FSNHS brings history to life this weekend

At Fort Scott National Historic Site this weekend, visitors can see soldiers, civilians, and ladies of the 1840s Frontier Army Era hard at work, or visit with the post surgeon about ailments (watch out for his leeches.) Various items will be offered for sale to soldiers and civilians by the Post Sutler, and freshly baked bread will be prepared at the fort bake house. Artillery demonstrations also will be conducted and the living history activities and demonstrations will be ongoing throughout the day.

Traditional living history activities and demonstrations highlighting 1840s garrison life will be the focus of Saturday's events. A series of programs titled "Highlights in History" will be offered Sunday and Monday.

"Highlights in History" on Sunday, Aug. 31, and Monday, Sept. 1, feature programs that interpret Fort Scott's role in some of the most pivotal events in American history. Bullpup is a program that explores the strategic importance of the Mountain Howitzer in the Trans-Mississippi theatre during the Civil War. Visitors will have the opportunity to hear excerpts from the diary of Emma Morley in "I Thought this Place Doomed" and discover one woman's difficulties traveling to Fort Scott during the perilous Civil War years. The washerwomen will demonstrate the importance of laundresses, a vital cog of the 1840s frontier army. Siege of Fort Scott examines the role James Montgomery played when he held the fate of Fort Scott in his hands during the "Bleeding Kansas" years.

Schedule of events:

Saturday, Aug. 30

10a.m. -- Scrub, Scrub, Scrub -- Post Laundress

10:30 a.m. -- Pen and Ink: Communication on the Frontier -- Officer's Wife

11 a.m. -- Boom -- Artillery Demo

Noon -- Are you in Need of Bloodletting? -- Post Surgeon

1p.m. -- Guided Tour

2 p.m. -- Don't be Fresh -- Bake-House Program

3 p.m. -- Canned Oysters and Calico -- Post Sutler

4 p.m. -- Flag Retreat

Sunday, Aug. 31

10 a.m. -- Bullpup

11 a.m. -- I Thought this Place Doomed

Noon -- The Washerwomen

1 p.m. -- Guided Tour

2 p.m. -- Fort Scott Under Siege

3 p.m. -- Pen and Ink: Communication on the Frontier

Monday, Sept. 1

10 a.m. -- Bullpup

11 a.m. -- The Washerwomen

1 p.m. -- Guided Tour

2 p.m. -- Fort Scott Under Siege

3 p.m. -- Pen and Ink: Communication on the Frontier

Fort Scott National Historic Site is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

There is an admission fee of $3 for each adult age 16 and older. Children age 15 and younger are admitted free of charge.

For more information call the site at (620) 223-0310 or visit the facility's Web site at www.nps.gov/fosc.