Dodge City, Kansas (The blog is making its way closer to real time.)

 Sunday, October 15, 2023

We have landed in Kingman, AZ and will be here for a total of nine nights. During this time we hope to visit with some friends who live here. Plus, we hope to leave with our Jeep issues taken care of. More on this in the next couple of blogs. I want to have the conclusion, as far as how things were solved, before I write about it.

Coming into Kingman going west on I-40

September 30th through the morning of October 3rd, 2023

We arrived in Dodge City and pulled into the Gunsmoke RV Park on Saturday, September 30th. Our first stop was the Napa Auto Parts Store to have the Jeep's battery replaced. Tom had called the Jeep Dealership and this was their recommendation as there service department would be closed before our arrival. Our battery was complete dead and after doing some research Tom found information that leaving the electrical cord attached while the Jeep is attached to the motorhome could be the cause. We had never had this issue with our Trailhawk but going forward Tom has been unhooking it when we stop for the night while traveling and that seemed to be helping. More on this when the blog reaches Colorado.

We attended Mass on Sunday at the
Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

It is the seat of the Diocese of Dodge City.

Tabernacle
A liturgical furnishing used to house
the Eucharist outside of Mass.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel

Sacred Heart Cathedral 
The former Cathedral Church of the Diocese of Dodge City.

Boot Hill Museum

Boot Hill Museum as it stands today is located on the original site of Boot Hill Cemetery. It was first housed in a building adjacent to the Boot Hill Cemetery. It is a private, non-profit organization that was founded by the Dodge City Jaycees as a community service project in 1947 and staffed primarily with volunteers for the first ten years.  

This train engine which is outside in front of the Museum
was moved here in the 1950's.

Walking through the museum was interesting.
Including the display with information about the
Buffalo Herds. Which included the floor moving as 
the screen showed them stampeding towards us.

Clicking on the picture should open it in a larger screen to
read these interesting rules.

Stepping outside there is a replica of Historic Front Street
in Dodge City behind the Museum Building.

The construction of historic Front Street began in 1958 , with additional buildings being added in 1964 and 1970.

All those years of watching Gunsmoke with our
Dad's made this selfie a must.

Going inside.
The upper left picture we were told was from the original Longbranch.

The woman behind the bar who served the drinks was a former
history teacher. She was not only informative but fun to listen to.

Buildings moved to the site during the 1970’s included a Santa Fe Railway depot, a 1915 one-room schoolhouse, an 1880 carriage/blacksmith shop, and an 1879 cattleman’s home.  

The cattleman's home and the blacksmith shop just past it.

Inside the home.

The blacksmith shop

In 2004 an old Catholic Church was donated and moved to the Museum from Bucklin. In 2009 renovations to the Church were completed making it Boot Hill Museum’s newest exhibit.

A bronze sculpture by Jasper D’Ambrosi commemorates the 1875-1885 Texas cattle drives to Dodge City. El Capitan represents longhorns who emerged as leaders and led many drives up the dusty trail from Texas. Coronado’s Conquistadors introduced the longhorn, first cousin to the Spanish fighting bull, to the New World during the 1500s.

There was construction in this area but the woman we 
talked to at the Longbranch Saloon mentioned the original
Longbranch Saloon was somewhere in this area.

Chester Good was shot dead in a gunfight and
 his remains are sticking out of the ground at the
entrance to Gunsmoke RV park.

We enjoyed our time in Dodge City and especially visiting the Boot Hill Museum. Several attractions were closed while we were there including parts of the museum. It definitely would be worth another stop. 

We are glad you stopped by!

If you have time to leave a comment we would enjoy hearing from you.