KANSAS STATE HISTOEICAL SOCIETY. CONSTITUTION. As amended January 21, 1902. I. This association shall be styled the Kansas State Historical Society. The object of this Society shall be to collect, embody, arrange and preserve books, pamphlets, maps, charts, manuscripts, papers, paintings, statuary and other ma- terials illustrative of the history of Kansas in particular, and of the country gen- erally ; to procure from the early pioneers narratives of the events relative to the early settlement of Kansas and of the early explorations, the Indian occupancy, overland travel and immigration to the territory and the West; to gather all in- formation calculated to exhibit faithfully the antiquities and the past and pres- ent resources and progress of the state, and to take steps to promote the study of history by lectures and other available means. II. This Society shall consist of active, life, honorary and corresponding mem- bers, who may be chosen by the board of directors of the Society at any regular or special meeting, except at their meeting next preceding the annual meeting of the Society — the active members to consist of citizens of the state, by the pay- ment of one dollar annually; the life members, by the payment at any one time of ten dollars; the honorary and corresponding members, who shall be exempt from fee or taxation, shall be chosen from persons in any part of the world dis- tinguished for their literary or scientific attainments, and known especially as friends and promoters of history. County or city historical societies may elect one delegate member, who shall have all the privileges of the State Society, and who shall be exempt from the payment of annual dues : Provided, That not more than two such delegate members from one county shall be admitted. That the income from membership fees shall be devoted to special historical research, or to the purchase of historical books, documents, or manuscripts. Editors and publishers of newspapers and periodicals who contribute the regular issues of the same to the collections of the Society shall be considered as active members of the Society during the continuance of such contribution. III. There shall be a board of directors of the Society, to consist of ninety nine members, who shall be elected from among the members of the Society; or, if any person be elected who shall not at the time be a member of the Society, he shall become such by payment of the annual membership fee of one dollar; and he shall then become qualified to act as a member of the board of directors upon taking the oath of office as such. The members of the board of directors shall be of three classes, to serve for terms of one, two and three years respectively. Any person elected a member of the board of directors who shall fail to qualify within twenty days after being notified of his election shall be deemed to have declined the office, and the same shall thereby be considered vacant. Any va- cancy in the board of directors, or in any office of the Society, may be filled by the executive committee at any meeting subsequent to the occurring thereof. Any number not less than five shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of Z KANSAS STATE HISTOKICAL SOCIETY. business. No member of the board of directors, or other officer, except the sec- retary, shall receive pay for any of the ordinary duties of his office. IV. The elective officers of the Society shall consist of a president and two vice-presidents, who shall hold their offices for the term of one year, and until their successors shall be chosen ; and a secretary and a treasurer, who shall hold their offices for the term of two years, and until their successors shall be chosen ; said officers to be chosen by the board of directors from their members, their election to be made at the first meeting of the board subsequent to the annual meeting of the Society, and their terms of office shall begin at the date of their election and qualification in office. And in addition to these elective officers, all donations of money or property (if accepted by the board of directors) to the amount or value of $500 shall constitute the donors life directors of the Society during their natural lives; but such life directors shall never exceed in number the regularly elected directors; and all moneys from life directorships or from donations or bequests, unless specifically directed otherwise by such life directors, donors, or devisors, shall be invested to the best advantage, and the accruing in- terest only shall be used, and shall be employed in such manner, for the benefit of the Society, as the board of directors may direct. V. The annual meeting of the Society shall be held in Topeka, on the first Tuesday in December; and those members, not less than ten, who meet at any annual or special meeting of the Society upon the call of the board of directors, shall be a quorum for the transaction of business. VI. The president, or in his absence one of the vice-presidents, or in their absence any member of the Society selected on the occasion, shall preside at the annual or any special meeting of the Society. Such presiding officer shall pre- serve order, regulate the order of proceedings, and give a casting vote whenever the same is required. VII. The secretary shall preserve a full and correct record of the proceedings of all meetings of the Society and board of directors, to be entered on his book in chronological order. These records shall always be open for the inspection of any member of the Society. He shall conduct the correspondence of the Society ; shall preserve for the Society the official communications addressed to him,, and keep copies of important official letters written by him; he shall collect, or cause to be collected, moneys due to the Society, and pay the same to the treasurer; he shall give notice of the meetings of the Society and of the board of directors; he shall edit and supervise, under the direction of the publication committee, the publications of the Society, direct the literary exchanges, and shall write out and cause to be published, in one or more of the Topeka papers, the proceedings, or a synopsis thereof, of the meetings of the Society and board of directors; he shall have charge of the books, manuscripts and other collections of the Society; he shall keep a catalog of the same, together with all additions made during his of- ficial term: in case of donation, he shall specify in his record the name of the book, manuscript or article donated, with the name of the donor and date of the gift; he shall make an annual report of the condition of the library, and respond to all calls which may be made upon him touching the same, at any annual or special meeting of the Society. VIII. The treasurer shall receive and have charge of all dues and donations, and bequests of money, and all funds whatsoever of the Society, and shall pay such sums as the board of directors may from time to time direct, on the warrant of the chairman of said board, countersigned by the secretary; and he shall make an annual report of the pecuniary transactions of the Society, and also exhibit a ft- CONSTITUTION. 6 statement of the funds and property of the Society in his hands, at any stated or special meeting, when thereto required. IX. The secretary and treasurer shall give satisfactory bonds, in such sums as the board of directors may deem proper, for the faithful performance of their respective duties, and for the faithful preservation of property of every kind in custody of the Society ; and such bonds shall be filed with the secretary of state after approval by the board of directors. X. The president, or in his absence one of the vice-presidents, shall preside at the meetings of the board of directors, and in their absence the members present may select a chairman from their number to preside, and to perform such duties as may be prescribed for him. The directors shall supervise and direct the financial and business concerns of the Society; may augment the library, cabinet, and gallery, by purchase or otherwise; may make arrangements for a single lecture or a course of lectures, for promoting historic knowledge and in- creasing the pecuniary resources of the association. They shall have power to fill any vacancies occurring in their number. They shall audit and adjust all ac- counts of the Society. They may call special meetings when necessary; appoint the annual orator; make suitable arrangements for the delivery of the annual address; use their discretion as to the publication of any communications, collec- tions, transactions, annual or other addresses, or other written matters of the Society ; and they shall annually make a full report of their transactions, accom- panied by such suggestions as may seem to them appropriate and worthy of at- tention. They may appoint an executive committee from their own number, to perform such duties as may be prescribed for such committee. XI. The Secretary is hereby authorized and directed to cause the bills for the annual dues of active members to be made out and sent to the address of such members on or before the 1st day of July of each year, with a copy of this article, and if the amount of such dues is not paid to the treasurer of this Soci- ety after the third notice of the secretary, those members in arrears shall be dropped from the roll of membership. The term of annual membership shall begin from and after the 1st day of July of each year. XII. The board of directors may adopt by-laws for their own government and guidance, not inconsistent with this constitution. XIII. This constitution may be amended at any annual meeting of the So- ciety: Provided, That the proposed amendment shall have been reduced to writing and entered on the minutes of the Society at least three months previous to a vote being taken on the same: And i^rovided also, That a majority of the members present shall concur in the adoption of the amendment or amendments proposed. XIV. The fiscal year of this Society shall commence on the 1st day of July in each year and close on the 30th day of June next succeeding. KANSAS STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. BY-LAWS OF THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 1. There is hereby created an executive committee of the board of directors of the Society, to consist of five members, to be appointed subsequent to the an- nual meeting of the Society, and to hold their office until the next annual meet- ing. 2. The executive committee shall audit all accounts presented against the Society, and all warrants drawn on the treasurer shall be upon sworn vouchers approved by a majority of the members of the executive committee. 3. The executive committee shall examine and audit the accounts and vouchers of the treasurer annually before the time of the annual meeting, and at the annual meeting they shall make a written'report to the board of directors. 4. The executive committee shall determine the character of the published reports of the Society, and shall decide what papers from its transactions and collections the biennial report shall contain. 5. The executive committee shall take such action as the interests of the So- ciety shall from time to time demand in relation to providing and furnishing suitable rooms for its collections, and shall consult with the secretary, and with him decide upon the purchasing of books to augment the Society's library. 6. There shall be a committee on program and addresses, to consist of five members of the board ; and it shall be the duty of the committee to provide for the addresses and proceedings of annual and other meetings, and to take such action as may be deemed advisable in reference to the delivery from time to time of lectures and addresses on historical subjects at the state capital or elsewhere. 7. There shall be a committee on legislation, to consist of three or more mem- bers of the Society; and it shall be the duty of the committee to confer with the members and committees of the legislature, and present for their consideration and action the matters of legislation which the board of directors shall recom- mend. 8. There shall be a committee on nominations, to consist of five members of the board; and it shall be the duty of the committee, annually, at some time pre- vious to the annual meeting of the Society, to make a selection of persons whom they deem proper to recommend for members of the board of directors, and shall present the same for the action of the Society at the annual meeting. 9. All committees shall be appointed by the president. STATE LAW GOVERNING THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. Section 1. The State Historical Society, heretofore organized under the in- corporation laws of the state, shall be the trustee of the state, and as such shall faithfully expend and apply all money received from the state to the uses and purposes directed by law, and shall hold all its present and future collections and property for the state, and shall not sell, mortgage, transfer or dispose of in any manner or remove from the capital any article thereof, or part of the same, with- out authority of law; provided, this shall not prevent the sale or exchange of any duplicates that the Society may have or obtain. There shall continue to be a board of directors of said Society, to consist of as many members as the Society shall determine, and who shall have the same powers as the present board of directors. Sec. 2. It shall be the duty of the Society to collect books, maps and other papers and materials illustrative of the history of Kansas in particular, and the West generally ; to procure from the early pioneers narratives of events relative KANSAS STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 5 to the early settlement of Kansas, and to the early explorations, Indian occupancy and overland travel in the territory and the West: to procure facts and state- ments relative to the history and conduct of our Indian tribes, and to gather all information calculated to exhibit faithfully the antiquities and the past and present condition, resources and progress of the state; to purchase books to supply deficiencies in the various departments of its collections, and to procure by gift and exchange such scientific and historical reports of the legislatures of other states, of railroads, reports of geological and other scientific surveys, and such other books, maps, charts and materials as will facilitate the investigation of historical, scientific, social, educational and literary subjects, and to cause the same to be properly bound ; to catalogue the collections of said Society for the more convenient reference of all persons who may have occasion to consult the same; to biennially prepare for publication a report of its collections, and such other matters relating to its transactions as may be useful to the public; and to keep its collections arranged in suitable and convenient rooms, to be provided and furnished by the secretary of state, as the board of directors shall determine ; the rooms of the Society to be open at all reasonable hours on business days for the reception of the citizens of this state who may wish to visit the same, without fee: provided, that no expenditure shall be made under this act or expense in- curred except in pursuance of specific appropriations therefor, and no officer of said Society shall pledge the credit of the state in excess of such appropriation. Sec. 3. The board of directors shall keep a correct account of the expenditure of all money which may be appropriated in aid of the Society, and report bien- nially to the governor a detailed statement of such expenditure. To enable the Society to augment its collections by effecting Exchanges with other societies and institutions, sixty bound copies each of the several publications of the state, and of its societies and institutions, except the reports of the supreme court, shall be and the same are hereby donated to said Society as they shall be issued — the same to be delivered to the Society by the secretary of state or other officer having custody of the same — to include also for deposit in its collections one set of all the publications of the state heretofore issued, not excepting the supreme court reports. The Society shall not expend its resources in procuring duplicates of such publications as may be in the state library. Approved March 10, 1879. STATE LAW RELATING TO LOANING DOCUMENTS THAT BELONG TO THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. Section 1. The secretary of the State Historical Society is hereby prohibited from permitting or allowing any of the files, documents or records of said Society to be taken away from the building where its office and rooms are or shall be located: Provided, That the secretary in person, or by any duly authorized deputy, clerk or employee of his office, may take any of said files, documents or records away from said building for use as evidence or for literary or historical purposes ; the same to be kept while so away in the personal custody of said sec- retary, deputy, clerk, or employee: Provided further, That this shall not pre- vent the sale or exchange of any duplicates that said Society may have or obtain. CERTIFIED COPIES. Sec. 2. A copy of any file, document or record in the custody of said Society, duly certified by the secretary under the seal of the Society, may be received in evidence with the same effect as the original. Approved March 2, 1901. Published May 1, 1901, PAST PRESIDENTS OF THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 1876 Samuel A. Kingman, 1877 George A. Crawford. 1878 John A. Martin. 1879-'80 Charles Robinson. 1881-'82 T. DwiGHT Thacher. 1883-'84 Floyd P. Baker. 1885-'86 Daniel R. Anthony. 1887 Daniel W. Wilder. 1888 Edward Russell. 1889 William A. Phillips. 1890 Cyrus K. Holliday. 1891 James S. Emery. 1892 Thomas A. Osborn. 1893 Percival G. Lowe. 1894 Vincent J. Lane. 1895 Solon O. Thacher. 1896 Edmund N. Morrill. 1897 Harrison Kelley. 1898 John Speer. 1899 Eugene F. Ware. 1900 John G. Haskell. 1901 John Francis. LBJL'04 (i£0