Home on the Range Cabin

The cabin is a log structure built with handcrafted techniques, showing the simple construction methods used by prairie settlers in the 1870s. The small building with its rough wooden walls gives an honest picture of how people housed themselves during this frontier period.

Doctor and poet Brewster Higley VI built this cabin in 1875 and wrote the poem there that later became a famous song. That composition eventually became the official state song of Kansas and spread across the entire country.

The cabin represents everyday life for early settlers on the American frontier and is where the famous song 'Home on the Range' originated. Visitors can experience how people lived simply in this remote part of the country.

The building sits on a 240-acre property where visitors can walk the grounds on accessible paths. Wear sturdy shoes since the terrain is open and uneven, and weather on the plains can change quickly.

The cabin underwent a full restoration in 2013 that carefully matched its original construction from the 1870s. This work helped bring back how the building looked and functioned as the early inhabitants knew it.

Location: Smith County

Inception: 1875

Architectural style: vernacular architecture

Floors above the ground: 1

GPS coordinates: 39.88940,-98.94720

Latest update: December 14, 2025 09:42