(Photo Courtesy of The Peoples Heartland Foundation)
ATHOL, Kan. (AP) — The north-central Kansas cabin where the iconic song "Home on the Range" was written more than 140 years ago is restored and open to visitors, although more work is planned before it is dedicated in October. The cabin, built in 1872, was once home to Brewster Higley, a frontier doctor who wrote a poem that later was put to music and became "Home on the Range," the state song of Kansas. It is located near the Nebraska border in Smith County. The Wichita Eagle reports that the cabin was in ruins in 2011. A grassroots effort raised more than $113,000 to restore it and install nature walks and other amenities. For now, the cabin is bare but supporters plan to add some furniture before Flag Day June 14.