Miners Hall Museum Dragline Endowment

Specific Need

Our goal is to grow our endowment fund to ensure the long-term care and maintenance of this magnificent machine. The Page 618 Walking Dragline, soon to be placed in Franklin, will be the second—and the largest—walking dragline preserved for public display in the United States. This extraordinary attraction will draw visitors from across the region and beyond, creating a positive economic impact for Southeast Kansas. Its presence will support and benefit area museums, tourist sites, restaurants, retail businesses, and the broader community.

Mission

Dedicated to preserving and sharing Southeast Kansas coal mining history and its diverse immigrant culture.

Profile

Through an extraordinary pledge to the Miners Hall Museum Foundation, Wendell and Lynda Wilkinson have donated a Page 618 Walking Dragline for preservation and restoration. Originally purchased and operated by the Wilkinson Coal Company of Weir City, Kansas—which ran from 1917 to 1979—this machine represents a monumental piece of Southeast Kansas mining history. Bringing the dragline to Franklin will draw visitors, tourists, authors, researchers, and students from across the nation, generating local economic activity and deepening public appreciation for our region’s unique heritage.

The significance of this preservation effort is echoed by leading experts. Keith Haddock, co-founder of the Historical Construction Equipment Association in Bowling Green, Ohio—and one of the world’s foremost authorities on earthmoving and surface mining equipment—emphasizes its importance:
“I believe that saving the Page dragline is of the utmost importance and the top of the list for all items to be preserved in America.”

Anthony Lucibello, a respected heavy equipment preservationist and collector from Northford, Connecticut, has generously agreed to serve as a volunteer consultant for the project. He shares the same enthusiasm:
“The preservation of this machine would increase tourism to the area. I can attest that I have traveled all the way from Connecticut to put my eyes on this machine and the others in the area, and would do so again just to see this Page 618.”

Miners Hall Museum Board Member Dr. Christopher Childers notes that this initiative aligns perfectly with the museum’s longstanding commitment to preserving the region’s heritage:
“This is not the first major project Miners Hall Museum has undertaken to preserve the region's mining history. From our museum facility to Franklin Community Park and its outdoor exhibits to the relocation and restoration of the Miner's House on the museum grounds, MHM has a record of dreaming big and delivering results.”

This endowment will ensure the long-term care, restoration, and interpretation of the Page 618 Walking Dragline—one of the most significant mining artifacts in the nation—and will strengthen Southeast Kansas as a destination for heritage tourism for generations to come.