Who were the people that founded Salina?

The Story of Christina Phillips Campbell is a First Thursday Presentation tomorrow at the Smoky Hill Museum with Dr. Boo Hodges.

“I don’t think this town exists today – at all if Christina Phillips had not arrived in 1858,” said Hodges during the KSAL Morning News on Wednesday.

“She was the glue that held everything together.”

Through research and reading family diaries, Hodges is set to detail how Christina helped stabilize the early settlement and stayed in Salina while the men rushed off to fight the Civil War.

“The men all left for the war. You’ve got hostile Native American tribes that are running around, close by. Christina Phillips was the person that kept it all together,” Hodges said.

“She’s the most famously, wonderful person that I think nobody’s ever heard of.”

The free presentation begins at 5:30pm on Thursday, May 5th at the Smoky Hill Museum.