The voting is over on The Traveler's web poll on whether or not readers want to see Summit Street returned to a brick street. Athough a modest majority of 56 percent said "no," most of those who said "yes" -- 26 percent of the 44 percent affirmative voters -- said they would be willing to help pay to have the street "paved" with bricks.
Actually, the question wasn't worded fairly; Summit wouldn't have to be "paved with brick." It already is, as we saw during the final stages of the recently completed Streetscape project. The bricks are under the asphalt surface. Critics of brick streets say they are damaged beyond repair from being scraped by street equipment. But they looked pretty good to me. And others agree. As one downtown businessman said, "All you'd need to do is turn the existing bricks over."
Yes, it would take a little manpower -- something that seems lacking these days in Ark City. And it would take some willpower, also lacking.
I liked a few of the comments we got on the poll -- some were tagged onto our website voting site and another sent to the paper as a "letter to the editor." Two points seem to me worth noting here: we would not need to return the whole four miles of Summit to brick, just the several blocks where Streetscape improvements were done; and we could help fund the project through donations from alumni of Ark City High School -- or for that matter through individuals. Bricks funded by these groups or individuals could be stamped with their names -- the Class of 1965, for example.
Our town's existing brick streets are worth preserving, I believe. Other towns and cities have brick streets and there is a movement nationwide to go back to the bricks for beautification and to provide an historic look. One critic of bricks said tourists wouldn't come to a brick town area here, but I disagree. If we could focus more on Summit business and get some more restaurants and shops opened, people would enjoy the pleasant ambiance of these amenities and the brick streets.
My guess is that the "no" votes came from people who didn't grow up in Arkansas City, or who grew up here -- or moved here -- over the past 10 to 20 years. During those years the brick streets have not been kept up. Let's not let what happened to several historic buildings in town over the years happen to our brick streets. They ended up being razed after years of neglect.
I'd like to turn now from bricks to railroads. Arkansas City was a rail center in Kansas during the 20th century. The Burlington Northern Santa Fe still operates out of here. And there is a movement to bring Amtrak up through here from Oklahoma.
We had four or five rail depots here at one time. In addition to the Santa Fe, at least one -- the Midland Valley -- is still standing.
The Traveler in its May 19, 1930 edition carried a story by student journalist Josephine Pollard who reported: "Four thriving railroads prove themselves a major industrial asset to Arkansas City by providing an annual payroll of $1,956,000 earned by Arkansas City citizens." Nearly two million dollars in 1930 was a lot of money.
A March 28, 1950 Traveler story has the headline: "Santa Fe at Peak Level in Big Operations Here." The story notes: "The Santa Fe's strategic part in the city's life dates back to Jan. 2, 1880, when the first train entered Arkansas City from the north, completing a 10-year dream of railroad transportation for the new frontier town."
Dreams, some may scoff, don't bring money. True, but dreams can provide a direction, or goal, to work toward. How can we build on our history as a rail center? How can we use that history to draw other industry, to draw more people to Ark City?
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Re: Early history
The history of Ark City is really fascinating. There's a 3 volume set of booklets called "Between The Rivers", By Bess Oldroyd (I think), that gives a very good history of the town and local area. I believe the public library has a copy of it.
I'm especially fascinated by the history of the canal and how it was used to power a mill, a furniture factory, and electric power plant. I understand that Hap Benshoff (sp?), who went to our church when I was a child, was responsible for operating the old headgates out north of the old city dump. He would have to go out there and regulate the flow of water flowing through the canal. I wish I could have seen the canal when it was "working".
Another part of our history that I like is about the Aunt Sally riverboat that came up the Arkansas river, then the Walnut river and docked around where Walnut Park is now located. From what I've read there was a park where the big dug-out hole south of the east Madison bridge is located. Indians used to camp there and there was quite a nice park there.
I remember the old Ice House on south F street, just south of Madison. I'm not sure, but I think it may have burned down.
I, too, am saddened that so many structures of our past have been destroyed. The Elmo Hotel was one of my favorite buildings in the whole town.
It's not too late for Ark city to make a come-back. Sure, we've been hit hard by plant closures in past years (packing house, refinery, etc), but I believe there are enough inovative people here to overcome the adversity we've faced as a town and to begin a fresh start, building on the solid foundations of our historical past.
__________________
Steve Manley
I'm especially fascinated by the history of the canal and how it was used to power a mill, a furniture factory, and electric power plant. I understand that Hap Benshoff (sp?), who went to our church when I was a child, was responsible for operating the old headgates out north of the old city dump. He would have to go out there and regulate the flow of water flowing through the canal. I wish I could have seen the canal when it was "working".
Another part of our history that I like is about the Aunt Sally riverboat that came up the Arkansas river, then the Walnut river and docked around where Walnut Park is now located. From what I've read there was a park where the big dug-out hole south of the east Madison bridge is located. Indians used to camp there and there was quite a nice park there.
I remember the old Ice House on south F street, just south of Madison. I'm not sure, but I think it may have burned down.
I, too, am saddened that so many structures of our past have been destroyed. The Elmo Hotel was one of my favorite buildings in the whole town.
It's not too late for Ark city to make a come-back. Sure, we've been hit hard by plant closures in past years (packing house, refinery, etc), but I believe there are enough inovative people here to overcome the adversity we've faced as a town and to begin a fresh start, building on the solid foundations of our historical past.
__________________
Steve Manley
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Re: Early history
Last week I read Blaze Marks on the Border again for the first time in many years. This 1970 book contains many interesting stories of Arkansas City's early days. One sad aspect of this and other local histories is the casual disregard with which so many historic treasures have been destroyed. The Fifth Avenue Opera House, the Fifth Avenue Bookstore, the Ranney-Davis Building, the Syndicate Building, the Gladstone Hotel, and many other local assets have been razed with the contempt bred by familiarity. This is particularly depressing when we compare Arkansas City to Ottawa and other Kansas towns that still have so many of their historic buildings.
Friday, June 22, 2007
Re: Early history
Great thread!
Whenever I go to a new town, the first thing I always do is to get one (or more) books on local history. It gives you an entirely different sense of things and puts everything you do or see while there into context.
As a newbie to the Ark City area, I am looking forward to learning more about the history of the town. I will definitely check out the "Between The Rivers" trilogy and "Blaze Marks on the Border"!
Whenever I go to a new town, the first thing I always do is to get one (or more) books on local history. It gives you an entirely different sense of things and puts everything you do or see while there into context.
As a newbie to the Ark City area, I am looking forward to learning more about the history of the town. I will definitely check out the "Between The Rivers" trilogy and "Blaze Marks on the Border"!
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Early history
Arkansas City has a fascinating history. Founded in 1870, the town in some ways was typical of many frontier, "western" towns. In other ways, it was -- and remains, I think -- unique. The Cherokee Strip Land Rush of 1893 was the biggest historical event to happen near Ark City and the town's population swelled to 50,000 to 100,000 in the days surrounding the run -- I've seen various estimates, but more than 100,000 participated in the run from various towns, Ark City being the largest.
What I want to share in this first posting is description of the town from a "Handbook of Arkansas City," published in 1887 by a Chicago publishing house. I don't know the author's name, but he identifies himself as a periodic visitor, not a resident.
The handbook calls Ark City "the canal city of mills and factories, solid and fast growing trade -- the coming railway and manufacturing center of Southern Kansas."
According to the handbook: In the summer of 1869, several pioneers settled near the present site of Ark City. It is said these settlers and traders were obliged to pay $5 per capita tribute to Chetopa, the head chief of the Osages. (One name among the pioneers I recognize is (H.C. and Pat) Endicott. I grew up in the 1200-1300 block of North A Street and we had Endicotts as neighbors -- don't know if they were descendants of the pioneers. There are Endicotts today listed in the Ark City telephone book.)
Anyway, the author is optimistic in his description of Ark City and Cowley County in general. He praises the people: "A county whose 36,000 people hail from every civilized land and represent the best blood, heart, brain, skill, experience, working power and ambition of the older states ..."
He goes on: "Arkansas City is the chief commerical town of the county and with a single exception, the most promising city in the great State of Kansas."
"The pioneer settlement of the lands upon which Arkansas City now stands ... was made by John Brown, John Strain. T.A. Wilkinson and G.H. Norton, on the first of January, 1870. A little later, came a party of well-known Emporia gentlemen and formally laid out Walnut City. the name of the new town was subsequently changed to Delphi, and a few months later, to Cresswell, in honor of the late Postmaster General. Still later, the founders adopted the name of Arkansas City ..."
Speaking of the culture of people in 1880s Ark City, the author states: "They have too, much more than the average mental and social culture of western towns, and make the finest practical display of UNITY AND PUBLIC ENTERPRISE (these words are capitalized in the handbook) that I have found anywhere in the west."
He goes on: "The internal spirit of clique and division and discord that has blighted the fair prospects of many a western town, has never entered Arkansas City. The people are a unit on anything and everything that promises the material advancement of their favorite town. Every good enterprise meets a ready and hearty response from the stalwart workers of this brave, bustling, buoyant, busy and booming young city."
Let's look at those words in terms of Ark City today. Readers, you can make your own comparisons in regards to the unity level of the current Ark City, and where we fall on the optimism-pessimism scale.
Of course, we live in a changed world and face economic obstacles that were not there in the 1880s. The question is: Where do we go from here?
What I want to share in this first posting is description of the town from a "Handbook of Arkansas City," published in 1887 by a Chicago publishing house. I don't know the author's name, but he identifies himself as a periodic visitor, not a resident.
The handbook calls Ark City "the canal city of mills and factories, solid and fast growing trade -- the coming railway and manufacturing center of Southern Kansas."
According to the handbook: In the summer of 1869, several pioneers settled near the present site of Ark City. It is said these settlers and traders were obliged to pay $5 per capita tribute to Chetopa, the head chief of the Osages. (One name among the pioneers I recognize is (H.C. and Pat) Endicott. I grew up in the 1200-1300 block of North A Street and we had Endicotts as neighbors -- don't know if they were descendants of the pioneers. There are Endicotts today listed in the Ark City telephone book.)
Anyway, the author is optimistic in his description of Ark City and Cowley County in general. He praises the people: "A county whose 36,000 people hail from every civilized land and represent the best blood, heart, brain, skill, experience, working power and ambition of the older states ..."
He goes on: "Arkansas City is the chief commerical town of the county and with a single exception, the most promising city in the great State of Kansas."
"The pioneer settlement of the lands upon which Arkansas City now stands ... was made by John Brown, John Strain. T.A. Wilkinson and G.H. Norton, on the first of January, 1870. A little later, came a party of well-known Emporia gentlemen and formally laid out Walnut City. the name of the new town was subsequently changed to Delphi, and a few months later, to Cresswell, in honor of the late Postmaster General. Still later, the founders adopted the name of Arkansas City ..."
Speaking of the culture of people in 1880s Ark City, the author states: "They have too, much more than the average mental and social culture of western towns, and make the finest practical display of UNITY AND PUBLIC ENTERPRISE (these words are capitalized in the handbook) that I have found anywhere in the west."
He goes on: "The internal spirit of clique and division and discord that has blighted the fair prospects of many a western town, has never entered Arkansas City. The people are a unit on anything and everything that promises the material advancement of their favorite town. Every good enterprise meets a ready and hearty response from the stalwart workers of this brave, bustling, buoyant, busy and booming young city."
Let's look at those words in terms of Ark City today. Readers, you can make your own comparisons in regards to the unity level of the current Ark City, and where we fall on the optimism-pessimism scale.
Of course, we live in a changed world and face economic obstacles that were not there in the 1880s. The question is: Where do we go from here?
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