Ghost Towns of Kansas: A Traveler's Guide
Language: English
Published by Univ Pr of Kansas, 1988
- First Edition
- Softcover
- New
Seller: PurpleBasil, Omaha, NE, U.S.A.PurpleBasil
AbeBooks seller since May 19, 2026
Condition: New
£ 11.40
Quantity: 1 available
Add to basketItem description from seller
New book with no faults. See the actual photos.
Seller Inventory # 5108 EA
- Title
- Ghost Towns of Kansas: A Traveler's Guide
- Author
- Fitzgerald, Daniel C.
- Publisher
- Univ Pr of Kansas
- Publication year
- 1988
- Condition
- New
- Binding
- Soft cover
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 0700603689
- ISBN 13
- 9780700603688
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item weight
- 1.6 pounds
- Dimensions
- 12 inches width by 9.02 inches height by 2 inches depth
As soon as the Kansas Territory was opened for settlement in 1854, towns sprang up like mushrooms--first along the Missouri border, then steadily westward along trail routes, rivers, and railroad lines. Many of them barely got beyond the drawing board and hundreds of them flowered briefly and died, victims of the "boom or bust" economy of the frontier and the vagaries of weather, finance, mining, agriculture, railroad construction, and politics.
Ghost Towns of Kansas is a practical guide to these forsaken settlements and a chronicle of their role in the history of Kansas. It focuses on 100 towns that have either disappeared without a trace or are only "a shadowy remnant of what they once were," telling the story of each town's settlement, politics, colorful figures and legends, and eventual abandonment or decline.
The culmination of more than ten years of research, this new book is a distillation of the author's immensely popular three-volume work on the state's ghost towns, now out of print. Condensed and redesigned as a traveler's guide, it is organized by region and features ten maps and detailed instructions for finding each site. Twenty of the towns included are discussed for the first time in this volume. The book also contains more than 100 black-and-white photographs of town scenes.
With this new guide in hand, travelers and armchair adventurers alike can journey back to the Kansas frontier--to places like Octagon City, where settlers signed a pledge not to consume liquor, tobacco, or "the flesh of animals" in order to purchase land at $1.25 per acre from the Vegetarian Settlement Company. Or to Sheridan, a tough, end-of-the-line railroad town where, according to the Kansas Commonwealth, "the scum of creation have congregated and assumed control of municipal and social affairs." At least thirty men were hanged and a hundred killed either in gunfights or by Indians during Sheridan's tumultuous two-year life span. Today the only remainder of Octagon City is a stream named Vegetarian Creek, and "wild and woolly" Sheridan is again a pasture.
PRAISE
"A fascinating trip back in time to some Kansas communities most of us never heard of. Concise and easy to read, this book is as entertaining as it is educational."--Ron Welch, editor, Kansas Motorist
"It's a day-trippers delight."--Wichita Eagle
"While all the towns contained here are in Kansas, the historical significance of the stories as case studies far transcend that state."--Kansas History
"Fitzgerald breathes life into these forgotten settlements, finding in each community a unique personality."--Annals of Iowa
"This is a must resource for either the traveler or the armchair adventurer interested in Kansas and its widely diversified past."--Great Plains Newsletter
"Synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
From the Back Cover
"About the title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping rates within U.S.A.
| Item | 5 to 14 business days | 3 to 6 business days |
|---|---|---|
| First item | £ 4.17 | £ 14.76 |
Payment methods
- Cash
- Check
- Money Order
- Paypal
Store description
Reseller of USA Print Books. Specializing in Religion, Philosophy, Gardening, and Genealogy.
Specialty
Religion, Genealogy, Gardening, Philosophy.Seller's business information
PurpleBasil
NE, U.S.A.
Terms of sale
We guarantee the condition of every book as it's described on the Abebooks web sites. If you're dissatisfied with your purchase (Incorrect Book/Not as Described/Damaged) or if the order hasn't arrived, you're eligible for a refund within 30 days of the estimated delivery date. If you've changed your mind about a book that you've ordered, please use the Ask bookseller a question link to contact us and we'll respond within 2 business days.
Right of withdrawal
If you are a consumer you can withdraw from the contract in accordance with the following. Consumer means any natural person who is acting for purposes which are outside his trade, business, craft or profession.
Information regarding the right of withdrawal
Statutory right to withdraw
You have the right to withdraw from this contract within 14 days without giving any reason.
The withdrawal period will expire after 14 days from the day on which you acquire, or a third party other than the carrier and indicated by you acquires, physical possession of the last good or the last lot or piece.
To exercise the right of withdrawal, electronically fill in and submit a clear statement on our website, under "My Purchases" in "My Account". We will communicate to you an acknowledgement of receipt of such a withdrawal on a durable medium (e.g. by e-mail) without delay.
To meet the withdrawal deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your communication concerning your exercise of the right of withdrawal before the withdrawal period has expired.
Effects of withdrawal
If you withdraw from this contract, we will reimburse to you all payments received from you, including the costs of delivery (except for the supplementary costs arising if you chose a type of delivery other than the least expensive type of standard delivery offered by us).
We may make a deduction from the reimbursement for loss in value of any goods supplied, if the loss is the result of unnecessary handling by you.
We will make the reimbursement without undue delay, and not later than 14 days after the day on which we are informed about your decision to withdraw from this contract.
We will make the reimbursement using the same means of payment as you used for the initial transaction, unless you have expressly agreed otherwise; in any event, you will not incur any fees as a result of such reimbursement.
We may withhold reimbursement until we have received the goods back, or you have supplied evidence of having sent back the goods, whichever is the earliest.
You shall send back the goods or hand them over to PurpleBasil, Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.A., +1 402-657-4202 68104, without undue delay and in any event not later than 14 days from the day on which you communicate your withdrawal from this contract to us. The deadline is met if you send back the goods before the period of 14 days has expired. You will have to bear the direct cost of returning the goods. You are only liable for any diminished value of the goods resulting from the handling other than what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods.
Exceptions to the right of withdrawal
The right of withdrawal does not apply to:
- The delivery of newspapers, journals or magazines with the exception of subscription contracts; and
- The supply of digital content which is not supplied on a tangible medium (e.g. on a CD or DVD) if you accepted when you placed your order that we could start to deliver it, and that you could not withdraw once delivery had started.