Kenneth Bradley Hart age 88 of rural Garland, quietly slipped away on August 30, 2025 at his home. He was born September 1, 1936, the son of Merle Franklin Hart and Martha Lou (Bradley) Hart at the end of a long, hot summer at the home of his grandparents Henry and Louisa (Corn) Bradley in Chetopa, Kansas.
He spent his early years in Kansas City, Missouri playing in the woods, climbing trees, shooting wasp nests with a slingshot, flinging mudballs at clean cars on the highway and annoying his older brother and baby sister.
Halfway through his 8th grade year, His parents sold their house in Kansas City and purchased Hart’s Shoe Shop on Wall Street and the family made their home in the back of the shop. Kenneth graduated from Fort Scott High School as part of the Greatest Class of 1954. He attended Fort Scott Community College and Pittsburg State University graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Education in 1960 and completing a master’s degree in secondary school administration later.
Seeing Vietnam on the horizon, he joined the local National Guard unit, serving 6 months in Army basic training at Fort Leonard Wood and 6 years in the National Guard with training in survey and artillery. During basic, without knowing it, he won the medal as Battalion marksman.
He held several jobs during his lifetime starting with the soda fountain next to the shoe shop, assistant manager of the Fox Theater, a short stint on the railroad, and Bruce Marble and Granite Works. It was while he was at Bruce’s that he was hired by the Metz, Missouri superintendent to teach English, Business, and Social studies. After seeing the class of 1964 through their high school years, he accepted a position at Fort Scott High School teaching English and sponsoring the Crimson yearbook, the junior class and the Junior-Senior Prom. While the community college was housed in the same building as the high school, he also sponsored the Maroon yearbook and taught some classes there.
After leaving teaching in 1982, he worked at Lincoln National Insurance processing claims and working in the mail room until the company left Fort Scott. He formally retired from there New Year’s Eve 1992 and was a full-time father and cattleman.
In 1957 he married Pauline Sue Coonrod with whom he traveled to 49 of the 50 states. He never made it to Michigan but he circumnavigated it so he didn’t care that he never made it there. He and Pauline also traveled internationally to Canada, Mexico, El Salvador, Grand Cayman, Great Britain and Ireland (where he ate some terrible peas).
After he and Pauline divorced, he hung up his travel bags and focused on his relationship with God, family, and hunting.
On April 20, 1983 he married Evangeline Faith Simpson in Pittsburg, Kansas and began a new adventure. Late that summer he received Jesus as his savior and began attending church and singing in the choir at Independent Bible Baptist Church in Pittsburg. He later served as song leader, Sunday school superintendent and VBS director.
Kenneth and Evangeline became interested in genealogy tracing their family histories for several years until their sons were born then he focused on raising his sons, playing video games and watching movies with them and rewriting the story books they tossed in his lap. He introduced them to really good music from the 40’s, 50’s, and 60’s. He often sang along to the radio much to his son’s chagrin.
As part of that focus, he moved his growing family to worship closer to home at Cherry Grove Baptist Church and later moving with them to Freedom Spirit Church. He stopped attending church when his hearing failed but continued to support the church his wife called home which is presently Faith Church.
He spent his retirement taking over his father-in-law Stanley Simpson’s cattle operation, deer hunting with his brother Merle Jr and reading and listening to books. He also loved target shooting and was a proud member of the National Rifle Association. He often lamented that he hadn’t purchased a lifetime membership when he was only $50 away from it.
He loved watching birds and over the years he put up houses and feeders for Carolina wrens, bluebirds, Cardinals, Purple Martins and hummingbirds. He was especially pleased with the number of Cardinals and hummingbirds he attracted.
In the last decade or so of his life he became a fan of Royals and Cardinals baseball, football (he thought college was more interesting than the NFL) and NASCAR (for the crashes).
Survivors include his wife of 42 years Evangeline of the home, five sons Keegan, Trevor, Justin, and Dalton Hart of the home and Zachary Hart of Fort Scott. His sister June (Gene) Christy of Girard, his sister-in-law Dolores Daum Hart of Fort Scott, one nephew Mark (Angela) Christy, five nieces Candice Hart (Craig Dunn), Kimberly Hart-McBride (Ron McBride), Kelly Hart (John Lane), Gina Christy, Samantha Christy-Dangermond (Tom Dangermond), nine great nieces and nephews, seven great grand nieces and nephews and his lifelong best friend Don (Mim) Carlson and his devoted cat Perce Blackborow.
He was preceded in death by his parents, his beloved brother Merle Hart Jr and all his first cousins. He was also preceded in death by his good friends Howard Kivett, Hubert Leonard, and Norman Cross and his beloved dogs, Patrice Lamumba, Boromir, Butterrum, Codi, Galadriel, and Rommel Panzer and cats Chubby and Ash Chippy.
The family extends their thanks to everyone at Gentiva Hospice for their care, especially Christina, Treva and Michelle. You are superstars!
Memorial services will be held at 4:00 PM Tuesday, September 9th, at the Cheney Witt Chapel. The family will receive friends from 6:30 until 8:00 PM Monday the 8th at the funeral home. Burial will take place at Pleasant View Cemetery. Memorial contributions are suggested to the National Rifle Association, the Fort Scott Public Library, or Faith Church building fund and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, PO Box 347, 201 S. Main St., Fort Scott, Kansas 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted online at cheneywitt.com.