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“All things are bound together. All things connect.” Chief Seattle, Duwamish Wichita’s iconic symbol, The Keeper of the Plains, sums up the overarching history, culture, significance and role of the city where the West truly begins. The 44-foot Keeper of the Plains is situated at the site where the Big and Little Arkansas Rivers, in downtown Wichita, is on Native American sacred ground. It faces the rising sun, weighs 5-tons and stands on a 30-foot pedestal and is depicted with arms lifted in entreaty to the Great Spirit. A “Ring of Fire” burns all year on a regular schedule. The sculpture’s design was created and gifted to the city by Kiowa-Comanche artist Blackbear Bosin in 1974. Keeper Plaza features cultural information on the Plains Indians. Around the statue are multiple plaques describing the life, belief, and practices of pre-contact Plains Indian tribes. A sacred hoop symbolizes the directions, the seasons and the earth’s essential elements earth, wind, fire and water. The earliest inhabitants lived on the Great Plains for more than 14,000-years. These tribes included the Blackfoot, Cheyenne, Comanche, Crow and Sioux. Their lives were largely nomadic and revolved around the buffalo. Native Americans continue to gather at this sacred site. In 1969 the Mid-America All-Indian Museum was established as a keeper and promulgator of American Indian culture and heritage. Seventy-three tribes are represented in the Wichita region. The museum has a 3,000-piece collection and presents rotating exhibits. An Outdoor Learning Center featuring a 20-ft tall tipi and a classroom enhance the complex. Galleries incorporate unique artifacts, video and immersive activities. Theindianmuseum.org In 1865 Jesse Chisholm, Scottish-Cherokee -34- | ExtendedWeekendGetaways ~ December, 2023
trader, blazed a trade route that would evolve into the Chisholm Trail, from Texas to Wichita. The trail was used for cattle drives from the 1860s to the 1870s for cattle headed for northern railheads. Wichita thrived on the cattle trade and constructed hotels and two infamous saloons, the First and Last Chance, one at each end of the route. The railroad came to Wichita in 1872 ending an era.
