Trail of the Whispering Giants: Tall Oak

Less than a half hours drive west from St. Joseph, Missouri - just off of US-36, is the Doniphan County Courthouse.  This is another thing I am a fan of - the old county courthouses positioned on a town square.  The Doniphan County courthouse is a beautiful brick building executed in the Romanesque Revival style that is common in Kansas.  The three story building is built on a limestone rock foundation, has round towers at each corner and is topped with a decagonal cupola.  The windows of the basement and first floors have stone lintels and the windows on the third floor have arched lintels.  The north and south ends of the building serve as main entryways and have limestone porches.

A very striking feature stands next to the courthouse; a carved wooden statue of an American Indian.  This is one of the "Whispering Giants" carved by Peter Wolf Toth, a Hungarian-born artist who settled in Akron, Ohio.  His art honors oppressed people, especially the American Indian.  He carved at least one of these statues for each state in the US.  Missouri's Giant stood in Forest Park, at a prominent intersection by the St. Louis Zoo.  Unfortunately, it was destroyed by a lightning strike in one of the thunderstorms common to the American Midwest.

Toth asks for no money for the sculptures, but they generally appraise at about $250,000.  All he asks is the community to provide a large log, a place to stay and meals.  Doniphan County's Giant "Tall Oak" is carved from a 250 year old Burr Oak tree and stands 27 feet tall.  Prior to carving, Toth meets with local Indian groups to get advice for the carving.  There seems to be no one single tribe represented by this sculpture, having some modern Pan-Indian features in regalia.  This is reflective of Kansas' complex history of native peoples.

"I study the Indians of the area, then visualize an Indian within the log.  It is a composite of all the native people of the state." -  Peter Toth

Prior to Euroamerican contact, several tribes called this region home. Arapaho, Cheyenne, Comanche, Kansa, Kiowa, Osage, Pawnee, and Wichita tribes all had established permanent communities within the boundaries of modern Kansas. Even a band of Apache called Kansas home for a short while. When the Indian Removal Act of 1830 was signed, eastern tribes were forced to move to small reservations in this part of the Louisiana Purchase which was closed to most white settlement. Not only were these eastern tribes dispossessed of their lands, but many of the tribes within Kansas were moved, as well. The Pawnee, for example were pushed to a reservation of about 300 square miles in Nebraska, after centuries of living in an area the size of Iowa. Among these emigrant tribes were: Cherokee; Chippewa; Delaware; Illiniwek; Ioway; Iroquois; Kaskaskia; Kickapoo; Missouria; Munsee; several New York tribes; Otoe; Ottawa; Peoria; Piankashaw; Potawatomi; Quapaw; Sac and Fox;Shawnee; Stockbridge; Wea; and Wyandot tribes.

1846 Location of Indian Reservations in Kansas Territory

In 1854, Kansas was opened to white settlement, most Indian lands sold and the people removed again. The majority of the tribes listed above were sent to Indian Territory, which is now the state of Oklahoma. A few tribes remain. Within an hour's drive from my house are reservations for the Ioway, Sac and Fox, Kickapoo, and Potawatomi. This statue is but one reminder of the series of pivotal, complex events in the history of the United States that took place in Kansas. You know, the boring state.

The Fourth Courthouse

James White Cloud, Ioway Chief from 1866-1940

This is the fourth courthouse that has served the county. The first was a temporary building that was replaced in 1858 by a building on the courthouse square. After the second courthouse burned down on 12 March 1867, a third was build 1867-1868, but was outgrown and torn down to make way for the present building in 1905.

The architects of the chosen design were George Washburn and Sons of Ottawa, Kansas. This firm designed a number of notable buildings in Kansas. The builders were J.H. Wagenknecht of Wathena, who had the courthouse ready for a 04 July 1906 dedication with the largest crowd assembled in Doniphan County at the time: 6,000 to 8,000 people. These people knew how to throw a dedication; parade, fireworks, speeches and (I assume) food.

Six Degrees

This is one of the family courthouses. My Mom and Dad were married here, as was a sister, several aunts and uncles. Most  of the marriages worked, some didn't. This courthouse was my Dad's answer to wedding planning: Take $25 to Troy, get a marriage license, get married and have enough to eat at McDonald's afterward. I don't know that you could do any ONE of those things on $25 any more.

Getting There

Traveling west from I-29 and St. Joseph on US-36, turn left at Troy, KS and follow the signs to the Peter Toth Sculpture and the Doniphan County Courthouse.

Waymark: Latitude 39.786006 N; Longitude 95.088924 W
Street Address: 120 E. Chestnut, Troy, KS 66087.