The Trespassers Beware! Fort Conley and the Wyandot Women Monument is now on display at the Kansas City, Kansas, Public library, just a few dozen yards from the cemetery where the original stood. On June 27, Monumenta and the Wyandot Nation of Kansas hosted an event at the library to kick off the monument’s summer stay and to launch a book focused on the Conley sisters.
The event featured a panel discussion led by Tai S. Edwards, Stephanie Bennett, and Samantha Gill, the editors of the book Lyda Conley and the Fight to Preserve Huron Indian Cemetery. This text focuses on the fight to save the cemetery at the turn of the 20th century, but also tells a deeper story, featuring oral histories from several current members of the Wyandot Nation of Kansas. To that end, the panel included Chief Judith Manthe, Emeritus Chief Janith English, Holly Zane, and Macy Bennett, who read and commented on their contributions to the book.
Following the book talk, Monumenta Founder and Artistic Director Neysa Page-Lieberman led visitors through the Trespassers Beware monument, detailing its creation and the history behind the art installation. Visitors also had the opportunity to eat at the Native Chef Food Truck, owned and operated by Jason Champagne. The truck and catering company focuses on blending pre-contact Indigenous dishes with contemporary food choices.
Chief Judith Manthe then led visitors on a tour of the Wyandot National Burying Ground, the cemetery that the Conley sisters fought to save in their fort. Chief Manthe detailed the cemetery’s origins, the Conley sisters’ fight, and the continued meaning of the ground for the Wyandot of Kansas today.