Guard caravan stops in Lawrence

Mobile museum rolls through state to celebrate 150th anniversary

The U.S. military likes to hit hard and move fast, and that’s exactly what the Kansas National Guard did Monday afternoon when its mobile museum caravan pulled into Lawrence.

Fewer than a dozen people viewed the mobile museum after the caravan stopped at the National Guard Armory, 200 Iowa, one of several stops the caravan is making across the state as it commemorates the state Guard’s 150th anniversary. The caravan stayed about 40 minutes.

“We’re on a quick schedule but we can always come back if requested,” said Lt. Col. Doug Jacobs, who is in charge of the caravan, which will travel 3,000 miles and visit 54 communities in the state by Aug. 12. The trek began July 17. “We’ve had a lot of requests.”

The purpose of the caravan is to generate interest and awareness for the Kansas Guard as it celebrates its birthday, Jacobs said.

The mobile museum, the main feature of the caravan, is in a long truck-pulled trailer with a mixture of displays that include photographs, paintings, newspaper articles and uniforms. Also part of the caravan is a World War II-era Jeep, a Civil War-era cannon, and two types of anti-tank missile launchers.

Retired national guardsman Fred McCreary, 62, Baldwin, signs a card commemorating the 150th year of the Kansas National Guard on Monday afternoon as he visited a mobile museum that was on display at the National Guard Center, 200 Iowa.

Lawrence resident Edwin Turner, who spent 31 years in the Kansas Guard after enlisting during World War II and serving in Europe, was one of those who took in the displays. He said it brought back a few memories.

“I’ve been to the museum and it is really good,” Turner said of the Guard’s museum in Topeka.

Also examining the displays was Vickie Burgraff, whose son, David Burgraff – a Guardsman with the Second Battalion, 130th Field Artillery based in Hiawatha – returned from Iraq earlier this year.

“I wanted to find out more about the Guard,” the Lawrence woman said. “It’s interesting to see what the history of the Guard is.”

A time capsule also is part of the caravan. Community residents and leaders are welcome to put newspaper articles, notes, letters or other artifact into the capsule, which will be opened in 2205.

Lawrence City Commissioner and Vice Mayor Mike Amyx turned over a letter to be placed in the capsule.

“The Guard has strengthened our state and made an impact on our community. The long history of the Guard generates pride and honor,” Amyx wrote in the letter.

Across Iowa Street from the armory, about a half-dozen people stood with signs protesting the Iraq War. This was the first location the caravan had drawn protesters, Jacobs said. He said he didn’t mind. He noted the Guard had several roles, including responding to emergencies at home, and said he thought most people supported what the Guard does.

“We’ve had soldiers who died to give them the right to do that,” Jacobs said, nodding toward the protesters.