company (Des Moines, Iowa)
Date: c1916
This atlas contains an outline map of the county, plats of all the townships with owners' names, principal towns, Kansas state map showing automobile roads and map of the world, compiled from latest data on record.

Automobile Club of Wichita Year Book
Creator: Automobile Club of Wichita, Kansas
Date: 1909-1910
The Automobile Club of Wichita published this year book for the years 1909-1910. Its content reflects that automobile travel was a recent introduction to the lives of Kansans. It includes advertisements from automobile dealers, garages, and other businesses in Wichita, Hutchinson, Newton, Winfield, El Dorado, Dodge City, Yates Center, Iola, Independence, Topeka, Emporia, Garden City, and Lawrence. It also lists the officers and board of directors of the club, its constitution and bylaws, the Kansas law regulation the use of automobiles, two Wichita ordinances (#2875 and 3002) related to the use of cars, and rules of the road. The bulk of the yearbook provides driving routes to and from various cities and towns in Kansas, as well as Colorado and Oklahoma. An index to the routes and maps is on pages 22-23. These driving routes include specific directions and include references to many small towns and local landmarks, etc. The yearbook also lists Wichita residents that own automobiles, their license numbers and the type of automobile they own. The booklet concludes with a list of members of the automobile club.

Barn near Independence, Kansas
Date: April 1936
This is a photograph showing a barn near Independence, Kansas.

Baseball team, Independence, Kansas
Date: 1896
This cabinet card photograph is of the 1896 Independence, Kansas, baseball team. Independence joined the Kansas State League when it was established in late June 1896. Other members of the league included Parsons, Emporia and Junction City. By mid-July, however, the league had expanded and reorganized into northern and southern divisions. The Northern Kansas League included Junction City, Topeka, Emporia and Minneapolis. Members of the Southern Kansas League were Independence, Parsons, Chanute and Coffeyville. Independence finished first in the Southern Kansas League. This photograph was taken fairly late in the 1896 season since it includes two players who joined the team in mid-August. The players pictured include: top row (l to r) -- Harry Colburn (p), Doc Goodell (p), Billy Oswald (ss), Jimmy Underwood (lf); middle row (l to r) -- Walter Frantz (3b); Tom Drummy (p), Claude Jones (c), Hulbert (cf); bottom row (l to r) -- William Conlin (1b), E. Jones (rf), and Wiley Hill (2b). The photographer was Brown of Independence.

Believe in the Magic Neewollah
Creator: Neewollah, Inc.
Date: October 22-30, 1994
This program describes events at the 1994 Neewollah festival in Independence, Kansas. Neewollah is a celebration that began in 1919 with alternative activities for kids. Neewollah (Halloween spelled backwards) is the oldest and largest annual festival in Kansas. For 100 years, Independence has been celebrating with parades, queen's pageant, musical theatre productions, carnival, street acts, food vendors, and much, much more. It started out small, centered around parades held on October 31. Except for years of interruption in the mid-20th century, due to the Great Depression, World War II and lack of financial support, the festival has grown from a one-day celebration to a now nine-day festival. Digitization funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission through the Kansas State Historical Records Advisory Board.

Business street in Independence, Kansas
Date: Between 1870 and 1872
Exterior view of Kincaid & Root, dry goods and groceries, and neighboring gun shop and meat market located on a business street in Independence, Kansas.

Charles E. Hughes Invited to Kansas Banker's Assoc. Meeting
Creator: Kansas. Governor (1915-1919: Capper)
Date: 1915
This file includes an invitation by Governor Arthur Capper to Honor Charles E. Hughes, Associate Justice in Washington, D. C. Governor Capper is extending a personal invitation along with the Kansas Bankers Association to attend the annual meeting in Independence, Kansas. This is part of a bigger collection of Governor Arthur Capper correspondence.

Chester Stevens to Andrew Schoeppel
Creator: Stevens, Chester
Date: August 02, 1943
In this letter to Governor Schoeppel, Chester Stevens of Independence, Kansas, argues that the proposed cut in the value gasoline "A" coupons to the Midwest is unfair due to the great distances between many towns and cities in that area of the country.

Commemorative spoon
Date: between 1890 and 1920
Sterling commemorative spoon. Scene of the "City Hospital. Independence, Kan." engraved in bowl.

Community Spirit: The Heart of Neewollah
Creator: Neewollah, Inc.
Date: October 20-October 28, 1989
This program describes events at the 1989 Neewollah festival in Independence, Kansas. Neewollah is a celebration that began in 1919 with alternative activities for kids. Neewollah (Halloween spelled backwards) is the oldest and largest annual festival in Kansas. For 100 years, Independence has been celebrating with parades, queen's pageant, musical theatre productions, carnival, street acts, food vendors, and much, much more. It started out small, centered around parades held on October 31. Except for years of interruption in the mid-20th century, due to the Great Depression, World War II and lack of financial support, the festival has grown from a one-day celebration to a now nine-day festival. Digitization funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission through the Kansas State Historical Records Advisory Board.

Driving goggles
Date: between 1900 and 1920
Leather, metal, and glass driving goggles. The goggles likely belonged to Aron Treger, who was a jeweler and optometrist in WaKeeney, Kansas, in the 1910s, and in Independence, Kansas, from 1920 until around 1965. Drivers wore goggles like these to protect their eyes before automobiles became enclosed.

Earl Thomas Reynolds to Governor Fred Hall
Creator: Reynolds, Earl Thomas
Date: February 11, 1955
This letter was written by Earl Thomas Reynolds, a lawyer in Coffeyville, Kansas, to Governor Fred Hall. Reynolds was concerned that black people in Kansas were not receiving adequate patronage and political party representation in or by the Republican Party, particularly in the third district. Mr Reynolds inquired why should blacks continue to support the Republican Party, at all levels of government, if their support is not rewarded by the party.