Photos: Courtesy of Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum
To celebrate Wichita’s 150th birthday, the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum is sharing “Then and Now” photographs. Do you think you know where the Then and Now photographs above were taken? Scroll to the bottom of “The Candor Way” to find the answer!
Poster: Courtesy of Wichita Festivals, Inc.
This section recalls local places, events, people, and other things that are remembered with fondness and admiration. We are seeking first-person recollections only.
The focus for September 2020 is, “Given that Riverfest 2020 was canceled, recall a most memorable time from a past Riverfest.”
Upon seeing the poster from the River Festival in 1975, I was flooded with memories. As a kid, the River Fest was like Christmas and the Fourth of July rolled up in one gigantic block party. We were always there from the duck boat races to the homemade ice cream contests and the final night’s fireworks. As I got older, the River Fest became an opportunity to meet up with friends at the end of the school year and hatch our plans for the summer ahead. Our wandering through the Fest often led to new friends from far off places like Goddard or Newton who had come into Wichita to celebrate. My last few River Fests in Wichita were capped off by Wichita North High School’s Spring Water Festival, where we would compete in various water-themed events on the Arkansas river behind the school. The events that always drew the largest and noisiest crowds, were the grade vs. grade team races, where Freshman dug their hardest to beat the Seniors, and the “gunwaling” races where participants literally stood atop the aft gunwales of a canoe and hopped up and down to propel it forward. Needless to say, people always ended up in the river. Altogether, these are the parts of my childhood that made Wichita a truly special place to grow up and it took just one look at Admiral Windwagon Smith on an old poster to bring it all back.
Chad Cowan
Manchester, MA
Admiral Windwagon Smith has always been the revered and admired symbol of the annual Wichita River Festival, right? Well, no. John Bell, who was Windwagon Smith at the very first Riverfest in 1970, liked to tell stories of his being questioned by security and sometimes being asked to depart an event when he showed up in his bright red uniform. "I'm sure I presented a strange sight at those very first events," Bell said. "Really glad subsequent Admirals were more warmly welcomed."
Al Higdon, Wichita
AWWS 16
Photos: Courtesy of Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum
To celebrate Wichita’s 150th birthday, the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum is sharing “Then and Now” photographs. Do you think you know where the Then and Now photographs above were taken? Scroll to the bottom of “The Candor Way” to find the answer!
