Category Archives: Gordon Parks Museum
Fort Scott Stories film: powerful, emotional look at moments that define our community
Sending on behalf of Chamber Member
The Gordon Parks Museum
Fort Scott Stories isn’t just a film… It’s a powerful, emotional look at the people, history, and moments that define our community.
And this is your chance to experience it.
Through real voices and real stories, from youth to elders, this documentary captures the heartbeat of Fort Scott in a way that will stay with you long after the night ends.
You’ll laugh. You might cry. You’ll definitely feel something.
Saturday, April 25, 2026
Doors Open: 6:30 PM
Film Begins: 7:00 PM
Gordon Parks Museum (Ellis Fine Arts Building)
FREE Admission (Donations welcome)
Cash Bar Available
Reservations Required — contact the Gordon Parks Museum to reserve your seat.
Seats will fill quickly. Don’t miss this unforgettable night celebrating the soul of Fort Scott!
Fort Scott Stories Documentary Film Premiere is April 25
The Gordon Parks Museum at Fort Scott Community College is excited to remind the community and surrounding region of the upcoming premiere of Fort Scott Stories, a powerful feature-length documentary created in partnership with acclaimed photojournalist and filmmaker D. Michael Cheers, recipient of the 2025 Choice of Weapons Award.
The premiere will take place on Saturday, April 25, 2026. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., with the screening beginning at 7:00 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public; however, advance registration is required. Attendees are encouraged to reserve tickets as soon as possible, as availability is limited and the event is nearing capacity. Donations are welcome and will support the ongoing work and programming of the Gordon Parks Museum.
As the premiere date approaches, anticipation continues to grow for Fort Scott Stories, a documentary that captures the spirit, voices, and lived experiences of the Fort Scott community. Through deeply personal interviews and rich storytelling, the film reflects the beauty, complexity, and resilience of everyday life, echoing the legacy of Gordon Parks and his 1950 photographic work in Fort Scott.
“Fort Scott Stories is about honoring the everyday lives that shape a community,” said D. Michael Cheers. “Gordon Parks taught us that there is power, dignity, and beauty in telling people’s stories with honesty and care. This film is my creative way of continuing that conversation, by listening deeply, bearing witness, and allowing Fort Scott to speak for itself.”
Executive Director Kirk Sharp emphasizes the emotional impact of the film: “This documentary will make you smile, cry, and feel inspired. It is an honest and deeply human reflection of our community, bridging the past and present while inviting us to reflect on who we are and where we are going.”
Inspired by Gordon Parks’ unpublished LIFE magazine assignment in Fort Scott in 1950, this film continues his legacy of truth-telling through art, empathy, and vision.
The documentary also features actor Kyle Johnson, who portrayed Gordon Parks in the 1968 film The Learning Tree and is a 2021 Choice of Weapons Award recipient.
Attendees are encouraged to reserve tickets by visiting: the Gordon Parks Museum website event page at
https://www.gordonparkscenter.org/events or by calling 620-223-2700, ext. 5850.
For more information about the Fort Scott Stories Feature Documentary Premiere in Fort Scott, Kansas, please contact the Gordon Parks Museum at 620-223-2700, ext. 5850, or email [email protected].
Fort Scott Stories is more than a film
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Freedom’s Frontier NHA grant awarded to The Gordon Parks Museum
The Gordon Parks Museum received $1,000 in grant funding from Freedom’s Frontier National Heritage Area. This award will help to support a project focused on enhancing visitor experience, accessibility, and engagement through expanded promotional materials, interactive elements, and interpretive resources.
The grant will fund the production of 4,000 rack cards promoting the Wayman Chapel A.M.E. Church Commemorative Park, helping visitors better understand its historical significance. Additional improvements include the purchase of heavy-duty metal easels (8–12 inches) for exhibit displays and four large “Museum Open/Welcome” feather-style flags to increase visibility and guide visitors to the museum.
“We are very honored to be selected as a recipient of the Freedom’s Frontier NHA grant,” said Gordon Parks Museum Executive Director Kirk Sharp. “We are excited to begin this project and further enhance the visitor experience both in our museum and during our events.”
The museum anticipates having the rack cards, easels, and welcome flags installed and available for visitors by May 29, 2026.
For more information about the Gordon Parks Museum, visit gordonparkscenter.org
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Freedom’s Frontier National Heritage Area (FFNHA) is a federally funded nonprofit organization and affiliate of the National Park Service dedicated to building awareness of the struggle for freedom along the Missouri-Kansas border. Established by Congress in 2006, its nationally significant themes are the settlement of the frontier, the Missouri-Kansas Border War and Civil War, and the enduring struggle for freedom. These diverse, interwoven, and nationally important stories grew from a unique physical and cultural landscape. FFNHA inspires respect for multiple perspectives and empowers residents to preserve and share these stories. We achieve our goals through interpretation, preservation, conservation, and education for all residents and visitors.
Gordon Parks Museum receives Historic Yearbooks and Two Glass Dish Artifacts
Fort Scott, Kan. – The Gordon Parks Museum has received a rare donation of historic items connected to the early life and legacy of Gordon Parks. The donation includes a 1926 Plaza School-Fort Scott yearbook, a 1925 Fort Scott High School yearbook, and two glass dishes, generously given by Cheri Dixon, a longtime family friend of Parks. Dixon, a former resident of Fort Scott, Kansas, now resides in Smyrna, Georgia.
The 1926 Plaza School-Fort Scott yearbook belonged to Dixon’s grandmother, Louella (Russell) Hill, a lifelong resident of Fort Scott. Hill graduated from the eighth grade at Plaza School in 1926 and was both a classmate and lifelong friend of Gordon Parks. Parks attended the segregated Plaza School from kindergarten through eighth grade at what was formerly 111 Hendricks Street, located on the east side of what is now the Fort Scott National Historic Site.
The yearbook is particularly significant because it is the same year Parks graduated from the eighth grade, and his graduation photograph appears in the book. The 50-page publication provides insight into student life at Plaza School during the 1920s, including academics, athletics, and school activities.
Also included in the donation is a 1925 Fort Scott High School yearbook that belonged to Dixon’s grandfather, Clarence Hill, who graduated from Fort Scott High School in 1925.
In addition to the yearbooks, Dixon donated two glass dishes that appear in a well-known photograph taken by Gordon Parks of Clarence and Louella Hill inside their Fort Scott home. In the photograph, Louella Hill is holding one of the dishes. The image was taken in 1950 as part of Parks’ assignment for Life magazine for photo essay, when he returned to Fort Scott to do a story on segregated schools and follow up on the lives of his former classmates from Plaza School. The photograph later appeared in the 2015 book Gordon Parks: Back to Fort Scott.
The items were donated in honor of Louella Russell Hill, Shirley Hill Hutt, and the Cheri Dixon family.
“We are beyond excited to receive these incredible historic items from Cheri Dixon,” said Kirk Sharp, Executive Director of the Gordon Parks Museum. “The 1925 Plaza School yearbook, will offer valuable insight into the history of the school and student life during that time in the 1920s when Gordon Parks attended school there.”
The Plaza School was later renamed Hawkins School in 1946 in honor of Professor E. J. Hawkins, a longtime educator, administrator, and coach at the institution. The original two-story school building with a full basement was demolished during an urban renewal project in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Today, a memorial wayside marker recognizing the school stands at the Fort Scott National Historic Site recreational vehicle parking lot behind the Chamber of Commerce building.
MORE
The newly donated yearbooks, along with other Plaza-Hawkins School artifacts and the glass dishes, are now on display at the Gordon Parks Museum on the campus of Fort Scott Community College.
For more information or to schedule a museum visit or tour, contact the Gordon Parks Museum at (620) 223-2700, ext. 5850, or email [email protected].
| (Left to Right) Kirk Sharp and Cheri Dixon at her home in Smyrna, GA, holding the 1926 Plaza School Year book. |
| 1925 Fort Scott High School Crimson Yearbook. |
| (Photo Left to Right) Kirk Sharp and Cheri Dixon at her home in Smyrna, GA, holding one of the dishes and the book Back to Fort Scott which features the 1950 photograph taken by Gordon Parks in the home of her grandparents, Louella and Clarence Hill, while her grandmother is holding one of the same dishes. The photo below is an image of the photo that Gordon Parks took in 1950. |
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Black History Month Tribute
Gordon Parks Museum Celebrates Black History Month with
Tribute Panel Exhibit and Daily Quotes
Fort Scott, Kan. Jan. 28, 2026 – The Gordon Parks Museum at Fort Scott Community College is proud to celebrate Black History Month with a powerful and educational Black History Month Tribute Panel Exhibit, on display February 1–28, 2026, in the Danny and Willa Ellis Family Fine Arts Center.
The exhibit features more than 100 posters, photographs, and informational panels highlighting influential Black innovators, leaders, artists, and change-makers whose contributions have shaped history and continue to inspire future generations. Visitors will also encounter a thoughtfully curated selection of inspiring and moving quotes that encourage reflection, dialogue, and deeper understanding.
In addition to the exhibit, the Museum will present a Black History Month “Quote of the Day” throughout February. Each daily quote will spotlight a different historical figure or contemporary voice, offering moments of inspiration and learning for visitors.
“This exhibit and daily quote series provide meaningful opportunities to highlight untold stories, celebrate achievement, and connect history to the world we live in today,” said Kirk Sharp, Executive Director of the Gordon Parks Museum. “It invites thoughtful discussion about the relevance of Black history in our daily lives and shared future.”
The Black History Month Tribute Panel Exhibit is free and open to the public during regular building hours.
For more information about the exhibit and contact the Gordon Parks Museum at 620-223-2700 ext.5850 or by email at [email protected].
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FSCC Hosts Chamber Coffee on Jan.15
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Presentation Explores Wichita’s Dockum Drugstore Sit-In
Fort Scott, Kan. – The Gordon Parks Museum in Fort Scott, KS will host “The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In,” a presentation and discussion by Dr. Prisca Barnes on Monday, January 19, 2026 at 12:00p.m. at the Danny & Willa Ellis Family Fine Arts Center. Members of the community are invited to attend the free program. Contact the Gordon Parks Museum at 620-223-2700 ext. 5850 for more information. The program is made possible by Humanities Kansas.
This is a free Lunch and Learn event, with gumbo soup lunch provided by Great Western Dining. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend this celebration event” said Museum Director, Kirk Sharp.
Seeking racial equity and an end to segregation, Wichita’s Black students organized and staged a sit-in in 1958 at Wichita’s Dockum Drugstore. Long denied entry into the city’s movie theaters and restaurants, students exercised their right to peacefully protest over a three-week period at the popular lunch counter. What transpired, how it ended, and the lasting impact it had on race relations in the city is the focus of this talk. More broadly, the talk will explore how these types of protests transformed the struggle for racial equity in America.
Dr. Prisca Barnes is the founder of Storytime Village, Inc., a nonprofit organization in Wichita that promotes reading among low-income children and families. She is a passionate advocate for equity in education and literacy.
“The Dockum Sit-in was one of the first student-led lunch counter protests of the Civil Rights era and it happened here in Kansas,” said Barnes. “It’s important to revisit its circumstances.”
“The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In” is part of Humanities Kansas’s Speakers Bureau and “21st Century Civics,” a collection of resources that invite Kansans to participate in community discussions and learn more about the history of American democracy and the shared responsibilities of citizenship. “21st Century Civics” is made possible with support from “A More Perfect Union: America at 250,” an initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
For more information about “The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In” in Fort Scott, KS contact The Gordon Parks Museum at 620- 223-2700 ext. 5850 or visit https://www.gordonparkscenter.org/
About Humanities Kansas
Humanities Kansas is an independent nonprofit leading a movement of ideas to empower the people of Kansas to strengthen their communities and our democracy. Since 1972, our pioneering programming, grants, and partnerships have documented and shared stories to spark conversations and generate insights. Together with our partners and supporters, we inspire all Kansans to draw on history, literature, ethics, and culture to enrich their lives and serve the communities and state we all proudly call home. Visit humanitieskansas.org.
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Gordon Parks Museum celebrating the life of Martin Luther King Jr.on January 15
Fort Scott, Kan. – The Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration events will be held in Fort Scott. All of the events will take place at Ellis Fine Arts Center (2108 Horton Street) and are open and free for the entire community to attend.
The events will start on Thursday, January 15, 2026, at the Danny and Willa Ellis Family Fine Arts Center with a free (Lunch and Learn) event that will be held at 12:00 p.m., featuring Fort Scott Community College Students and Pittsburg State University Students for a Tribute Reading of the “Letter From the Birmingham Jail” a written letter by Dr. King. Tomato soup, dessert, birthday cake and drinks will also be provided by Great Western Dining Services.
The celebration will wrap up on Monday, January 19th, with a film showing of the PBS home video documentary In Remembrance of Martin., (Lunch and Learn) event and Canned and Non-perishable Food Drive. Food items will be collected at the museum from 9:00am – till 2:00p.m. The film In Remembrance of Martin will be shown at 10:30a.m. The (Lunch and Learn) Speaker Presentation Event “The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In” by Dr. Prisca Barnes is will be held at 12:00p.m. – till 1:00p.m. Gumbo soup, drinks and desserts will be provided by Great Western Dining Services.
“The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In” is part of Humanities Kansas’s Speakers Bureau and “21st Century Civics,” a collection of resources that invite Kansans to participate in community discussions and learn more about the history of American democracy and the shared responsibilities of citizenship. “21st Century Civics” is made possible with support from “A More Perfect Union: America at 250,” an initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
More information on the events can be found at https://www.gordonparkscenter.org/events. For more information call the Gordon Parks Museum at 620-223-2700 ext. 5850.
Gordon Parks Museum celebrating the life of Martin Luther King Jr.
Fort Scott, Kan. – The Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration events will be held in Fort Scott. All of the events will
take place at Ellis Fine Arts Center and are open and free for the entire community to attend.
The events will start on Thursday, January 15, 2026, at the Danny and Willa Ellis Family Fine Arts Center with
a free (Lunch and Learn) event that will be held at 12:00p.m., featuring Fort Scott Community College Students
and Pittsburg State University Students for a Tribute Reading of the “Letter From the Birmingham Jail” a
written letter by Dr. King. Tomato soup, dessert, birthday cake and drinks will also be provided by Great
Western Dining Services.
The celebration will wrap up on Monday, January 19th, with a film showing of the PBS home video
documentary In Remembrance of Martin., (Lunch and Learn) event and Canned and Non-perishable Food
Drive. Food items will be collected at the museum from 9:00am – till 2:00p.m. The film In Remembrance of
Martin will be shown at 10:30a.m. The (Lunch and Learn) Speaker Presentation Event “The Dockum Drugstore
Sit-In” by Dr. Prisca Barnes is will be held at 12:00p.m. – till 1:00p.m. Gumbo soup, drinks and desserts will be
provided by Great Western Dining Services.
“The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In” is part of Humanities Kansas’s Speakers Bureau and “21st Century Civics,” a
collection of resources that invite Kansans to participate in community discussions and learn more about the
history of American democracy and the shared responsibilities of citizenship. “21st Century Civics” is made
possible with support from “A More Perfect Union: America at 250,” an initiative of the National Endowment for
the Humanities.
More information on the events can be found at https://www.gordonparkscenter.org/events. For more
information call the Gordon Parks Museum at 620-223-2700 ext. 5850.
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Happenings At The Gordon Park Museum
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