Theme 5: History & Culture

Wichita is filled with history and culture, including museums, public art, historic buildings and the Arkansas River. However, these sites can be far apart and disconnected. To make those stories easier to discover, the plan calls for connecting them in ways that encourage people to explore more of downtown.

The History & Culture theme focuses on strengthening cultural destinations, expanding creative experiences and creating a connected network of places and stories that celebrate what makes Wichita unique.

Expanding Cultural Experiences

A stronger cultural network can also create more opportunities for people to experience art, music, performances and events throughout downtown.

Community feedback identified interest in more cultural programming, including a modern performing arts center, as well as events such as music festivals, art events, cultural programming and walking tours.

These experiences can bring more activity to downtown, support local artists and businesses, and give residents and visitors more reasons to explore the urban core.

Connecting Wichita’s Stories

The Downtown Wichita History Trail is one example of this vision already becoming reality.

The trail, made possible by a grant from the Wichita Rotary Charitable Trust, will create a walkable downtown experience that connects significant sites and tells the stories that shaped Wichita. This includes Indigenous heritage, the Chisholm Trail, the Dockum Sit-in and the factories that shaped Old Town. Uniform signage and a web-based experience will bring each story to life, with opportunities to add new stops as Wichita’s story continues to evolve.

Launching in 2028, the History Trail is currently moving through planning and site selection, with community input helping shape its first chapter.

Celebrating What Makes Wichita Unique

History & Culture is ultimately about making Wichita’s story part of the downtown experience, not simply preserving the past, but using it to create connections, experiences and destinations for the future.

For developers, property owners, businesses and cultural organizations, that means looking for opportunities to incorporate local history, art and culture into projects and public spaces.

For the City of Wichita, it means providing wayfinding signs that help pedestrians explore downtown on foot and find destinations they haven’t experienced before.

The goal is a downtown where Wichita’s story is visible, accessible and continually being written.