In Memory Of
IN MEMORY OF LEE KROH

Born: March 1, 1930
Deseased: February 17, 2019

On Sunday morning the 17th of February, 2019, our illustrious co-founder of the Kansas City Area Historic Trails Association Mr. Lee Kroh, passed peacefully from this earthly realm to his reward of eternal life. Along with Dorothy, and other historic frontier trail enthusiast and preservation advocates, they conceived, developed, and founded over 25 years ago what has today become the Kansas City area’s distinctive historic trails organization.

Mapping and marking the original historic trail alignments in our region, particularly the regions of today’s Johnson, Wyandotte, and Leavenworth counties, was Lee’s early efforts to interpret and translate the original GLO 1850’s surveys of a new Kansas Territory. The survey maps and notes are housed at the Kansas Historical Society.  From these survey maps and notes evolved the  popular Historic Frontier Trails Map, which KCAHTA still distributes to local Museums and for sale to individuals.    
In conjunction with the mapping project, came the development of a signage program to identify for the public the precise locations of the area’s historic trail route crossings at ‘hard points’ (section lines) along today’s modern roadways. Today in partnership with area municipalities, KCAHTA maintains approximately 350 of its distinctive ‘Brown’ signs at nearly 175 trail crossings noting the crossings of the historic Military Road, the Independence Route of the Santa Fe-Oregon-California Trail, and the north and south branches of the Westport Route of the Santa Fe Trail. 

For over two decades Lee and Dorothy have remained actively engaged in the development and operations of KCAHTA. Today, KCAHTA maintains a 3-Trail partnership with the KC area Trails Head Chapter of OCTA and the Missouri River Outfitters Chapter of SFTA!  In addition, KCAHTA is recognized as a viable historic frontier trails resource by the National Park Service-Inter Mountain region.   KCAHTA’s association membership boasts 115 members and growing, which includes those who serve on both the local and national leadership teams of OCTA and SFTA.   

Such a legacy is that of Lee Kroh as shared with wife Dorothy!   Our task is to continue forth, to carry the flame which Lee passed to us….to continue advocating and educating about the relevance of our historic frontier trails not only to the western movement of our nation, but also  how our community evolved upon those pioneer trails.

We know Lee shall now rest in peace from his life’s journey down the many trails he blazed for us to follow.

Gary L. Hicks, President
Kansas City Area Historic Trails Association
LEE KROH RECEIVES SFTA HALL OF FAME AWARD

At the Santa Fe Trail Association Symposium in St. Louis September 25-28, our deceased friend, historic trails leader and co-founder of KCAHTA, Lee Kroh, received their Hall of Fame Award.
This award is intended to recognize both Historic and Modern deceased men and women who are recognized for travels on or contributions to the preservation, promotion, protection and education of the public about the Santa Fe Trail.
Lee’s work in mapping the Santa Fe Trail from Old Franklin, MO to Santa Fe, NM produced maps that are unrivaled in accuracy. His work focused on the 1855 General Land Office Surveys and Maps and endless days out on the trail, much of the time with his wife Dorothy.
Lee’s work also enabled the placement of about 350 brown signs on roadway locations that mark the crossings in Johnson, Wyandotte and Leavenworth Counties of the Santa Fe-Oregon- California Trails on both the Independence Route and the North and South Branches of the Westport Route, plus the Fort Leavenworth Military Road and the California Road between Westport and Lawrence. These signs were all placed (and replaced) by KCAHTA.
His legacy will live on because, as you will read in other places in this newsletter, his hundreds of USGS Quadrangle maps will be digitized and made available to the public for many generations yet to come.
Lee was a charter member of SFTA and will be remembered for a long time for his great work!
IN MEMORY OFLOU AUSTIN

Born: December 30, 1947
Deceased: August 27, 2019


LONGTIME PARTNER ON KC HISTORICTRAILS, PASSES AWAY

On August 27, 2019 we lost Lou Austin, our longtime partner on South Kansas City trails. He will be difficult to replace, if ever. 

Lou had been involved with the National Park Service  and  the  Mid-America  Regional Council   
(MARC) retracement corridor project of the  Santa Fe, Oregon and California National Historic Trails from Sugar Creek to Gardner with a particular emphasis on South Kansas City, especially from the Wieduwilt Swales at 85th and Manchester to the New Santa Fe Cemetery near State Line Road. He helped create the TrailsKC plan and the 6th District Pedestrian Intermodal Transportation Connector Trail Plan in 2010 and also the 3-Trails Community Improvement District. Lou also has represented the 6th District on the Kansas City Public Improvement Advisory Committee (PIAC), plus leading many more partnership entities.

All historic trails sites in South Kansas City bore his specific leadership such as:
--Pedestrian trails, waysides, markers, and larger- than-life historical silhouettes at Santa Fe Elementary School at 90th and Old Santa Fe Road.
--Many waysides and markers at Schumacher Park on 93rd Street on land donated by his father Lou Schumacher.
--The $1.5 million Powder Mill Pedestrian Bridge over I-435 at Bannister Road. Lou secured the funding from the Missouri Department of Transportation and 6th District PIAC.
--The Pedestrian Bridge over I-49 just south of Bannister Road; funding again secured by Lou.
--The recently dedicated 3-Trails Transit Center on Blue Ridge Blvd at about 94th Street. (Lou is speaking above at the dedication)
--Pedestrian Trail from the Santa Fe Elementary School to Avila University. (still partly under construction).
It was a privilege to know and work with Lou all these years and he will be absolutely sorely missed. But we will continue to enjoy the fruits of his labors and leadership for many decades to come!

IN MEMORY OF DR. PETE CUPPAGE


Birth: August 17, 1932

Deceased: February 21, 2015


*Taken from the Feb 2015 Newsletter*

Pete, Chair of our Preservation Committee 


KCAHTA and the entire historic preservation community mourns the passing of retired pathologist and  long-time  KCAHTA  member Dr. Pete Cuppage. He was a pre-eminent trails historian and a dear friend of all of us, with an  

abiding love of the history of the western trails including the Lewis and Clark Trail.

He often lectured on the medical practices and medicines used on the Lewis and Clark Corps of Discovery in 1804-1806. His contributions to develop understanding of our past balanced with the commitment to his medical profession.

He received the KCAHTA David Lavenburg Award for Volunteerism in 2005.

We will miss his congenial personality, love of trails history and support of KCAHTA.


From his Memorial donations a Resting Bench was placed in his Honor at the 80th and Santa Fe Wayside Exhibits. A picture of the bench is included in the "Day on the Trail Dedication" heading.
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