View of Scottsville, Kansas by Kathy Alexander.
Scottsville, Kansas, is a small town in Lulu Township in the northeastern corner of Mitchell County. It is also an “extinct” town, as its post office closed decades ago. As of the 2020 census, its population was 26, and it had a total area of 0.25 square mile, all of it land.
When this town first began, it was called Lulu. A post office was established on December 24, 1873.
Railroad tracks in Scottsville, Kansas by Kathy Alexander.
F.M. Culp, born in Indiana, came to Mitchell County with his family in October 1871, and took up a homestead eight miles northeast of Beloit. He engaged in the merchandise business in Scottsville in 1877. He held the office of Trustee and Justice of the Peace.
B.R. Glidden, originally from New York, came to Mitchell County in 1877, and engaged in general merchandise, under the firm name of Glidden & Keeler. The firm built a room measuring 22 by 70 feet, filled it with a general stock of goods, and did a large business.
Reverend B.B. Newell, born in Vermont, moved his family to Mitchell, Kansas, in 1878 and engaged in the loan and insurance business. He also served as Justice of the Peace and as the pastor of the Methodist Church.
The building of the Central Branch Union Pacific Railroad through the county caused several little towns to spring up in the area. A new townsite called Scottsville was platted in October 1878 when the railroad was extended to that point. It was named for Tom Scott, a pioneer settler.
Old bank building in Scottsville, Kansas by Kathy Alexander.
On November 12, 1878, the post office and town’s name was changed from Lulu to Scottsville.
Considerable business was carried on here, as the railroad station was in the center of a large corn-raising territory, and many car-loads were shipped each week.
In 1910, Scottsville was incorporated and was on the Missouri Pacific Railroad. At that time, it had a bank, a weekly newspaper called the Advance, telegraph and express offices, and a money order post office with two rural routes, and its population peaked at 248.
The post office in Scottsville was discontinued on May 5, 1967.
Scottsville still has a community church, and the Kyle Railroad runs through the town.
Scottsville, Kansas Community Church by Kathy Alexander.
The community is served by the Beloit USD 273 public school district.
Scottsville is about 14 miles northeast of Beloit, the county seat.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of Kansas, updated 2026.
Also See:
Extinct Towns of Mitchell County
Agricultural building in Scottsville, Kansas by Kathy Alexander.
Sources:
Blackmar, Frank W.; Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History, Vol I; Standard Publishing Company, Chicago, IL, 1912.
Cutler, William G.; History of Kansas; A. T. Andreas, Chicago, IL, 1883.
Wikipedia