For 113 years people have been gathering on Uniontown’s square to celebrate Labor Day.
Vendors dot the treed park, children and adults play games, groups sell food and drink for the annual picnic. There is also recognition of the oldest present at the picnic, the longest residency in Uniontown and who drove the farthest to attend.
Through the years other events have been added, a children’s fishing derby, a talent show, rodeos, and community church service.
And there is a parade.
The 2018 Old Settler’s Picnic was September 3 this year.
Mary Bruner was honored as the grand marshall of the parade, which always fills the town square perimeter with visitors.
Pictured is the Bruner family throwing candy to children during the parade route.
The parade was filled with children, past and future Uniontown High School graduates, fire volunteers, motorcycles, old machinery, floats, politicians, and horses.
Children line up in Uniontown’s Old Settler’s Picnic parade.Allen Drake, class of 1965, left, and his wife, Billie Jo Drake, class of ’68, pose with a former Uniontown High School teacher, Larry Lambing. Lambing taught from 1959 to 1965 at UHS.The Uniontown High School Band entertains during the Old Settler’s Picnic Parade on Labor Day.The Pledge of Allegiance begins the parade during the Old Settler’s Picnic Monday in Uniontown.The Uniontown High School class of 2021.The UHS Cheer Squads.The UHS class of 1968.Uniontown Fire Volunteer Katie Towne drives a firetruck in the parade.The UHS Class of 1963.The Uniontown Saddle Club.Marmaton Community Church float.The UHS Class of 1958.The drums and flag squad bring up the tail of the UHS band in the parade.The UHS marching band.
The show this Friday will feature Mike Lundeen on the keyboard. I am really pleased to get Mike back to The Pavilion as he is a favorite with our audiences. His music spans Old Classics and newer renditions of lite classics. His performance of Scott Joplin pieces is amazing. This is a program to catch.
In addition, there will be performances by other regular Heritage Park contributors.
The program starts at 7 pm.
Bring your lawn chairs as seating is limited. The weather is predicted to be good
Friday Concerts in the Park goers gather around the pavilion at First and Main streets.
This Friday’s Chamber of Commerce sponsored concert will feature the Workman Bluegrass band.
“The band has performed many times for us at the pavilion and is a continuing favorite with their lively renditions of bluegrass, folk and traditional gospel music,” Ralph Carlson, the event organizer said. “The concert starts at 7 pm. come early and bring your lawn chairs as seating is limited. In the event of rain, the band has opted to go indoors at The Common Grounds Coffee shop 1/2 block south of the Heritage Park Pavilion.”
CELEBRATE LABOR DAY WEEKEND WITH FORT SCOTT NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE
Celebrate the Dignity and Importance of Labor, 1840s style
Fort Scott KS – Saturday, September 1 through Monday, September 3, 2018, Fort Scott National Historic Site (FOSC) will commemorate Labor Day weekend with artillery, horses, music, living history demonstrations and a series of interpretive programs. All programs are free.
Saturday, September 1st
10:00 a.m. “Flour, Sweat, and Tears”: 1840s Bakehouse Program
11:00 a.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demonstration
12:00 p.m. “Hardy Dashing Fellows” Dragoon Soldier Program
1:00 p.m. Guided Tour of Fort Scott National Historic Site
2:00 p.m. “Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: 1840s style” –Officers’ Wife Program (letter writing)
3:00 p.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demo
4:00 p.m. Flag Retreat
Sunday, September 2nd
11:00 a.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demo
12:00 p.m. “Saws and Scalpels: Civil War Medicine”
1:00 p.m. “Crack Post of the Frontier” Guided Tour-Construction History of Fort Scott
2:00 p.m. “The Griffith Trial: A Marais des Cygnes Conviction”
3:00 p.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demo
4:00 p.m. Flag Retreat
Monday, September 3rd
11:00 a.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demonstration
12:00 p.m. “Fort Scott Soldier Ants” 1840s Construction Demonstration
1:00 p.m. Guided Tour of Fort Scott National Historic Site
2:00 p.m. Musical Program-Holmes Brigade Minstrels
2:30 p.m. Free ice cream, served to honor all those who have worked hard to build America, courtesy of the Friends of Fort Scott National Historic Site.
3:00 p.m. Thunder Wagon: 1840s Artillery Demonstration
3:30 p.m. Musical Program -Holmes Brigade Minstrels
4:00 p.m. Flag Retreat
The thunder of artillery will sound each day at 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. with a short program explaining how the gun is fired.
Other programs offered throughout the weekend are Guided tours at 1:00 p.m. and a flag retreat ceremony at 4:00 p.m. occur each day.
On Saturday, living history interpreters will be cooking in the mess hall and baking bread in the bakehouse with an interpretive program about the bakehouse at 10:00 a.m.
At 12:00 p.m. a program about dragoon soldiers titled “Hardy Dashing Fellows” and at 2:00 p.m. an officer’s wife will be sharing the latest gossip in the program “Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: 1840s style.”
On Sunday, September 2, in the program “The Griffith Trial: A Marais des Cygnes Conviction”, Park Ranger Robert Thomas will lead a reenactment of the trial of William Griffith, the only man to be convicted of the Marais des Cygnes Massacre.
Also on Sunday, you can learn about Civil War medicine in “Saws and Scalpels.”
“No work is insignificant. All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.”
This quote from Martin Luther King can be applied to the workers of modern times as well as those who labored to build and maintain Fort Scott.
A special tour on Sunday “From the Crack Post of the Frontier:” will focus on the labor force, building materials, architectural styles, and construction techniques used in the building of Fort Scott.
Programs on Monday, September 3 will include a Labor Day construction demonstration, musical programs offered by the Holmes Brigade Minstrels and free ice cream at 2:30 p.m., served to honor all those who have worked hard to build America. The ice cream is being offered courtesy of the Friends of Fort Scott National Historic Site.
FORT SCOTT, Kan. – If you’ve got a classic show car you’d like to show off, Fort Scott Presbyterian Village is giving you an excuse September 13. The senior living community will be hosting a car show from 4 to 7 p.m.
Shine up those whitewalls and polish that chrome because prizes will be awarded for first, second and third place winners. Come out and enjoy hot dogs, chips, and drinks while wandering through a collection of classic cars.
RSVP to Becky Kellum, marketing director, by Sept. 4 at 620-223-5550 or [email protected].
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Fort Scott Presbyterian Village has been offering independent and assisted living apartments for seniors from southeast Kansas and southwest Missouri since 1994. Learn more at FortScottPresbyterianVillage.org. It is a member of the nonprofit Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America network of 17 communities and 2 hospices in Kansas and Missouri. Learn more about PMMA at PresbyterianManors.org.
Ralph Carlson and Tammy Helm play as part of the Friday Night Concert on August 3.
The Hemphill Family and Friends will be the featured act at this week’s concert at Heritage Park at 7 p.m.
The weekly Friday Night Concert is at First and Main Streets and is free and open to the public.
Ralph Carlson is the organizer of the concert series, which is sponsored by the Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce.
Attendees are asked to bring lawn chairs.
Lawnchairs line Main Street at for the Friday Night Concert on Aug. 3. Lawnchairs also filled the area in front of and to the side of the pavilion. Several area musicians entertained the audience at this concert.
Shane Walker, Fred Pather, Olivia Walker and Deven Coulter at the Gunn Park Pump Track Sunday morning.
Something new has been added to Fort Scott’s biggest park.
With no sign to designate the spot, it looks like piles of dirt on the south side of Park Avenue, just before entry to Gunn Park.
“It’s kind of evolving,” Fred Prather, one of the designers of the track said. “It needs bikes to pack it down.”
Prather, Shane Walker, and Frank Halsey started physical work on the new Gunn Park Trails Pump Track about four months ago.
“We’ve had the vision of a pump track since the land purchase,” Prather said. ” We wanted someplace to set up for the kids that was easy to access and spectator friendly. “
“The project was started last year, as a result of a grant from Timken (a local company), allowing for the purchase of the property,” said Frank Halsey.
Mid-Contenintal Restoration donated the dirt and the City of Fort Scott brought the dirt in.
Then the workers began piling into small hills with which to hone biking skills.
So, what is pump track racing?
“Pump track translates from the rider pumping the bike with his arm and legs to maintain and even create momentum,” Prather said.
Olivia Walker rides on the pump track Sunday morning, Deven Coulter is in the background.
To create the local Gunn Park Pump Track, Prather did his homework.
” For research I rode every pump, BMX and slopestyle course I could find in a 4-hour driving distance….well, there really isn’t that many, so it seemed like a perfect addition to our trail system, Gunn Park Trails, to draw in more riders.”
” It is loosely styled for BMX riding which stands for bicycle motocross, so when finished it will be wide enough to run 2-3 riders at a time in a head- to- head race.”
“I grew up riding BMX and ride mountain bikes now and I am involved with Gunn Park Trails and other bike projects in town,” Walker said.
“It is open to ride,” Walker said, “but we still have finish work to get done.”
“We will do improvements and additions to only increase the fun,” Prather said. “Things like adding obstacles called ‘skinnies’ to open areas where you can try riding along something 4-10 inches wide for a length of 10 foot, etc.”
” We also plan to construct ‘drop zones’ of progressing heights, where you effectively ride off a ramp to flat ground,” Prather said. “These are skills we commonly use on a mountain bike trail. It will be a place where it’s nice and open and you can practice and perfect technique. This not only improves your riding ability faster, it is also safer.”
There is a beginner course on the far south side of the property.
Eventually, there will be a sign with safety rules and “possible billboards behind the hills,” Prather said. “And grass will be sown on the side of the hills.” He also envisions bleachers for spectators.
” I’ve been involved with Gunn Park Trails since the beginning,” Prather said. “When you can get kids participating and excited about a project it’s a win, they tell their friends and family.”
“We started to feel a need for BMX style riding and to allow mountain bikers access to a pump track which is an activity becoming increasingly popular,” Shane Walker said.
Fairy Morgan Eaton kept the audience apprised of what was going on in the story.
Culminating four weeks of a children’s summer theater camp, 17 local children under the direction of Allen Twitchell presented Beauty IS A Beast, Wednesday evening.
The story is a twist of an age-old story of what constitutes real beauty.
The play is a parable in six scenes set in the kingdom of Callentine and will be presented again Thursday evening at 7 p.m. at the Ellis Family Fine Arts Center at Fort Scott Community College.
Camp participants received instruction in theater basics and engaging in theater exercises.
The play was presented in a workshop style, with minimal set, costumes, and props.
The crew consisted of Twitchell as director, Jared Oshel at production assistant and well as set design and construction, Ivy Bailey also helped with set design and construction. Publicity was by Kassie Fugate-Cate.
The cast, in order of appearance: Fairy-Morgan Eaton, Beauty-Kaitlyn Hanks, Sarah/Molly/Jo-Analeise Rupprecht, Tutor/ Janie- Jordyn McGhee, Guard/John-Vladimir Clark, Guard/Sam/Joe-Matthew Eaton, Scribe-Cadence Tuck, Honor-Wendy Monahan, Andres/Nick-Jakob Slinkard, Meg/Patty-Alyssa Shelton, Kelly/Sally-Madalyn Willet, Queen-Natalie Eaton, Mayor/Peter-Raj Gugnani, Jill-Ivy Bailey, Bill/Jimmy-Micah Hunt, Mandy-Alyssa Hunt. Aubrie McGhee was ill Wednesday evening but had practiced as Mary/Cindy in the play.
Join us to watch the live production of Taylor Hughes Comedy Magic on Friday, August 3rd at 7pm!
You may buy your tickets in advance at the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce!
Taylor Hughes is a full time entertainer with over 20 years of performance experience. He is one of the only people to have performed in all three showrooms at the World FamousMagic Castle before the age of 21. He is a featured act on the television series “Masters of Illusion” and was recently presented the awards for “Best Illusion” “Best Comedy Magic” & “Best Showmanship” by the Society of American Magician’s in Los Angeles. A popular entertainer, Taylor has performed for multiple organizations including Home Depot, AT&T, and The American Heart Association.
