PAWNEE COUNTY PROGRESS 2015
Special to the Great Bend Tribune Sunday, Jan. 25, 2015
Fort Larned celebrates 50-year milestone
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ORT LARNED — As the best preserved Indian Wars military post on the Santa Fe Trail, Fort Larned National Historic Site is one of our Nation’s most compelling places to tell of the turbulent 1860s as different cultures clashed over control of the American west. For the Plains Indians, it is a story of fighting for homelands in the face of overwhelming numbers and superior weapons. For the military, it is a tale of Indian relations, some peaceful and others that weren’t. Traders, immigrants and other
travelers on the Santa Fe Trail added their cultural exchanges as they traveled to settle new lands, or to simply profit from trade goods. Fort Larned’s 2014 seemed to busier than ever with events and activities ranging from school field trips to celebrating Smokey Bear’s 70th birthday! The most significant event this year had to do with a 50- year celebration. In 2014 Fort Larned celebrated a 50-year milestone at the Labor Day event. The fort became the first designated park in Kansas
to be admitted into the National Park Service in 1964. Hundreds of visitors enjoyed hearing talks on the fort’s history as a military post, working ranch, as well as the extensive restoration work done by the Park Service over the last 50 years. The Old Guard provided a free lunch at noon, immediately following the raising of a 20-by-36 foot garrison flag with help from military color guards from nearby Fort Riley and McConnell Air Force Base. The 1st Infantry Regimental Band See FORT, 10