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What People Say
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Favorite holiday traditions
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EGW
DECEMBER 26 AND 27, 2015
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PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING
FAMILY OWNED SINCE 1895
WWW.EMPORIAGAZETTE.COM
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CONSTRUCTION AT NEW
HISTORY CENTER IN FULL SWING
By Brandy Nance
[email protected]
The demolition phase of the Lyon County History Center, 709
Commercial St., is complete and
construction and remodeling is
in full swing, inching closer to the
grand opening next summer.
As part of the Lyon County
History Center’s Story Teller
Campaign, the museum met its
$350,000 challenge grant from the
Jones Trust. The organization’s
move will put Emporia’s history on
display on main street by moving
to a new location, which will be
front-and-center downtown. The
money will be used to remodel the
facility and create a better environment for preservation.
The need for a bigger space
arose years ago. Right now, the
center has more than 200,000 artifacts and more than a million
pieces of material that do not have
proper facilities. Participants in a
2006 marketing study highlighted
ease of access and lack of space
for programming as issues for the
museum. The new museum and research center will greatly improve
handicap access and will add more
parking. It is estimated that less
than 20 percent of the collection
has ever been exhibited.
The center moved into their
current location in 1980. By the
late 1990s they had already outgrown it and had to rent other
space for artifact storage. The new
building is 26,000 square feet. It
Please see Center, Page 3
BRANDY NANCE/GAZETTE
BRANDY NANCE/GAZETTE
Shown here is the entrance to the future Langley Kids’ Discovery
Zone at the Lyon County History Center’s future home at 709
Commercial St. The Kids Discovery Zone will highlight kid-friendly
decor, hands-on activities and a special loft and reading area for kids.
BRANDY NANCE/GAZETTE
Lyon County Historical Society Executive
Construction workers work on the site of the future Director Greg Jordan and Curator Lisa Soller
study blueprints. The new building has 26,000
Lyon County History Center recently. The new
square feet.
building will allow for massive amounts of space
for the Historical Society.
COOL IS
SHORT-LIVED
COTTONWOOD FALLS WELCOMES NEW BUSINESS
By Jesse Murphy
[email protected]
COTTONWOOD FALLS — The
Chase County Chamber of Commerce and Prairie Wheel Pottery
and Gallery held a ribbon cutting
recently to introduce the new business to the community.
Jolene Ratzlaff is the owner and
artist of Prairie Wheel, and uses influences of ranching and prairie life
as her inspiration.
“I was very intrigued when I
noticed this building was for sale,”
Ratzlaff said. “I actually like the old
western air about it, so I wanted to
invest in it. That’s what I had in mind
when I bought the building. But at
some point I wanted to sell things
because I’m interested in art, and I
think this place is about my size.”
Ratzlaff has her kiln in Hesston,
where she lives, and said that she’s
happy to have a business running
after she bought the building at 409
N. Oak in Cottonwood Falls.
“I’m amazed at the many places
people display their art here in
Chase County,” Ratzlaff said. “I enjoy seeing what’s new; people are
very talented here.”
Jennifer Laird, tourism director
for the chamber, said during the
ribbon cutting that Ratzlaff will
help the burgeoning art scene in
Chase County.
“Jolene has always admired artists and how they are able to create on canvas, paper and clay,”
Laird said. “With that vision, she
has taken great joy in painting and
learning from our local artists and
was inspired to open a gallery of
her own here in Cottonwood Falls.”
Ratzlaff said she likes making
By Kerri Jackson
[email protected]
JESSE MURPHY/GAZETTE
Jolene Ratzlaff and members of the Chase County community celebrate the opening of Prairie Wheel
Pottery and Gallery in Cottonwood Falls recently. The gallery is open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday
and Sunday at 409 N. Oak in Cottonwood Falls.
art and seeing what other artists
are doing, and that has inspired her
to consider expanding on her pottery work — a part of her work that
is evolving.
“I’m always glad to meet new
people,” Ratzlaff said. “A lot of it is
that I just do the pottery. I’ve heard
that every time you put a piece of
clay on the wheel, you should have
something in mind. I have a general
idea, but it turns out as something
different every time for me when
I’m finished with it.”
She took art classes at both
Hesston Community School and
McPherson College, where she said
Good Evening
taught her to try different mediums like watercolor and new types
of pottery. Plans to expand handmade merchandise are already in
the works as well.
“I can put more pieces of pottery
in, 50 pounds of clay doesn’t quite
fill the gallery up,” Ratzlaff said.
“I’ve always wanted to stay close to
trying different types of artwork. I
really enjoy making these pieces.”
Prairie Wheel is open from 9
a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, but the hours could be flexible
in the near future.
“The Christmas season is here,”
Ratzlaff said. “I may stay open lon-
ger if there’s a need, but I’m not
sure right now. I’m just going to
have (to do) like this and see how
it goes.”
Her website, www.prairiewheel.
com, will be up soon with new pieces of art. Contact information is on
the site currently.
“Jolene incorporates prairie and
western themes into both her paintings and pottery,” Laird said. “The
works displayed showcase her passion for the history of the west and
the pioneer lifestyle. We are excited
to have Jolene and her creations as
a part of our vast, varied and continuously growing art community.”
Last Friday, w&