Historic Fort Scott is only 90 minutes away |
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| Written by Kristin Babcock | |||
| Tuesday, 09 June 2009 23:00 | |||
 The kids are out of school. The family budget is tight. Gasoline and food prices are climbing – again. A two-week summer vacation in Florida? Maybe not this year, but there are plenty of sites close to home worth a road trip. Sun staffers hit the highways to find the best places to spend a day. Travel south on U.S. Highway 69 for about an hour and a half and you will wind up in Fort Scott, Kan. It is a city that prides itself on “simple pleasures and hidden treasures.” Fort Scott is named after United States Army General Winfield Scott, a Mexican American War hero and adviser to the Union during the Civil War. Scott is said to have been “unimpressed” by having the Kansas town named after him. He also said he would never visit. And he never did. Despite being ignored by its namesake, the town thrived and now has a population of about 8,000. A ride on “Dolly the Trolley” will give Fort Scott visitors an idea of the area Scott, or “Old Fuss and Feathers,” never saw. For about $5, the ride offers a look at Victorian-style homes and downtown and a variety of landmarks, shops and eateries. Trolley rides are offered Friday through Sunday. Call ahead for conditions, 1-800-245-FORT. The U.S. Army established the fort in the early 1840s. Abandoned by the Army about 10 years later, settlers purchased the fort buildings. Eventually the fort became a hub of Bleeding Kansas during the Civil War era. Today, visitors can tour infantry barracks, hospitals, living quarters and several museum exhibits. Guided tours are offered at 1 p.m. in the summer. A visit to the fort costs $3. Re-enactments and demonstrations are scheduled throughout the year, with the next taking place July 4. Close to the fort is the historic downtown area. Victorian structures built from 1865 to 1919 house retail stores selling antiques, home décor, clothing, and arts and crafts. The Nu-Grille restaurant, 24 N. National, has been a downtown presence since 1946. Diners can sit at the counter and watch as the cooks serve up homemade french fries, curly fries and onion rings, and pie made fresh every day. Every burger, sandwich and hot dog is priced under $6. Downtown is also home to the Lowell Milken Center, 4 S. Main, The organization works with schools to teach respect and understanding. The center has a series of exhibits including one about the “Life in a Jar” project. “Life in a Jar” was developed by students from Bourbon County and based on the life of a Holocaust heroine, Irena Sendler. Sendler rescued 2,500 children from the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II. The students wrote a play about Sendler that is now performed nationwide. The center is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and by appointment over the weekend. There is no admission fee. Throughout Fort Scott one will also see the influence of American Renaissance man Gordon Parks, who was born in the city in 1912. He may be best known for his career as the first African-American photographer for Life magazine, but he had a full resume built on creative expression as a writer, photographer, film director and composer. The Gordon Parks Center for Culture and Diversity is located at Fort Scott Community College, 2108 S. Horton, and presents artifacts from his life and photographs donated by Parks. Established in 2004, two years before Parks’ death, the center is in the process of moving to a new 4,000-square-foot exhibition space. Visitors can see artifacts and memorabilia from “Shaft,” the hit movie he directed, cameras and the desk where he wrote. Those interested in a visit can contact director Jill Warford at (620) 223-2700, ext. 515 Parks often referred to his camera as his “choice of weapons” to fight poverty and discrimination. In October, the college hosts The Gordon Parks Celebration to honor Parks and other artists who have used creative outlets as their weapon of choice. For many years, Parks stayed far away from Fort Scott, where he experienced a childhood of racism and bigotry. In his later years, he wrote about how his bitterness toward Fort Scott melted away. At his request, he was buried in Evergreen Cemetery, 914 215th St. The city, he said, had become “the most important city in the universe” and to him would always provide a “homecoming.”
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