Fossil Station Museum

An imposing looking structure, the museum building was formerly the county jail, built in 1907 from greenhorn limestone or “post rock.” It has adapted nicely to the modern theories of museum functions.

Its limestone exterior is typical of the environment. In the early pioneer days, lumber was scarce and limestone was cheap and plentiful. Many homes and business buildings were constructed of this material, and many stand today, showing little or no effects from eighty to a hundred years of Kansas weather.

Displays portray the early history of Russell County. Many historically significant artifacts help tell the Russell County Story: the wandering Plains Indians hunting buffalo, the coming of the cross-country trails, and the Kansas Pacific Railroad bringing the first Ripon colonists to Fossil Station.

View 100 years of Clothing, Heartland Politics, Russell County Goes to War, and the Painless Puller Palace during a visit to the Fossil Station Museum.

Genealogical library available for researching family histories.