The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-10-17
Kansas Historical Society
Holds Annual Meeting.
Largest Society of Kind in U. 8.
Except One State.
TUCKER TO Be PRESIDENT
F. ID. COburn VIII Be Chosen
Vice President.
w. e. Connelley Nominated for
Reelection as Secretary.

The nominating committee of the
Kansas Historical society this morn
ing reported to the board of directors
the names of the following officers to
serve the society during the coming
year: C. H. Tucker, cashier Watkins
National bank, Lawrence, kan, presi-
dent: F. D. Coburn, former secretary
of the state board of agriculture, To-
peka, first vice president; Theodore
Gardner, a pioneer who arrived IN
Kansas in 1857, Lawrence, second
vice president; w. e. ConneIley, of
Topeka. was nominated for reelection
as secretary, and Mrs. Mary Embree,
of Topeka, as treasurer.
The nominating committee is COM
posed of Mrs. Henry F. Mason, Mrs.
William A. johnson. H. K. Brooks and
Col. John s. Dean, all of Topeka, mad
John Marshall. of Wakefield.
Col. Sam F. Woolard, of Wichita,
president of the society, in an address
to the directors this morning in their
meeting which opened the forty
seventh annual meetings recounted
briefly the history of the society which
was organized in 1875 at Manhattan,
under the auspices of the Kansas Ed1-
tors and Publishers association. The
men incorporationg the society were
Samuel A. kingman, George A. -CraW-
ford, John A. Martin, C. F. Baker, Sol
Miller, D. w. Wilder and D. r. An
thony.
Membership of 2,O0O.
The Kansas Historical society, with
a membership of approximately 1000,
is the largest state historical society
in the United States with the excep-
ton of that of Wisconsin, w. E. Con-
nel1ey, secretary of the society, told
the directors.
OF the membership, some 500 are
newspapers, whose files are kept in
the newspaper department of the his
torical society's library.
I'VE have the greatest collection of
newspapers in the world" Connelley
said. I'VE have more than $1,000
bound volumes, including every news
paper which has been published in
Kansas since the organization of the
society in 1875. In many cases our
files are the only ones existing. and
time after time we are called upon to
furnish certified copies of notices of
publication in lawsuits.
Great Historical Library.
I'VE have probably the greatest
historical library west of the Missis-
sippi- The library of the University
of California may excel ours, but that
is the only one which does.
Among the needs of our society is
more money for the purchase of
books and periodicals whose prices
have increased in the past two or
three years.
Another need is for the shelving
of the room in which We keep the
archives of the state-documentS
which have ceased to be of current in
tereSt at the state house, and which
are sent to us to be cared for. These
archives are being frequently referred
to now, especially with reference to
the territorial road laws and plats in
connection with the new highway con-
struction activity.
1.-THE attendance at the museum
and in the other departments of the
society,". exceeds 40, 900 persons per
year There is no other department
of the state which directly serves so
many persons in the course of a year.
This is the only department of the
state which actually makes money for
the state. The objects which are do
mated to US become, thru their his
torical interest, immensely valuable.
Our records and other possessions are
worth more than $2,000,00O to the
state-the newspaper files alone are
worth more than $1,000,000.
"ADG we do this on an annual ap
preparation from the state of S1T.400."
Movies To Record History.
Connelley is convinced that the
moving picture is to constitute the
historical record of the future. Yale
university has set out to take moving
pictures reproducing the history of
the United States. from the time of
discovery and exploration, settlement.
organization down to the present day.
The films are tu be released one reel
each month. and eventually collec-
tion of them will be built up SO that
the various subscribers to the plan. of
which the Kansas Historical society is
one, will have moving picture his
tories of the United States on file.
at is only a question of time till
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