There will be a potluck dinner at the museum in Leoti on February 23rd at 6:00 p.m., cst, which will include a short meeting and a tour of the Washington-Ames House.
On a personal note, I can hardly wait!!!
VLE-B
Monday, February 8, 2010
The "Big House" in Leoti
Mrs. Karen Walk is amongst, many other lovely things, the curator at the Museum of the Great Plains in Leoti. Through her years at the museum, many great things have changed the entire museum. Changes that are just out-of-this-world! I mentioned before that the Margie Ames Family donated their mother's outstanding home to the museum just recently. Now, Karen has taken time out of her VERY busy schedule to write a story about the house, what is happening and how WE can help with the progress. Here it is:
In the city, if you say that you were going to the "Big House", you may be talking about going to a prison. But, if you said that in Leoti, you just might be going to "Margie's Big House!" The Wichita County Historical Society would like to announce that Margie's big house was graciously donated to them by Margie's families, Norman and Yvonne Ames, Dean and Lorna Wiegers, all of Leoti and Sandra Quartemont of Cudahy, Wisconsin. Margie's house will be "the beautiful jewel of Leoti," as it once was.
The house will be called the Washington-Ames house. As best we can put together, William B. and Julia Washington were the original owners. W.B. came here from Kentucky. He made his home in Leoti since May of 1886, and set up practice as a pioneer lawyer before the county had actually been settled.
As a young man, W.B. became a prominent attorney in Kentucky. His first case in the District Court of Henderson County was a suit prosecuted for carpenter work against a wealthy tobacconist. Mr. Washington won the case, although the trial almost resulted in a court room fight. He also defended Aaron Hooper, who was charged with arson of his jewelry store in Leoti by an insurance company. He secured a verdict in favor of his client. He was a tenacious defender of the law and for many years was active in Wichita County politics.
W.B. and Julia raised 4 sons, Herbert, Harry, William B., Jr. and Herschel, in this home. Julia passed away in 1926 and W.B. in 1934.There may even be someone out there that will remember W.B. or Herschel. We recently found pictures of both W.B. and Julia and another of the four children at our court house. We are looking for anything from the family to put on display at the house.
The big house is located on the corner of J and 3rd Streets. In early photos, the house was painted a dark color with light colored trim and had decorative gingerbread trim which will be replaced. Our plans are to paint the exterior of the house like one of the Victorian "Painted Ladies" of that era. It will catch the eye of traveling on both highways 96 and 25 and our hope is that they will stop in Leoti for awhile. We will have signs about the restoration work in the yard.
An interesting story is at the time of the Tornado of 1923, many buildings around the big house were were destroyed, but the big house stood firm. One of the photos taken at this time shows roofs, boards, mangled tin, etc. lying all around it. Another time, there had been a fire in the house. Every home has a story to tell of the sad and happy events that went on in the home, and it's like they say, "If only walls could talk." We would love to hear and dociment any stories and memories that people have of the house and it's owners.
After the passing of his parents, Herschel Washington rented the home as a private residence to the Cibluski family. Several years later, Marting Van Den Langenberg, a descendant of the Cibulskis, toured the museum and donated a lovely picture of the house taken in the late 1930s. The back porch had not been added on to the house at this time.
In 1943, the big house was sold to Pearl Burch, and in 1947, Tom Burch acquired a Hotel and Restaurant license and rented the upstairs bedrooms to teachers or high school students who lived in the country. One of the licenses was still hanging up on the back porch when Margie and Oren purchased the house. We believe that the back porch as added at that time. Does anyone remember anything about it?
Margie and Oren Ames purchased the big house in about 1958 from Tom Burch. The Ames Family lived there for many years. Sometime after the passing of her husband, Margie moved to a smaller home in Leoti. The big house was full of antique furniture and other collectibles, remaining that way until her passing in 2004.
One of the large displays at the Museum of the Great Plains is Margie's Boutique and Millinery Shop, which is full of Margie's favorite things-HATS! When hats became "out of style" and ladies were getting rid of their hats, Margie was collecting them at garage sales, auctions or anywhere else she could find them. Margie and hats are synonymous, she always wore a hat. Wouldn't she be happy to know that her hats were going back into her big house? I am excited about decorating Margie's Boutique and Millinery Shop in memory of her.
The Wichita County Historical Society plans to restore and preserve the home. The finished rooms will appear like they were at the turn of the century. The house needs a lot of repair, exterior paint, roof and the front roof needs repair. There is plaster work that will beed repaired, electrical wiring and wallpaper to hang, etc. It is possibly the oldest house in town and surely was the gradest in it's time. The interior is lovely with beautiful woodwork that has never been painted, which is a miracle in itself. It will be a lot of work, but it is not impossible. The house is very pertinent to the history of Wichita County.
We may make application for nomination to the Kansas State or the National Register. If we cna get it on either listing, we will be able to apply for grants. One problem is that it take close to two years to get that all done and the roof needs to be replaced right now. It is already leaking and ruining the plaster in some of the ceilings upstairs. Terry Haines Construction will be giving an estimate of a new roof. So, this means we need to make a plea to the community to make donations to the Washington/Ames Restoration Fund for the replacement of the roof. We would like the restoration of the big house to be a community effort. We can not do it without your help. I might also mention that this will be a wonderful educational tool for the children of the community.
There will also be items that we need besides cash donations, such as loaning special tools, or trailer, pickup, etc. And, we will need help with landscaping, grinding out stumps of the recently cut trees, artifacts for display, grant writing, fund raising, sign painting, strong backs to help move furniture, and donation of whatever your talents may be. We will keep the community aware of what is going on at the Washington-Ames House. We will let our needs be known in the "Check it out" section of the Standard.
We are looking for pictures of people that lived in the big house. Since we have none of the Washington family artifacts, we will do the next best thing and decorate the interior of the Victorian period with items donated by people of the community. There are some items that will be moved to the house from the museum. If an item is on loan, the owner will first be contacted for permission to move the item.
We need some strong young guys to carry several doors up out of the basement. We will be looking for large ornate picture frames, old paintings, lace or sheer curtains, draperies that can be remade into the Victorian style and pretty dishes. We are thinking of making a tea room, so will need several sets of wood tables and chairs.
We are excited to have everyone involved and also would like to have new historical society members. It's just $5 annually, $50 for a life membership, or even better yet, get the young ones involved and purchase the life family membership for $100, which includes the parents and all of the children under 18.
We sepecially want to thank the families of Margie and Oren Ames for their donation of the beautiful and historic "big house!" We sincerely are asking the community to help in the effort to save the Washington-Ames House.
There will be a potlucj dinner at the museum on February 23rd, at 6:00 p.m., which will include a short meeting and a tour of the house.
By Karen Walk
In the city, if you say that you were going to the "Big House", you may be talking about going to a prison. But, if you said that in Leoti, you just might be going to "Margie's Big House!" The Wichita County Historical Society would like to announce that Margie's big house was graciously donated to them by Margie's families, Norman and Yvonne Ames, Dean and Lorna Wiegers, all of Leoti and Sandra Quartemont of Cudahy, Wisconsin. Margie's house will be "the beautiful jewel of Leoti," as it once was.
The house will be called the Washington-Ames house. As best we can put together, William B. and Julia Washington were the original owners. W.B. came here from Kentucky. He made his home in Leoti since May of 1886, and set up practice as a pioneer lawyer before the county had actually been settled.
As a young man, W.B. became a prominent attorney in Kentucky. His first case in the District Court of Henderson County was a suit prosecuted for carpenter work against a wealthy tobacconist. Mr. Washington won the case, although the trial almost resulted in a court room fight. He also defended Aaron Hooper, who was charged with arson of his jewelry store in Leoti by an insurance company. He secured a verdict in favor of his client. He was a tenacious defender of the law and for many years was active in Wichita County politics.
W.B. and Julia raised 4 sons, Herbert, Harry, William B., Jr. and Herschel, in this home. Julia passed away in 1926 and W.B. in 1934.There may even be someone out there that will remember W.B. or Herschel. We recently found pictures of both W.B. and Julia and another of the four children at our court house. We are looking for anything from the family to put on display at the house.
The big house is located on the corner of J and 3rd Streets. In early photos, the house was painted a dark color with light colored trim and had decorative gingerbread trim which will be replaced. Our plans are to paint the exterior of the house like one of the Victorian "Painted Ladies" of that era. It will catch the eye of traveling on both highways 96 and 25 and our hope is that they will stop in Leoti for awhile. We will have signs about the restoration work in the yard.
An interesting story is at the time of the Tornado of 1923, many buildings around the big house were were destroyed, but the big house stood firm. One of the photos taken at this time shows roofs, boards, mangled tin, etc. lying all around it. Another time, there had been a fire in the house. Every home has a story to tell of the sad and happy events that went on in the home, and it's like they say, "If only walls could talk." We would love to hear and dociment any stories and memories that people have of the house and it's owners.
After the passing of his parents, Herschel Washington rented the home as a private residence to the Cibluski family. Several years later, Marting Van Den Langenberg, a descendant of the Cibulskis, toured the museum and donated a lovely picture of the house taken in the late 1930s. The back porch had not been added on to the house at this time.
In 1943, the big house was sold to Pearl Burch, and in 1947, Tom Burch acquired a Hotel and Restaurant license and rented the upstairs bedrooms to teachers or high school students who lived in the country. One of the licenses was still hanging up on the back porch when Margie and Oren purchased the house. We believe that the back porch as added at that time. Does anyone remember anything about it?
Margie and Oren Ames purchased the big house in about 1958 from Tom Burch. The Ames Family lived there for many years. Sometime after the passing of her husband, Margie moved to a smaller home in Leoti. The big house was full of antique furniture and other collectibles, remaining that way until her passing in 2004.
One of the large displays at the Museum of the Great Plains is Margie's Boutique and Millinery Shop, which is full of Margie's favorite things-HATS! When hats became "out of style" and ladies were getting rid of their hats, Margie was collecting them at garage sales, auctions or anywhere else she could find them. Margie and hats are synonymous, she always wore a hat. Wouldn't she be happy to know that her hats were going back into her big house? I am excited about decorating Margie's Boutique and Millinery Shop in memory of her.
The Wichita County Historical Society plans to restore and preserve the home. The finished rooms will appear like they were at the turn of the century. The house needs a lot of repair, exterior paint, roof and the front roof needs repair. There is plaster work that will beed repaired, electrical wiring and wallpaper to hang, etc. It is possibly the oldest house in town and surely was the gradest in it's time. The interior is lovely with beautiful woodwork that has never been painted, which is a miracle in itself. It will be a lot of work, but it is not impossible. The house is very pertinent to the history of Wichita County.
We may make application for nomination to the Kansas State or the National Register. If we cna get it on either listing, we will be able to apply for grants. One problem is that it take close to two years to get that all done and the roof needs to be replaced right now. It is already leaking and ruining the plaster in some of the ceilings upstairs. Terry Haines Construction will be giving an estimate of a new roof. So, this means we need to make a plea to the community to make donations to the Washington/Ames Restoration Fund for the replacement of the roof. We would like the restoration of the big house to be a community effort. We can not do it without your help. I might also mention that this will be a wonderful educational tool for the children of the community.
There will also be items that we need besides cash donations, such as loaning special tools, or trailer, pickup, etc. And, we will need help with landscaping, grinding out stumps of the recently cut trees, artifacts for display, grant writing, fund raising, sign painting, strong backs to help move furniture, and donation of whatever your talents may be. We will keep the community aware of what is going on at the Washington-Ames House. We will let our needs be known in the "Check it out" section of the Standard.
We are looking for pictures of people that lived in the big house. Since we have none of the Washington family artifacts, we will do the next best thing and decorate the interior of the Victorian period with items donated by people of the community. There are some items that will be moved to the house from the museum. If an item is on loan, the owner will first be contacted for permission to move the item.
We need some strong young guys to carry several doors up out of the basement. We will be looking for large ornate picture frames, old paintings, lace or sheer curtains, draperies that can be remade into the Victorian style and pretty dishes. We are thinking of making a tea room, so will need several sets of wood tables and chairs.
We are excited to have everyone involved and also would like to have new historical society members. It's just $5 annually, $50 for a life membership, or even better yet, get the young ones involved and purchase the life family membership for $100, which includes the parents and all of the children under 18.
We sepecially want to thank the families of Margie and Oren Ames for their donation of the beautiful and historic "big house!" We sincerely are asking the community to help in the effort to save the Washington-Ames House.
There will be a potlucj dinner at the museum on February 23rd, at 6:00 p.m., which will include a short meeting and a tour of the house.
By Karen Walk
Dwight F. Krebs of Scott City and Logan County
Dwight F. Krebs was born on February 26th, 1953 and passed away at his home in Logan County on February 5th, 2010 at the age of 56. The son of Floyd and Georgia Corinne Whitham-Krebs, he was a lifetime resident of Scott and Logan Counties. He was a cattleman and rancher.
He is survived by one daughter, Christianne and Christopher Barnett of Colby, 1 grandson, Taxten, 1 granddaughter, Mariah, both of Colby, his ex-wife, Cheri Krebs of Scott City, his mother, Corinne Krebs of Scott City, 2 sisters, Debra Dallas of Denver and Dianne and Owen Unruh of Scott City.
He was preceded in death by his father, Floyd Krebs, of Scott City.
Funeral Services will be held at 2:00 cst, on Wednesday, February 10th, at the United Methodist Church in Scott City. Interment will be at the Scott County Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to the Dwight F. Krebs Scholarship Fund in care of Price and Sons Funeral Home of Scott City.
Obituary courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott City, Leoti and Tribune.
VLE-B
He is survived by one daughter, Christianne and Christopher Barnett of Colby, 1 grandson, Taxten, 1 granddaughter, Mariah, both of Colby, his ex-wife, Cheri Krebs of Scott City, his mother, Corinne Krebs of Scott City, 2 sisters, Debra Dallas of Denver and Dianne and Owen Unruh of Scott City.
He was preceded in death by his father, Floyd Krebs, of Scott City.
Funeral Services will be held at 2:00 cst, on Wednesday, February 10th, at the United Methodist Church in Scott City. Interment will be at the Scott County Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to the Dwight F. Krebs Scholarship Fund in care of Price and Sons Funeral Home of Scott City.
Obituary courtesy of Price and Sons Funeral Homes of Garden City, Scott City, Leoti and Tribune.
VLE-B
Father-Daughter Dance and Dinner
Last Saturday, Stan took Leighlyn, and I took Abigayle, and we went on seperate outings to just spend one on one time together. Later, Stan and I will switch "daughters" for a different outing.
Abigayle and I went to Scott City for dinner at Peking Gardens and dessert at Dairy Queen. After filling our tummies, we returned home for movies here.
Stan and Leighlyn went to Tribune for dinner and AVATAR at the Tribune Star Theatre. Originally, they planned on eating at the Burger Bar. Those plans were changed when they discovered that the Burger Bar was closed for the evening because they were catering Tribune's Father and Daughter Dinner and Dance.
I am so impressed with Tribune for the community wide activities that they offer on a regular basis. To my knowledge, Greeley County is the only nearby county who offers things such as a father-daughter outing.
Way to go, Greeley County!!!
VLE-B
Abigayle and I went to Scott City for dinner at Peking Gardens and dessert at Dairy Queen. After filling our tummies, we returned home for movies here.
Stan and Leighlyn went to Tribune for dinner and AVATAR at the Tribune Star Theatre. Originally, they planned on eating at the Burger Bar. Those plans were changed when they discovered that the Burger Bar was closed for the evening because they were catering Tribune's Father and Daughter Dinner and Dance.
I am so impressed with Tribune for the community wide activities that they offer on a regular basis. To my knowledge, Greeley County is the only nearby county who offers things such as a father-daughter outing.
Way to go, Greeley County!!!
VLE-B
Sunday, February 7, 2010
What a way to spend Sunday afternoon!
Our 4-year-old clothes dryer was making some squeaking sounds and was not drying as well as it once was so Stan decided to do a basic overhaul on it. He tore it apart so that he could apply some white grease in a few places and also tore out the entire dryer duct to make sure that it was clear. He discovered that the duct that goes below the floor was half-way full which is a definite fire hazard plus it slows down the drying process which explains why the dryer wasn't drying as quickly as it once did.
When he was putting everything back together, he somehow managed to ruin the drying element. Given the fact that we had serious doubts that we could buy one in town to replace it, we called various stores in Garden City. None of them had any in stock. On a lark, Stan decided that he would see if DJ's Appliance Store in Leoti had any in stock. We were thrilled to find out that they did have one! Stan bought it and brought it right home and installed it! But...he made a mistake in his installation and destroyed it as well. Ugh!!!
With a family of four, laundry mounts quickly so, today, we washed our laundry at home and hauled it to the laundramat for drying purposes. A few years ago, Jess and Zelda installed a lovely extra-large washing machine that people all around town use to wash large bedspreads, rugs, etc. Since we were going to be there anyway, we took our bedspread up and gave it a good washing.
While we were doing our laundry, we commented on just how fortunate we are to have a laundromat in town. There are alot of small towns that no longer have any so their citizens have to carry their dirty laundry to other towns to get it washed and dried.
Thank you, Jess and Zelda, for providing such a much needed and appreciated service in Wichita County for so many years!!!
VLE-B
When he was putting everything back together, he somehow managed to ruin the drying element. Given the fact that we had serious doubts that we could buy one in town to replace it, we called various stores in Garden City. None of them had any in stock. On a lark, Stan decided that he would see if DJ's Appliance Store in Leoti had any in stock. We were thrilled to find out that they did have one! Stan bought it and brought it right home and installed it! But...he made a mistake in his installation and destroyed it as well. Ugh!!!
With a family of four, laundry mounts quickly so, today, we washed our laundry at home and hauled it to the laundramat for drying purposes. A few years ago, Jess and Zelda installed a lovely extra-large washing machine that people all around town use to wash large bedspreads, rugs, etc. Since we were going to be there anyway, we took our bedspread up and gave it a good washing.
While we were doing our laundry, we commented on just how fortunate we are to have a laundromat in town. There are alot of small towns that no longer have any so their citizens have to carry their dirty laundry to other towns to get it washed and dried.
Thank you, Jess and Zelda, for providing such a much needed and appreciated service in Wichita County for so many years!!!
VLE-B
Response to commenter
I was just making a funny about feeding a family of four for $10.00. I don't think that it is too feasable to think that a meal could be prepared at home for the same family for $10.00. I meant no harm to anyone.
VLE-B
VLE-B
My apology
Many out there deserve my 100% apology for my wrongdoings associated with my blog. Only I am responsible for things printed there--no one else. I took a blog that I intended for alerting people of things going on in our little corner of the world and ended up writing a blog with nastiness. I am so very sorry!!!
As you already know, I suffer with bi-polar disorder issues. In the past 6 months or so, I have gone from highs clear out there in outer space, LOL, to the depths of hell. Hell is what I am currently going through.
With mood ranges like that, I have been prone to saying some outrageous things. I never should have brought the issue of food eateries in Wichita County to my blog. My family and I love being able to eat at all three of the restaurants here in town. All three of them provide outstanding food and have excellent employees. Leoti is very fortunate to have the availability of these services in town. I realize that much of the reason that some of the food must be priced higher than what we would like, is because of the high cost of fuel. Of course, it would be great to see that a family of four could eat a full meal on a price of $10.00. That will never again happen in Leoti.
Though the fact that people throughout the community are angry with me for my opinion being voiced as it was, I also understand. I am hoping that with time, people will be able to forgive me.
Sincerely,
VLE-B
As you already know, I suffer with bi-polar disorder issues. In the past 6 months or so, I have gone from highs clear out there in outer space, LOL, to the depths of hell. Hell is what I am currently going through.
With mood ranges like that, I have been prone to saying some outrageous things. I never should have brought the issue of food eateries in Wichita County to my blog. My family and I love being able to eat at all three of the restaurants here in town. All three of them provide outstanding food and have excellent employees. Leoti is very fortunate to have the availability of these services in town. I realize that much of the reason that some of the food must be priced higher than what we would like, is because of the high cost of fuel. Of course, it would be great to see that a family of four could eat a full meal on a price of $10.00. That will never again happen in Leoti.
Though the fact that people throughout the community are angry with me for my opinion being voiced as it was, I also understand. I am hoping that with time, people will be able to forgive me.
Sincerely,
VLE-B
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