20 Scott Avenue houses the Hercules Hobby store. Submitted photo.
Hercules Hobby, a store that sells sports cards, autographed memorabilia, helmets, Pokemon, and Magic The Gathering cards, opened in Fort Scott on June 13.
The store is located at 20 Scott Avenue.
“I had 25 kids in here on our soft opening,” said Phil Jackson, owner of the store. “Some kids play tournaments with Pokémon and MTG cards. There may be tournaments possible at a later date.”
“I have been a collector my entire life; my grandpa, who passed away, was a collector,” he said. “I’ve been thinking about a brick and mortar store for a while—something fun for kids to do on the weekend.”
“My grandfather will be in the soul of this store,” he said.
Hours of operation currently are 4-8 p.m. on Fridays and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays.
Other days and times to be determined at a later date.
“It’s something we don’t have around here,” Jackson said. “I bought and sold items at shops in Kansas City. There is none like this in our area.”
Levi Qualls, left, is the manager, and Phil Jackson is the owner of Hercules Hobby. Submitted photo.
He hired the manager, Levi Qualls, following a conversation at Faith Church, where they both attend.
“Levi shares the same love of this hobby that I do,” Jackson said.
For more information, contact Jackson at 515-512-3883.
This new business is under Jacksons Enterprise LLC.
Lupe and Mirna Santana in front of La Hacienda, 24 N. Main.
Sixteen years ago, Mirna and Lupe Santana moved to Kansas from Georgia. Lupe had family in Parsons who owned a Mexican restaurant, and they decided to venture into that business, so Lupe began looking in other towns in the area.
In Fort Scott, they discovered that a Mexican restaurant had recently relocated from the downtown area, and they believed this would be an ideal location.
In 2010, they moved into 20 S. Main, Mirna said. By 2015, they were looking for a different location because of the condition of the building.
“We moved into 24 N. Main in 2015,” she said. “And we are celebrating 15 years in Fort Scott.”
“We enjoy when we see people happy and thankful they had a great meal,” she said. “That makes us feel proud.”
Mirna has her father living in their home, and Lupe has his mom and dad in town, and that requires a lot of time, she said. They enjoy having their parents so near, but it is a challenge, because “We think about the business 24/7,” she said.
But despite this challenge, “We hope to keep La Hacienda open for another 15 years. We just want to work.” And they are thankful to own their own business.
Her mom and dad were in the food business as well.
“My daddy used to be a baker and my mama used to put a table out on the street and sell food, and I helped her,” she said.
One of their son helps care for her father, and another son, nephew, uncle, and daughter-in-law work with them in the restaurant.
Last month, the restaurant reopened on Sundays after a year-long break.
“We invite you to come and try, we cook with lots of love,” Mirna said.
The history of Mirna and Lupe is told on a page in their menu.
The “mom and pop” restaurant is open Monday through Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Thursday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Parents and grandparents watching their loved ones at the Fort Scott Splash Pad now have the benefit of sitting in the shade.
The Fort Scott Splash Pad and Sensory Park was a grassroots project that opened in 2023, according to its Facebook page. This year a new handicapped-accessible restroom and two shading devices were installed on the north side of the park.
About two years ago, McKay moved to Fort Scott from Hutchinson and found he needed something to do with his time.
His son-in-law, Kale Nelson, had some chainsaw blades that needed sharpening, so McKay worked on them.
Nelson then told some of his friends about the service, and this turned into a new business, called Sharpen It.
He can sharpen “about anything with a blade”, McKay said. “Knives, chainsaws, lawnmowers, Dado… about anything, I have a sharpener for it.”
Before he retired in 2001, he was a refrigeration and air conditioning serviceman in Hutchinson. “Then I worked as a bus driver for Nickerson School District for 14 years before I moved here.”
Most people bring the items that need to be sharpened to his workshop at 738 Osbun, on Fort Scott’s northwest side of town.
“If I have to pick it up, I charge about $1, depending on how far I have to go,” he said.
His sharpening prices: $4-12 for knives, $6-12 for chainsaws, and $5 a piece for lawnmower blades.
“I always make sure that I charge a little cheaper than what’s normal,” he said.
“It might be a day or two out before I get to it,” he said.
However, he said he provides the added service of cleaning the blades before sharpening.
This week is McKay’s vacation, but you can text him at 620.960.6059 and leave a message with your phone number for him to call back.
McKay’s sharpening business, Sharpen It, is at his residence. Submitted photo.
Katy Shead, Fort Scott, has been selected as a finalist in the National Merit Scholarship Program.
Katy homeschooled through Veritas Scholars Academy (VSA), which is an online school based in Lancaster, PA. On May 30th, she graduated as valedictorian in her class of 115 other students from all over the world.
Katy Shead speaking as class valedictorian at her school on May 30. Submitted photo.
Her most difficult class was chemistry, she said. “But it was also the most interesting.”
Despite it not being easy, she has chosen it as a major.
Katy will major in chemistry at Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan (student population 1400-1800 students) beginning this fall. She will minor in Greek and Classical Education, she said.
Her goal with this education plan:
“I want to read the Greek Bible on my own, and I want to teach chemistry, or something, science or math at a classical school, especially online.”
“I want to study the Greeks and Romans and the original texts, not just the stuff that people wrote about them,” she said.
Katy has had a classical education.
Classical education has three different stages of learning, she said.
“First is grammar and lots of memorization, foundational knowledge. Second is logic, around middle school age, which is how you make a coherent argument with clear and logical thinking, recognizing fallacies. To connect ‘Oh, this happened in this year and it did affect this.’ The third stage is taking the connections in the logic stage, and using information you already have, and communicating it.”
Katy used this education, this past year, to come up with her own research statement and defended it in a paper and a presentation.
A person in Scotland with expertise in the field and a PhD read her paper and asked questions. A professor guided the process and graded it.
Her research statement was Imago Dei Impact on the Church’s Perception of Autism.
“It was about the inherent value that God gave humans when He created them in His image. The paper argues that if the church recognizes autistic people’s intrinsic value, then they’ll be empowered to love them as they should,” she said. “The point of the paper is that sometimes the autistic members are viewed as charity cases.”
Other awards she has received during her high school years: Dean’s List at VSA from 2021 to 2024, a national award at the 2023 Classical Learning Test, Summa Cum Laude on the 2023 National Latin Exam, inducted into the 202Highest Honors Class at VSA, and Cum Honore Maximo Egregio in 2021, a National Latin Exam she took, earning a perfect score.
During high school, Katy has been a student mentor, an independent tutor of maths and sciences, a literature club co-chair, and a volunteer at K-7 Kanakuk Camp, Missouri. She also worked with special needs people at Heartland Therapeutic Riding, Kansas, and Camp Barnabas, Missouri. She also volunteered at her grandparents’ annual Shead Farm Festival near Garland.
She is the daughter of Haley and Mark Shead.
About National Merit Scholars
16,000 semifinalists competed in the 70th annual National Merit
Scholarship Program, according to an NMS press release. These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 6,870 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $26 million that will be offered next spring. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship® award,
Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition.
To become a finalist, the semifinalist and a high school official must submit a scholarship application, providing information about the semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received, according to the press release. A semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay, and earn SAT® or ACT® scores that confirm the student’s earlier performance on the qualifying test.
The Queen’s Muse is being built adjacent to the Artificers, at 10 N. National Avenue. Construction items can be seen in front of the building project. The green space will be used for an outdoor event space in the future.
Trent and Kate Freeman finally have great weather to make progress on their newest project, called The Queen’s Muse.
A muse is a source of inspiration, according to the dictionary.
“The Artificers is in a ‘Queen Anne’ (style architecture) and we are building her muse. Hence, ‘The Queen’s Muse,'” Kate Freeman said.
“It’s to house our out-of-town artists,” she said. “Our artist’s respite, while here teaching a workshop and doing art shows. It will help our artists have a space close to stay (near their business) and hopefully attract more artists to Fort Scott with a place to stay as well as show their work.”
The building is an addition to the Artificers art gallery and teaching studio, at 8 N. National Avenue.
Currently, there is no designated completion date, she said.
“It will be two suites on the upper level, Airbnb, each with a bathroom. The lower level will be to cater out of and a bathroom, an event space.”
In front of that building will be an outdoor event space and a sculpture garden.
“We’ll have large, mixed-media pieces on concrete pads. The space will also be available for events such as a bridal shower or wine-tasting event.”
“We started to plan this after we acquired the land. It’s something awesome for the community and our business,” she said.
The Queen’s Muse will be an addition to the Artificers Gallery. Pictured are materials and the start of the build, May 29, 2025.
“We are proud to be supporting local and regional businesses every step of the way. Keeping our investment close to home is a priority, and we’re grateful to work with such talented peeps in our community,” she said. “Such as Redbud Nursery, Fort Scott-the plants and trees; Henry Witt Fabrications, Fort Scott- the sculpture garden gate; Red Logic, Mound City, the website; Ron Hurd Construction, Fort Scott, concrete work; Cedar Valley Metal, Garnett, materials; Gibson Construction, Paola is the builder/contractor.”
“And the Bourbon County Garden Club has helped design the garden area. They got together and plotted it all, for us.”
The Freemans received a $25,000 Kansas Tourism Attraction Development Grant in December 2024 that is helping to fund this newest project.
Kate and Trent Freeman, from the Artificer Facebook page.
About the Artificers
T.E. Freeman Studio, Trent and Kate’s art business, moved to Fort Scott during the COVID-19 Pandemic, from the Kansas City area.
“We bought the building in October 2022 and opened the art gallery in January 2023.”
In addition to the Artificers Gallery, in 2024, another business, Bourbon County Clay, was launched, utilizing clay extracted from the county for creations sold in the gallery.
Currently, they have a gallery assistant who helps with all three LLC businesses they own and an apprentice who helps with Kate’s Bourbon County Clay business.
Earlier this year, they were awarded the 2025 Kansas Governor’s Arts Award for Art in Business.
They initiated a First Friday event each month, where their gallery is open until 9 p.m. when they first opened. The First Friday event includes some artists’ openings.
“The City of Fort Scott is trying to get all the businesses on board to have more events on the first Friday of each month,” she said.
Photos from the Artificers Facebook page.
This First Friday, June 6, will feature Trent’s first show since opening in Fort Scott. He will be featuring outside mixed-media art sculptures, called luminaries.
Artist Roxi Hardegree, Texas, will be showing, selling, and teaching about her art medium, botanical arts, on June 6, as well.
Check out the calendar below for all events happening at your favorite
Art Gallery & Teaching Studio!
Join us for an Artist Opening Reception!
June 6th, at 6:00pm!
Who is Roxi Hardegree?
Roxi Hardegree is a full-time artist based in Lubbock, Texas. She grew up on a farm in North Dakota, where a childhood spent outdoors sparked a lifelong sense of exploration and creativity. Her days were filled with fishing in the river, crafting, and tending to flowers in the garden.
Roxi draws deep inspiration from the women in her family—her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother—whose flower beds overflowed with peonies, roses, delphiniums, and seas of irises and lilies. Their creativity left a lasting impression that continues to shape her artistic path.
Over the years, Roxi has created both traditional and art quilts, authored books, and taught quilting classes. She also nurtured a lifelong passion for photography, earning numerous sales and awards along the way. Today, she has come full circle, returning to hands-on creation through botanical prints using cyanotype and collage techniques, including eco prints and metalwork. You will be able to view her work on June 6th, 2025!
In her downtime, Roxi enjoys traveling the country in an RV with her husband Blake and their labradoodle, Sofi.
Moody Blues: Wet Cyanotype Workshop by Roxi Hardegree
Saturday, June 7th 11:00am-3:00pm
Discover the magic of botanical printmaking in this hands-on cyanotype workshop—no experience necessary! In this 4-hour class, we’ll explore the wet cyanotype process using natural materials to create beautiful, one-of-a-kind prints.
You’ll learn the basics and some intermediate techniques of this alternative photographic method, including how to work with various liquids, texture-enhancing additives, and UV light. Each student will receive a materials kit and have access to a wide selection of botanicals, both fresh and pressed, to experiment with.
We will take a lunch break while our art processes, so bring a sack lunch or visit a local restaurant.
By the end of class, you’ll leave with at least one finished 5×7 cyanotype print—and plenty of inspiration and extra papers to keep creating. All supplies provided—just bring your curiosity and love of botanicals!
Provided supplies include a variety of botanicals (pressed and fresh) and texturing materials.
Your Kit includes:
9×12 Backing board, Felt, Plexiglass and Clips, 6 assorted pre-coated papers, 3 Spray bottles of different liquids.
Trent Freeman is a mixed media sculptor and ceramic artist, as well as the gallery owner and ceramic instructor at The Artificers in Fort Scott, Kansas. Originally from DeSoto, KS, Trent earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Emporia State University, where he also pursued graduate work in sculpture.
Trent has been working professionally since 1997. For over two decades, he operated a teaching studio in Kansas City, KS before relocating to Fort Scott. His work is deeply influenced by Japanese ceramics, though his primary inspiration comes from the tactile and expressive qualities of materials such as wood, metal, and natural clay.
His notable bodies of work include the Luminaries: Guardians, Sentinels, and Guides series that you will be able to view on June 6th, 2025!
Sandy Haggard is the new Southwind K-State Nutrition, Food Safety, and Health Agent, who has an office out of Iola.
Haggard has been employed in the current Kansas State University Research and Extension, Southwind District since April 14
She felt this job was a good fit.
“I’ve often had a position where I coordinated a program or gave presentations, so I was looking for a position where I could use those skills. Also, at Neosho County Community College, I had been working in the same four counties with older adults who volunteered at non-profits, so I’m able to keep in touch with several of the same contacts. I had attended several K-State Research and Extension programs during the eight years I’ve lived in Kansas, so I was excited to work alongside the agents I’ve known for years. I’m looking forward to giving presentations on nutrition and health and getting to know more people in our four-county area.”
The job is multi-faceted.
Her duties include leading the development, implementation, and evaluation of research-based educational programming related to nutrition, food safety, and health.
This includes nutrition through the life cycle, supplemental nutrition education, food security, consumer and food handler food safety, local food systems, physical activity promotion, and chronic disease prevention.
She will be covering four counties: Allen, Bourbon, Neosho, and Woodson.
In the next year, she hopes to have programs for ServSafe food handling, Dining with Diabetes, Food Preservation, and Basic Nutrition, she said.
She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education and Secondary English from Northwest Missouri State University, Maryville, MO, and Adult Education from Prescott College, Prescott, Arizona.
She taught internationally as a Middle School English teacher at Morrison Academy in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, and was a part of the English Faculty at Meiho University, Neipu, Taiwan.
Most recently, she has been the RSVP Director with AmeriCorps Seniors at Neosho County Community College (NCCC) serving Allen, Bourbon, Neosho, and Woodson Counties.
Vendors will once again line Main Street, there will be entertainment for young and old, a few contests, and a variety of vehicles to view at Fort Scott’s annual festival, The Good Ol Days.
“This year, we have extended our vendors on Skubitz Plaza and will have even more vendors than last year. Come out Friday from 5-11 P.M. and Saturday 9 A.M.-6 P.M. to get some great food from a variety of food trucks or get some woodworking, leather work, or maybe some crochet blanket, or even some boutique designer wear for men and women,” said Good Ol Days Chairman Shawn O’Brien. “We are always excited to see new vendors and our returning ones.”
The theme this year is 44 Years of Crafting Memories.
“Thinking back over the last 44 years, we have had some great crafters who show up year after year,” he said. “I’ve made lifelong friendships with these vendors. We are thankful for each of them and what they offer to our street fair. We look forward to 44 more years of crafting memories.”
Something new this year is a mechanical bull ride for $5. “This will be on Skubitz Plaza, and we are looking forward to some great laughter.”
Also this year, there is a new kids’ bicycle race on Saturday. Registration will be at the Farmers Market Pavilion at 6 P.M.
“We are going to have bounce houses at 3rd and Main Street again this year. They will be free of charge to all children to jump and bounce around from 10 A.M. to 5 P.M. ” We are thankful for so many generous sponsors who donate each year to help us have so many free events,” he said. There will also be caricature drawing and a balloon artist on Skubitz Plaza.
“Trey Sharp has worked hard to secure some great entertainment this year. The Care to Share stage will be on Skubitz Plaza, and Cohn’s Cafe will host a beer tent also located on Skubitz Plaza.
There will be a limited edition Fort Scott Good Ol’ Days mug that you can purchase at their beer garden. They will also offer spiked lemonade.”
The entertainment this year on Friday night will be KC All Stars. Saturday, from 11 A.M. to 11 P.M.
“Saturday will feature some great artists and groups. Ty Ellis and the Flat Liners, Left of Center, Holly Crays, and finish off the evening with Clarksdale Caravan, which is Mississippi blues,” O’Brien said.
All entertainment is free to the public; no glass containers allowed.
The Good Ol’ Days Parade Grand Marshall this year is Kenny Clary, who has been doing the Red Garter show since it began 44 years ago. The parade is on Friday, June 6, at 6 p.m.
” We are so thankful to Kenny and his wonderful crew for the great show they put on each year. It is such an honor to recognize Kenny for all his hard work that he puts into the show each year.”
The Red Garter Saloon in 2016.
The Red Garter show will be at the Liberty Theatre, with one show on Friday at 7 P.M. and on Saturday, starting at 10 A.M., featuring a show every hour on the hour.
“Be sure to check out this great show with dancing, singing, and great comedy. Thank you, Kenny, for your years of service and dedication to the Fort Scott Good Ol’ Days and The Red Garter Show,” O’Brien said.
The baby contest in 2016.
The annual baby contest is on Saturday at Memorial Hall. Registration is 9 AM -9:45 AM. The competition starts at 10 AM. There is a $5 entry fee per child.
There will be local police, sheriff, Emergency Medical Service, Fire, and Kansas Highway Patrol vehicles at Wall and Main Street.
“We will also have a helicopter flying in and landing around 11:30 a.m. on Saturday at Wall and Scott Avenue. Come by and check out the vehicles they drive or fly. “
The Fort Scott National Historic Site will have Native American dancers at 1 P.M. on Saturday.
“Be sure to stop by and check out our wonderful Fort and all the great activities it will be offering,” O’Brien said.
The car and motorcycle show will be on Scott Avenue from Wall to 3rd Street. “They are still taking entries and are expecting some great muscle cars and bikes. To register, contact James Malveaux at 620-224-4875 or [email protected].”
The Good Ol Days Committee members are Shawn O’Brien, Charlotte Thompson, Cheryl VanHoecke, Shay Clements, Angel Wilson, Trey Sharp, Leslie Godden, Danielle Hull, Steven Tyler Cruz, and Fort Scott National Historic Site Representative Carl Brenner.
A camping trip to Quivira Scout Ranch in Sedan, Kansas, combined both troop groups. Back row left to right: Cody Dean, Xanderia Fowler, Brenda Iverson, and Aaron Finley. Front row: Max Petrillo, Charlie Hoffmeyer, and Xaviar Fowler. The picture was taken on October 6, 2024.
Local Scouts are working towards a monetary goal to go to camp.
Scouting Troop 114 will sell pancakes for $3 on Saturday, June 7, at the Fort Scott Farmers Market. The market is from 8 a.m. to noon and is located under the Downtown Pavilion on North National Avenue at Skubitz Plaza.
The Downtown Pavilion is at the corner of National Avenue and Old Fort Boulevard. The pavilion houses the Farmers Market on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon, and Tuesdays from 4 to 6 p.m.
This is the Troop’s final fundraiser before summer camp, which is planned for June 15-21 at Camp Arrowhead, Marshfield, MO.
At the camp, the children work on earning merit badges, making friends, and “making memories,” said Mandi Widder, one of the troop leaders.
The Troop is divided into Troop B, the boys, and Troop G, the girls.
“It’s called Scouting America, it was the Boy Scouts, they changed their name,” Widder said. “Both boys and girls can join who are entering sixth grade through age 18 can join. We meet on Mondays at 6 p.m. at First United Methodist Church. The leaders of the Girls Troop are Jeff Pommier and Amanda Widder, and the leaders of the Boys Troop is Brenda Iverson. Both troops are number 114. The kids are working hard on merit badges and earning their ranks from Scout rank to Eagle rank.”
First United Methodist Church at Third Street and National Avenue,
Local service clubs provide many behind-the-scenes activities to enhance the quality of life for their communities.
Mark Warren, a past District Governor of Ruritan for the Middle America district and currently a member of the Uniontown Ruritan Club, said he enjoys the projects the Ruritan Club provides for the community.
Mark Warren, at the Girard Medical Clinic of Uniontown building, which the Ruritan Club helped bring to fruition in 2020.
“For me Ruritan is being involved in making money through fundraising projects and giving this money back to the community through financial assistance to the needy, improving the physical appearance of our community, honoring those who serve and have served this country in the military, and providing scholarship assistance to our youth to help accomplish their goals in life.
In the last few years, the club has helped bring the Girard Medical Center of Uniontown to the town, which has a population of around 300, with the collaboration of other entities. They have helped build the new public restrooms in the town’s downtown and provided scholarships to several high school students to further their education.
The public restrooms are just across from Uniontown’s downtown park. This was another project of the Ruritan Club in collaboration with other entities.
On May 22, the club is hosting a special informational recruiting event for area residents who may be interested in learning more about Ruritan, Warren said.
Rebecca Lane, the 2025 National Ruritan President, from the home office in Dublin, Virginia, will be in Kansas and Nebraska from May 20 to May 29, visiting clubs in these two states.
2025 National Ruritan President Rebecca Lane. From the organization’s website.
“The potluck style dinner event hosted by area Ruritan Clubs will be May 22 at 7 p.m. at the Uniontown Community Center, and on May 23 at the Chicken Shack, Bronson is hosting. Anyone in rural Bourbon County communities who would like to learn more about Ruritan is invited to attend,” Warren said. “Rebecca will be here to answer questions. We have clubs in Bronson, Redfield, and Uniontown. Residents of these communities are invited to join the clubs that night.”
Current Uniontown Ruritan Officers are President Mike Mason, Vice President Rick Allen, Secretary Raymond “Skeet” George, Treasurer Mary Pemberton, 3rd Year Director Henry Homan, 2nd Year Director Randy Rathbun, and 1st Year Director Joe George.
The Uniontown Ruritan meets at the Uniontown Methodist Church on the third Monday of every month at 7 p.m.
To learn more about the Bronson Ruritan, call Terry Johnston at 620-224-7566, and Redfield, call Skeet at 620-224-8051.
JPGs created by Adam Page from Uniontown High SchoolJPGs created by Adam Page from Uniontown High School
Tanner Streeter in front of some of his work. Submitted photo.
Tanner Streeter, 25, is an artist whose specialty is animals.
“I’ve been an artist my whole life, with a primary focus on animals,” he said. “I grew up hunting and fishing, so I’ve always been surrounded by nature. I spent much of my time studying animals I saw in life, in books, or on TV so that I may understand their anatomy well enough to draw them accurately.”
“My parents would take me on trips to zoos to satisfy my fascination with animals, as well as places like Cabela’s or Bass Pro Shops. In those places, the taxidermy on display captivated me at a very young age. I would think of taxidermy as almost magical, since I could not comprehend how it was accomplished.”
“When I was 18 and about to graduate my senior year of high school from Christian Learning Center, I began practicing taxidermy on small animals that I could acquire.”
He was inspired by a taxidermy how-to book that his parents, Bernard and Torrie Streeter, had given him for Christmas.
“Much to my surprise, after making a Facebook post about my endeavors in taxidermy, a mutual online friend, Dale Robertson of Wild Heritage Taxidermy in Young, Arizona, reached out to me and offered me an apprenticeship with him. He had followed me for my artwork that I would post, and I followed his taxidermy work, so that’s how we were connected. Dale is a renowned taxidermist with multiple prestigious awards.”
“I packed everything I owned into my little Chevy Blazer and drove to Arizona, where I lived for a year and a half in a trailer at the Robertson’s home and learned everything a beginner needed to know about taxidermy and then some. I competed at the last Arizona state show (their association is no longer active) in 2019 and won the title Best New Competitor and a 2nd and 3rd place with a coyote and a deer I had brought.”
Streeter learned much in that time.
“When I came back, I got a job at Outdoors Indoors in Pittsburg, KS. I got to do some taxidermy from all over the world…Africa, Greenland, and New Zealand, along with locals. My ultimate goal was to have my own business, and my first year on my own, I got an LLC (limited liability company business structure).”
He has competed at state, national, and the World Taxidermy Show, earning an assortment of first, second, and third-place ribbons.
He’s earned the titles of Best Professional Gamehead of Kansas 2023, Best Professional Small Lifesize Mammal of Kansas 2025, and Best Professional Open Mouth Whitetail of Kansas 2025.
Submitted photo.
“Competing is vital for me since it sharpens my craft and allows me to learn from the best of the best in seminars and from my judges during critiques.”
His business model prioritizes quality over quantity.
“I take a limited number of animals each year… I take extra effort to make each animal as accurate as possible, and I try to capture the unique qualities of each specimen. I’m recreating that particular animal down to the smallest anatomical detail. From muscles and hair patterns to glands and membranes in the corner of the eye. Nothing is too small to overlook.”
“Taxidermy is an art, and I treat it just as another medium. Just like if I choose to draw with a pencil or paint with a brush. I am trying to recreate God’s creation to the best of the ability He gave me.”
He started his business, Tanners Wildlife Artistry LLC, in 2022 and shares a business building with Whitetail Properties Real Estate at 306 E. 23rd, next to Riggs Chiropractic.
“I do roughly 70-80 animals annually. This keeps turnaround times and my workload reasonable.”
One of Streeter’s deer. Submitted photo.
“I am a mammal specialist, so I currently do not do taxidermy work on birds or fish. I have been blessed to work on a wide variety of animals from around the world, including baboons, warthogs, and antelopes from Africa; red stags, fallow deer, and wallabies from New Zealand; and black bears, elk, and deer from both the U.S. and Canada.”
A Philippine porcupine piece that won him a prize recently. Submitted photo.An African baboon piece. Submitted photo.
The Process
With large animals, the animal is skinned, then salted and dried.
“Once I get it, I rehydrate the skin, and then tan it in a chemical bath with a tanning formula. Then the leather must be thinned to put on a foam mannequin. I do a great deal of clay sculpting on the form. I then apply a glue to the form, put the hide on, and put everything into place and sew up any incisions.”
Streeter looks over a foam mannequin of a deer. Submitted photo.
“If an animal has antlers or horns, that part of the skull is cleaned, getting the meat broken down and cleaned off. This is to prevent Chronic Wasting Disease from spreading.”
He charges customers by the time factor plus materials.
“I go the extra mile on every piece,” he said.
Other Artwork Around Fort Scott
The bison mural on National Avenue, facing south. Streeter was one of the artists on this piece of art. From fortscott.com website.
One can view some of Streeter’s artistic work on the wall of Structure Hair Salon on National Avenue.
In 2023, he was part of a group of people creating wall murals in Fort Scott. “The Bison” was created by artists Cally Bailey, Emily Bailey, and Tanner Streeter.
Tanner is married to Johnnie, and they have a three-month-old daughter, Annabella.
