Iowa, Sac, and Fox Mission Museum Operated by Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska After Land Return
The Iowa, Sac, and Fox Mission Museum, located near Highland, Kansas, is now managed by the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska. This development follows the return of the mission building and 10 acres of surrounding land to the tribe in 2021, after decades of management by the Kansas Historical Society. The mission itself has a long history, established in 1837 by a Presbyterian couple after the federal government relocated the Iowa, Sac, and Fox tribes from Missouri to a reservation in northeastern Kansas. Its original purpose was to discourage tribal customs while providing education, teaching Christianity, industrial and homemaking skills, and farming to Native children. In 1845, the initial log schoolhouse was replaced by a three-story brick-and-limestone building, funded by the Iowa Tribe, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Presbyterian Mission Society. This structure was frequently noted by emigrants traveling west along the California Trail.
