Derby Historical Museum

10/12/2026

Thank you to Girl Scout Troop #40118 for visiting the museum last week! We were happy to host this group for a fun night of learning about local history.

While the Girl Scouts toured the building, their leaders tasked them with finding their school mascots, flags, and city buildings throughout the artifacts. They also found a photo of the church where they currently hold troop meetings. The girls had so much fun searching for these items in the museum, and of course, the Scout Room was a hit!

10/09/2026

The Art of Quilting is tomorrow, October 10! You can view all of these beautiful quilts on display while learning about the quilting process from Derby’s Community Quilting group. They'll share the techniques and equipment used and contrasting old methods with new.

While here, you'll also notice that we have upgraded our collection to better follow fabric preservation practices, such as removing safety pins and stitching labels onto the artifacts instead. We learned a lot from Marla Day, curator of K-State Historic Costume and Textile Museum, when she was here a few months ago to present at the museum. We love that our speakers can teach us things, too!

We hope to see you there! Come and enjoy this engaging quilting presentation and view these beautiful, historic artifacts on the display this Saturday.

10/03/2026

It's a beautiful day! Come and visit us at the Derby Historical Museum! We are open today, October 3, from 10-2, with a presentation on Kansas Music History from Derrick Doty at 1 p.m.

10/02/2026

Tomorrow, October 3! Join us for Kansas Music History, made possible through Humanities Kansas.

Come and enjoy a FREE speaking and music presentation from Kansas musician Derrick Doty. He will share about musical entertainment and traditions from the early days of Kansas into the 20th century. It should be interesting!

Kansas Music History
📍 Derby Historical Museum (710 E. Market St.)
🕐 October 3 at 1 p.m.
This free program is made possible by Humanities Kansas.

10/01/2026

Can you believe it has been 10 years since the opening of Madison Avenue Central Park?

Derby’s first centrally located park facility opened with an official ribbon cutting ceremony, led by Derby Mayor Randy White, on Oct. 4, 2016. Tours of the park were given as part of the opening day celebration. Photo courtesy of the Derby Informer.

Madison Avenue Central Park occupies 9.8 acres at the corner of east Madison Avenue and north Derby Avenue. The City of Derby purchased the land from Derby’s St. Mary Catholic Church, who occupied much of the area with a church and school.

The park has two meeting centers: The Venue, a 10,000-square-foot facility that seats 320, and the Pavilion, which has seating for 110. The park includes an amphitheater, two open shelters, an event lawn, an art wall and an accessible playground. Madison Avenue Central Park was built at a cost of $6.8 million. Derby voters approved a half-cent sales tax that allowed the park to be built.

Visit the Derby Historical Museum (710 E. Market) to learn more about our town's history. We are open Saturdays from 10-2 during April through October. Don't miss out and come visit us during our last month of the season!

09/27/2026

Just over ten years ago, the Sixth Grade Center came to end. This first picture, courtesy of The Derby Informer, shows its demolition on March 16, 2016. For many who attended school here, this building held a lot of memories, but its closing also marked a historic beginning of two middle schools in Derby — Derby Middle School and Derby North Middle School, the latter of which opened to students for the 2015-2016 school year. The $32.5 million, 65-classroom middle school was the marquee project of a $66.6 million bond passed in April 2012.

In July 2019, Derby Fire Station No. 81 opened its doors at this location, 715 E. Madison Ave. The station is has nearly 21,000 square feet and cost $6.5 million. The Derby Fire Department also has a Fire Training Facility on Buckner Street, which opened in 2023, and Derby Fire Station No. 82 on Rock Road, which opened in 2002.

Additional photos are courtesy of The Derby Informer, the Derby Fire Department and Derby Public Schools.

09/25/2026

Come and enjoy a FREE speaking and music presentation from Kansas musician Derrick Doty. He will share about musical entertainment and traditions from the early days of Kansas into the 20th century. It should be interesting!

Kansas Music History
📍 Derby Historical Museum (710 E. Market St.)
🕐 October 3 at 1 p.m.
This free program is made possible by Humanities Kansas.

09/25/2026

You all were right again! This artifact is in fact a harp.

09/22/2026

Some of you all are really good guessers! You must know your historical artifacts well. Let's see if you can guess this one...

It is also located at the Derby Historical Museum (710 E. Market).