2004
Lawrence Sesquicentennial Commission, Clenece Hills, President
In 1999, three Lawrence citizens approached the Lawrence City Commission, urging it to form a group to plan celebrations for the city’s 150th birthday. William Crowe, director of the Kenneth Spencer Research Library, Bruce Flanders, director of the Lawrence Public Library, and Rod Bremby, then assistant city manager, proposed an initial list of 33 people. Mayor Erv Hodges appointed these people in November 1999, and the group met for the first time in January 2000 at the Lawrence Public Library.
Thanks to the foresight of the Lawrence City Commission, money to support the sesquicentennial was provided through tax funds raised by usage taxes for hotels in Lawrence. Four major committees carried out the work of the sesquicentennial celebration: Heritage, chaired by Paul Stuewe; Festivals, chaired by Kendall Simmons; Education, chaired by Norma Harrod and John Jewell; and Horizons, chaired by Mary Burchill.
These committees were guided by a seven-member board of directors: Clenece Hills, president; Jerry Niebaum, vice president; Bruce Roberts, secretary; William Crowe, treasurer; and members-at-large Judy Billings, David Carttar and James W. Paddock. Ron Hurst served as a board member and treasurer during part of the commission’s history.
Accomplishments: heritage garden at Hobbs Park, a sesquicentennial map, funding for 17 community projects, CD on Lawrence history produced for all Lawrence teachers and the development of Sesquicentennial Point at Clinton Lake. The Sesquicentennial Commission concluded its many years of planning with a gala parade on Lawrence’s 150th birthday, Sept. 18, 2004, and a birthday party in South Park. On Sept. 19, 2004, the closing ceremony for the week’s celebration was held at Sesquicentennial Point, where a time vault was buried, to be opened in 2054.
Step Sponsored By: The City of Lawrence