Reports, news, and stories on quirky roadside attractions! Not all tips verified -- call ahead! Submit your own tip.
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- Abilene, Kansas - Old Abilene Town
Old Abilene Town is up for sale! I recently visited there in order to buy souvenir beaded belts and snow domes at their Fort Chisolm Gift Shop (billed "Kansas' Largest"), but the whole dang place was closed up with a big nasty "For Sale By Owner" sign out front. The stuffy people next door at the Eisenhower Center refused to give me any information, but their security guard assured me that the place would open for business on April 1st. Old Abilene Town still looks great and will make some lucky capitalist a fine retro tourist trap. It's spittin' distance from I-70 and will always be able to leech bored tourists away from the exciting chronicle of Ike's recession-free presidency.
[Dr. Todd Wyatt, 02/25/1997]Old Abilene Town:- Address:
- 201 SE 5th St., Abilene, KS
- Directions:
- At the corner of S. Buckeye Ave./Hwy 15 and SE 5th St.
- Hours:
- Gun fights after Memorial Day. Local health policies may affect hours and access.
- Abilene, Kansas - Museum of Independent Telephony
When Alexander Graham Bell (and not some Italian guy) invented the telephone, his patents held back a horde of telephony wannabes for 17 years. When the rights expired, a profusion of entrepreneurs poured into the lucrative business, forming nearly 6,000 independent telephone companies. While millions toiled for the Bell System as it maintained a century of pre-Consent Decree market dominance, the "independents" continued to thrive, scraping profit from around the edges.
The Museum of Independent Telephony pays tribute to the world of the non-Bell System phone companies that connected communities in the Midwest and West. Abilene was the home of an independent, the Brown Telephone Company, which became United Telephone Company, and eventually morphed into Sprint.
The museum includes a recreation of an old telephone exchange, displays of glass insulators and a variety of vintage phones. Visitors are encouraged to touch the exhibits.
[Roadsideamerica.com Team, 11/29/2003]Museum of Independent Telephony:- Address:
- 412 S. Campbell, Abilene, KS
- Directions:
- Three blocks east of S. Buckeye Ave./Hwy 15, in the Heritage Center of Dickinson County, behind the Eisenhower Center.
- Hours:
- M-F 8:30 am - 4:30 pm. (Call to verify) Local health policies may affect hours and access.
- Phone:
- 785-263-2681
Because there's so much to see, upon request the Eisenhower Visitors Center will annotate the back of your ticket, making it good for a second day. No overnight parking in their lot is permitted.
[Joe Kleinsmith, 06/04/2017]Ike's Boyhood Home, Museum, Statue, and Grave:- Address:
- 200 SE 4th St., Abilene, KS
- Hours:
- Grounds open dawn-dusk (Call to verify) Local health policies may affect hours and access.
- Phone:
- 785-263-6764
- Admission:
- Museum $12.
- Baxter Springs, Kansas - 1930 Gas Station
The former Baxter Springs Independent Oil and Gas Service Station, built in 1930. A couple of old gas pumps are out front, but there's no gas.
Roadsideamerica.com Report...
- Address:
- 940 Military Ave., Baxter Springs, KS
- Directions:
- In town, on the northeast corner of Route 66/Military Ave. and E. 10th St.
- Hours:
- Tu-Sa 10-4:30, Su 1-4 (Call to verify) Local health policies may affect hours and access.
- Phone:
- 620-856-2385
- Bonner Springs, Kansas - National Poultry Museum
Exhibits such as "Turkey for the President" and "Chicken Slaughtering Devices" give some sense of what you can expect to see.
Roadsideamerica.com Report...
National Agricultural Center
- Address:
- 630 Hall of Fame Drive, Bonner Springs, KS
- Directions:
- On the grounds of the National Agricultural Center and Hall of Fame. I-70 exit 224. Turn right onto Hwy 7/130th St. and then make a quick right onto Riverview Ave. Drive a half-mile east and then turn left onto 126th St./Hall of Fame Drive. The Hall of Fame grounds are on the left.
- Hours:
- Apr-Sept W-Sa 10-3 (Call to verify) Local health policies may affect hours and access.
- Phone:
- 913-721-1075
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Update 2004 from tipster George West: " We met two men who were were working in and around the train station. I was told they are in the very early stages of restoring it to make a museum. All other buildings were abandoned."