The Watkins Museum of History on Thursday is kicking off its 27th annual Civil War on the Border festival, including tours of historical sites and programs honoring heritage in Douglas County.
This year’s theme encompasses both Douglas County’s natural and cultural histories of the Civil War era. The four-day heritage festival features 15 tours, lectures and programs.
A few events to note, which are free to attend, include:
• 7 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 18: Lisa Brady, professor and author of the 2012 book “War Upon the Land: Military Strategy and the Transformation of Southern Landscapes during the American Civil War,” will present on the environmental side of the war and how it “inspired greater acceptance of the wilderness,” according to the online event page. Brady’s lecture is the first event of the festival and will be held virtually.
• 7 to 8 p.m. Friday, Aug. 19: Lorien Foote, author of the 2021 book, “Rites of Retaliation: Civilization, Soldiers, and Campaigns in the American Civil War,” will delve into different forms of retaliation between the North and South during the war. Foote’s lecture will be held virtually.
• 10 to 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 20: An annual memorial service will remember the victims of Quantrill’s Raid, in which 160 to 190 people were massacred in Lawrence on Aug. 21, 1863.
The memorial service will be followed by a new program, led by historian and photographer John Charlton and Will Haynes, the museum’s director of engagement and learning, about the life of renowned photographer Alexander Gardner. They specifically will discuss Gardner’s 1867 trip to document the progress of the Kansas Pacific Railway as well as Charlton’s photography of the same route 130 years later. The event will be held in the community room at the Watkins Museum.
• 7 to 8 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 21: Eric Anderson, citizen of the Potawatomi Nation and professor at Haskell Indian Nations University, will relate discussions of the Civil War to the history of the early Indigenous tribes of Kansas. Melissa M. Peterson (Diné), director of tribal relations for the University of Kansas, will follow by discussing the meanings and importance of land/people acknowledgments. The discussion, which will conclude the festival, will be held both in person at the Watkins Museum and virtually.
Virtual lectures will be livestreamed on the Watkins Museum’s Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. The in-person programs mentioned here will be at Watkins Museum of History, 1047 Massachusetts St. in Lawrence.
Other events, including tours of the Robert H. Miller House, Oak Hill Cemetery and more, require tickets to attend. Tickets to individual events, ranging from $15 to $30, can be purchased at this link. Watkins Museum members may qualify for discounted tickets, and those interested in becoming a member can register using this link.
See the full schedule for Civil War on the Border at this link. For more information on the festival, sponsored by the Lawrence Parks and Recreation Department, or to read more about the Watkins Museum, visit its website.
