Abilene, Kansas

The end of the Chisholm Trail, and at that time one of the wildest towns in the west, it had as its marshall one Wild Bill Hickok!  For a short time, anyway.....until he accidentally shot his partner and they removed him from office!  That in itself might have been enough to pique my curiosity, but  what brought us here, in fact, is that it is also home to Dwight D. Eisenhower.

His childhood home, still in its original location,  Museum, Presidential Library, and final resting place are all here in this little town of 6800 residents.  We drove from Missouri this morning, so didn't hit town until mid  afternoon, and I wished we had more time, as the museum a military museum, created by him before he became president, and quite extensive.  I also enjoyed the area devoted to Mamie Eisenhower.    Eisenhower was  not considered to have been much of a president, allowing those under him to make decisions, but facts have come to light that have now revealed his talented command, and have placed him in the top 10 of all presidents.  In any case, he was a successful leader, and a war hero who helped to mastermind D-Day, and a man who was greatly loved and admired.  He is responsible for expanding the interstate roads, so we are especially grateful to him for that!  Not necessarily something to go out of your way to see, nor the savior to the town's economy that he hoped it would be, it is worth a stop if you are in the area.

Our neighbors at the campsite last night had told us about the Brookville Hotel, where they make it a point to stop and eat when they are going through, so we found it for dinner after the museum closed.  Dating back to 1870, it serves only fried chicken dinners, complete with mashed potatoes and gravy and a biscuit, topped off with home made ice cream.  Not normally a fan of fried chicken, we had to do it for the experience, and I have to say it was really very good!  A bit of a disappointment to learn the building is not all original, but they made it look that way, and if I had not asked, I would have been none the wiser!  Tin ceilings and all!

We found a campground in town, which I cannot rate as highly as I would the museum!  Called the Covered Wagon, it is hot, dusty, unattractive, and our sight actually faces a junk yard!! Except for the junk yard, WE could be on the wagon train!!  So I guess it is appropriately named!  I am sitting inside tonight, and will be visiting RV Park Reviews this evening, and giving them MY review!   It is just an overnight, as we hit the road early tomorrow.

Speaking of hot, boy is it!!  The car said 98 when we went to the museum!  The corn here is higher than anyplace we have seen so far.  Which reminds me that, since we left those hills in PA, it has been rather flat, and nothing much to remark about the geography along Rt. 70.  I was tickled to see several barns painted with quilt patterns, as I had read about a driving tour you could take to pass them, so it was neat to be able to view a few from the highway.  Not as exciting as those hex signs , but still fun!