On a beautiful Saturday, several weeks ago, I was able to walk out and visit the Leavenworth City Hall. The city hall is still in use after being built in 1924. To look at the building takes you back to the time when Leavenworth was an increasingly busy city with the conclusion of World War I and the growth of railroads. The city hall demonstrates the grandeur of a great municipal building during a time of growth in America. The town of Leavenworth was founded in 1854 as Kansas’ First City.
Outside the City Hall on the grounds of the build stands two statues. One is a replica of The Statue of Liberty. Dedicated by The Boy Scouts of America in 1950 as “a pledge of everlasting fidelity and loyalty” during the 40th Anniversary Crusade to Strengthen the Arm of Liberty.
Another statue is a statue of Abraham Lincoln who gave his first campaign speech in Leavenworth in 1859. This shows the significance of the town at that point in history in the town’s fifth year. We take it for granted now, but during the first year of the town of Leavenworth, the city was a gateway to the western United States.
These brief sights of this small town bring pride and wonderment as I look at the streets of the city. These sights are fascinating to me as I consider the towns place in history, not only as a gateway city, prison center, or military town, but as a landmark in America’s history.