Chase County Historical Society and Museum

Specific Need

Donations are how the Chase County Historical Society and Museum are able to preserve artifacts, educate and keep up on building maintenance.

With Match Day funds we plan to provide more resources such as, books and videos to capture our past and present before it is lost, to hold special community events and restoration projects, such as, the upstairs "ballroom" to use for, climate safe storage for artifacts, events and more exhibit space.

This year, 2025, our primary goal is to focus on raising funds to publish Chase County Sketches, Book V, and continue collecting and preserving Chase County, KS., history. This series includes family genealogy and stories, which also includes tidbits of history about the communities they lived in. A close runner-up is the restoration and remodeling of the Carter buildings upstairs. We are currently working with a Structural engineer to make sure that this level of the building is sound before we begin any remodeling work.

Mission

As stated in the bylaws: The mission of this society shall be to collect, organize, document and preserve all materials pertinent to the history of Chase County, Kansas.

Profile

The Chase County Historical Society was formed in 1934. 75 years after the County Seat was announced. The first meetings and collections were stored in the Courthouse basement and later moved to the basement of the library. In 1976, the "Bank" building was purchased for a museum to be open to the public. In 2005, the "Cartter" building located just south of the museum, was purchased from the USD 284 school board. These buildings were placed on the National Historic Register in 1977.

The Chase County Historical Society & Museum is a nonprofit organization. We offer today 2 buildings for displays. A Knute Rockne plane crash site display in the South building, including a "Rockne" Studebaker car and houses our genealogy department. The north building has 2 floors and 9 rooms that display local items donated or on loan, that are telling stories of our past.

What do we offer besides displays?

• Historical books on Chase County: Chase County Sketches I - IV, Roots & Patchwork, Courthouse Centennial 1972 & Sesquicentennial 2023
• Museum library of books
• A research library on history: Communities and people
• Genealogy department: Obituaries, cemeteries, family files, and much more
• Newspaper archives and a microfilm Machine
• Special events: Rockne Memorials every 5 years ( upcoming year, 2026)
• Educational programs: Hosting school & community tours, videos on historic history, and Social media posts & stories
• Special displays: Veterans display on Memorial Day weekend & Veterans Day, and a monthly themed showcase

What are we working on currently:

• Chase County Sketches book V 
• Monthly Newsletter
• Chase County history videos, produced by Dr. Alfred Eckes. There are now 8 to view on YouTube and through our Website.
• Participating in the KS Summer Program App
• Attending the Riley County Genealogy History Fair in Manhattan, Ks. where we will have a booth promoting our Chase County Sketches Book V project.

Maintenance & Repairs :

• The Cartter Building is the main entrance to the Historical Society & museum. The upstairs of this building has been in bad shape for a long time. We are preparing to remodel two front rooms to be used for safe storage of archives. New metal shelving on wheels has been purchased to hold and organize these archives.
• While stone work was being done on the front of the building last year, a front panel was removed for the stone masons to work. Behind the panel was a threshold, a door, and a staircase to the upstairs. It was decided by the board to leave this area open and not replace the panel. A new lock has been placed on the door, and deteriorating joist boards and soft threshold boards need to be replaced

These are just a few of the things we offer and are working on. We are excited to provide more!