Residents share stories for future
Whether it was racial tensions that tore through Lawrence in the late 1960s, a national basketball championship two decades later or a time when Massachusetts Street was still a muddy road in a young, turbulent river town, the memories all are part of history.
And the Lawrence Sesquicentennial Commission is making sure that for at least 50 more years, the recollections of Lawrence — good or not so good — are kept intact for future residents.
On Wednesday, dozens of residents began lining up to share their memories of Lawrence on videotape as part of events celebrating the 150th anniversary of Lawrence’s founding.
Clad in a woolen, charcoal frock, a loose-fitting lavender tie and a peppered beard, Harold Riehm, 66, along with his wife, Donna Riehm, left his thoughts to the future generations of Lawrence. Well, as long as technology doesn’t change too much, Riehm joked.
“They might not even be able to play these videos 50 years from now,” he said.
The Riehms, as part of their continuing mission to keep alive the history behind one of Lawrence’s early citizens, Richard Cordley, have dressed as 19th-century settlers since April 2003, traveling across Kansas to portray Cordley and his wife, Mary Cordley. In full costume Wednesday afternoon, Riehm told the story of Lawrence from Cordley’s perspective.
“I hope people can look back and say, ‘Isn’t that neat they were aware of and proud of their history?'” he said.
The couple moved to Lawrence in 1965 and planned to stay for “two, three, maybe four years,” but fell in love and are “probably going to die here,” Harold Riehm said.
Like many Lawrence families, the Riehms have shared the city’s ups and downs, and they hope the videos give light to the face of Lawrence at its 150th birthday.
From left, John Jewell and Matt Toplikar wait for Nick Brickner to hook up a microphone to LaJean Murphree. Murphree was one of dozens of Lawrence resident to tell their life stories on video Wednesday at the Lawrence Public Library.
Their favorite memory is a classic Lawrence moment: Kansas University’s men’s basketball team winning the national championship in 1988.
In the first hour Wednesday, nearly a dozen residents waited to talk on camera in the small room at the Lawrence Public Library, its walls adorned with photographs and sketches of old-time Lawrence.
“I’ve lived through a lot of change,” said 76-year-old Phillip Godwin, a longtime Lawrence resident and Kansas University medical school graduate. “But that doesn’t mean you have to give up your values.”
He characterized the growth of Lawrence as being built on three social pillars: tolerance, flexibility and moral integrity.
As an example, he said, the racial upheaval in Lawrence during the civil rights era left a scar on the city, but it was not one residents denied. Instead, he said, residents embraced it as another thread in the fabric of Lawrence’s growth.
| Tell your Lawrence stories on videotape to be buried in the official sesquicentennial time capsule, from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. today at the Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vt. |
“We have to work at retaining worthwhile values,” Godwin said. “It’s not easy, but towns that don’t change die, and I’m sure 50 years from now there will still be conflict.”
John Jewell, who moderated the interviews, said history too often was told by professionals and political figures and not the everyday people who lived the history of any place and time.
“These tapes are voices from people that lived here during this time that aren’t famous or politicians,” he said. “It’s important to record their messages as well.”
6News video: Project invites Lawrence to tell its stories
Residents share stories for future
