Tom Feist made a significant contribution to young lives while teaching at Spearville High School. Studying and sharing history was a passion of his and, yet, today, his history and those of many others who called Spearville home are fading. Through collaborations between the Feist Foundation, the Spearville Township Library, the Chapman Center for Rural Studies at K-State, Teen Force, and Ford County historical society, we aim to bring together historical sources including written, printed, image/video, and artifacts, to build a local archive to preserve, disseminate, and celebrate the community’s history for current and future generations. This archive, supported by Past Perfect software, is available online through the Ford County Historical Society.  Populated by community member contributions and oral histories collected by volunteers, Spearville High School Student interns, and K-State students, this resource will serve as a platform for preserving Spearville’s community history. This website features digital exhibits to showcase some of the amazing stories we uncovered during our work. 

This project would not be possible without support from community members and partners. We would like to take a moment to thank Larry Strecker who donated hundreds of digital images and made available not only his extensive historiography but also his advice and expertise. His research was invaluable to this project, especially to the St. Elizabeth Altar Society Quilt story, and will provide rich resources for future community historians. We would also like to thank Mary Schartz who not only provided copies of her book, If Headstones Could Talk, but also scanned documents, recorded oral histories, and provided significant expertise for the project. Cathy Mages and Kathy Boger volunteered many hours to conducting oral histories and and research. We would also like to thank Amy Hollingsworth and Daina Butler for inviting us into the Spearville Schools. Finally, we want to express our sincerest gratitude to every community member who shared stories, images, memories, and more to make this resource possible. We feel truly privileged to be a part of this partnership!