News

The National Park Service signed six Tribal Historic Preservation agreements with Tribes across the country in the 2024 fiscal year that ended September 30, transferring to Tribes certain historic preservation responsibilities that would otherwise be the responsibility of the state in which a Tribe is located. 

BEATRICE, Neb. – On Sunday, November 10 at 2 p.m., Homestead National Historical Park will welcome Steven Tamayo from the Bluebirds Cultural Initiative. Tamayo will present a program on the deer skin Lakota winter count he created for Homestead National Historical Park’s Winter Festival of Prairie Cultures. This program will take place at the Homestead Education Center.

BEATRICE, Neb. – Attention kids of all ages! Come to the Education Center at Homestead National Historical Park on Saturday, November 9, at 10 a.m. and join us in a ranger-led activity as we learn about the many uses Native Americans and early settlers had for the bison. And of course, the event is FREE! Come dressed for the weather. Jackets, sunscreen, and insect repellent are all recommended.

It’s a Living History Extravaganza! Experience history at Homestead National Historical Park’s Heritage Center on Saturday, August 31, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Historic chore demonstrations and crafts will be led by volunteers. Hands-on crafts will include button toys, spinning, and cornhusk dolls. Starting at 10 a.m., Blue Valley Antique Club members will disk and drill the Heritage Center’s demonstration field with historic farm equipment. This demonstration of historic equipment will plant the field with winter wheat.

On June 19, at approximately 11 a.m., Cherokee Nation’s twelve Remember the Removal Bike Riders will cycle into Pea Ridge National Military Park to honor their ancestors by visiting a portion of the route more than 10,000 Cherokee traveled in the late 1830s as they were forcibly removed from their ancestral homelands. Today known as the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail, one of the best-preserved sections of the path lies along the Telegraph Road near Elkhorn Tavern. The riders will also visit Ruddick’s Field, where some removal contingents camped along the route.

Join a ranger for a walk back in time to the “Good’ Ol’ Days” Saturday, June 1, 2024. Programs and living history activities will be ongoing from 9:30 am - 3 pm. All activities are free and open to the public. To find out more, please contact the park at 620-223-0310.

With the addition in April of the Tule River Indian Tribe in California, the National Park Service (NPS) has signed ten new Tribal Historic Preservation agreements with Tribes in five states over the last year.

Celebrate National Park Week at Homestead National Historical Park, April 20-28! Homestead National Historical Park will start the festivities at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 20, 2024 with the Wichita War Dancer at the Homestead Education Center. Greg Victors, also known as the Wichita War Dancer, is an Indigenous performer dedicated to preserving traditional Native American culture through the War Dance. In addition to performing native dances, Victors will also help the audience learn more about Indigenous culture.

Fort Scott National Historic Site concludes the first year of Native American Experience programing with two chapters from the Civil War in Kansas. The first presentation, “A Shield Against the World”: Opothleyahola and the Trail of Blood on Ice Campaign in the Civil War, is by Dr. Michelle M. Martin on Saturday, November 18th, at 1pm. The second presentation, “Allies and Adversaries”: The role of American Indians in the Civil War west of the Mississippi River, is by Arnold W. Schofield on Sunday, November 19th, at 2pm.

Friday, October 20, 2023, the Friends of Fort Scott National Historic Site, Inc. and Fort Scott National Historic Site are sponsoring the premiere of Killers of the Flower Moon, as a part of the nationwide release. The free premiere showing is at 6:40 pm and is hosted by the Fort Scott Cinema, 224 W 18th St, Fort Scott, KS 66701. The free tickets are available at the box office at show time.