Books from the Department of History

The department offers several books for sale. Some are the products of Wichita State students or alumni. Some were originally from Rowfant Press. Proceeds help support publication and research within the department. To obtain a copy, please email the department at history@wichita.edu

Hunting and Trading on the Great Plains Cover

Hunting and Trading on the Great Plains 1859-1875

A flagship work from the former Rowfant Press, this compilation of writings from Wichita founder James R. Mead is one of the best discussions of south central Kansas in the 1800s.

Price: $20

Luke the Longhorn: Chisholm's Trail

A graphic novel that tells the story of Wichita through eyes of a lovable longhorn named Luke. This first book in a trilogy takes the reader along the Chisholm Trail to a trading post settlement that was to become Wichita. The artwork of Wichita State alum Miles Foley brings to life the text by Matt Pacholski and Wichita State students Andrea Wilson and Lisa Duran.

Price $5.95

Luke the Longhorn: The Four Horsemen

In this second in the Luke the Longhorn graphic novel series, Luke and his friends witness Wichita and Park City fight for railroad connections and the cattle trade. The artwork of Wichita State alum Miles Foley brings to life the text by Wichita State students Andrea Wilson and Lisa Duran.

Price $5.95

Luke the Longhorn: The Peerless Princess of the Plains

Wichita in the 1870s had landed the cattle trade but now struggles with the consequences in this last in the Luke the Longhorn Trilogy. The artwork of Wichita State alum Miles Foley brings to life the text by Wichita State students Andrea Wilson and Lisa Duran.

Price $5.95

Wichita Rock & Roll 1950s - 1980s

A celebration of the local rock music scene in Wichita featuring the bands, musicians and venues that defined a generation of local youth. The graphic design work of Harry Dobbin and the effort of the Wichita Rock Music History Project made this project possible.

Price: $29.95

Wichita Jazz and Vice Between the World Wars

Based on the thesis of Wichita State student Joshua Yearout, this study of Wichita in the 1920s and 1930s discusses how the Jazz scene and the music scene connected...or didn't.

Price: $15.00

Honky-Tonkers & Western Swingers: Stories of Country Music in Wichita, Kansas

Honky-Tonkers & Western Swingers: Stories of Country Music in Wichita, Kansas. In this book, Orin Friesen explores the history of Country Music in Wichita during the 20^th century. The emphasis is on performers who were born in Wichita, began their careers in the city, or spent a significant time there.

Price $20

Goat Glands to Ranch Hands: The KFDI Story

Goat Glands to Ranch Hands: The KFDI Story. This book presents the history or the Wichita’s AM radio station that became known as KFDI. From its beginnings as WAAP in Wichita in 1922, Orin Friesen and Bud Noman trace the station’s history, as KFKB, owned by the infamous “goat gland doctor,” John R. Brinkley, to the Farmers & Bankers Insurance Company’s KFBI, to Hollywood stars, Mary Pickford and Buddy Rogers’ KIRL, and finally to Great Empire Broadcasting’s KFDI.

Price $20

From Rowfant to Fiske Hall: The Story of Rowfant Press and why its books are now for sale here.

In the summer of 2022, The History Department at Wichita State University acquired the titles and inventory from Rowfant Press, a publisher of local history books. Founded by Wichita State University alum Patrick O’Connor, Rowfant’s titles have included Hunting and Trading on the Great Plains, Tales from a Blackout, and Goat Glands to Ranch Hands: The KFDI story. In 2019, WSU student Barb Myers purchased the press and expanded it to include works such as Honky Tonkers and Country Music in Wichita and Munger House - Cowtown

Myers has now relocated to North Carolina but to keep the work of Rowfant alive and thriving here in Kansas, the Department of History at Wichita State University will continue to make sure these titles continue to be available.

OTHER AVAILABLE TITLES
Delano: Stories from the Neighborhood
by Patrick Joseph O’Connor $10
A collection of stories about Danny who lived in this west side neighborhood in the 1950s. It includes history with photographs and factual research. It’s a souvenir of a decade, and a reminder of the current needs of community today.
Lost on the Way: A Journal From the Camino de Santiago by Blake Farha $20
After being laid off, Farha determined to walk the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage across Spain. Taking a notebook, ballpoint, and “the ugliest pair of shoes he had ever owned he set out to fulfill a dream.”
Amazing Mentholatum: And the Commerce of Curing the Common Cold 1889 - 1955
by Alex Taylor $30
Filled with wonderful illustrations and well researched material, it's an entertaining story of Wichita’s connection to the efforts to cure the common cold.
The Munger House: A History of Wichita’s Oldest House by Keith Wondra and James Vannurden $20
The story of the oldest house in Wichita from its beginning, through a move to Old Cowtown Museum, then finally the restoration and later renovations there.
Uncloistered Halls: The Centennial History of Wichita State University by Craig Miner
Founded as Fairmount College in 1895, WSU became a municipal university in 1926 and a state university in 1964. This a cultural history of the institution. Miner is a graduate, a Distinguished Professor of History at WSU, and a twenty-five-year member of the WSU faculty.