Shawnee Indian Mission State Historic Site

10/22/2026

Did you know we have a Mission Market that’s open on Wednesdays?

10/21/2026

What a busy week at the Mission! We have a team of historic architects on site completing a survey of the West building for its huge preservation project, we have our incredible Master Gardeners here today wrapping up a fantastic growth season and volunteers are in the research library. Today is also the monthly Shawnee Indian Mission Historical Society’s meeting and tomorrow is the Foundation’s monthly board meeting. Friday we have our fall homeschool day and Saturday is our historic cemetery program! In two weeks, our schooner wagon will be taking a journey for repairs and restoration during the winter months. This is not a sleepy historic site but an active community endeavor. A few spots remain in our Homeschool Day and Cemetery program, so sign up today before the chance is gone!

10/03/2026

There are still two registration based programs to attend at the Mission this October! Our Beginners Crochet Class starts next Wednesday 7th at 6pm and is every Wednesday in Oct. Register:
https://fairway.recdesk.com/Community/Program/Detail?programId=2625

For a fun history program, join us at the Shawnee Methodist Cemetery on Saturday October 24 at 3pm for History Comes Alive, and learn about the permanent Fairway residents.
https://fairway.recdesk.com/Community/Program/Detail?programId=2602

10/02/2026

LEND A HAND FOR HISTORY tomorrow and help us get the site ready for a very busy fall! It's our community fall clean up day on Saturday, Oct 3 from 9am to Noon! Can't stay the whole time--no problem! Have students who need school community service hours? Bring the forms and we will get it taken care of before they leave. We hope to see you with rakes, lawn bags, gloves and a lending hand.

10/01/2026

Preorder beautiful greenery for the holiday season! Deadline is October 17! https://shawneeindianmission.org/wreath-and-greenery-order-form/

09/30/2026

National Orange Shirt Day 2026: The history of the United States holds a horrific chapter of federally mandated residential schools, representing a system of forced cultural assimilation, targeting Indigenous youth. Initiated in the late 19th century, the era was defined by the federal government's policy to dismantle Indigenous cultures, languages, and family structures. The mandated governmental school system began in 1879 when Pratt opened the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania. Rooted in Pratt's infamous philosophy to "Kill the Indian in him, and save the man," Carlisle sadly became the national template for a massive, military-style, off-reservation, federal network.

In 1884, the federal government opened the Indian Industrial Training School in Lawrence, Kansas—now known as Haskell Indian Nations University. Like Carlisle, Haskell utilized a strict, regimented environment, often leading to abuse and death. Haskell was the sole federally mandated institution in the State of Kansas.

It is also important to acknowledge the national approach in the pre-Civil War era, largely focused on the territory, now known as Kansas. These historic, on-reservation Christian Mission schools, such as the Shawnee Mission, Kaw Mission, Pottawatomie Mission, Kickapoo Mission, Delaware Mission, to name a few, sought assimilation while keeping families intact, while educating Indigenous youth. Many of these Mission schools held Tribal Councils and Committees, overseeing educational and environmental aspects and many held student rosters and parental involvement. Some even had Indigenious teachers and paid staff members. The Shawnee Mission is one such historic institution.

The ultimate difference between pre-civil war and post-Carlisle, lay in the scope of total separation and systemic abuse. Post-Civil War off-reservation schools realized that tribal bonds could only be broken by physically kidnapping children and severing them from their home communities. This generated multi-generational trauma, widespread disease, thousands of undocumented deaths, and a pattern of historical injustice. United States history is a range of ideologies and often, oppression.

The victims and survivors of residential schools deserve national conversation of this traumatic chapter of history. National Orange Shirt Day is the first step in growing awareness and recognition on a national scale. At the Shawnee Indian Mission, we honor and remember the loss of culture, freedom, and identity experienced by Indigenous peoples.

09/28/2026

09/26/2026

The rain moved us indoors (and did a number on my hair), but we're still here at the plant sale until 1:00 with tons of goodies and info on all our upcoming classes. Come see us!