Written in Stone

With central Kansas having limited native trees for building material, limestone served as
a long-lasting alternative for purposes both simple and grand. These images are but a few
examples from the Smoky Hill River Valley near Interstate Highway 70 and US Highway 40
in western Kansas, which parallel the Smoky Hill Trail and its successor, the Kansas-Pacific
Railroad, both established in the 1860s as the short route to Denver from the Missouri River.

Latest update: 30 May 2009            Mark Eberle Homepage

Federal Control of Settlement

Image of Philip Hardware Image of Fort Hays Blockhouse
Federal Land Office/George Philip Hardware, Hays, Kansas
Before its century-long run as George Philip Hardware (1896-1997), this 1874 building, a dry goods store, served as
a Federal Land Office from 1875-1877, where thousands of homestead and timber claims in the region were filed.
Directions: Follow Old US Highway 40 (8th Street) through Hays to Main Street or take I-70 exit 159, then south
    to 8th Street and west to Main Street.
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 25 May 2009

Fort Hays Blockhouse, Fort Hays SHS, Hays, Kansas
Completed in 1868, the limestone blockhouse served as the post headquarters and library. Its other function as a
defensive structure was never tested. As with most posts on the Great Plains, Fort Hays had no defensive wall because
Plains Indians rarely attacked a sizable concentration of well-armed soldiers at a developed post. The soldiers stationed
at Fort Hays were more likely to be attacked away from the post while performing their primary duty of protecting
railroad workers and settlers.
Directions: Fort Hays State Historic Site is on the US Highway 183 Bypass on the south side of Hays.
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 29 May 2009

Homesteads

Image of Volga-German House Image of Cottonwood Ranch
Volga-German Haus, Ellis County Historical Society, Hays, Kansas
This building is a furnished replica of the typical limestone home built by some of the Volga-German settlers around Hays.
Emigrating first from Germany to the Volga River valley in the late 1700s at the invitation of Catherine the Great, the
Volga-Germans began emigrating to North and South America in the 1870s. The first of these settlers in Ellis County
arrived in 1876 and established towns based on their hometowns in the Volga River valley. The house is part of the
exhibits at the Ellis County Historical Society in downtown Hays.
Directions: Follow Old US Highway 40 (8th Street) through Hays to Main Street, then south to 7th Street or
    take I-70 exit 159, then south to 8th Street, west to Main Street, and south to 7th Street.
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 25 May 2009

Cottonwood Ranch State Historic Site, Studley, Kansas
This building is the house begun in 1885 by the Pratts, immigrants from England. After living in a dugout, the Pratts
eventually constructed the limestone ranch house and several outbuildings on the Yorkshire style, in which the buildings
also served as segments of the enclosure for livestock. The ranch house and buildings form the centerpiece of Cottonwood
Ranch State Historic Site, which is unfortunately scheduled to be closed in September 2009 due to budget constraints.
Directions: North of I-70 on US Highway 24 at Studley, 14 miles east of Hoxie and 18 miles west of Hill City.
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 29 May 2009

Community Buildings

Image of Lincoln County Courthouse Image of St Fidelis Church
Lincoln County Courthouse, Lincoln, Kansas
The courthouse was completed in 1900. Lincoln has one of the greatest concentrations of native limestone buildings in the
region. Several of these buildings have been restored as museums, an art center, and a theatre.
Directions: I-70 exit 221, then 15 miles north on Kansas Highway 14.
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 25 May 2009

St. Fidelis Church ("Cathedral of the Plains"), Victoria, Kansas
The Volga-Germans who settled the region around Hays built churches of native limestone. The church in Victoria was
constructed from 1908 to 1911. William Jennings Bryant referred to the church by the romantic, if not technically accurate,
name of "Cathedral of the Plains" on a visit in 1912. Built in the shape of a cross, the length of the church is 220 feet, and
its width is 110 feet at the transepts and 75 feet at the nave. The twin towers are 141 feet high. The church seats 1,100 people.
More information about the church and its history is available at the St. Fidelis Church website.
Directions: North of Old US Highway 40 or take I-70 exit 168, then south on Kansas Highway 255.
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 30 May 2009

Storing Water

Image of Paradise Water Tower Image of Wilson Water Tower and Jail
Limestone Water Tower, Paradise, Kansas
Paradise water tower was constructed through the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1938. The water
tower was recently renovated and is still in use. Height: 35 feet; Diameter: 17 feet; Capacity: 58,000 gallons.
Directions: I-70 exit 184, then 18 miles north on US Highway 281 and 3 miles west on Kansas Highway 18.
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 24 May 2009

Limestone Water Tower / Jail, Wilson, Kansas
Wilson water tower was constructed about 1911. Water was stored in the upper portion of the structure.
The town used the lower part of the tower to temporarily house prisoners for transfer to the county jail.
Height: ~20 feet; Diameter: 18 feet.
Directions: Between E and F Avenues, north of Old US Highway 40 or take I-70 exit 206, then south on KS Highway 232.
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 25 May 2009

Crossing Water

Image of Fort Fletcher Bridge Image of Railroad Bridge
Fort Fletcher Stone Arch Bridge, Ellis County, Kansas
Fort Fletcher Bridge was constructed through the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during 1935-1936. It was named
for the nearby site of the short-lived Fort Fletcher, precursor to Fort Hays. The length of the bridge is 156 feet, with four
arches 35 feet wide. The recently renovated bridge over Big Creek is still open to traffic. For more information on stone arch
bridges and other historical bridges in Kansas (and elsewhere), go to the Historic Bridges of the United States website.
Directions: I-70 exit 172/Old US Highway 40 at Walker, then 4.5 miles south on Walker Avenue (gravel road).
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 30 May 2009

Union-Pacific Railroad Stone Arch Bridge, Logan County, Kansas
This is one of the few stone arch bridges on the railroad paralleled by US Highway 40 across northwestern Kansas. The
Union-Pacific Railroad, Eastern Division (Kansas-Pacific) was the first railroad completed across Kansas to Denver during the
1860s, immediately following the Civil War. Construction of the railroad brought the Federal troops, who drove the Cheyenne,
Arapaho, and other Indians from the Smoky Hill River basin. Completion of the railroad allowed settlers to successfully
homestead the region.
Directions: US Highway 40 about 1.5 miles east of Page City (west of Oakley).
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 29 May 2009

Post Rocks

Image of Limestone Fence Post Image of Limestone BOD Marker
Limestone Fence Post, Ellis County, Kansas
Fence posts cut from a layer of "post rock" limestone and other local formations were initially used during
the late 1800s and early 1900s, and hundreds are still in use, although they are often replaced by steel and
wooden posts. For more information, see the Post Rock Museum (LaCrosse, Kansas) website.
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 24 May 2009

Smoky Hill Trail (BOD) Marker, Russell County, Kansas
Some of these old limestone fenceposts received new life as markers for the Smoky Hill Trail from the Missouri
River in northeastern Kansas to Denver. The Butterfield Overland Despatch (BOD) began operations in 1865,
but the railroad replaced the coaches in 1870. In 1963, the Kansas Legislature approved the placement of markers
along the route of the old trail, and 138 were engraved and set in special concrete bases at sites from Fort
Ellsworth to the Kansas-Colorado border. Maps of the route that can be followed across western Kansas by
passenger vehicles are available as a pdf file elsewhere on my website.
Digital image by Mark Eberle, 24 May 2009

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