By RYAN CHRISTNER

rchristner@dailynews.net

What once was old is new again at Historic Fort Hays.

The museum, located south of town along U.S. Highway 183, seeks to preserve the rich history of the military installation established in 1865 and has been working for years to restore the original buildings located on the grounds and add exhibits and activities for visitors.

Nearing completion is the renovation of the museum's second officer's quarters building, referred to as OQ2. The exterior refurbishment of OQ2, which was built in the 1860s, has been completed with the help of Damar-based Schamber Construction.

Interior work, provided by Lyden Construction of Topeka, is currently under way and is expected to be completed by spring 2009.

Aesthetically, the interior of the house has been split, with one side representing typical 1860s style and the other more common of rooms from the 1880s.

The hope, said site administrator Bob Wilhelm, is to furnish the building using period-relevant reproductions, rather than artifacts, so visitors can interact with the contents of the house.

"Most stuff next door (in the other officer's quarters) are actual artifacts, and so you can't sit on the chairs and you can't pick things up unless you have gloves on," he said.

"We want this to be more of a hands-on experience for people."

Wilhelm, a 25-year employee with the museum, also said they are considering the possibility of renting the building to small organizations looking for a unique locale.

Also to be updated is the museum's guard house, circa 1872.

The former jailhouse, which was renovated last year, currently has a very small exhibit set up displaying the topics to be displayed in the future.

Helping put those exhibits into place will be a $300,000 federal grant recently awarded to the museum.

The grant required the museum to raise half the money, most of which came in a $100,000 donation from the Dane G. Hansen Foundation of Logan.

Wilhelm said being bestowed with the grant money was a "huge" opportunity.

"We've never really had that kind of money to put exhibits in here," he said.

The museum's current plans for the guard house are to focus on the lives of enlisted men, ethnic soldiers, women and civilian workers, as well as elaborate on how crime and punishment were represented in the 1800s.

Wilhelm said they hope to have renovations completed by late 2009, as the grant expires in two years.

There is also talk of possibly renovating or constructing a new visitors center, Wilhelm said.

The museum, one of 16 historical sites operated by the Kansas Historical Society, offers several educational programs throughout the year.

Historic Fort Hays had its annual Young Troopers camp last month, where children soon to enter the sixth grade can spend a weekend cooking meals over a fire, sleeping in frontier-style tents and learning about life in the late 1800s.

Also last month, the museum hosted a vintage baseball game against a team from Jetmore. The game, played using classic rules, was very informal, but could become a regular activity as participants enjoyed it, Wilhelm said.

The 20th annual Independence Day Celebration at the fort featured a picnic, western songs and poetry by Jeff Davidson of Eureka and patriotic music by the Hays City Summer Band.

Next on the museum's calendar are the annual Historic Fort Hays Days. Wilhelm said the event has gone through many transformations since its inception. Where once the event lasted one day and featured pioneer crafts, the current two-day format focuses on a theme and offers special activities based on that topic.

This year's event will be Sept. 26 and 27 and will concentrate on railroads.

Later in the year, the museum features Graveside Conversations -- where staff and volunteers lead tours of the fort cemetery and dress in authentic costumes to portray the lives of past soldiers and settlers -- and Christmas Past, an early December event where visitors are treated to homemade candy canes, engage in the singing of Christmas carols and can take a horse-drawn wagon ride, among many other activities.

Museum attendance tends to fluctuate from year to year, Wilhelm said. Given factors like the state of the economy and high gas prices, Wilhelm said visitation is down currently. He does expect a rise in attendance once renovations are complete and new exhibits are put in place.

"Hopefully whatever we do in here will keep people coming back," he said.

The Fort Hays museum operates thanks to the help of three full-time staff members and about 50 volunteers, all who help clean, guide tours, answer questions and conduct research.

Financial help comes from the Society of Friends of Historic Fort Hays, which sells items in the museum store and performs other fund-raising functions.

Historic Fort Hays is open every Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays 1 to 5 p.m., and is closed Mondays and federal holidays.

Admission is $3 for adults, $2 for seniors and students -- and is free for Kansas State Historical Society members, active servicemen and women and children under 6.

Group tours can be made by appointment -- the museum suggests school groups have no more than 25 students -- and last approximately 30 minutes, taking visitors to every area of the site and explaining in depth about life at the historic fort.

Those wishing to volunteer at the museum or join the Friends society are encouraged to sign up at the museum or e-mail thefort@kshs.org.