Home on the Range Cabin, Historic log cabin in Smith Center, Kansas.
Description
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.
History
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.
Culture
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.
Practical
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.
Did you know?
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.
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