Motoring Monday - Greensburg’s Big Well Museum: cool in more ways than one

The Big Well Museum is in the town of Greensburg, off U.S. 54, in south-central Kansas.

The Big Well was greatly improved after

a devastating tornado struck Greensburg in 2007.

What better place to cool off on a hot day than a place that bills itself as the world’s largest hand-dug well?

The Big Well, with a spiral staircase, goes 109 feet deep and stretches 32 feet wide in the town of Greensburg. That’s off U.S. 54 in Kiowa County, in south-central Kansas. Workers completed the well in 1888, using picks and shovels, lining the walls with stone. It’s one of the Eight Wonders of Kansas.



The well provided drinking water for Greensburg until 1932 and became a tourist attraction in 1937.

Since the 1970s, the well has been recognized as a national museum and a water works landmark.

The well has been a tourist attraction since
the late 1930s.

Now, the well is operated by the City of Greensburg and is known as the Big Well Museum & Visitors Information Center. The tourist site was greatly improved a few years after a tornado devastated Greensburg in 2007.



In the late 1880s, workers lined the well with stone.

The attraction is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 to 6 p.m. on Sunday. Cost: $8 for adults; $6 for seniors 60 and older, military and children ages 5 to 12; a family pass, for two adults and children under 18, is $25. For more information, go to www.bigwell.org.

Greensburg to break ground on new airport

This aerial view map shows where the new Greensburg airport will be located (along the red line).
Grounbreaking of this new project will commence tomorrow. 

The City of Greensburg will break ground on its new airport during a ceremony tomorrow at 11 a.m. The Kansas Department of Transportation Aviation Division’s Airport Improvement grants helped make the new airport possible.

“It is wonderful to see this kind of new growth coming to the Greensburg area,” said Lt. Governor Jeff Colyer. “We as a state are excited for the people and businesses of Greensburg.  A new airport has the potential for bringing further economic growth to the southwest region of Kansas, which is a benefit to all.  Congratulations to everyone involved in the project.”

“KDOT is pleased to have been part of such a profound project in the transformation of an excellent Kansas community,” said Secretary of Transportation Richard Carlson. “It is necessary that the state and our local communities continue to invest in the development of infrastructure that can aid in growth and progress.”

Current plans for Greensburg's new airport,
this design was completed by H.W. Lochner.

Planning for this project first started in 2011 with a KDOT Aviation grant used for the preparation of an Airport Development Plan. The plan helped with various aspects of the airport’s development. The Airport Development Plan project included coordination with federal, state, and local agencies to assure compliance with environmental and permitting requirements for the proposed improvements.

In 2012, KDOT Aviation issued a grant to the City of Greensburg for assistance in burying power lines necessary for airport site construction. In 2013, another KDOT Aviation grant was offered to the city for funding assistance related to the design of the new airport. Design of the new facility was completed by H.W. Lochner.

“The tragedies that happened to the Greensburg community are unforgettable,” said Kansas Department of Transportation Aviation Division Director Merrill Atwater. “Establishing a new airport will allow for the growth and development of the local economy, increased agricultural support and will support the capability of an air ambulance. This airport is invaluable to the future of this community.”

The project will consist of completing the grading required for the construction of a turf runway, runway turnarounds, aircraft parking apron/connecting taxiway and automobile parking lot.

RJA Dozer Service, LLC of Minneola is the prime contractor on the $737,222 project. Construction for Greensburg’s new airport is scheduled to start in November. Construction is expected to take approximately three months.