ABILENE – 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.