Contents
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(Top)
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1Causes
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2List
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2.1Allen County
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2.2Anderson County
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2.3Atchison County
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2.4Butler County
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2.5Chase County
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2.6Cherokee County
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2.7Cheyenne County
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2.8Clark County
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2.9Clay County
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2.10Cloud County
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2.11Cowley County
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2.12Decatur County
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2.13Doniphan County
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2.14Douglas County
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2.15Elk County
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2.16Ellis County
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2.17Ellsworth County
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2.18Finney County
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2.19Franklin County
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2.20Geary County
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2.21Gove County
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2.22Graham County
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2.23Greeley County
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2.24Greenwood County
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2.25Harper County
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2.26Harvey County
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2.27Haskell County
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2.28Jewell County
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2.29Labette County
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2.30Leavenworth County
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2.31Lincoln County
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2.32Linn County
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2.33Logan County
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2.34Marion County
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2.35Marshall County
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2.36Mitchell County
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2.37Montgomery County
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2.38Morris County
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2.39Neosho
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2.40Norton County
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2.41Osborne County
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2.42Ottawa County
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2.43Phillips County
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2.44Rawlins County
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2.45Reno County
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2.46Republic County
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2.47Rice County
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2.48Rooks County
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2.49Rush County
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2.50Russell County
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2.51Seward County
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2.52Shawnee County
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2.53Sheridan County
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2.54Smith County
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2.55Stevens County
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2.56Sumner County
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2.57Thomas County
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2.58Trego County
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2.59Wabaunsee County
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2.60Washington County
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2.61Wichita County
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3See also
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4References
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5External links
This is an incomplete list of ghost towns in the state of Kansas.
Causes
There are many reasons as to why a community becomes abandoned (or nearly abandoned).
- Transportation – With the development of major highways and interstates, people were willing to travel farther for goods and services causing local businesses in smaller towns to lose customers and ultimately close. The more businesses that close the more people are apt to want to move away to a bigger town. Transportation has played a major role in settlement in Kansas. As traffic from the Oregon and Santa Fe Trails increased, towns boomed along them. When railroads were established towns developed along the tracks or even moved to where the tracks were.
- Politics – In Kansas, the political atmosphere was highly divided. Towns were either pro-slavery or abolitionist. When Kansas became a free state in 1861, pro-slavery towns died out. Survival of a town also depended on if it won the county seat. Towns that were contenders for the county seat and lost typically saw most, if not all, of their town die out.
- Lack of employment – Towns that catered to a specific industry like coal mining or military housing were boom towns that quickly died when their markets collapsed. Some towns were abandoned in the 1930s during the Dust Bowl period which mainly relied on agriculture.
- Eminent domain / flood control – Since 1951, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have sought to control floods through the building of dams along rivers and the resulting outcome is a town having to be moved or abandoned and demolished.
- Environmental degradation – remnants of lead and zinc mining can cause soil contamination that can render entire communities uninhabitable; e.g. Treece.[1]
List
List of ghost towns in Kansas, which aren't incorporated cities or unincorporated communities:
Allen County
Anderson County
Atchison County
Butler County
Chase County
Cherokee County
Cheyenne County
Clark County
Clay County
Cloud County
Cowley County
Decatur County
Doniphan County
Douglas County
Elk County
Ellis County
Ellsworth County
Finney County
Franklin County
Geary County
Gove County
Graham County
Greeley County
Greenwood County
Harper County
Harvey County
Haskell County
Jewell County
Labette County
Leavenworth County
Lincoln County
- Bacon
- Bayne
- Cedron
- Herman
- Lone Walnut
- Milo
- Monroe
- Orbitello
- Orworth
- Paris
- Pinon
- Pleasant Valley
- Pottersburg
- Rosette
- Topsy
- Towerspring
- Union Valley
- Woodey
- Yorktown
Linn County
Logan County
Marion County
Marshall County
Mitchell County
Montgomery County
Morris County
Neosho
Norton County
Osborne County
- Banks
- Bristow
- Cheyenne
- Delhi
- Deliverance
- Dial
- Emley
- Forney
- Free Will
- Handy
- Pleasant Plain
- Potterville
- Roundmound
- Twin Creek
- Vincent
- Yoxall
Ottawa County
Phillips County
Rawlins County
Reno County
Republic County
Rice County
Rooks County
- Adamson
- Alcona
- Amboy
- Chandler
- Cresson
- Earnest
- Frankton
- Gould City
- Highhill
- Hoskins
- Igo
- Laton
- McHale
- Motor
- Nyra
- Portage
- Slate
- Sugarloaf
- Survey
- Rockport
Rush County
Russell County
- Bayne
- Blue Stem
- East Wolf
- Fay
- Forest Hill
- Greenvale
- Hawley
- Jack
- Kennebec
- Success
- Winterset
- Woodville
Seward County
Shawnee County
Sheridan County
Smith County
- Cora
- Anderson
- Clifford
- Corvallis
- Covington
- Crystal Plains
- Custer
- Germantown
- Hardilee
- Jacksonburg
- Judson
- Ohio
- Troublesome
- Twelve Mile
- Tyner
- Uhl
Stevens County
Sumner County
Thomas County
Trego County
Wabaunsee County
Washington County
Wichita County
See also
- List of counties in Kansas
- List of townships in Kansas
- List of cities in Kansas
- List of unincorporated communities in Kansas
- List of census-designated places in Kansas
- Lists of places in Kansas
- Kansas locations by per capita income
- Kansas census statistical areas
- Kansas license plate county codes
References
- ^ NY Times, https://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/20/magazine/last-ones-left-in-treece-kan-a-toxic-town.htm
- ^ "Index of Kansas Places - Kansas Historical Society". www.kshs.org. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
External links
- Kansas Dead Town List The Kansas Historical Society has a list of the Kansas "Dead Towns" online. These lists are detailed in books available at the Society in Topeka.
- Lost Kansas Communities Project from the Chapman Center For Rural Studies at Kansas State University