The Fort Scott High School Thespians present A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, adapted by Kathryn Schultz Miller.
Performances are Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. and Dec. 13 at 2 and 7 p.m. at the Fort Scott High School Auditorium, 1005 S. Main, Fort Scott. Doors open 30 minutes prior to showtime.
The production involves 45 children in 1st through 8th grades. The role of Ebenezer Scrooge is portrayed by 8th grader Xavier Jeffrey. Other featured roles include Charles Dickens played by 7th grader Dylan Williams, Spirit of Christmas Past played by 7th grader Elsie Fields, and Spirit of Christmas Present portrayed by 8th grade student Claire Bower.
A Christmas Carol is produced by FSHS Theatre Director Angie Bin with direction and design by the FSHS Thespians. Senior Levi Fairchild serves as Director, Assistant Director is senior Chris Newman, and Music Director is senior Junie Fisher.
All tickets are reserved seating and are $5. Tickets can be purchased at fortscotthighschool.ludus.com or at the door, but seating is limited.
Everyone in the community is invited to Parkway Church of God Holiness this Friday, December 5 at 7 pm for a Christmas concert featuring the Blythe Family. The address for the church is 1111 State Street.
Kansas State Park Annual Permits and 2026 Campsite Reservations Coming Soon
TOPEKA – Whether it’s camping under the stars, hiking new trails, or enjoying a cabin by the lake, now is the time to plan ahead. Mark your calendars for upcoming dates to purchase annual permits and reserve campsites at Kansas State Parks.
“Kansas State Parks are where family memories are made,” said Conner O’Flannagan, Kansas State Parks director. “Annual permits and campsite reservations are a gift you can give yourself and your loved ones this holiday season.”
Annual Vehicle Entrance and Camping Permits Available December 1
Beginning December 1, 2025, annual permits for visiting and camping at Kansas State Parks throughout 2026 will be available online and at state park offices.
Annual Vehicle Permits – Unlimited entry to all Kansas State Parks January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026
$25 for standard permits (residents and non-residents)
$13.75 for senior/disabled Kansas residents
Unconventional Vehicle Permits – $52.50 (for UTVs and golf carts; available only at park offices; valid on improved roads and parking areas
Annual Camping Permits* – Covers all daily camping fees (utility fees still apply) January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026
$202.50 if purchased before April 1 or after September 30
$252.50 if purchased between April 1 and September 30
14-Night Camping Permits* – $112.50 for 14 nights of camping (utility fees still apply)
*Note: Camping permits do not cover additional daily utility fees or prime site fees, and valid state park vehicle permits are also required. You must be 18 or older to rent a campsite or cabin at Kansas State Parks.
Prime Season Reservation Dates
Reservations for campsites during the prime season (April 1–October 31) open at 12 p.m. CST on:
December 10, 2025 – Cedar Bluff, Cheney, Clinton, Eisenhower, Hillsdale, Kanopolis, Meade, Milford, Pomona, Perry, Sandhills, and Tuttle Creek State Parks.
December 17, 2025 – Crawford, Cross Timbers, El Dorado, Elk City, Fall River, Glen Elder, Historic Lake Scott, Lovewell, Prairie Dog, Webster, and Wilson State Parks.
Holiday Weekend Minimum Stay Requirements
For those planning to visit Kansas State Parks during holiday weekends, please note these minimum stay requirements for campsite and cabin reservations:
Campsites:
Memorial Day Weekend – 4-night minimum, customer choice of
Thursday through Sunday nights, May 21-24, 2026 or
Friday through Monday nights, May 22-25, 2026
July 4th Weekend – 3-night minimum, customer choice of
Thursday through Saturday nights, July 2-4, 2026 or
Friday through Sunday nights, July 3-5, 2026
Labor Day Weekend – 4-night minimum, customer choice of
Thursday through Sunday nights, September 3-6, 2026 or
Friday through Monday nights, September 4-7, 2026
Cabins
Memorial Day Weekend – 3-night minimum including May 22-24, 2026
July 4th Weekend – 2-night minimum including July 3-4, 2026
Labor Day Weekend – 3-night minimum including September 4-6, 2026
Tips for a Smooth Reservation Experience
To improve your chances of securing your preferred dates:
The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP) is dedicated to the conservation and enhancement of Kansas’s natural resources for the benefit of both current and future generations. KDWP manages 29 state parks, 177 lakes and wildlife areas, more than 300 public waterbodies, and 5 nature centers. Other services include management of threatened, endangered, and at-risk species, law enforcement, and wildlife habitat programs. For more information about KDWP, visit ksoutdoors.gov.
Fort Scott, Kan. – Tickets are now on sale for the 44th Annual Candlelight Tour at Fort Scott National Historic Site, set for Friday and Saturday, Dec. 5–6, 2025.
Tickets are available online at fofs.ludus.com for $5 per person; children 5 and under are free. Tickets are non-refundable. Early purchase is recommended, as the event frequently sells out.
The 45-minute guided tours depart every 15 minutes, 6:30 to 9 p.m. Friday and 5 to 8:45 p.m. Saturday, and end in the Grand Hall with warm drinks and snacks provided by the Friends of Fort Scott NHS. Visitors should arrive 10 minutes early to allow time to park, check in and get oriented. Participants are encouraged to dress for the weather, as the tours are outdoors and follow paved sidewalks.
This year’s program, “Comfort and Joy in Fort Scott,” explores the celebrations, large and small, that helped build morale at the fort. 1,000 candle lanterns will illuminate the site as reenactors, including you, bring the 19th-century Fort Scott to life.
“Each year, the Candlelight Tour gives visitors a chance to not just observe history, but to walk through it,” said Jill Jaworski, superintendent of Fort Scott National Historic Site. “It’s a special opportunity to experience the warmth, resilience and community spirit that defined Fort Scott.”
Fort Scott National Historic Site’s exhibit areas and visitor center are open Friday through Tuesday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Park grounds are open daily from a half-hour before sunrise until a half-hour after sunset. Admission to the park is free.
The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce announces the 3rd Annual Christmas on the Bricks Festival will take place Thursday, December 4th through Sunday, December 7th throughout Fort Scott’s Downtown Historic District.
This year’s festivities begin Thursday evening with the annual Parade of Lights, themed “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.” The parade begins at 6 p.m., traveling along the brick-lined streets, and concluding with the lighting of the Mayor’s Christmas Tree. The ceremony will feature a performance by the Fort Scott High School Select Ensemble, followed by a fireworks display and a kettle-corn booth. Families are then invited to the Celebration Room at Papa Don’s Pizza for Pictures with Santa.
New attractions for 2025 include a hay climb slide and Santa’s Express Train Rides for children at 121 E. 2nd St. in the Bids & Dibs parking lot. The festival also welcomes country music artist Jake Gill and his five-piece band, performing Friday evening at Liberty Theatre as part of his “Home for Christmas” holiday tour.
Throughout the weekend, downtown Fort Scott will be filled with holiday activities and entertainment, including a synthetic ice-skating rink, candlelight tours of the Fort Scott National Historic Site National Park, horse-drawn carriage rides, historical trolley tours, a living nativity, late-night shopping, Holiday Market vendors, music BINGO, Christmas Karaoke, The Artificers 9th Annual Artist Showcase, wreath-making and floral centerpiece classes, a gingerbread house contest, a Christmas paint party and lettering class, candy-making demonstrations, firepits with s’mores, and specialty tastings featuring bourbon, beer, whiskey, and wine.
Young visitors will enjoy writing Letters to Santa and creating holiday crafts at Santa’s Workshop, located inside the Empress Event Center. Complimentary gift wrapping for purchases made from local retailers during the festival will also be available at the Empress.
Some activities and classes—such as carriage rides, workshops, tastings, and special events—require advance registration. Attendees are encouraged to visit fortscott.com/Christmas-on-the-bricks to register early and ensure they don’t miss out on limited-space opportunities.
Commemorative festival merchandise – including sweatshirts, long-sleeved tees, canvas bags, and brick-ornament keepsakes – is now available online at fortscott.com/Christmas-on-the-bricks, with a limited supply also available at the Information Booth at Wall and Main Streets during the event.
The Chamber encourages everyone to follow the Fort Scott Christmas on the Bricks Facebook page and visit fortscott.com/Christmas-on-the-bricks for updates, announcements, and complete event details. Printed schedules will soon be available at the Chamber of Commerce and downtown businesses. For more information, contact the Chamber at 620-223-3566.
Volunteers from left: Craig Campbell, Jared Weaver, and Matthew Wells, with the sledgehammer, lay the floor for the synthetic skate rink at the Gathering Pavilion on North National Avenue on November 13.
The skate rink in downtown Fort Scott will soon be ready for the December 5 opening.
The Glide Fort Scott is a 48-by-28-foot synthetic ice skating rink located under the Gathering Square Pavilion, just west of the Fort Scott National Historic Site. across from Brickstreet BBQ Restaurant.
Volunteers Craig Campbell, Jared Weaver and Matthew Wells , along with some inmates from the Bourbon County Law Enforcement Center, were assembling the flooring on November 13 on a mild fall day.
Matt Wells, Craig Campbell, a Bourbon County Jail inmate, and Jared Weaver assemble the flooring for the rink on November 13. A Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office Deputy is at far right.
Campbell, Weaver, and Wells volunteered last year also on the project, which was disassembled and stored until the annual Christmas on the Bricks weekend this December. Robert Coon also volunteered to use his skid steer to move all the materials from storage to the rink site. The flooring materials were made last year and stored, and are now reused for the project.
Once the flooring was finished, the next step was the railing around the perimeter of the rink, then the Christmas lights.
The Glide Fort Scott, from its Facebook page.
Volunteers work on the skate rink in preparation for the Dec. 5 opening date.
Stilwell Heritage and Education Foundation Presents Dinner with Teddy Roosevelt – November 20, 2025
Pittsburg, KS – The Stilwell Heritage and Education Foundation invites the community to an evening with America’s most dynamic president, Theodore Roosevelt, brought vividly to life through a captivating living-history performance on Wednesday, November 20, 2025, in the Timmons Ballroom at the Stilwell Hotel, 707 N. Broadway, Pittsburg, Kansas.
This engaging event features nationally recognized Teddy Roosevelt reenactor Joe Wiegand, who embodies the 26th president’s larger-than-life personality—his grit, humor, and vision that shaped a nation. Performing as Theodore Roosevelt, Wiegand will share stories from Roosevelt’s lifetime. From battling asthma and taking boxing lessons as a young boy to challenging special interests as President of the United States, Wiegand brings Theodore Roosevelt to life with energy, intelligence, and wit reminiscent of the original. Following a 45-minute presentation, he will take questions from the audience as Teddy Roosevelt.
“We’re thrilled to bring this kind of living history to Stilwell,” said Foundation President Lyndon Lawson. “It’s a chance for families, students, and history lovers to connect with the past in a way that feels alive and relevant today. It’s as if we are able to step back in time to when Teddy Roosevelt spoke at the Hotel Stilwell.”
Proceeds from the event will support the Stilwell Heritage and Education Foundation’s ongoing efforts to preserve the historic building, renovate the apartments for senior and low-income housing, and provide educational programming for the community.
Tickets are on sale now for $45.00 each (which includes dinner, drink, and dessert). Doors and the silent auction will open at 5:30 p.m. Meet-and-Greet tickets can be purchased for an additional $20.00; the VIP Meet-and-Greet will begin at 5:30 p.m. Dinner and the program will begin at 6:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at www.givebutter.com/stilwelltrevent or by calling the Hotel Stilwell. Seating is limited, so advance purchase is strongly encouraged.
Join us for a night of inspiration, laughter, and history as President Roosevelt himself takes the stage and reminds us to “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”
Event sponsored by Explore Crawford County, Pittsburg State University, and the Stilwell Heritage and Education Foundation.
Fort Scott National Historic Site glows during the annual candlelight tour event. This photo is from 2019.
The U.S. federal government shut down on Oct. 1,, 2025 after lawmakers failed to resolve a budget deadlock, halted some federal operations, according to https://www.ncsl.org/in-dc/federal-government-shutdown-what-it-means-for-states-and-programs Triggered by partisan clashes over funding beyond Sept. 30, the shutdown has created uncertainty for many federal programs.
The local Fort Scott National Historic Site is a government facility.
The annual Candlelight Tour at the Fort has a Friends of the Fort Scott National Historic Site group that is providing press releases and ticket sales for the event during the shutdown.
They are doing their best to make it happen, although reduced in scope, according to Matthew Wells, president of the Friends organization.
They will put out the candles on the walkways of the fort and there may be a few vignettes of life on the prairie in the fort.
“My wife and family may have a vignette,” said Friends of the Fort President Matthew Wells. “We love doing it and love the fort.”
“Our main goal is to get the candles out for the people to enjoy the beautiful fort,” he said.
“We don’t believe we have time to learn the scripts and music, etc.,” with the buildings being closed for the shutdown, he said. “The government isn’t open to do any of it.”
The Fort’s employees are government employees,
But as in years past, on November 1, 2025, tickets for Fort Scott National Historic Site’s 44th Annual Candlelight Tour went on sale.
The group is doing the preliminary work to have the event and will be providing music and refreshments, as in the past.
However, how you purchase your ticket is changing for the event this year.
The following information is from the Friends of the Fort organization, via a press release:
2) contact the Chamber of Commerce in Fort Scott, 231 E. Wall.
3) If the shutdown ends, tickets can be picked up at the fort’s visitor center on Old Fort Boulevard, just north of Fort Scott’s downtown area.
Tickets are $5 per person and are non-refundable; children, 5 and under, are free.
It is recommended that you get your tickets early to ensure your choice of tour times, as this event frequently sells out.
The 44th Annual Candlelight Tour is Friday and Saturday, December 5 and 6, 2025.
Tours on December 5 will begin at 6:30 pm and leave every 15 minutes until 9 pm.
On Saturday, December 6, the tours will start at 5 pm with the final tour leaving at 9 pm. Please arrive 10 minutes early to allow time to park, present/pick up your ticket, and get oriented.
Participants are advised to please dress for the weather and conditions, as the tour will be outside and on sidewalks.
1,000 candle lanterns illuminate the site, and re-enactors (including you) bring the fort to life. During the tour, you will be immersed in ways people have overcome and learned from challenges and new experiences in Fort Scott.
Depending on the end of the Government shutdown, it may look different this year than years past, but we encourage you to come enjoy the beauty of the Historic site in candlelight, according to the press release.
National parks remain as accessible as possible during the federal government shutdown. However, some services may be limited or unavailable. For more information, please visit: doi.gov/shutdown
The Fort Scott High School Thespians are holding auditions for A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, adapted by Kathryn Schultz Miller.
Auditions are open to children in 1st-8th grades and take place from 6-8 p.m. on Nov. 17 OR 18 in the FSHS Auditorium. Children do not need to prepare anything in advance, but should plan to stay for the duration of the audition time on one of the nights. Parents should be present at the beginning for information and to fill out audition forms.
Rehearsals are Nov. 19 & 20, Dec. 1-4, and Dec. 9-11 from 6-8 pm. Productions are Dec. 12 and 13 at 7 p.m. There is a $30 participation fee for children cast in the show.
A Christmas Carol is produced by FSHS Theatre Director Angie Bin with direction and design by the FSHS Thespians. Please contact Bin at [email protected] or 620-719-9622 with any questions.
