Newell-Johnson-Searle House Preservation Project

03/29/2026

Helpful information!

That patent image on the Bureau of Land Management website is not the full story. Many people assume the land patent image is the land file, but it’s actually just the final step in the process, the moment the land was officially granted. Everything that led up to that decision is where the real story lives, and those records are held at the National Archives, not online. Applications, proof of residence, testimony, investigations, these documents can reveal how your ancestor lived, worked, and proved their claim.

In one homestead file we retrieved, there was something extraordinary: a photograph taken by an Interior Department inspector showing the actual buildings the homesteader constructed and even the fence they built. It was included as part of an investigation tied to a unique filing process before the claim was ultimately approved. A photograph of an ancestor’s real homestead. Finds like this are rare, but they only exist in the full land entry case file. If you’ve only looked at the patent image, you’re missing the best part. Order your ancestor’s land file and uncover the full story at CivilWarRecords.com.

03/17/2026

Good exhibit to see, Jefferson Countians!

https://www.facebook.com/share/1KujVJkhf4/?mibextid=wwXIfr

05/12/2025

03/27/2025

This is a terrific program.

Some funds remain for field trips this spring! Share this link with teachers who could visit one of our partner sites! https://freedomsfrontier.org/educators/

03/19/2025

By Jane Hoskinson In the 1860s in Platte County, Missouri, as winter closed in, farmers and plantation owners were supervising enslaved laborers who secured their food harvests, prepared h**p and …

04/02/2024

SATURDAY, APRIL 6, from 3 to 5 p.m., Marvin Auditorium, Topeka Shawnee County Public Library. Ritchie Cemetery Friends Group, Inc. is presenting a program on Ritchie Cemetery, Topeka, recently listed on the Kansas and National Registers of Historic Places.

Ritchie Cemetery, at 27th and Boswell, is the earliest cemetery in Topeka. Named for John Ritchie, an Abolitionist and a founder of the City of Topeka, the cemetery soon became a burial ground for African-Americans fleeing the South in the late 1870s. Over 300 people were buried there.

Presenters will discuss the people buried in the cemetery, genealogical research, and information on the cemetery as a refuge for native flora and fauna.

The presentations are free and open to the public.

Agenda, April 6, 3-5 PM Topeka Shawnee Country Public Library

3:15
• Sherri Camp, Topeka Shawnee County Public Library
• Genealogical Research
3:35
• Robert Hoard
• Ritchie Cemetery: An Introduction to the Friends Group and a brief overview of the cemetery
3:55
• Tishara Hale
• Thoughts from a Descendent of a Person Buried at Ritchie Cemetery
4:15
• The Ritchie Cemetery Capstone Group, led by Dr. Kelly Kindscher
• Ritchie Cemetery as a Prairie Remnant
4:35
• Jeff Hansen
• Ritchie Cemetery—Its History, the People Buried There, and the Plants and Animals That Survive in the Prairie Remnant—video presentation

This presentation will be made available via live streaming on Zoom

02/15/2024

This woman’s story is good history.

When we become parents it’s an unspoken parental expectation that we will raise our children to be incredible human beings of vast opportunities and experiences. This was no different for John and Missouri A (Lafferty) Martin on August 23rd 1878 as Azalea Edmonia Martin entered the world.

Azalea was the oldest child of John and Missouri two people that had been born into slavery who made it their mission that Azalea (and later her brother) would have opportunities that they were not given and boy did they succeed!

Azalea spent her early years right here in Valley Falls. She spent two years with the A.D Kendall family as a maid and companion to Ida and Lida. Because of this she was able to obtain not just an education but also lessons in social graces. This would help shape her social calendar later on in life. These are things she would have been denied and her friendship with the Kendall family would prove to be one of the most significant relationships in her young life.

Her third year in high school was spent with an elderly African American couple by the name Royal. This was a fairly uneventful time. Leading up to her senior year not only was this a year that she spent working for Mr and Mrs George McCammon but it was also a year that would mark a historical moment for African Americans in Valley Falls as well as Azalea herself.

In June of 1899 Miss Azalea Martin entered Turner Hall and became the first African American student to graduate from Valley Falls High School! This wasn’t without difficulties. Many people felt that allowing her to graduate would “set a bad precedent” but with the Kendall Family, and the Goodrich’s along with several other influential people/families fighting for her she was allowed to graduate! Can you even imagine that kind of awesome support! In July of 1899 it was announced that she would be a teacher that fall at the African American school which was held at the Methodist church now known as the Historical Shrine Church. this is where her lifelong career in education would begin.

Her first year teaching began October 1899 unfortunately the following year the school would close due to lack of students and funding. Azalea chose this opportunity to continue on with her education at Tuskegee Institute when finished there she’d get her undergraduate at Fisk University and finally her Masters in Education at Columbia University (NY). She had a few teaching jobs in Perryville TX, and Birmingham AL but truly found her home in 1930 at Lincoln University (known as the “Black Harvard of the Midwest”) in Jefferson City MO where she would teach early education for the next 27 years retiring on May 19 1957. Miss Martin would visit Valley Falls many times through out the years but she never lived here again. After retiring she moved to Leavenworth and on Jan 6th 1972 at the age of 93 Azalea Edmonia Martin passed away. While she may not have returned to Valley Falls she did return to Jefferson County and is buried at the Ozawkie cemetery.

While researching Azalea I came up with a lot of dead ends and little to no information but after setting up a couple free trials I was finally able to find some information and piece together what appears to be a very fulfilling and complete life. Just proving that her parents desire to ensure she had the best life possible was a success! She was a very active person she was a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, won countless bridge games (this appeared to be a favorite past time), and was a part of a few different clubs. Below are some important dates that I felt were significant but couldn’t mesh into the above post.

In January 1952 a playlet written by Azalea Martin titled Aunt Hettie Joins the Health Brigade was published in the Grade Teacher Magazine.
In June of 1955 Azalea was one of three people to receive the Curator award.
In 1957 Azalea Martin retired from Lincoln University. This was a big deal that included many accolades and speeches from past students and faculty letting her know the impact that she’d had on them.
In 1964 Lincoln University named a woman’s dormitory after Miss Martin.
In 1992 a memorial tree in Azalea Martins name was donated anonymously to the Valley Falls Tree Board.
In 2019 Lincoln University named Azalea Martin as one of the Legendary Ladies of Lincoln.

What a life she led! ❤️