A record-setting 19,146 votes were cast online and through paper ballots for the 8 Wonders of Kansas History. Previous 8 Wonders distinctions were voted upon in architecture, art, commerce, cuisine, customs and geography, as well as the original 8 Wonders of Kansas.

Fort Riley near Junction City also was named one of the 8 Wonders, as was the Fort Scott Historic Site in Fort Scott.

The other five landmarks and museums named to the list:

• 1930s Dust Bowl to Gas Exploration, Historic Adobe Museum, Ulysses.

• Boot Hill Museum, Dodge City.

• Santa Fe Trail National Historic Landmark, Council Grove.

• Kansas Museum of History, Topeka.

• Kanza Tribe & Lewis and Clark’s Independence Creek, Atchison.

The public nominated more than 170 historical sites, but a selection committee whittled the list down to 24 finalists. Criteria required that a nomination represent significant history but also give the public something of visual magnitude to see.

Previously, the highest vote total came in the 8 Wonders of Kansas Cuisine contest with 13,863.

“Once again, we had votes from every state in the union as well as from several foreign countries,” said Marci Penner, Kansas Sampler Foundation director. “The increased number of votes means more people learned about Kansas.

“The results indicate that voters were most interested in history that dated back prior to statehood. The only entrant in the top 8 with ‘recent’ history was the 1930s Dust Bowl entry at the Historic Adobe Museum in Ulysses. Then, the Kansas Museum of History rounded out the top 8 with an appreciative nod from voters.”

The Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center, the Kansas Underground Salt Museum, and the Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum were chosen as overall 8 Wonders of Kansas, so they were not eligible in the History contest.

Designed to educate the public about what there is to see and do in Kansas and to encourage travel, the series of 8 Wonders contests is organized by the Inman-based Kansas Sampler Foundation.

Nominations for the final contest, featuring people of Kansas, will be taken next month.

All contest results and information about each of the 8 Wonders can be found at www.8wonders.org.