Kansas

​ Kansas By:SLR/ PD:4

__1. History __

1.Kansas became the thirty-fourth state on January 29, 1861, and has been important to United States history ever since. Kansas's motto is "Ad Astra per Aspera" which is Latin for "to the stars with difficulty". Kansas applied for stateh ood on December 1855. Kansas has a very majestic creature as its state animal, the Bison, and a beautiful state bird, the Western Meadowlark. Its state flower can be grown almost anywhere and is well known, the sunflower. T he state’s nickname does not differ from the state’s flower as it is called the Sunflower State. Kansas is the heart of the United States. It really is since it is the most centrally located state in the contiguous forty-eight states.   2. There has been a wide range of historical happenings in Kansas. In 1541, Spanish explorer, Francisco de Coronado is considered to be the first European to travel to this region. Sieur de la Salle claimed much land for France in 1682 which included presant day Kansas. The territory became Spanish in 1793 and then returned to France in 1800 and was sold to the U.S. in the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Lewis and Clark explored the region between 1803 and 1819. The first white settlements in Kansas were outposts Fort Leavenworth (1827), Fort Scott (1842), and Fort Riley (1853) which were built to protect travelers along the Santa Fe and Oregon Trails. The Kansas territory was created and opened for settlement by the U.S. goverment with the Kansas- Nebraska Act in 1854. Free Staters from New England and pro slavery settlers from Missouri rushed to the settlement. At times these groups were violent and fighting in "Bleeding Kansas" would determine if Kansas would become a free state or a slave state. It e nded up becoming a free state. After the Civil War, the population of Kansas rose when immigrants turned the prairie into productive farmland and the cattle industry grew. Gunmen and outlaws joined the cowboys and lawmen like Wyatt Earp where needed to keep peace in Dodge City. Today, Kansas is one of the most productive agricultural states. In conclusion for these reasons Kansas is important to American History.

3.The reason why I wanted to go to Kansas is because everyone says that Kansas is in the middle of nowhere, and nothing happens in Kansas. I wanted to prove them wrong. My family and I are going to many famous sites in Kansas. Our itinerary includes: Kansas University, the home of the #1 men's college basketball team in the nation; Fort Leavenworth, the oldest military outpost in Kansas where we will follow a trail and explore the grounds; and The Lewis and Clark trail, which starts from the top of Kansas and follows a long river, but I don't think we are going to follow the whole thing. We also plan on visiting Hutchinson to go 650 feet underground in the Kansas Underground Salt Museum and the Kansas Cosmosphere and Science Center to see aeronautic and earth science exhibits. Not far from Hutchinson is Wichita which has a living cowtown museum, the Sedgwick County Zoo, and the Museum of World Treasures featuring artifacts from around the world. If these are not enough to show that there is plenty to do and see in the state of Kansas then I do not know what else to say.

 [] __ 2. Itinerary __

Sunday July 11, 2010 - Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Kansas City, Missouri; and Kansas City, Kansas We will leave from Harrisburg International Airport and fly to Kansas City, Missouri because that is the closest airport. From the airport we will rent a car and drive over the river to Kansas City, Kansas. We will spend most of the day traveling to our hotel. We will stay at a hotel with an indoor water park, Great Wolf Lodge.

Monday July 12, 2010 - Kansas City, Kansas and Fort Leavenworth, Kansas We will spend our first day exploring historic sites. Fort Leavenworth is the oldest Army installation west of the Mississippi River. We will see a Frontier Army museum and take a self guided tour. Then we will visit a Lewis & Clark Historic Park in Kansas City along the Missouri River. If we have time, we will go to the Kansas Speedway which has a Jeff Gordon Racing School with a stock car experience. We will go back to the water park. Tuesday July 13, 2010 - Kanas City, Kansas; Lawrence, Kansas and Topeka, Kansas We will check out and drive to Lawrence, Kansas and visit the University of Kansas campus. There is a Natural History Museum and even a Spencer Museum of Art. On the way to Lawrence, we will cross the Oregon Trail. After this, we will continue to Topeka, Kansas which is the capital. We hope we will arrive in time to take a tour at the State Capital Building. Then we will check in to another hotel.

Wednesday July 14, 2010 - Topeka, Kansas and Wichita, Kansas In the morning, we will check out and we will visit Old Prairie Town at Ward-Meade Historic Site and then go to the Topeka Zoo for a little while. We will then drive to Wichita. We will see tall grass prairies along the scenic highway. We will cross the Santa Fe Trail. If we arrive in time, we might be able to visit the Museum of World Treasures in Wichita. We will check into another hotel. Thursday July 15, 2010 - Wichita, Kansas and Hutchinson, Kansas First, we will drive to Hutchinson to see the Kansas Underground Salt Museum. This museum is 650 feet underground in a working salt mine. Then we will visit the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center where there is a special exhibit of space suits. These are two really different places. After these museums we will return to Wichita and maybe go to another museum if we have time before it closes.

Friday July 16, 2010 - Wichita, Kansas My family likes to visit big zoos so in the morning we will visit the Sedgwick County Zoo. It has more than 2,000 animals from 400 species. We will spend as much time as we can. In the afternoon we will first visit the Museum of World Treasures, unless we were there on Wednesday. Then we will visit the Old Cowtown Museum which is open late on Fridays.

Saturday July 17, 2010 - Wichita, Kansas and Kansas City, Kansas We will check out and drive back to Kansas City. If we did not get to visit the Kansas Speedway, we will go to see it when we get back to Kansas City. If we have any time, there is a Cabela’s store (for my Dad) and a large shopping area (for my Mom).

Sunday July 18, 2010 - Kansas City, Missouri; Kansas City, Kansas and Harrisburg, PA We will check out and drive back over the bridge to Kansas City, Missouri and the airport. We will return to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. What a busy week.

[] __ 3. __ __Travel Plans__

Flight Info:

Airline: US Airways Time: 9:00am-1:15pm Flight # 's: 2643-597 Layover City and State: Charlotte, NC Length of Trip: 5 hours 15 min. Destination: Kansas City, MO (MCI)
 * Leaving From**: Harrisburg, PA (MDT)

Airline: US Airways Time: 2:00pm-7:31pm Flight # 's: 598-2664 Layover City and State: Charlotte, NC Length of Trip: 4 hours 15 min. Destination: Harrisburg, PA
 * Return From:** Kansas City, MO (MCI)

Company: Hertz Car: fullsize (Chevy Impala) Pick Up: Kansas City International Airport 7/11/10 2:00pm Drop Off: Kansas City International Airport 7/18/10 10:00am Cost per Week: $398.54 []
 * Car Rental**

__ 4. Accommodations __

1. Great Wolf Lodge- Kansas City A.10401 Cabela Dr, Kansas City, KS 66111 B. (913) 299-7001 C. $189.95/night D. Amenities 1. Outdoor pool and Heated Indoor pool 2. Indoor Waterpark 3. Game room 4. Irons and Hairdryers 5. Wireless Internet 6. Refrigerator in Room 7. Exercise room and Spa 8. Restaurant on premises

2. Fairfield Inn by Marriot A. 1530 SW Westport Dr. Topeka, KS 66604 B. (785)273-6800 C. $87.17/night D. Amenities 1. Heated indoor pool 2. Whirlpool 3. Wireless Internet 4. On-site parking 5. Irons and Hairdryers 6. Coffeemaker in room

3. Courtyard by Marriott Wichita East A. 2975 North Webb Rd. Wichita, KS 67226 B. (316)636-4600 C. $113.05/night D. Amenities 1. High-speed Wireless Internet 2. Heated indoor pool 3. Exercise room 4. Irons and Hairdryers 5. Whirlpool 6. Movies 7. Coffeemaker in room

4. Comfort Inn Kansas City A. 234 North 78th St. Kansas City, KS 66112-2902 B. (913)299-5555 C. $99.99/night D. Amenities 1. Limitied exercise equipment 2. Heated indoor pool 3. Whirlpool 4. Wireless Internet 5. Free Continental breakfast and newspaper 6. Movies 7. Coffeemaker in room 8. Irons and Hairdryers []

__ 5. Pre-trip Planning __

1. pack clothes 2. leave list for mamaw and papaw to feed pets 3. clean out refrigerator 4. take out trash 5. ask nieghbors to get mail 6. print out airplane tickets 7. turn off water to the washing machine 8. feed cats and fish 9. turn off every light in the house and computer 10. water the plants and flowers inside and outside []

__ 6. Estimated Costs __

Gas: $50 Hotel: $1,021.96 Entertainment: $220 Food: $651 Shopping: $260 Misc. $360 Airfare: $1,469.82 Car Rental: $398.54 TOTAL: $4,431.32

[]

__ [] 7. Bibliography __

Great Wolf Lodge. 2009. Web 10 Dec. 2009. [|https://reservations.greatwolf.com]

Hansen, Ellen R., and Rita G. Napier. "Kansas". //World Book Student.// World Book, 2009. Web 10 Nov. 2009.

"Kansas", //Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia,// copyright 1998. TLC Properties Inc, a subsidiary of The Learning Company. 14 Nov. 2009.

Kansas Fun Facts, 2009. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment. Web. 15 Nov. 2009 [|www.healthykansas.org/kids]

Kansas Historical Facts. Kansas Historical Society. Web. 14 Nov. 2009. [|www.kshs.org]

//Kansas Official Visitors Guide 2009-2010//. Kansas Department of Commerce, Travel and Tourism Division. Copyright 2009. State of Kansas.

Official Kansas Website. Kansas State Government. Web. 14 Nov. 2009. [|www.kansas.gov]

//TourBook Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri & Oklahoma, 2009 Edition//. AAA Publishing. Heathrow, Florida. copyright AAA 2009.

Travel Kansas. Kansas Department of Commerce. Web 3 Dec. 2009. [|www.travelks.com]

//Travelocity.// 2009. Web 12 Dec. 2009. [|www.travelocity.com]