🎙Ellis County Historical Society breaks ground on Victoria satellite location

By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post

VICTORIA—The Ellis County Historical Society broke ground Thursday on a satellite location in the former St. John's Nursing Home in Victoria.

The building is being developed by the Victoria Community Coalition. Work on senior apartments has begun on the north side of the former nursing home.

The historical society will occupy 10,000 square feet on the south side of the building. The first phase of the project, which will cost about $175,000, will be storage on the second floor of the building. 

The south portion of the building used to house the dining room, kitchen and original chapel. The second floor also once housed the living quarters for the nuns and other nursing home staff.

The second phase of the renovation will cost about $500,000 to $750,000 and include gallery space and perhaps a children's discovery center.

The former nursing home is very close to St. Fedlis Basilica, which 15,000 to 18,000 people visit annually. The historical society board members hope to lure some of the visitors to the new museum gallery in St. John's Place.

The storage area will open first. Work is set to start next week on the roof.

The historical society hopes to finish the gallery space by 2026 to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the first farmers settling in Ellis County.

Ellis County will also be hosting a national convention of the Germans from Russia in 2026.

The historical society does not have space in its old stone church or the former brick Presbyterian Church to tell the full story of Ellis County, Amanda Rupp, historical society executive director, said.

The satellite location in Victoria will focus on the histories of the agricultural and oil industries in Ellis County.

The discovery center would offer hands-on learning activities for children centered on farming or the oil industry.

Rupp said the museum also hopes to have a display on the Walker Army Air Base, which was about 2 and 1/2 miles northwest of Walker. The base was constructed during WWII to handle B-29 Bombers.

"It was only in operation for a couple of years, but it has a cult following on Facebook, and people still come in and say, 'Hey, my grandparents were stationed there.' They want to know about it and learn about it," Rupp said.

The historical society hopes to have a naming contest or survey to solicit input from the community on the name of the new museum site.

"We really want to be a resource for the entire county, but that brings visitors through Victoria and celebrates the heritage of the people who started this area and continued to stay here," Rupp said.

The historical society will apply for state grants and is looking for individual donors to support the second phase of the Victoria project.

Don Bickle, John O. Farmer and two anonymous donors have donated significantly to the project.

The new museum site will also have a gallery wall dedicated to the early families of Ellis County. Individuals or families can purchase plaques to honor these early settlers.

"Everybody wants to see their family up there. It's not a national museum. It's a county museum. We have a lot of stories to tell," Rupp said.

You can learn more about donating to the Ellis County Historical Society on its website by selecting the "Support Us" tab.

You can also contact the museum at 785-628-2624.