Here We Go Again!
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- Written by: Rick Nichols
Olathe's Ensor Park and Museum will provide the setting Saturday, May 11 for the second "edition," if you will, of Ensorfest, a special event designed to call attention to the rich legacy of Johnson County's Ensor family, which included amateur radio pioneers Marshall (W9BSP) and Loretta (W9UA) Ensor.
Ensorfest '24 will afford residents of Johnson County and beyond an opportunity to tour the historic Ensor home and outbuildings at 18995 W. 183rd Street from 1 to 4 p.m., then stick around to enjoy the toe-tapping sounds of the bluegrass band The Pheasant Pluckers. The musicians are scheduled to begin performing at 4 and were well received a year ago when they entertained their audience with "Radio Boogie" and other catchy tunes from the front porch of the two-story Italianate house where Marshall and his younger sister spent their formative years.
Three's Company
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- Written by: Rick Nichols
When they could've been shopping 'til they dropped or catching some rare Friday afternoon professional football (the Miami Dolphins vs. the New York Jets), three members of the so-called "fair sex" spent the afternoon of November 24, Black Friday, touring Ensor Park and Museum in south Olathe.
Turn Your Radio On
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- Written by: Rick Nichols
Among the many interesting items on display at Ensor Park and Museum is "The Radio Hymnal" that proverbially rests in peace atop the Victrola Radio in the master bedroom at the Ensor home, a tribute to a time when America as a whole was a country where organized religion enjoyed a prominent place in society and regular attendance at a Sunday morning worship service was basically expected.
Visitors will see two metal towers connected by what amounts to a musical antenna on the front cover of this relatively small book. The antenna consists of a three-measure treble clef with 10 notes, under which appear the words "I will sing of my Redeemer."
The title page declares that the hymnal is "For All Those Folks Who Love the Good Old Songs of Praise and Peace," and goes on to report that its contents were compiled by radio station KFNF of Shenandoah, Iowa and Henry Field Seed Company, also of Shenandoah, with the assistance of the Rodeheaver Company of Chicago.
Pictured on the preface page are Henry Field, who is identified as being KFNF's manager and announcer, and LuEtta Armstrong, soloist.