On Saturday we decided to go to the Atchison, KS rail museum. On the way we saw an historical marker for the town of Lecompton. We decided to stop at the museum, and we were so glad we did! This little town was actually the territorial capital of Kansas from 1855-1861, and it was a major player in the Civil War. The first proposed Constitution of Kansas was written in Lecompton, and it was firmly a pro-slavery document. The free-staters believed the Legislature that wrote the Constitution had been elected in 1855 illegally, and there were all kinds of battles, verbal fights, arrests on both sides, and general mayhem. During the election in 1857, the new Leislature was firmly free-stagers by a 5-1 margin, and the Constitution that was finally approved by the US Congress allowed Kansas into the Union as a free state, thereby ending the “great compromise” that Stephen Douglas favored where every free state that entered the US would also have a slave state entering. It was a major contribution to Lincoln winning the 1861 election. Fascinating stuff. We wandered through the museum, staffed by an incredibly knowledgeable and passionate history buff, then went to the old Constitution Hall, a state historic site. We met another ardent historian there who gave a great overview of the history. I highly recommend a trip if you are in the area. We never made it to Atchison.
On Sunday we headed to Stillwater, OK. We are staying at Sunset Ridge RV Park. It is advertised as the nicest RV park in Stillwater, but that isn’t saying much. Flat level pads, some trees, close sites, and almost everyone here is obviously a long-term resident. The place is clean and quiet though. We got in early enough to visit family in the area which was nice.
Monday we went to Arkansas City, KS to handle some property business. I liked the attorney, and with any luck we can get everything signed by Wednesday. Turns out he is leaving Wednesday afternoon, so he is motivated. I also spent time with my new travel sewing machine, a Viking Opal 650. I am using it to sew a baptism gown for my granddaughter, and I got the insertion done on both sleeves. Imperial batiste fabric and imported entredeux with insertion. It looks pretty good if I say so myself! I like the machine.
I hope to get the bodice lace work done tomorrow. I am still waiting for another set of baby measurements before I do a final cut of the fabric.