The regular monthly meeting of the Barton County Historical Society will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Monday in the Ray Schulz Research Library at the Museum, 85 S. U.S. Hwy. 281, just south of Great Bend, across the Arkansas River Bridge. The public is welcome to attend.
“Bombs Away!!! The Battle of Kansas and Cheyenne Bottoms” will be the topic of a presentation by BCHS Research Coordinator Karen Neuforth. During World War II, the Great Bend Air-to-Ground Gunnery Range covered over 14,000 acres of Cheyenne Bottoms. Including an air-to-ground gunnery range, a bombing range, rifle and machine gun ranges, and a chemical weapons training area, the site was used by crews from both Great Bend and Smoky Hill Army Air Fields.