Cool Things Podcasts - 2011-2012
An insider's perspective on interesting objects selected by curators at the Kansas Museum of History.
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Our Cool Things podcasts ended in 2012. Each episode features a curator talking about a different object in the collections, always an object on our Cool Things page. Just click on the "Play" button to listen. The text links take you to the online article about the featured item.
Tragic Endings 
January 11, 2012
During his lifetime, many considered George Armstrong Custer an inept braggart. This was proven by his complete failure at Little Big Horn, yet heroic images of him soon appeared in American bars and saloons. Join us for a discussion of this classic image of Custer's last stand.
Running time 00:31:50
Six Degrees of William Allen White:
We connect the famous Kansas editor to Prairie Dog Town, an attraction near Oakley, Kansas.
2011 Podcasts
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Five hundred years ago a rich Spaniard led an army onto the North American plains, searching for a mythical city of gold. According to legend, someone on Francisco Vázquez de Coronado's expedition dropped this sword in present-day Kansas. |
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Instantaneous and digital is the preferred method of communication for modern legislative bodies. In the mid-20th century, though, the Kansas Legislature used a more utilitarian method: two wooden mail carts. |
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The difference between a beautician and a mortician is less than you might think. This episode considers white gloves worn by an African American funeral home director whose mother's beautician beginnings grew into a family-run mortuary. |
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During World War I, soldiers stood knee-deep in mud on French battlefields while one Kansas serviceman patrolled the coast of California. Hear about the Navy uniform worn by Effingham native Joe Price. |
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Barbering was big business a century ago, and required the right equipment. This segment considers a 1920s salesman sample of a barber chair that was a cut above the rest. |
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Modern hunting apparel is emblazoned with bright orange, but this mid-20th century vest isn't brightly colored. Does that mean it was open season on hunters 50 years ago? |
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Drive-ins were a cultural milestone in the 1950s. After food was first delivered directly to an automobile, American eating habits were never the same. This episode considers a pair of giant menu boards from Bobo's Drive-In, a Topeka favorite. |
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For many, The Wizard of Oz is a timeless story about a girl from Kansas. For others, it's an old-fashioned tale that needs to be more inclusive. This episode considers album covers from "The Wiz," a disco-era adaptation of L. Frank Baum's classic. |
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Nothing says summer like ice cream. In the 1870s, the Scott Brothers of Topeka built an empire with this popular frozen treat. |
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The commander of Fort Hays wore this army dress jacket during the 1870s. His years of Kansas service were the culmination of a long and distinguished career. |
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Bikinis were the bombshell of 1960s fashion--iconic swimwear named for an atomic explosion in the Pacific Ocean. A Kansas woman wore this version while relaxing poolside. |
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Tornadoes have threatened residents of the Great Plains for centuries, but until the late 1800s most Americans had never seen one. That changed when a Kansas farmer captured the first known photograph of a tornado in 1884. |
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The second floor of the Kansas capitol features a pantheon of our state's heroes in stone. In this segment we consider four small busts related to this massive installation. |
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Some folks take up gardening in retirement. Not so Elizabeth "Grandma" Layton, who spent her golden years painting as a way of dealing with depression. Hear how this little old lady from Wellsville, Kansas, rocked the art world. |
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Some clothes are well-suited for travel. That's what little Elizabeth Ruppert's father discovered when he concealed her in this shawl and fled from Virginia to Kansas. |
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Every family is a little dysfunctional, but some are downright criminal. These fragments were torn from the Dalton bothers, an infamous gang that terrorized the Midwest. Everyone wanted a piece of these notorious outlaws. |
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Belgians were starving during WWI. Luckily, Kansas farmers came to their rescue by sending over tons of wheat in flour sacks. As a thank you, the Belgians decorated the empty sacks and sent them right back to Kansas. |
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Every group has its origin story. In Kansas, the legend is that Russian immigrants brought seeds from the home country (in bottles like this) and created the "Breadbasket of the World." |
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African American soldiers were rare during the Civil War, and black officers almost non-existent. Thirty years later, Major John Brown from Topeka led soldiers to Cuba during the Spanish-American War using this saber. |
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Some farmers hoped Kansas could bloom with cotton, bringing the South to its knees during the Civil War. Cotton in Kansas? That's why we have a cotton gin in our collections. |
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Apples are the fruit of legend, from the Garden of Eden to the Trojan War. They've got a place in Kansas history, too. We consider bottles of apple cider pressed at the Louisburg Cider Mill in eastern Kansas. |
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Construction of the Kansas statehouse can be considered a miracle of manpower. In the 1880s a young Swedish immigrant was at the center of this massive building project. Learn how he used these tools to construct the people's house before building his own. |
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Kansas history holds many harrowing storm stories, none more tragic than that of 10-year-old Dean Thomas. His untimely death eventually led to a donation of his childhood belongings, including these overalls. |
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The Abernathy brothers started small, at times relying on coffin sales, but quickly built a furniture empire on the Plains. This segment considers several pieces made by Abernathy Brothers of Leavenworth. |
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The Wicked Witch of the West has been freaking out kids for over a century, since the appearance of L. Frank Baum's book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Join us for a discussion of this fictional villain, while we also consider a wicked modern drawing. |
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An African American man living in rural Kansas amazed family and friends with his ability to make sculptures inside bottles, embodying a form of folk art known as bottle whimsy. |
Twisted
Stone-Faced
Wrinkled Painting
Podcast Archives
Check out our award winning podcasts from previous years:
2010 Cool Things
Listed by Kansas magazine under "Reasons We Love Kansas."
2009 Cool Things
2008 Cool Things
MUSE Award Winner (Honorable Mention), American Association of Museums Media and Technology Committee
2007 Cool Things
Voted Top Ten Museum and Cultural Podcast Winner by MuseumPods.
2006 Cool Things
Voted Number One Museum Podcast by MuseumPods.
Entry: Cool Things Podcasts - 2011-2012
Author: Kansas Historical Society
Author information: The Kansas Historical Society is a state agency charged with actively safeguarding and sharing the state's history.
Date Created: June 2014
Date Modified: July 2021
The author of this article is solely responsible for its content.
