Ellis County Historical Society
Kansas Legends and Folktales
Thu, Oct 19
|Hays
This talk will explore some of Kansas’s most outlandish legends and folktales and help audiences decipher between a myth (folk religion), legend (folk history), and tale (folk literature).
Time & Location
Oct 19, 2023, 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM
Hays, 100 W 7th St, Hays, KS 67601, USA
About the event
Grasshoppers so big that cowboys can ride them to herd cattle. Summers so hot that corn pops in the field. Rancher Henry Mudge wrecking pianos, shooting sheep, and fooling European dignitaries. Kansas is a place of big skies and tall tales, and big exaggerated narratives like these help us understand the character of our state and its people.
Jim Hoy is a professor of English and folklorist who works with the Center for the Great Plains Studies at Emporia State University. He has lectured internationally on the folklife of ranching and is the co-author of “Plains Folk,” a syndicated newspaper column.
“Kansas Legends and Folktales” is part of Humanities Kansas's Speakers Bureau, featuring humanities-based presentations designed to share stories that inspire, spark conversations that inform, and generate insights that strengthen civic engagement.