suggestion --- in your travels try -- STRATACA: KS Underground Salt Museum and the Cosmosphere - both in Huchinson KS if you are passing that way. Two very interesting museums - One is a Salt mine tour and the other is a offshoot of the Smithsonian space museum.
Kevin
I can't give a better endorsement for Hutchinson, Kansas.
We've been a couple of times, but finally spent a day at the Cosmosphere. I can attest that it really does take a full day. People probably don't imagine a space museum in the middle of the country and in such a small town, but this place is world-class, with the most complete German rocket collection, as well as the largest Russian display outside of Moscow. As far as the U.S. is concerned, you get to see real artifacts from some of the best of the Apollo Missions, including the Apollo 13 capsule.
Strataca takes you deep into the earth where the salt mine is still in operation. A couple of riding tours drives you into historic areas that have been untouched since the 1950s. In one area, movie and television films are stored, as well as props and costumes from some prominent features. A newspaper in pristine condition displays a headline that announces the assassination of Lincoln. All of these are preserved in the salt.
I have several pictures in these reports from our legendary COVID travels in 2020:
Strataca (https://hoggatteer.weebly.com/homeroom/a-visit-to-strataca-salt-mine)
Strataca: Underground Vaults and Storage (https://hoggatteer.weebly.com/homeroom/a-visit-to-underground-vaults-storage)
Cosmosphere: Lobby and Rotunda (https://hoggatteer.weebly.com/homeroom/a-visit-to-cosmosphere-lobby-and-rotunda)
Cosmosphere: German Gallery (https://hoggatteer.weebly.com/homeroom/a-visit-to-cosmosphere-the-german-gallery)
Cosmosphere: USA in Space (https://hoggatteer.weebly.com/homeroom/a-visit-to-cosmosphere-the-usa-in-space)
Cosmosphere: Race to Space (https://hoggatteer.weebly.com/homeroom/a-visit-to-cosmosphere-race-to-space)