Good News


-------------------


Community stakeholders met with new owners Monte and Doris Miller and family to learn more about the exciting new future for Abilene's KABI-AM 1560 radio station.

-------------------



*Sondra Messenger is the Visitors Center Manager for the Abilene Convention & Visitors Bureau

-------------------

Magazine finalists: 2 local restaurants among 53 competing



Click here to learn more!

Shop Abilene
Throwback Thursday

Flag at half-staff in Washington D.C. photo 71-456-41 U.S. Army - public domain
President Dwight D. Eisenhower died on March 28, 1969 at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, D.C. His body was transferred to Gawler Funeral Home for burial preparation.

April 2, 1969
Arrival of funeral train in Abilene, Kansas
10:30 AM - The funeral in Abilene took place on the grounds of the Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum. The service began on the steps of the Library and concluded inside the Place of Meditation, the chapel where Eisenhower is buried.
 

Located across from the Eisenhower Home is the Place of Meditation, the final resting place of Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th President of the United States. In November 1979 Mamie Doud Eisenhower was interred in the building. Dwight and Mamie's first born son, Doud Dwight, was interred in 1966. The Place of Meditation was built with private funds under the auspices of the Eisenhower Presidential Library Commission.

Outstanding elements of the interior design of the Place of Meditation are the richly colored windows, the Travertine marble wall panels, the walnut woodwork, and the large embroidered hanging, which carries the words of the prayer that President Eisenhower wrote for his first Inaugural Address, on January 20, 1953. There is a meditation portion of the building where, according to General Eisenhower's wishes, it was hoped that visitors would reflect upon the ideals that made this a great nation and pledge themselves again to continued loyalty to those ideals.

Casket
$80 Government Issue requested by Eisenhower. The only difference between his casket and those furnished for any soldier buried by the Army is an inner glass seal that cost an extra $115. It was lined with tailored eggshell crepe.

General Dwight D. Eisenhower was buried in his World War II uniform. It consists of "pink" trousers and the green "Ike" jacket that he made famous. Although he was one of the most decorated military men in history, his uniform had only the following medals: Army Distinguished Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters, Navy Distinguished Service Medal, and the Legion of Merit.

Click here to learn more.


Photo Credit: 
Flag at half-staff in Washington D.C.
photo 71-456-41
U.S. Army - public domain
Attraction Update:
Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad

Exciting news! The Hoffman Grist Mill in Enterprise will be open during ASVRR train runs. 
Dickinson County Heritage Center

No foolin' about it. Abilene is the place to be on April 1. If you love history, cowboys, longhorns and the story of the Chisholm Trail, the Chisholm Trail Author Symposium and Exhibit Opening is for you! Check out our Facebook Live video with Michael Hook, director of the  Dickinson County Heritage Center  for a preview of this weekend's activities.
Eisenhower Park

Celebrate  "National Walk in the Park Day" on March 30 at the  Eisenhower Park & Rose Garden in Abilene, KS !

Walk through and enjoy the smell of roses or perhaps relax in one of the many shelters in the park. 

Construction began in 1936 as part of President Roosevelt's WPA projects, with the Abilene Municipal Swimming Pool, which featured a 35 foot diving board and an observation deck that housed the snack  bar and held local dances. It was later dubbed one of the finest pools in Kansas. 

In 1944, the park was dedicated and named after Dwight D. Eisenhower. Later in 1952, Ike announced his candidacy for Presidency in the park stadium. In 2002, it was registered on the National Register of Historic Places.

The park comprises of many different areas including the rose garden, baseball fields, basketball courts, tennis courts and volleyball courts as well as several shelters and public restrooms, making it a favorite for family reunions or other special occasions.

Eisenhower Presidential Museum, Library & Boyhood Home


Click image to view video

Watch the video from the  Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum's Ike and McCarthy book talk featuring David A. Nichols. Nichols, a former professor and academic dean at Southwestern in Winfield, is an author of several Eisenhower books and a leading expert on the Eisenhower Presidency.
--------

Chisholm Trail Author Symposium and Exhibit Opening

Spend the day immersed in Chisholm Trail history at the Eisenhower Presidential Library. An author symposium begins at high noon on Saturday, April 1 in the Library building auditorium. The symposium concludes with the opening of the Chisholm Trail and the Cowtown that Raised a President exhibit opening.

A number of well-known authors and Chisholm Trail historians were selected to kick off the series of Chisholm Trail events set for this year marking the 150th anniversary. The event is held in partnership with the Dickinson County Heritage Center & Trails, Rails & Tales: Spirit of the Chisholm Trail.

SCHEDULE:
12 p.m. - Margaret & Gary Kraisinger: The Cattle Trails Before the Chisholm Trail
Award-winning authors, Gary & Margaret, have published three books and various articles on Texas cattle trails. The couple researches, lectures, and writes about the Texas cattle trail industry that lasted only about 50 years from 1846 to 1897. They have mapped all four south to north cattle trail systems. Their latest book addresses the Chisholm Trail.

1 p.m. - Roy Bird: Ike and the Chisholm Trail
Bird has been writing books for more than three decades focusing on the Civil War, the American West, and his beloved native Kansas.

2 p.m. - Rod Beemer: Mother Nature's Impact on the Trail
Beemer is a writer, researcher, and speaker who has authored and co-authored 12 nonfiction books, an e-book novel, numerous magazine and newspaper articles. Originally from Minneapolis, Kansas, Beemer has conducted an extensive amount of research in the field of Mother Nature's impact on the pioneers of the 19th Century.

3 p.m. - Jim Hoy: Outlaws and Legends of the Trail
An English professor and Director of the Center for Great Plains Studies at Emporia University, Hoy has lived the majority of his life in the Flint Hills. His published works and interests focus on Western American literature and Great Plains folklore.

4 p.m. - James Sherow: The Markets of the Chisholm Trail
Sherow is a history professor at Kansas State University and author of several books, chapters, and articles. His research and teaching interests are Kansas history, North American Indian history, and the history of the American West.

5 p.m. - Reception with light refreshments and unveiling of the new temporary exhibit " Chisholm Trail and the Cowtown that Raised a President." The exhibit will be on display through May 2018.

--------

"NOT The Last Butterfly" Film Screen & The Butterfly Project Program

April 2, 2017
4:00 pm
Visitors Center Auditorium
The Butterfly Project is an artistic, educational activity that memorializes the 1.5 million children who died in the Holocaust, and honors the survivors. This program has become a global unifying memorial that uses lessons of the Holocaust and the symbol of renewed life (a butterfly) to teach tolerance and to remember the past, act responsibly in the present and create a more peaceful future.

Click here to learn more.

--------


"Ike" spy - check out this great display in the Kansas State Capitol Visitors Center honoring Abilene's hometown hero. 
Great Plains Theatre

Upcoming Events:



Front Country



Cinema:


Greyhound Hall of Fame

Need a break from traveling? Stop by the Greyhound Hall of Fame to hang with the Greyhounds!

Open daily from 9:00-4:45
Free admission
Jeffcoat Photography Studio


An impressive look at the "old" and "new" Dickinson County Courthouses in 1958. The former courthouse building was later torn down.

Hours of Operation:
Thursday 9:30 am - 5:30 pm
Friday and Saturday 8:30 am - 4:30 pm
or call for appointment

Admission is free
2017 Calendar



Click image to view full calendar

Help us, help you
Have an upcoming event? Help us, help you. We do our best to stay up-to-date, but please make sure to include us in your event and special promotions. Please send announcements to: director@abilenecityhall.com.
We do our best to make sure all information is correct. 
It is advisable to always call ahead before visiting.
Abilene Convention & Visitors Bureau | 785.263.2231 | Email | Website

STAY CONNECTED:
Like us on Facebook