The Finney County Historical Museum in Garden City will host a book signing at 10 a.m. May 13 for Kansas author and travel blogger Roxie Yonkey, who recently published “Secret Kansas – A Guide to Weird, Wonderful and Obscure.”
Yonkey previously published “One Hundred Things to Do In Kansas Before You Die,” billed as “the ultimate Kansas bucket list book,” and staged a presentation and signing last May at the museum for the earlier book.
The Secret Kansas volume introduces individuals, accomplishments and inventions from across the sunflower state, most hidden from traditional history. There are profiles of the first indigenous woman to argue before the Supreme Court, in an effort to save the graves of her ancestors from developers; Frank Bellamy of Cherryvale, who lost his claim to authorship of the Pledge of Allegiance; and various other men and women, including Catholic priest and U.S. Army Captain Emil Kapaun, a Kansas native nominated for sainthood because of his service to others as a prisoner during the Korean War.
The 192 pages also incorporate accounts of achievements unique to the people of Kansas, as well as gadgets, contrivances and creations from the state, including the product known as Mentholatum – a substance that played a small role in the Allied victory during World War II.
Yonkey’s presentation is scheduled in the Mary Regan Conference Room of the museum, located at 403 S. Fourth Street in Garden City’s Frederick Finnup Park. Admission is free and copies of the book will be for sale. Those attending should use the museum’s north entrance. Refreshments will be provided.
The author is a Nebraska native who has lived since 1990 in Goodland and writes the popular travel blog, “Roxie on the Road.” She traces her roots to the Rockies, Midwest and Deep South, and her Garden City visit is part of a book tour across the state, reaching nearly two dozen communities from Atwood to Wichita in April through early July.
The author and blogger worked previously at the Goodland Daily News, where she met her husband, Eric. She served later in destination marketing and began blogging in 2019 after attending the Midwest Travel Network Conference in Medora, ND. “Roxie on the Road” has profiled communities in each section of Kansas, usually pointing out the most interesting things to do and see in each location.
