Kansas motor vehicle museum revving up organization for tiny town

GRAHAM COUNTY, Kan. (KSNW) — A new museum in western Kansas is bringing in loads of site visitors and drumming up company for the smaller town of Hill Town.

“We have experienced in excess of 1,100 persons arrive as a result of this museum considering the fact that we opened up in April of 2021 and
that is 1,100 men and women, some of them are townspeople, but which is several people who are coming into our neighborhood and either paying out revenue at the gas station, at a cafe, or downtown purchasing,” said museum secretary Phyllis Weller.

The Graham County Vehicle & Artwork Museum is a just one-of-a-kind location with dozens of typical autos, antique tractors, and vehicles that have graced film sets like “Paper Moon” and “Tucker.”

“We have bought cars from the 20s to the 70s, and they all obtained character, course, and fashion,” said museum board member Rick Roberts.

The museum is a labor of enjoy. Many townspeople considered of the strategy in 2017.

“Basically on a dream and a prayer,” Weller stated.

When a setting up arrived up for sale in 2019, Weller and a several some others started out seeking for donors. Dozens of companies stepped up, as did Hill Metropolis native and Boulder, Colorado company icon Stephen Tebo.

“This is the Tebo area due to the fact Stephen Tebo was a major donor to us. He has these automobiles on screen from his personal collection,” stated museum president Cory Simoneau as he gave KSN a tour in November.

Simoneau and other people connected to the museum credit score Tebo for creating the museum what it is nowadays.

“We would be open, but we wouldn’t have this caliber of autos. He’s got awesome excellent of vehicles, massive assortment, and he is our primary contributor,” discussed Roberts.

The museum capabilities about 30 classic autos, like a handful from Tebo’s selection. The motor vehicles are on bank loan and are traded in and out each individual number of months. In addition to Tebo’s cars and trucks are neighborhood cars from Hoxie, Hill City, Plainville and Hays.

“We have persons who possess cars and trucks that want to come in, but they are on a waiting around list,” explained Weller.

That’s good news for Hill Metropolis and the surrounding area. Weller mentioned the a lot more vehicles they rotate in and out of the museum, the extra very likely they will travel readers to the city.

“That’s what any small town desires, and that’s a person of our vital things we want to do is bring people to our local community,” she explained.

“That’s what we are striving for, to support our local community. All the board customers ended up raised below, grew up right here, and we don’t want to give up. We like what we are performing. We appreciate it,” Roberts said.

The Graham County Car & Art Museum is located at U.S. 24 and U.S. 283. Admission is $5.