NW Kansas - Abandoned Places & Small Town Main Streets

Added: 2026-05-23

[00:00:00]In this video, I'm going to be checking out some small towns with fading main streets and some ghost towns along the old Pacific Union rail line that ran from Salina to KBY, Kansas.

[00:00:12]I didn't visit all the towns, but I found a rare French settlement and an impressive artsy town along the way.

[00:00:23]Here is a map of the area I will be exploring.

[00:00:29]So, let's begin.

[00:00:32]Our first stop is the County Line School.

[00:00:37]It's located about a half mile north of Highway 18 on Lynchel Road near Tescot.

[00:00:47]It straddles the border of two different counties.

[00:00:50]This school was built in 1920.

[00:00:54]It's been abandoned since the 1960s.

[00:00:58]I didn't notice that door move until I came home inside.

[00:01:05]It served as a typical rural country school with one teacher and a handful of students from local farming communities.

[00:01:14]The basement also acted as a tornado shelter.

[00:01:21]Our next stop is Silven Grove.

[00:01:26]It's located in Lincoln County along Highway 181.

[00:01:36]It has a very small town feel with a historic downtown district featuring limestone buildings.

[00:01:46]A mill was built in the area in 1875.

[00:01:50]The town officially was started in 1877.

[00:01:56]It was when the railroad came through the area that brought real growth.

[00:02:12]The town celebrates its Czech heritage with an annual Czech festival featuring traditional food, music, and dancing.

[00:02:23]This building has become the museum.

[00:02:34]Someone stole the telephone out of the telephone booth.

[00:02:52]Our next stop is Lucas, Kansas. This is one town I wish I'd done some more research on. I took this trip after my car broke down in Dallas, and I didn't plan on being here.

[00:03:03]I missed the main attraction, which is called the Garden of Eden.

[00:03:07]The town was settled in 1877.

[00:03:11]A gentleman named Samuel Perry Dinsmore turned his town into an art destination.

[00:03:17]In 1996, the Kansas governor officially named the town the grassroots art capital of Kansas.

[00:03:32]Main Street is full of these amazing art exhibits.

[00:03:51]The town has the world's largest collection of the world's smallest versions of the world's largest things.

[00:04:02]Lucas is a fantastic example of how one eccentric guy's vision inspired a whole community to embrace creativity.

[00:04:13]Here are some photos of the Garden of Eden.

[00:04:26]I'm so thrilled I happened to come across this town. It's got to be one of the quirkiest places I've ever seen.

[00:04:58]Now we're going to visit the ghost town of Waldo, Kansas.

[00:05:03]It's only about 10 to 12 miles north of Lucas.

[00:05:11]The town was established in 1888.

[00:05:15]They bought the land directly from the Union Pacific Railroad.

[00:05:22]There's still a handful of people who live here, but most of the buildings at this main intersection on the highway are abandoned. This was a gas station.

[00:05:36]While I was here, I did not find Waldo.

[00:05:46]The town has two properties on a national register of historic places.

[00:05:52]The 1935 water tower and the old bank of Waldo.

[00:06:02]Waldo perfectly captures the faded out resilient side of Kansas railroad towns.

[00:06:17]This church in town does still seem to hold services.

[00:06:35]Now we're going to head to NMA, Kansas.

[00:06:38]This town was established in 1888.

[00:06:45]It was incorporated as a city by 1905.

[00:06:50]At its peak population, 407 people lived here.

[00:06:56]Most of Main Street is abandoned.

[00:06:59]In a few years ago, most of the street was underwater in a great flood.

[00:07:10]The area saw initial settlement in the late 1870s.

[00:07:40]Right along Main Street, there's a couple of gems, including this building here on the left. It doesn't seem to be in use for anything anymore, but it sure is colorful.

[00:08:01]The cedar is now used as a community center.

[00:08:09]The town grew up around the railroad tracks. And like almost all the towns in this video, they still survived even after the railroad stopped servicing these towns. Many of the families in the area were German immigrants.

[00:08:45]Now we're going to head to another semi- ghost town, Zurich, Kansas.

[00:08:53]It's a super small farming community with wide open fields, a few homes, historic remnants, and the authentic off thebeaten path Kansas feel.

[00:09:05]It was established in the late 1870s.

[00:09:14]Right at the intersection of Main Street and the highway, almost all the commercial buildings are abandoned, and some of them are in very bad shape.

[00:09:27]The population of this town peaked at around 600 people in the early 1880s.

[00:09:35]It had stores, churches, and a school.

[00:09:40]The post office closed in 1996.

[00:09:46]The name comes directly from Zurich, Switzerland.

[00:10:07]This is one town in Kansas that also had an early mix of French Canadian homesteaders.

[00:10:34]And like all the towns in this video, the railroad left about 30 years ago.

[00:10:44]Our next stop is Demar, Kansas. What a surprise finding this place.

[00:10:50]This town was settled by French Canadians and Main Street is still thriving.

[00:11:07]The population peaked at around 175 people in 1910.

[00:11:13]And the visitor center in town is called the French Quarter.

[00:11:24]Without a doubt, this town has experienced no decline, unlike most of the other small towns in this area of Kansas.

[00:11:43]All the buildings on Main Street are painted and well cared for.

[00:11:58]Demar proudly calls itself the Acadia of the West.

[00:12:08]It's a unique cultural pocket in this area of Kansas.

[00:12:13]The highlight is this beautiful church built in 1912.

[00:12:23]And the church does still hold services.

[00:12:31]I briefly lived in Montreal about 30some years ago.

[00:12:36]Demar does have the look and feel of small towns in Quebec.

[00:12:59]When driving on gravel roads in rural Kansas, some intersections don't have stop or yield signs, so pay closer attention.

[00:13:11]Now, we're going to head to Bo, Kansas.

[00:13:14]It has a population of 155 people and was founded in 1888.

[00:13:22]By the early 1900s, Bogue had a small but active downtown with general stores, groceries, saloons, a hotel, school, and a Catholic church.

[00:13:34]Now, most of the buildings on Main Street are abandoned.

[00:13:44]The rail line was central to its identity. It provided daily trains and economic life for decades before modern roads and consolidating farming changed things.

[00:14:04]Despite its size, Bogue maintains community spots like the township hall and keeps the tight-knit farming community spirit alive.

[00:14:19]Although this was an unplanned trip through Kansas, I really enjoyed this area. It reminds me of a lot of the area I live in now in southwest Saskatchewan.

[00:14:57]This hall is a fascinating building.

[00:15:13]And finally, I'm going to stop in Studley, Kansas. I saw this church right off the highway, and it was beautiful.

[00:15:20]It's a very small town. It only peaked at about 75 people in 1910, and then 100 around 1939.

[00:15:39]There isn't much left of town, just a handful of residents and not much else.

[00:15:44]I really hope you enjoyed this video.

[00:15:47]Thank you so much for joining me. If you have any questions or comments, please leave in the comment section below.