Goodland, Kansas, is home to sunflowers, wheat, and friendly faces. A city of 4,500 residents in northwestern Kansas, Goodland is located on I-70. Canadian artist Cameron Cross decided an enlarged hand-painted reproduction of Vincent Van Gogh’s “Three Sunflowers in a Vase” would make an appropriate landmark for Goodland. Goodland was chosen as a site due to its close connection to sunflower agriculture.
Planning a visit? Stay at Mid America Camp Inn.
In the spring of 2001, the 24 x 32 foot “World’s Largest Painting on an Easel” was erected in Pioneer Park in Goodland. The steel easel is 80 feet tall, weighs 40,000 pounds and is anchored with 24 three-foot long anchor support bolts and 30 feet deep cement pilings.
The High Plains Museum features objects in permanent and temporary exhibits from its collection of over 8,000 objects that represent its more than 100 years of Northwestern Kansas history. High Plains Museum contains a full-size replica of America’s first helicopter, which was built by Goodland residents W.J. Purvis and C.A. Wilson in 1909. The museum also contains exhibits on the colorful early history of Sherman County (of which Goodland is the seat), railroads and telegraphs, and the Dust Bowl.
Built in 1907 by the widow of William Ennis, the Ennis-Handy House is an excellent example of a type of Victorian architecture known as Queen Anne style.