At the Native American Heritage Museum in Highland you will find quillwork, baskets, and other artwork of present-day descendants of emigrant tribes. Through the interactive ehxibits, Native Americans tell stories in their own words. Hands-on exhibits include a bark house.

The museum received the American Association for State and Local History Certificate of Commendation in 1997. You'll discover stories about the people who were native to northeast Kansas, and learn more about those who lived in the area for a time.

Present-day Kansas is home to four Indian reservations--the Iowa, Kickapoo, Potawatomi, and Sac and Fox. Early native nations, such as the Wichita, Kaw (Kansa), Osage, Pawnee, and Plains Apaches, have roots in early Plains culture.

Interactive exhibits, children's activities, and colorful artwork tell the story of family life, traditions that have been shared, and where these people live today. The museum illustrates Native American contributions such as beadwork, basketmaking, and ribbon work.

Children can explore a barkhouse, experience beadwork, and practice in a ledger book. The former Sac and Fox Mission lies on a branch of the Oregon-California Trail and offers a setting for picnics and hikes.

The museum features the people from more than 12,000 years ago. Learn about early Plains culture and how the different nations varied through styles of clothing, food, and art.

You'll experience interactive exhibits such as these:

Fact:

Some Indian nations adopted new ways of living before relocation whereas others did not want to change their traditional ways of life.

Example:

Wyandots wore the clothing and practiced the customs of European Americans. They operated a trading store, a Methodist church, schools, and Masonic lodge. Others such as the Sac and Fox tribes held on to their traditional ways of life.

Interactive displays focus on the Iowas, Kickapoos, Potawatomis, and Sacs and Fox, now located in Kansas. Exhibits celebrate the varied folk arts of Kansas. You'll meet, through exhibits, many of the artists, see samples of their work, and hear them speak about their living traditions, passed on through generations.

The Native American Heritage Museum holds programs and festivals that celebrate the many cultures from the history of the area. Look for our Upcoming Events.