Old buildings on Idana’s Main Street, courtesy of Google Maps.
Idana, Kansas, is a census-designated place in Five Creeks Township of Clay County. It is also an extinct town, as its post office closed decades ago. As of the 2020 census, the population was 54.
Vintage Idana, Kansas View.
Idana was founded in 1882 as a smattering of small homesteads near the Union Pacific Railroad tracks. It was first settled by the Howland and Broughton families, who combined the names of their respective wives, Ida and Anna, to form the town of Idana. The post office moved from Chapmanville and was established in Idana on April 27, 1882. Before long, Captain John A. Meek and his wife, from Indiana, settled in the aspiring community. Idana grew around the railroad, expecting to be a hub town for travelers to rest, shop, and make connections.
The Idana Presbyterian Congregation was founded in 1887.
The first school was built in 1888.
In 1889, the First Presbyterian Church of Idana was erected.
After the automobiles arrived in about 1902, Idana suffered its first serious setback when the railroad industry suffered major losses in revenue and foot traffic as people began buying personal vehicles. As the town declined, many of Idana’s families left, searching for other opportunities.
Idana, Kansas Depot, about 1900.
Idana, Kansas School, about 1912.
In 1910, Idana had about 25 business establishments, including a bank, a telegraph office, and a money order post office with one rural route. Its population was 225.
The town’s population declined in the next decades, but its Presbyterian Church thrived.
Old Idana School in Idana, Kansas.
The Works Progress Administration built a new one-story concrete school on the site of the early school in 1941.
In 1966, the school closed, and the building was used as a voting center. It is now privately owned and used as storage. It is located at 303 Lincoln Street.
The post office closed on April 18, 1980.
The Presbyterian Church celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2013, which also served as a family reunion for families spread across the country. Through the years, the building has been updated and continues to serve a congregation today. It is located at 214 Lincoln Street.
The community still has several vacant business buildings, several homes, and a cemetery west of town.
Presbyterian Church in Idana, Kansas, courtesy of Google Maps.
Students attend Clay County’s USD 379 public school district in Clay Center.
Idana is located about 6.5 miles west of Clay Center, 1.5 miles south of US Route 24 along 16th Road. Main Street today is County Road 832.
It is located approximately 6.5 miles west of Clay Center and 1.5 miles south of US Route 24 along 16th Road.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of Kansas, updated December 2024.
Also See:
An old business building in Idana, Kansas, courtesy of Google Maps.
Sources:
Blackmar, Frank W.; Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History, Vol I; Standard Publishing Company, Chicago, IL 1912.
Idana, Five Creeks Township, Clay County, Kansas, by Rachel Regier, Bridget Beran, Dani Golway, Kansas State University, Spring 2013.
Wikipedia