15 Kansas Ghost Towns ||| Southern Sedgwick County, Kansas ||| Part 1

[@txhuntsman]

As a native Kansan I can say it is not nearly as big, diverse, or pretty as my adopted home state of Texas but Kansas has a very unique beauty that if you slow down and really take the time to find you will see it. Kansas has a wonderful history, some of the nicest folks you will ever meet, and is underappreciated.

[@brendacejda7069]

Proof that there is much to see right out your own backdoor. It would be interesting Coach, to do a kind of "Man on the Street" video, to see how many people in Wichita, know where Viola, Venice, Iowaville, Afton, etc., are. I'm guess most people dont know what's in their backyard. Nice highlight of Sedgwick County. Thanks Coach!

[@RWebster325]

Wouldn't bet on that. But then again, you never know. But then again, I need to see what he has done with Kingman and Reno County towns. Born at McConnell, raised around Kingman and Reno Counties before moving to Texas. Now living in Wichita.

[@Erin-f2q]

Love those murals. Small town plains are so quiet and yet quaint. I love these kind of videos ❤❤ Thanks again John

[@BobVan]

I used to live in Newton KS (just 20 mins north of Wichita) in the 80’s. Graduated HS there. We used to run all around Harvey/Sedgwick County’s. There were all kinds of cool places to explore. I remember in the 80’s we used to party at an abandoned location called “Thearosas bridge” and there were some really cool old and forgotten sunken cemetery’s all around out in the country. Btw, in the 70’s-80’s was when BTK was doing his thing in the rural areas around Wichita. Thanks for sharing!

[@SusanHL]

Yes! Agree it would be something else to be able to see a time-lapse video for these places. I wonder how often the current inhabitants are descendants of the folks who originally started the town. Thanks for the fun drive in the country!

[@lostribe5130]

Chisholm Trail is always going to be interesting history.

[@lostribe5130]

My dad lived in Northeast Oklahoma different points in his life. He liked to go honky Tonkin, and I do remember him mentioning Viola.

[@joemorin6247]

Enjoyed the video, you need to try Boudreaux Burger near Peck. I used to live near Wichita and would venture South to have a burger in Peck several times a year.

[@williammatzek4660]

Lake Afton also has an Observatory. Waco street runs on the Chisum trail.

[@johnbatliner827]

St John’s cemetery is where my oldest brother Danny is buried He was a Lt in the Sedgwick county fire department Passed away from cancer 12 years ago RIP Brother

[@bertholini2810]

Agreed, that's an 8 out of 10 on the Merry-go-Round. It was very unique looking though. Very nice video. Fence repair, pull a weed-or-two (several hundred actually) just fall stuff today. Be good, be safe !! Today is a high of 87 and a low of 66 very different than 28 and 49 the other day. I think Missouri is nutz weather wise.

[@michaelgraves5188]

Thanks Coach! Viola looks like a great town. ❤️🙏😎👍

[@stevemccoy8138]

Marvelous Country, I still have family in Clearwater, used to be a good deal of family there. Mostly farmers and Oil related. Been through the Air Capitol many times headed Out West with cattle years ago. Thanks for Sharing Kansas with us. 😊

[@DavidsExecutiveTouch17]

Nice video this morning John. Knew of many of these places, as I worked with folks while I lived in Wichita which were from some of these outlying areas. Lake Afton meanwhile, the last time we were there anyway, while nice & scenic, one could hardly swim there without your lips burning from the oil & gas from boats being in the water. Lastly........ 54/400, aka Kellogg, aka The Eternal Construction Zone roadway which boasts a one time, relay style speedtrap for WPD on the East side by where Burlington clothing & Joe Self BMW sat...... We lived there from 96-07, it being my wife's hometown, hard to believe we'll have been gone for 18 years this May. Stay Safe and Be Blessed my Friend & we'll see you on the next one.....

[@crispycookie9739]

I just moved to Kansas this year and have really enjoyed your work. Thank you for all you do!

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@arlynsmith9196]

Happy you found Gladys! It is not well known even among peole who grew up here. No mention of Zyba which was about a mile southwest of Peck, but there is nothing there, either. The only remains of Zyba is the road namde Zyba Rd.

[@kd5inm]

At Bayneville if you look at the railroad tracks they look shiney as you cross over them so usually thats an indication of trains coming through.

[@jefftrego8491]

Good catch. I saw the same thing. 😊

[@plcwboy]

@@jefftrego8491 yep, takes at least a couple hundred cars a day to keep them shiny.

[@robchit1653]

Nice video once again! The PO in Peck was a former bank according to an old town plat. FYI the former Peck depot was moved to McFarland KS in WB Co. where it is now City Hall. I was thrilled you caught the depot from Anness over at Cow Town! The plat for Anness shows 12 blocks, which obviously do not exist today. The Santa Fe Railway line that ran next to K-42 was built as the KC, Mexico & Orient Railway (The Orient). Looking forward to Part 2

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Thanks for the info! Yeah it was fun to realize about the Anness depot!

[@larryclark4791]

The train does still go down the tracks in Bainville, not real often though, those tracks are my west property boundary south of Clearwater.

[@davewinter2688]

Another educational and entertaining video. Especially for those of us who like to visit forgotten, off the main track places. You could use Hank Snow’s recording of “I’ve Been Every Where” as your theme song but I suppose that would be a copyright violation. Or maybe his estate would let you use it as a way to keep his memory alive. I believe the biggest reason that you see new houses in the “middle of nowhere” is because of the consolidation of small farms into larger ones. In years past there was usually a farmstead on about 160 or even 80 acres in this part of the country. As farms consolidated those homesteads were often abandoned when the new land owners centralized their operations to where they kept most of their farm equipment on their homesteads. Sometimes the old homes would be rented out. Sometimes the old houses and barns etc would be torn down to avoid property taxes. In recent years a trend has developed where the land owner sells off the few (usually 3-5) acres to raise capital. The new owner of those small acreages then build new homes on them to get out into the country and away from the suburban or urban areas. Most counties in Kansas have zoning laws that require a minimum of three to five acres with a minimum road frontage for such transfer of land and housing construction. The last time I knew, there was a county ordinance in Saline County Kansas, that said any real estate sale like that required a statement that the purchaser acknowledged that the area was a farming area and that there would or could be sights, sounds or smells associated with agricultural activities that they were not used to. This was to discourage city folks from moving out to the country and then filing nuisance law suits against farmers because field operations like disking or harvesting crops caused dust to blow, burning pastures or stubble cause smoke or that a farmer feeding his cattle caused a smell those city folks didn’t like. Some of those city folks have no understanding of private property rights.

[@JenniferAlexander-yd6kj]

Fascinating. I will be looking forward to seeing about the rest of the county. So much history in Kansas. It sure is fun to watch all the videos and hear the history. Keep them coming.

[@Hobotraveler82]

Learned something new of Sedgwick County. Ghost towns do exist there. I'm more familiar with Wichita. My aunt was born in Wichita in the mid 60's while my grandparents (mom's parents) were stationed at the Salvation Army Wichita Citadel. Also I looked up Viola Ks. The high school was started in 1907. Building was built in 1917. Closed in 1965 due to school consolidation. I well say it was a beautiful trip. Really enjoyed the different towns. Being a fan of the Rock Island, it great to know more towns were served by them in the area. Awesome video. 😊

[@beerdrinker6452]

Nice video. The "bus stop" you referred to in the beginning has to be a place built by loving parents for their kids to wait inside for the school bus to arrive on bad weather days.

[@deborahross9974]

That little town of a few houses, I bet the people who live there do so for the peace and quiet.. My brother and I would love to live where there's peace and quiet because our neighbors are noisy and are always out to make my brother's Pointer bark, so we can't enjoy a peaceful time on our deck. Years ago we lived out in the country near Gardner Ks. We had a pond and the neighbors where far enough away it didn't bother. Now we wish we could find a place like that again.. Such interesting towns around Wichita, even to me Wichita looks interesting. Thank you for the trip. Happy trails to you and God bless.

[@juliogonzales5441]

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME..COACH 😊

[@roberteshaw9520]

Hey Coach. Southern Sedgwick County has got some interesting history to appreciate. It"s obviously got some good farmland. I couldn't help but notice that old Ford flat bed on that driveway. As regards the playground spin ride, The spin rate seems good, the drive mechanism needs lube and there is a splinter concern. A cosmetic renovation is just a thought, not that there,s anything wrong with it. We crunched the numbers and came up with a 7.2. Travel on.

[@curlyfries5095]

Enjoyed the video. Being from the northern part of the state I haven’t really been to Wichita for much more than a a handful of sporting events to follow our high school sports teams, but now you’ve inspired me to explore the city and surrounding area in the near future. Safe travels Coach!

[@Quitealways]

Great video. Drone shots excellent. Showing farm landscaping. Pretty area of Kansas. Interesting info on Indian settlement. Interesting video.

[@Cheetoluv]

My great grandparents on south and West Kingman Ks built a wood floor general store. My great grandfather made the tiles of plaster design ceiling tiles, beautiful designed carvings in them. The last time we went and seen the store was I was in middle school. A young couple had just bought it and was remodeling the old storage cabinets, had the old fashioned cash register. Loved seeing it and to know my great grandparents built it. We heard about five years after they had been working on it , it got hit by lightning and burned down.😢

[@robertbenson9797]

Another interesting episode. Coach, how about a video on the history of the aircraft industry in Wichita? One of the birthplaces of aviation in the US. WWII sites would be interesting, too.

[@kimplumer2122]

Lifelong Kansas girl I still thank you for taking me through all these towns I have missed. And thank you for pronouncing the Arkansas River correctly. Have you been in Murdock and Kingman areas? Lots of beauty and history there.

[@shelliecollier7017]

I'd heard of Peck but never knew where it was. I have some friends who live just outside of Viola, so I knew about it. As always a very interesting and informative video. Thanks for taking us along.

[@OhPhuckYou]

Go due south on Meridian. Once it turns into a dirt road you're in Peck. Cute little area to drive around.

[@lostribe5130]

Love Old Town Keeper of the Plains.

[@randomscribblings7192]

Thanks for this! As a fellow Wichitan i will have to check these out.

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Enjoy!

[@Kresakrewadventuers]

I've got a lot more decorations up in the Peck PO since you took the video. I also got our display case up in the lobby that you can see from the outside front window.

[@catherinefrancis5827]

Great video 🙏🦋🥰🇺🇸

[@georgeparsons7338]

Two books to read "Ghost towns of KS" and "Ballots and Bullets" are worth a read. I may have the names mixed up but they are great reads. Three interesting towns are Elgin in Chatauqua county, another just west of Coolidge KS and Ravanna in Finney county.

[@jefftrego8491]

The K and O does still operate Baynville looks like

[@CaleReisch]

A little more info on Oatville from stories my grandma told. Her grandfather was a teacher at the school. The school was at the NE corner of West Street and MacArthur. They had a small general store too. They also had the switchboard operator for the area when the telephone came. The town faded away as Wichita grew after WWII. This is also where the elementary school on Hoover Rd. got its name.

[@janfeuerborn2707]

Very well done!!!

[@alexbade2056]

Cool video! I grew up in Cheney, KS with it's own interesting history. You might check out town of Midway or it's neighbor; Waterloo. Midway is at the intersection of K-14 and NE 10th (Old 54 highway). Waterloo, just north of Midway, is home to the oldest Arboretum west of the Mississipi river.

[@DarkC12ow]

Fun fact about Viola a few miles to the west in Kingman county, on K42. There's an old nuke silo that was decommissioned and destroyed.

[@melaniebiltz7187]

Check out Drury, KS. In Sumner Co, I believe. Down by Caldwell.

[@hungarysammy]

Great video! Love Wichita, and surrounding area.....my birthplace!❤

[@kadenpauly5210]

15:33 is a short video of a tractor. I worked for him over the summer and spent many hours in that tractor and on that land. Very small world!

[@jljordan1]

2:12 that is a bus shelter for the neighborhood kiddos!! This looks like 63rd street?

[@plcwboy]

yep, I picked up my laptop to make that reply. It's a shelter for somebody's kids to stay out of the rain/snow/wind while waiting for the school bus

[@Angela-q9n3e]

My dad lived in the house right next to the Viola post office. There was only his driveway between his house and the post office.

[@stevesims-d6c]

That type of DGR had it's own set of rules. No standing on the handrail. No standing inside the handrails or hanging from the steel arms, and definitely no climbing to the top! LOL

[@keithkraushaar8127]

I lived at McConnell AFB!

[@tinman7130]

Some very interesting "wide spots". Many of those rail road stops were just there to allow the steam engines to take on water. The prairies of the mid west were covered with them. Up near Julesburg Colorado there was a military camp named Ft. Sedgwick. It was active post civil war until the 1870's. Sedgwick was killed by Confederate artillery fire at Spotsylvania Courthouse shortly after commenting that his position was out of range of the Confederate gunners. His death earned Sedgwick recognition because he was the highest ranking Union officer to be killed in the war.

[@Darth_Feneris]

So I live right down Waco here in Sedgwick. What most don't realize is that there are two towns next to each other here you have Waco and Wego Waco. Wego Waco was the native American village where is Waco was where the white people settled and had the post office it also happened to have had a train station and a grain elevator at one point. Its sprouted up next to the date of settlement of Wego.

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Ahh gotcha. Thanks for the info!

[@darrell3118]

That little bus is a kids place to catch the school bus to get out of the weather, the guy built it for his kids and its on 63rd street south close to Rose Hill Ks, I have traveled it for 32 years now AND HAVE Never heard of Iowaville ......LOL

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Haha welcome to Iowaville 😂

[@Locojoe]

Enjoyed the video. My Mother shared it with me because she thought my wife and I were the cyclists west of peck which very well could have been but wasn’t. Not sure but maybe Waco was originally close to the Midland railroad between Hydraulic and Hillside then later moved to the west to Broadway (us 81) where there are still a few old business buildings and a Waco city limit sign on 81. The Cowskin Creek runs right behind. Was Gladys somewhere along 55th south? I’ve always referred to the 55th and Broadway area as Midway but it was probably Midland due to the railroad cutting through there.

[@swb1m1]

Oatville is completely inside Wichita city limits now. The Buddhist temple has only been around since the mid 2000's. Although I was young I remember it going up. There is a Haysville Elementary school named Oatville Elementary and a Oatville community church both on Hoover. Oatville Elementary school was originally a one room school house and the modern school managed to recover the original bell. On the south side of MacArthur there is a fenced in area and if you look closely there is an old (what I believe) original one room house that is visible on street view (might be 4555 w MacAuthur rd). If you look on google maps it still shows the footprints of a two story house that used to sit there as well. That house was torn down less than 10 years ago because it was collapsing in on itself but also appeared to be a very old farm house. I was looked into the Greenwood Cemetery just a little further south and I guess it is part of the Waco township (first burial 1877).

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Thanks for the info!!

[@taylorkesl2694]

Great video. I too have wondered in the old townsites if the folks that live there know they live in an old town or not. One thing about Waco that has confused me. I have counted it but the place I counted on the map was Wego-Waco just a little bit west of the Waco you went to. Always been puzzled by the Wego-Waco name.

[@rossbryan6102]

MY GUESS WHY SOME OF THESE TOWNS WENT DOWNHILL IS DUE TO THE WW2 AIRCRAFT BUILDING BOOM. PEOPLE WITH MINIMAL INCOME AND LIVING IN RENTAL HOMES WOULD HAVE FLOCKED TO WICHITA FOR THE BETTER, IF TEMPORARY OPPORTUNITIES! A NICE LOOK AROUND SEDGWICK COUNTY!! WITH TIRE AND GASOLINE RATIONING OF WW2 , 23:06 AUTOMOBILE COMMUTING WOULD HAVE BEEN DIFFICULT!

[@shelliecollier7017]

My great Aunt lived in Newton and took the train to work at Boeing back during the war. After the war she worked in the Santa Fe laundry up in Newton.

[@LadenHenke]

That's little buss thing is off 63rd and yes the property owners put that there I used to live over there now I'm living off 47th

[@chrismoody1342]

I’ve been thru most these ghost towns. People still need HVAC. Anness never heard of it before. Thee is a ghost town NE of Winfield. East of Hwy 77, due west of Timber Creek Lake. Located at 88th east/ west street and 125th north/south street. I believe the town was named Floral. It was know for a limestone quarry. In the area there are several limestone arch bridges. My wife great great grandfather is buried out there in Floral cemetery.

[@Shangrily]

South of oatville there is the green wood cemetery established in 1877. It's on 47th west of Hoover road Further south is the concrete arrow at 87th and ridge road next to the bridge if you like aviation

[@catherinethebingolover1113]

i spent many summers going between amarillo texas and wichita kansas my grandma lived there until her death and she is buried in wichita and i have spent many summer day at lake afton

[@poncho6784]

My great great grandfather was the first homesteader to to travel by wagon and settle in what would become Sumner county.

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Oh wow! 😮

[@SuperMickey57]

So wild that I've known so many people from Kansas, I have relatives in, and from Kansas, I've been there to race motocross and drag bikes. You're the first person I've heard pronounce Arkansas as (ar-Kansas) and not (Ar-can-saw).

[@situveux1]

You've probably already done North Sedgwick Co, would have been neat to see/meet you, we're live as far north and east as you can and still be in Sedgwick Co.

[@justnerdystuff]

Did someone knit you that really cool beanie in your back seat?

[@JesseBrown-nl1kz]

You missed Afton cemetery @ 31st and 231st . Might be worth a drive by for future videos. Also W 47th street S and viola rd there’s what looks like an old church. Not sure if it’s connected to afton or not.

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Thanks for the tips!

[@lincytron8190]

You should do Crawford county Kansas someday

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Would love to!

[@michaelmyers3892]

I have yet to see downtown Wichita only been to the outskirts and only been to Derby but unfortunately the worst section of it and Roseville but always wanted to see the surrounding areas the salt mine and explore so many places around there and living in emporia I'm bored with the town LOL too much to see in this Rich history filled State I need to start seeing and exploring and camping out

[@billbrown6889]

get the book by fitzgerald "Ghost Towns of Kansas", he gives as much history for the town as he can find in the books

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

I’ve got 4 of those books 😊

[@Roadtripmik]

In Pennsylvania you can be in a rural crossroads but theres 4 1700 buildings at each corner, contrast to kansas… wichita seems so quiet omg

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

For a city as big as it is, Wichita feels smaller

[@bumper1730]

Interestingly, on US81, as you come in to Waco, there are City Limit signs. Waco is not a city. It may have been originally named Cowskin because of a creek that runs in the direction of Waco.

[@julieschossow9315]

Is Russell Stover candy still in Wichita? My cousin lived in a neighborhood not too far from there. He has since passed. I have been to Keeper of the Plains. Cool place!

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

I don’t think it’s here anymore

[@kd5inm]

WACO- We Ain't Comin' Out

[@louispaparella5766]

What A Cook Out!

[@jenniekelly571]

So, if you have to work and don't want to farm, you've most likely had to move to the East or West coast, leaving the middle of our country absolutely empty compared to what they used to be. I grew up in North Central Oklahoma in a town called Blackwell. The main street in this town had a VFW, photography studio, western auto, 2 tire and repair shops, a department store, Anthony's, 2 drug stores, 2 shoes stores, clothing for children store, clothing for teen girls, clothing store for men, clothing store for women, 2 banks, and a restaurant. Now, there is 1 drug store and 4 "antique" stores. It's so sad to know a place that you might have to drive around to find an open parking place, to looking to see if there is one car parked in the area. People do not know what is happening to the "breadbasket' of America. Acreage is being purchased by billionaires who are American and other 1%ers from other countries. Soon our supermarkets will be filled with what the oligarchs want us to eat, not filled with items we like.............

[@lostribe5130]

Peck looks cool.

[@donread2121]

How about Zyba. Small town south of Peck. It's in Sumner county though

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Well … this was a video about Sedgwick County 😊

[@metimoteo]

It was nice to see the cyclists riding. Too bad they didn't have a safe shoulder to ride upon!

[@plcwboy]

when they have a shoulder they still make a point to ride down the middle of the lane and block the whole road.

[@Mama_Meows]

2:36 not the Shark building!!!! Swimmmm! Haha ugh, i hate it here.

[@philwhite5815]

So if you've only lived in Wichita for 20 years, where are you from originally

[@hemogoblin164]

Fun fact. Waco was where the KC mob hung out.

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

😮

[@sandiewilliams238]

Coach is already planning his next burger purchase like his cholesterol wasn't already high enough. I wish I was there when he returns for that burger...I'd tell him "Don't even unwrap that burger and give me those fries! You're big enough...I aint sayin you're fat but you darn sure aint skinny!" 😉

[@gazooberful]

[@FACEBOOKS-WBDS]

I can not believe you forgot to mention the river troll!!!

[@TravelwithaWiseguy]

Well … it wasn’t really part of the original town at the confluence of the river 😂