A one-of-a-kind destination awaits those who venture to the beautiful Northwest Kansas town of Hill City, a town with a population of approximately 1,400 residents.
The Graham County Auto & Art Museum, which officially opened its doors to the public in April 2021, proudly features a wide variety of classic automobiles including cars, trucks, tractors, and even a few motorcycles. All of the vehicles in the museum were manufactured between the 1930’s through the 1970’s.
In addition to the automobiles, there is also a small arts and crafts store at the front entrance of the building, to attract auto and art enthusiasts alike.
Cory Simoneau, President of the Graham County Auto & Art Museum, stated that since its opening, the museum has welcomed 1,300 visitors from 23 different states. Aside from the sheer visual entertainment value of the beautifully maintained facility, the museum is doing its part to boost the local economy.
“Not only do we bring visitors to our town to see the museum but while they’re here, they’re more than likely going to spend some money going out to eat or going to local convenience stores…it’s a big help for the town,” explained Simoneau.
Sioneau explained that the idea for the project was born back in 2017. The museum exists thanks in large part to Hill City native Stephen Tebo. Additionally, the museum received generous financial support from the Dane G. Hansen Foundation, Graham County Community Foundation, and a variety of other local businesses.
Tebo, a 1962 graduate of Hill City High School and owner of Tebo Properties, owned the former Nex-Tech building in Hays. Tebo donated that building for the purpose of becoming the eventual brick and mortar location of the museum.
This proved to be a lengthy and involved process, which included the taking down, disassembling, moving, and rebuilding of the building, and then getting the nearly 8,000 square foot space ready for the automobiles at the location aptly named “Tebo’s Corner”.
According to Simoneau, there are currently 32 cars and tractors and a handful of motorcycles on display in the museum, including three local trucks from the movie “Paper Moon” that was filmed in LaCrosse, Kansas.
The museum is a combination of cars owned by Tebo, as well as other local vehicles from citizens of Hoxie, Hill City, Plainville and Hays. Simoneau explained that locals can put their cars on display as long as there is room. “We charge a small fee for the rental space per year, if someone wants to show their vehicle and we have space. We like to trade the vehicles out as much as possible.” Simoneau also understands that people like to drive their vintage autos, so they do like to rotate the vehicles regularly so the owners still have the ability to drive their vehicles.
Upcoming in April, the museum will be switching out cars and will be featuring an exciting variety of celebrity pre-owned vehicles, including vehicles owned by Alice Cooper, Blake Shelton, and T.G. Sheppard, among others.
Visitors to the museum can make a day of it in the Hill City area. There are local restaurants and parks to be enjoyed, and the Nicodemus National Historic site is located just a short 12 miles from Hill City.
Simoneau would like to thank the board members, volunteers, and donors who make the Hill City Auto & Art museum a desirable Northwest Kansas destination.
Drive yourself down to the Graham County Auto & Art Museum, located at U.S. 24 and U.S. 283, to see the impressive variety of shiny and impressive autos. Museum admission is $5 and the museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday-Sunday.
