In the tiny central Kansas town of Lucas, at the corner of Kansas and Second streets, sits “the most unique home, for living or dead, on earth.” S. P. Dinsmoor’s Cabin Home and Garden of Eden is a stone log cabin surrounded by three–story concrete sculptures, arranged in allegorical tableau's that rally against bank trusts and monopolies of the early 20th century. Dinsmoor’s populist vision has been at Lucas’s core since 1909, reflecting and shaping history in this community of practical prairie people.

Early on, Dinsmoor and his Civil War buddies started a series of community debates, pitting neighbor against neighbor in lively discussions. After he started working on his own home–built environment at the age of 64, his boundlessness intensified. Erecting male and female forms, reinterpreting familiar Bible passages, Lucas’s most outspoken citizen cast his views in concrete for all to see.

Portland cement was a new material. As Dinsmoor experimented with this new medium, he perfected his sculptural material mix, and his innovative use was featured in Cement Era, a trade magazine for the exciting new building industry. He used it in both his home and his sculptures, ensuring that the Garden of Eden was built for the centuries.

Dinsmoor opened his house to visitors as soon as people showed interest, conducting tours even while building. He electrified and illuminated his politically charged vignettes, drawing people to his property likes moths to a flame. He sold his own guidebooks (the images and text of which are still used today), and charged for tours to insure the continuation of the Garden.

One final arrangement was intended to assure his legacy; he is interred on–site, forever on display through a glass window in his coffin. He wrote, “I have a will that none except my widow, my descendants, their husbands and wives, shall go in to see me for less than $1.00. That will pay someone to look after the place.”

March & April: Daily from 1:00 p.m.–4:00 p.m.

May–October: Daily from 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

November–February: Friday, Saturday, Sunday from 1:00 p.m.–4:00 p.m.