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.