74 10 1892 http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/d5f455e6f0d0a9b7cdfe1cacab1bd8d6.jpeg 3d19224b46bbcf221aa3c71eabea62fe Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Rossville Transportation and Accidents History Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Rossville Community Library Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Death Ends It, Honeymoon of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Smith Is Over, Rossville, Kansas Description An account of the resource DEATH ENDS IT Honeymoon of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Smith is Over. He With Two Others Killed at Crossing. STOPS A MARRIAGE. Other Two Victims to Have Been United Sunday. Maggie Marney and Edward Smith Find Union in Death. ONLY ONE IS ALIVE. Mrs. Fred Smith Tells How Accident Happened. Young People Returning From Dance at St. Marys. Three persons were instantly killed and another perhaps fatally injured shortly after 1 o’clock this morning at bond’s crossing, about two miles west of Rossville, by the Union Pacific passenger train No. 3, west-bound. The killed are: FRED SMITH, EDWARD D. SMITH AND MISS MAGGIE MARNEY. Mrs. Fred Smith may recover, although at noon today she was still unconscious and was in a delirious condition. Mrs. Smith was a bride of less than a week, having been married on Sunday, and Miss Maggie Marney was to have been married next Sunday to Edward Smith, one of the unfortunate men. Edward and Fred Smith were brothers, both prosperous young farmers who parents also live near Rossville. They had been to St. Marys to attend a Woodman dance and were returning home when the accident occurred. They were driving a team of horses attached to a double-seated carriage, when they crossed the Union Pacific at Bond’s crossing, and the engine of the Union Pacific passenger train crashed into them. The bodies of the killed were terribly mangled, and Miss Marney’s head was completely severed from her body. Both the horses were instantly killed, and the carriage was smashed. The engineer did not see the carriage until after the engine had struck it. He immediately brought his train to a standstill and the bodies of the dead and Mrs. Smith, who was unconscious, were taken on board and were carried to St. Marys. They were taken to Rossville early this morning, accompanied by Dr. Miller and a Catholic priest, Father DeSmedt, and an inquest was held at 9 o’clock. Mrs. Fred Smith is receiving the best of medical care and attention. She talks in a rambling manner and knows nothing of what has occurred. She is aware that her husband was killed. She suffered a severe shock and one arm and an ankle were broken. The doctors hold out hopes of her ultimate recovery. Miss Maggie Marney was the daughter of William Marney, a well known farmer of that vicinity. She was to have been married to Edward Smith next Sunday. Mrs. Fred Smith, the bride of two days, whose husband met a horrible death at the Bond crossing, gave the first coherent account of the accident to a State Journal reporter this afternoon. “We were married in Topeka at the home of my sister, Mrs. H.E. VanVleck, at 220 East Fifth street,” said she. “We went down to Topeka on Saturday and were married Saturday evening. We were at the home of my sister until Monday afternoon when we went to Rossville. Ed met us at the train. He asked his father for a team and got a double seated carriage in Rossville and we went to the Mulvane ranch where we got Maggie Marney and we then went to the dance at St. Marys. “When we were coming home Fred and I were on the front seat and Fred was driving. We had the side curtains on. We got on the wrong road and we had to turn north and were compelled to cross the tracks again. We had already crossed them once. As we drove onto the tracks the train hit us and I don’t remember anything more. The engineer did not whistle.” Mrs. Smith was Miss Vina Vieu. She is a young woman of prepossessing appearance. She appears to scarcely realize the terrible fate of her husband, brother-in-law and friend. It was at first thought that her ankle had been broken but it now appears that this is a mistake. She is not seriously injured and will be able to be out in a few days. Engineer Emmett Lewis of the Union Pacific train that caused the death of the three young people was prostrated. He went with the train as far as Junction City where he turned the engine over to a substitute, being unable to go farther. The conductor of the train was F.S. Fields and both the engineer and conductor are attending the inquest this afternoon. The parents of Fred and Ed Smith, the two young men who were killed, live two miles from Rossville. They were worried over the non-appearance of their sons but did not know of the accident until this forenoon when Floyd McPherson drove out and informed them. Mrs. Smith fainted and was in a serious condition but is better this afternoon. Neither the father nor mother knew that the young people had been married. The bodies of the dead were all frightfully crushed. Fred Smith’s legs and one arm were broken, his neck was also broken and one side was crushed. Ed Smith’s side was crushed and his legs were broken. The car wheels had passed directly over Maggie Marney’s head and face and the top of her skull was found lying beside the track. Claim Agent Peterson, of the Union Pacific is on the ground and with him is Photographer John Strickrott who took photographs of the scene of the accident to be used in the event of a suit for damages. Coroner Hogeboom went to Rossville on an early morning train and is holding an inquest this afternoon. The people of Rossville are greatly excited over the frightful accident. (published, April 1, 1902 ?) Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Probably in the Rossville newspaper Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Rossville Community Library Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource April 1902 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public domain Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource newspaper clipping Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RCL0400 http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/dea616cb68fc661726443cad737bb538.jpg 5e66b15ef38981ed6a30b9ff63b596ef http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/d5c1d51fb447517def0350d29a4fa6b7.jpg 5e66b15ef38981ed6a30b9ff63b596ef Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Downtown Silver Lake, KS Description An account of the resource Patrons posing with their motorbikes downtown Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Early 1900’s Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Pulled from the Facebook page " You know you went to Silver Lake if" posted by Brad Doebele Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Silver Lake Public Library http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/a01dc306964104a4ceb8d2a7e22ffe5e.jpg b2b9fba58d134c704a02c4b82f084624 http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/b244e445b2321de8e2e7c0acb909ab36.jpg 3714addccb036634a1f7d785346b9684 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1951 Flood Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1951 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Pulled from the Facebook page " You know you went to Silver Lake if" posted by Brad Doebele Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Silver Lake Library Description An account of the resource Unknown community members of Silver Lake, KS on rafts in front of Wards IGA http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/7914c9759a8148019e9eed640e2ffa56.jpg 5e4aa5903e066573759a7381aa271f0e Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Profiles of Local Persons, Rossville, Kansas Photo A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Portrait of man, Rabberger, Atchison, Kansas Description An account of the resource Rabberger 317 Commercial St. Atchison, Kansas. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rabberger (photographer) Atchison, Kansas Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Unknown Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource From the donated collection of Sara Horak to the Rossville Community Library in 2015. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RCL0736 http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/025364a3fdf58032cf9ec779884f3aaf.jpeg 51d62e36bdfba91f6b094e8f3ea0998a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Rossville Agricultural History Subject The topic of the resource Farming/Ranching Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rossville Community Library Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Rossville Centennial Booklet, 1971 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Rossville Community Library Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain due to copyright expiration. Original narrative content by RCL is available for use by public. Description An account of the resource Rossville is fortunately situated in many ways—we are near a large city, Topeka, but far enough away to retain our own identity; we can be considered a bedroom community to Topeka since so many residents commute to work to the larger city; we are just north of the Kansas River and enjoy the fertile “Kaw River Valley,” which has benefited agriculture in our community since its very beginnings. From the early days, Rossville Township was blessed with fertile creek and river-bottom land, combined with the upland, which consisted of bluestem grass. The early settlers broke and cleared the bottom lands and part of the upland prairie. The settlers of the 1860-70s began farming and found the soil fertile and productive. However, the task of clearing the timberland and breaking prairie sod must have seemed insurmountable. Corn and wheat, the main crops, and cattle, hogs and other livestock-raising, became the basic agriculture of Rossville township. Many of these early farmers came to Kansas seeking land. They traveled by ox cart and wagon before the railroad went through, following the Oregon and other trails. Settlers bought land from the Santa Fe Railroad or from members of the Citizen Potawatomi Band, who were selling their allotment land. The first mention of early agriculture in Rossville comes from Dr. Gabbey’s account, written in 1886: “The Pottawatomi as a tribe never took kindly to agriculture, four or five acres in corn was a large field. Their fields were usually cleared up from the edge of the timber along the streams, as the Indian had little use for the Prairie kind.” One account gives the cost of prairie in the early days from $2.50 to $4.00 per acre. Lumber was worth from $25.00 to $39.00 dollars per thousand feet. Oxen cost $100.00 a yoke, mules from $100.00 to $200.00, horses $75.00 to $150.00, sheep $2.00 a head and chickens 25¢ each. Masons and carpenters received $2.00 to $3.00 per day in wages. Wheat was worth $1.50 per bushel and flour $4.50 per hundred pounds. From newspapers of 1877: “New corn brought in for shipment is getting 18¢ to 20¢ and corn huskers have been in demand at $1.00 per day and board; 2.5¢ per bushel thrown on the ground or 3.5¢ in the crib.” “Mr. Lambert James, a farmer living a few miles west of town has this season manufactured 1,500 gallon of sorghum molasses, which he readily disposed of at 50¢ per gallon.” But challenges persisted for early settlers. Although this was an extremely desirable area for agriculture and the raising of livestock, it was not possible for the early settlers to procure manufactured goods from the East without paying an extremely high freight bill. It was also impossible to ship their grain and produce economically. River freight was tried but the Kaw River often times did not have enough water to make shipping dependable so the answer to this problem was the railroad. Rossville’s answer came May 18, 1866, when the first train passed through the town. Corn was the main crop and early editors gave much space extolling its excellence. Corn cribs were numerous along the south side of the railroad tracks and on the east side of north Main. A water powered grist mill was located on Cross Creek north of town. Mulvane Bros. built a steam powered mill south of the railroad tracks. One of the earliest farmers was Henry Ford, who acquired 80 acres southwest of Rossville in 1864. His wife was the former Mary Nadeau, who came to Rossville from Indiana in 1862. Henry Ford came to Kansas in 1863 and was a stage coach driver for the Overland Stage Company between Topeka and Manhattan. He met his wife at “Buttermilk Station” where she worked for her brother, Big Alex Nadeau. While working to clear their land of timber and build a log house, they lived in one room of a three room house, west of Cross Creek, north of the old Oregon and California trails. The other two rooms were occupied by Dr. and Mrs. R.S. Gabbey and Mr. and Mrs. C.W. Higginbotham. After the Fords moved into their log cabin, Mrs. Ford often rode horseback nine miles with her baby to the mission in St. Marys. The first flowers she had to plant by the cabin were given to her by the nuns at the Mission. Another early farmer, John DeGraff settled south of Rossville in 1865. He and his wife, the former Frances Navarre, lived in a small dugout until their house was built. The following is a list of early farmers: Name | Year to Rossville | Origin Archibald Abbott 1870 Kingston, Canada West Joseph Andrews Westmoreland County, Pa. W. Thomas Andrews 1879 McKay, Ohio Joseph Beseau 1875 Monroe County, Michigan John A. Bond 1872 Tyler County, W. Virginia William Bond 1873 Tyler County, W. Virginia John DeGraff 1865 James DeVinney 1880 Ross County, Ohio Benjamin Franklin 1869 Ross County, Ohio John Fritz 1877 Somerset County, Pa. Martin Hass 1877 Richland County, Ohio Henry Kassabaum 1877 Brookmell, Prussia T.J. Kiernan 1868 Elzey E. Kinsey 1877 Ohio Henry Lipp 1868 South Germany Isaac McCollough 1873 Holmes County, Ohio R. McCollough 1878 Holmes County, Ohio Michael O’halaron 1880 Samuel Oldfield 1878 Derbyshire, England S.J. Oliver 1876 Edward Partelow 1868 Newport, Kentucky Thomas L. Ross 1882 Cincinnati, Ohio M.M. Standley 1874 Carroll County, Indiana Bennett Swearingen 1868 Meigs County, Ohio Isaac B. Trostel 1877 Perry County, Pa. Frank Van Vleck 1878 William Wax 1878 Juniata County, Pa. Daniel Wilt 1876 York County, Pa. Henry York 1869 Zurich, Switzerland Peter H. Zickefoose 1874 Highland County, W. Virginia Samuel Beals 1867 E.S. Doud 1869 W.L. James Wm. Kirkpatrick 1871 Frank L. Sanders John Heslet Noel Graves W.W. Janes J.K. Conley 1870 Yates County, New York Startup, Ab Thomas Attebury 1877 George Hejtmanek 1880 Wisowitz, Moravia, Austria D. Hartzell 1872 Francis E. Williams 1876 New York Captain John Gutshall Col. A.S. Stanley 1880 Meigs Co., Ohio Martin Nason 1872 Jos. Van Vleck 1878 M.L. Cless 1876 B.W. Higginbotham 1861 Thomas Moss 1877 J.M. Parr Clay Co. Indiana J.A. Parr Clay Co. Indiana H.W. Lipp 1878 Illinois Samuel B. Zickefoose 1869 West Virginia Mrs. Jane Jackson 1875 Scotland Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Samuel Oldfield Farm, Rossville, Kansas Description An account of the resource During the last day of June, Samuel Oldfield, Rossville, planted 18 acres of corn on land from which he had already taken a crop of wheat. He said the land was well-fertilized for the first crop, and the second took to growing lustily. A good stand of fodder corn is already assured, and indications are that many good ears will be on hand before Jack Frost gets in his work. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Reprinted in the St. Marys Star, St. Marys, Kansas (date unknown) This was originally published around August 1895, probably in a local Rossville newspaper. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Rossville Community Library Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource ca. original content August 1895 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public domain Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource newspaper clipping Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RCL0310 http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/e78263e35625f19cee31e252710b2870.jpg 90bd9f12c443e41e0f30ddb74e1b5097 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Bob McEnulty Photo A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Christmas Card from Rev. Wesley Tillinghast Subject The topic of the resource Personalized Christmas Card from Rev. Wesley Tillinghast, the minister of the Tonganoxie Methodist Church Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rev. Wesley Tillinghast, Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Tonganoxie Public Library Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob McEnulty Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Never Copyrighted Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Scanned color lithograph .jpg Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context TPL 4-0070 http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/f6f947159f3407c81972fcccca37db92.pdf 483848170b8bab93c92aff3a111d224f Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Southeast Kansas Library System Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Bulletin article Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Trustee talk Subject The topic of the resource Regional library systems Description An account of the resource Article written by the president of the Southeast Kansas Library System in the Spring 1967 issue of the Kansas Library Bulletin. The article details the purpose of systems, opposition, and looking to the future of the systems and system services. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard Combs Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1967 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Southeast Kansas Library System Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource No restrictions Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Type The nature or genre of the resource text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SEK_20150917_0013 http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/65b06d0907310f2c52e15d9fd0648c1b.JPG 40ea470de3eb0a4a0e63853a273e8c13 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Rossville Schools Description An account of the resource From the 1971 Centennial book: The history of our earliest schools is limited, however, we do know that the first school was taught by Mrs. Gibson Metty in 1863, and the first term was held in a small log cabin near the creek on the west side. There were about 15 scholars in attendance, both white and Indian. It was a subscription school. Mrs. Metty was succeeded by Mrs. Guernsey and she in turn by Miss Jane Woodward. In the years 1865 to 1868, a number of citizens formed an association and established a private school which most of the children attended. They built a small one-story frame building on the corner of North Main and Marion Streets. The population by the year 1870 had increased sufficiently to allow the formation of District No. 34. A two-room frame building 14x23 was built near the corner of Navarre and Marion Streets with a daily attendance of about 14 and in the winter season about 20. This was the first public school in Rossville. In the spring of 1871 this school building was moved from its site and purchased by C.W. Higginbotham for use as part of his home (which stood near the S.M. Thompson residence). A large, two-story frame building was constructed on the same site as the former school. In the fall the building was completed, and school was taken up by a Mr. Grant with an attendance of about 30 pupils. In 1882, a meeting was held at the Rossville school to discuss the necessity for enlarging the school facilities. Many felt the existing school should have an addition added to secure more room, and a high fence built around the school yard. Others favored moving the two-story frame house off to a suburban site such as back of the Baptist Church on Mulvane’s farm or some similar location. The complaint of noise, and the children playing in the creek because of lack of adequate playground area were reasons given for moving the school. In the year 1884, it was decided that a new school should be built and the contract was let to William Binns. It was built of red brick and furnished inside with all the latest improvements of the time. There were four spacious rooms, two on the first floor and two on the upper, in the back of these rooms were wardrobes. In the front and center of the building, on the upper floor, was recitation room opening into either of the two rooms. This school house was located on the present Rossville Grade School grounds. Both grade and two years of high school were taught for several years in this school building, until a four year high school could be established. From the Topeka Daily Capital, December 22, 1940: “Rossville’s new District No. 34 Grade School was dedicated. It was built at a cost of approximately $42,000.00 and contains four classrooms, one combination classroom and library, an auditorium, kitchen, bathrooms and a boiler room.” From the Rossville paper June 15, 1952, “patrons of District No. 34 and consolidated districts voted 64 yes and 3 no on a proposal to issue $68,000 in bonds for enlarging the grade school building, now greatly overcrowded.” The new addition to the grade school was started September 1952. The last addition to the grade school was in 1963. From the Topeka Daily Capital, April 17, 1949: “Five rural school districts voted to consolidate with the Rossville District. They are Parr District No. 77, which closed April 1910; Cedar Bluff District No. 52, closed since April 1937; Lipp School which closed in 1938; and James and Twin Rose schools which closed in 1946.” In about the year 1910, it was voted by the citizens of Rossville to build a high school. Until the high school was completed, the students, because of overcrowding, attended classes in the old Fritz hall, which is now identified by location above the present Rossville Truck and Tractor building. During this time, part of the primary department was taught in the old Baptist church. The high school, which was named “The City School, “ was built just east of the existing grade school on Pottawatomie Street. Due to weather conditions, the school was not completed until the second semester started in January 1913. School continued to be held in this building until 1937 with an average enrollment of eighty. The Rossville Reporter published on March 12, 1936, that among the public works projects was Rossville’s proposed new high school building, with an outright gift of $38,000.00 towards its cost. In May petitions were circulated in the district, which were later presented to the Board of Education requesting an election to vote bonds for Rossville’s share of 55 percent towards the new building. On July 11th the district voted five to one to approve the issuance of $46,480.00 in bonds. The 4.5 acres of ground, located on the south side of Highway 24 was purchased from J.K. Conley at $500.00 per acre. On December 10th, 1936, the school board advertised for bids for the new school. In 1966, due to an act of the Legislature, Grade School District No. 34 and High School District No. 7 were unified with St. Marys, Delia and Emmett and became known as Kaw Valley Unified District No. 321. The Delia High School was closed and the students came to Rossville. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Rossville Community Library Physical Object An inanimate, three-dimensional object or substance. Note that digital representations of, or surrogates for, these objects should use Moving Image, Still Image, Text or one of the other types. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 150 Years of Education in Rossville, Kansas Description An account of the resource [This was an alumni display in 2013.] 1863- First school established. Fifteen white and Indian students attended a small log cabin school near the creek at Main and Marion Streets. Students taught by Mrs. Metty. The school was called a subscription school. 1865- A one-story frame school building was built near Main and Marion Streets. A private school was established. 1870- District #34 was formed. This was the first public school. A two-room school was built near Navarre & Marion Streets (near the creek). Fourteen students attended, 20 in winter. 1871- The two-room school was moved from the site and a new two-story school was built at that site. Thirty students attended. Mr. Grant was teacher. 1882- A larger school was needed. Also needed was a secure playground away from the creek. 1885- A new school was built on the present Rossville Grade School grounds. This was a two-story brick building. Four teachers. Both grade school and two years of high school were taught there. 1902- The first class graduates from the two-year high school. Graduates were Edna Hartzell, Stella Johnson and Ellen Parr. 1909- The high school became a four-year school but classes were still held in the grade school building. 1910- Citizens voted to build a new and separate high school. 1912- The first class graduates from the four-year high school. The graduate was Martha (Rezac) Placek. Class of 1913 had six students, 1914 had 11 students. 1912- Construction was begun on a new City High School just east of the grade school. Because of delays, the school was not occupied until the Spring of 1913. The first semester was held in the Fritz Opera House (above Anderson Upholstery). Enrollment in high school averages 45 with four teachers. 1913- Rossville Grade School (left) and Rossville High (right). Standing at the site of the current Grade School. 1920- The school name changed from City High School to Rossville Rural High School. Six teachers. 1937- New High School was built south of Highway 24. This school was used until 1979. 1940- The present grade school was dedicated. It cost $42,000. Original school building had four classrooms, one combination classroom, library, auditorium, kitchen, bathrooms and boiler room. 1952- Addition added to grade school. Additional rooms added in 1963, 1975 and 1989. 1956- Kaw Valley Unified School District #321 was formed. Rossville, St. Marys, Emmett, and Delia were combined. Separate schools were kept with Rossville and Delia combined. 1980- The new High School was opened for classes in August. The old high school was torn down. 2003- A Junior High addition added to the High School. Classes began in August. 2011- A secondary gym, locker rooms, etc. were added to the High School. 2013- Rossville schools serve students from Rossville, Delia, Valencia and Willard. Current enrollment in Junior High is 87 and Senior High 179. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rossville Alumni Association, Rossville, Kansas Billie Dolezilek Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Rossville Community Library Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This work is copyrighted. The copyright holder has granted permission for this item to be used by the Rossville Community Library. This permission does not extend to third parties. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource photograph of a display Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RCL0584 http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/03672735216023868baf91a3c4ef2aaa.jpeg 845df3f585d0d4c63e01712fcd6c9f53 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Rossville Agricultural History Subject The topic of the resource Farming/Ranching Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rossville Community Library Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Rossville Centennial Booklet, 1971 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Rossville Community Library Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain due to copyright expiration. Original narrative content by RCL is available for use by public. Description An account of the resource Rossville is fortunately situated in many ways—we are near a large city, Topeka, but far enough away to retain our own identity; we can be considered a bedroom community to Topeka since so many residents commute to work to the larger city; we are just north of the Kansas River and enjoy the fertile “Kaw River Valley,” which has benefited agriculture in our community since its very beginnings. From the early days, Rossville Township was blessed with fertile creek and river-bottom land, combined with the upland, which consisted of bluestem grass. The early settlers broke and cleared the bottom lands and part of the upland prairie. The settlers of the 1860-70s began farming and found the soil fertile and productive. However, the task of clearing the timberland and breaking prairie sod must have seemed insurmountable. Corn and wheat, the main crops, and cattle, hogs and other livestock-raising, became the basic agriculture of Rossville township. Many of these early farmers came to Kansas seeking land. They traveled by ox cart and wagon before the railroad went through, following the Oregon and other trails. Settlers bought land from the Santa Fe Railroad or from members of the Citizen Potawatomi Band, who were selling their allotment land. The first mention of early agriculture in Rossville comes from Dr. Gabbey’s account, written in 1886: “The Pottawatomi as a tribe never took kindly to agriculture, four or five acres in corn was a large field. Their fields were usually cleared up from the edge of the timber along the streams, as the Indian had little use for the Prairie kind.” One account gives the cost of prairie in the early days from $2.50 to $4.00 per acre. Lumber was worth from $25.00 to $39.00 dollars per thousand feet. Oxen cost $100.00 a yoke, mules from $100.00 to $200.00, horses $75.00 to $150.00, sheep $2.00 a head and chickens 25¢ each. Masons and carpenters received $2.00 to $3.00 per day in wages. Wheat was worth $1.50 per bushel and flour $4.50 per hundred pounds. From newspapers of 1877: “New corn brought in for shipment is getting 18¢ to 20¢ and corn huskers have been in demand at $1.00 per day and board; 2.5¢ per bushel thrown on the ground or 3.5¢ in the crib.” “Mr. Lambert James, a farmer living a few miles west of town has this season manufactured 1,500 gallon of sorghum molasses, which he readily disposed of at 50¢ per gallon.” But challenges persisted for early settlers. Although this was an extremely desirable area for agriculture and the raising of livestock, it was not possible for the early settlers to procure manufactured goods from the East without paying an extremely high freight bill. It was also impossible to ship their grain and produce economically. River freight was tried but the Kaw River often times did not have enough water to make shipping dependable so the answer to this problem was the railroad. Rossville’s answer came May 18, 1866, when the first train passed through the town. Corn was the main crop and early editors gave much space extolling its excellence. Corn cribs were numerous along the south side of the railroad tracks and on the east side of north Main. A water powered grist mill was located on Cross Creek north of town. Mulvane Bros. built a steam powered mill south of the railroad tracks. One of the earliest farmers was Henry Ford, who acquired 80 acres southwest of Rossville in 1864. His wife was the former Mary Nadeau, who came to Rossville from Indiana in 1862. Henry Ford came to Kansas in 1863 and was a stage coach driver for the Overland Stage Company between Topeka and Manhattan. He met his wife at “Buttermilk Station” where she worked for her brother, Big Alex Nadeau. While working to clear their land of timber and build a log house, they lived in one room of a three room house, west of Cross Creek, north of the old Oregon and California trails. The other two rooms were occupied by Dr. and Mrs. R.S. Gabbey and Mr. and Mrs. C.W. Higginbotham. After the Fords moved into their log cabin, Mrs. Ford often rode horseback nine miles with her baby to the mission in St. Marys. The first flowers she had to plant by the cabin were given to her by the nuns at the Mission. Another early farmer, John DeGraff settled south of Rossville in 1865. He and his wife, the former Frances Navarre, lived in a small dugout until their house was built. The following is a list of early farmers: Name | Year to Rossville | Origin Archibald Abbott 1870 Kingston, Canada West Joseph Andrews Westmoreland County, Pa. W. Thomas Andrews 1879 McKay, Ohio Joseph Beseau 1875 Monroe County, Michigan John A. Bond 1872 Tyler County, W. Virginia William Bond 1873 Tyler County, W. Virginia John DeGraff 1865 James DeVinney 1880 Ross County, Ohio Benjamin Franklin 1869 Ross County, Ohio John Fritz 1877 Somerset County, Pa. Martin Hass 1877 Richland County, Ohio Henry Kassabaum 1877 Brookmell, Prussia T.J. Kiernan 1868 Elzey E. Kinsey 1877 Ohio Henry Lipp 1868 South Germany Isaac McCollough 1873 Holmes County, Ohio R. McCollough 1878 Holmes County, Ohio Michael O’halaron 1880 Samuel Oldfield 1878 Derbyshire, England S.J. Oliver 1876 Edward Partelow 1868 Newport, Kentucky Thomas L. Ross 1882 Cincinnati, Ohio M.M. Standley 1874 Carroll County, Indiana Bennett Swearingen 1868 Meigs County, Ohio Isaac B. Trostel 1877 Perry County, Pa. Frank Van Vleck 1878 William Wax 1878 Juniata County, Pa. Daniel Wilt 1876 York County, Pa. Henry York 1869 Zurich, Switzerland Peter H. Zickefoose 1874 Highland County, W. Virginia Samuel Beals 1867 E.S. Doud 1869 W.L. James Wm. Kirkpatrick 1871 Frank L. Sanders John Heslet Noel Graves W.W. Janes J.K. Conley 1870 Yates County, New York Startup, Ab Thomas Attebury 1877 George Hejtmanek 1880 Wisowitz, Moravia, Austria D. Hartzell 1872 Francis E. Williams 1876 New York Captain John Gutshall Col. A.S. Stanley 1880 Meigs Co., Ohio Martin Nason 1872 Jos. Van Vleck 1878 M.L. Cless 1876 B.W. Higginbotham 1861 Thomas Moss 1877 J.M. Parr Clay Co. Indiana J.A. Parr Clay Co. Indiana H.W. Lipp 1878 Illinois Samuel B. Zickefoose 1869 West Virginia Mrs. Jane Jackson 1875 Scotland Photo A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Historical Rossville farming Subject The topic of the resource Hogs in area of what is now the St. Stanislaus Catholic Church on the former Andrews land. Description An account of the resource This picture is from the 1971 Rossville Centennial Booklet, page 54. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rossville Centennial Booklet Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Rossville Community Library Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Unknown Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public domain Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource photograph (copy of photograph) Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RCL0498 http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/2cd2f0425a42590ea7a9ab38753001e4.jpg 5c5ee2e2f9f86dfccc553f3901cb295a http://recollectionsks.org/files/original/9e52ec373f1b2745ae9b83388ceb26e5.jpg ad082d0ec63ae86476f3c621dc4777e8 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Rossville Agricultural History Subject The topic of the resource Farming/Ranching Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rossville Community Library Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Rossville Centennial Booklet, 1971 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Rossville Community Library Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain due to copyright expiration. Original narrative content by RCL is available for use by public. Description An account of the resource Rossville is fortunately situated in many ways—we are near a large city, Topeka, but far enough away to retain our own identity; we can be considered a bedroom community to Topeka since so many residents commute to work to the larger city; we are just north of the Kansas River and enjoy the fertile “Kaw River Valley,” which has benefited agriculture in our community since its very beginnings. From the early days, Rossville Township was blessed with fertile creek and river-bottom land, combined with the upland, which consisted of bluestem grass. The early settlers broke and cleared the bottom lands and part of the upland prairie. The settlers of the 1860-70s began farming and found the soil fertile and productive. However, the task of clearing the timberland and breaking prairie sod must have seemed insurmountable. Corn and wheat, the main crops, and cattle, hogs and other livestock-raising, became the basic agriculture of Rossville township. Many of these early farmers came to Kansas seeking land. They traveled by ox cart and wagon before the railroad went through, following the Oregon and other trails. Settlers bought land from the Santa Fe Railroad or from members of the Citizen Potawatomi Band, who were selling their allotment land. The first mention of early agriculture in Rossville comes from Dr. Gabbey’s account, written in 1886: “The Pottawatomi as a tribe never took kindly to agriculture, four or five acres in corn was a large field. Their fields were usually cleared up from the edge of the timber along the streams, as the Indian had little use for the Prairie kind.” One account gives the cost of prairie in the early days from $2.50 to $4.00 per acre. Lumber was worth from $25.00 to $39.00 dollars per thousand feet. Oxen cost $100.00 a yoke, mules from $100.00 to $200.00, horses $75.00 to $150.00, sheep $2.00 a head and chickens 25¢ each. Masons and carpenters received $2.00 to $3.00 per day in wages. Wheat was worth $1.50 per bushel and flour $4.50 per hundred pounds. From newspapers of 1877: “New corn brought in for shipment is getting 18¢ to 20¢ and corn huskers have been in demand at $1.00 per day and board; 2.5¢ per bushel thrown on the ground or 3.5¢ in the crib.” “Mr. Lambert James, a farmer living a few miles west of town has this season manufactured 1,500 gallon of sorghum molasses, which he readily disposed of at 50¢ per gallon.” But challenges persisted for early settlers. Although this was an extremely desirable area for agriculture and the raising of livestock, it was not possible for the early settlers to procure manufactured goods from the East without paying an extremely high freight bill. It was also impossible to ship their grain and produce economically. River freight was tried but the Kaw River often times did not have enough water to make shipping dependable so the answer to this problem was the railroad. Rossville’s answer came May 18, 1866, when the first train passed through the town. Corn was the main crop and early editors gave much space extolling its excellence. Corn cribs were numerous along the south side of the railroad tracks and on the east side of north Main. A water powered grist mill was located on Cross Creek north of town. Mulvane Bros. built a steam powered mill south of the railroad tracks. One of the earliest farmers was Henry Ford, who acquired 80 acres southwest of Rossville in 1864. His wife was the former Mary Nadeau, who came to Rossville from Indiana in 1862. Henry Ford came to Kansas in 1863 and was a stage coach driver for the Overland Stage Company between Topeka and Manhattan. He met his wife at “Buttermilk Station” where she worked for her brother, Big Alex Nadeau. While working to clear their land of timber and build a log house, they lived in one room of a three room house, west of Cross Creek, north of the old Oregon and California trails. The other two rooms were occupied by Dr. and Mrs. R.S. Gabbey and Mr. and Mrs. C.W. Higginbotham. After the Fords moved into their log cabin, Mrs. Ford often rode horseback nine miles with her baby to the mission in St. Marys. The first flowers she had to plant by the cabin were given to her by the nuns at the Mission. Another early farmer, John DeGraff settled south of Rossville in 1865. He and his wife, the former Frances Navarre, lived in a small dugout until their house was built. The following is a list of early farmers: Name | Year to Rossville | Origin Archibald Abbott 1870 Kingston, Canada West Joseph Andrews Westmoreland County, Pa. W. Thomas Andrews 1879 McKay, Ohio Joseph Beseau 1875 Monroe County, Michigan John A. Bond 1872 Tyler County, W. Virginia William Bond 1873 Tyler County, W. Virginia John DeGraff 1865 James DeVinney 1880 Ross County, Ohio Benjamin Franklin 1869 Ross County, Ohio John Fritz 1877 Somerset County, Pa. Martin Hass 1877 Richland County, Ohio Henry Kassabaum 1877 Brookmell, Prussia T.J. Kiernan 1868 Elzey E. Kinsey 1877 Ohio Henry Lipp 1868 South Germany Isaac McCollough 1873 Holmes County, Ohio R. McCollough 1878 Holmes County, Ohio Michael O’halaron 1880 Samuel Oldfield 1878 Derbyshire, England S.J. Oliver 1876 Edward Partelow 1868 Newport, Kentucky Thomas L. Ross 1882 Cincinnati, Ohio M.M. Standley 1874 Carroll County, Indiana Bennett Swearingen 1868 Meigs County, Ohio Isaac B. Trostel 1877 Perry County, Pa. Frank Van Vleck 1878 William Wax 1878 Juniata County, Pa. Daniel Wilt 1876 York County, Pa. Henry York 1869 Zurich, Switzerland Peter H. Zickefoose 1874 Highland County, W. Virginia Samuel Beals 1867 E.S. Doud 1869 W.L. James Wm. Kirkpatrick 1871 Frank L. Sanders John Heslet Noel Graves W.W. Janes J.K. Conley 1870 Yates County, New York Startup, Ab Thomas Attebury 1877 George Hejtmanek 1880 Wisowitz, Moravia, Austria D. Hartzell 1872 Francis E. Williams 1876 New York Captain John Gutshall Col. A.S. Stanley 1880 Meigs Co., Ohio Martin Nason 1872 Jos. Van Vleck 1878 M.L. Cless 1876 B.W. Higginbotham 1861 Thomas Moss 1877 J.M. Parr Clay Co. Indiana J.A. Parr Clay Co. Indiana H.W. Lipp 1878 Illinois Samuel B. Zickefoose 1869 West Virginia Mrs. Jane Jackson 1875 Scotland Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grain bins, 2012, Rossville, Kansas Subject The topic of the resource The grain bins on the north side of Highway 24 in Rossville, Kansas, before demolition. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rossville Community Library Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Rossville Community Library Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource October 17, 2012 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource RCL grants permission for public use of this item. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RCL0497