Lincoln County, Kansas Extinct Towns

Colbert, Kansas, 1890s.

Colbert, Kansas, 1890s.

Denmark

Vesper

Town Post Office Dates Additional Information
Abram 1872 Abram was the first county seat and was platted in April 1871. Myron D. Green was the president of the town company, but the town didn’t make it. The post office was moved from Rocky Hill on February 26, 1872, and back to Rocky Hill on December 5, 1872.
Ash Grove 1916-1944 An old church and school still stand at 80th and Union Road.
Bacon 1879-1902 A small hamlet located in Spillman Creek Valley, about 20 miles northwest of Lincoln. Sylvan Grove on the Union Pacific Railroad was the nearest railroad station.
Bashan 1880-1902
Battle Creek 1873-1879 The post office moved to Pinon.
Bayne/Ingalls 1873-1888
1888-1894
The town of Ingalls’ name was changed to Bayne on April 10, 1888.
Cedron 1871-1911 Located in Cedron Township on the headwaters of Spillman Creek and about 20 miles northwest of Lincoln. Lucas, on the Union Pacific Railroad was the nearest railroad station.
Colbert 1889-1904 Was a small hamlet on East Elkhorn Creek; it was about six miles southeast of Lincoln.
Colorado 1871-1886 In Colorado Township, the firm of D. Hardesty had a flouring custom mill in operation, with two runs of stones, for which the Saline River furnished the power. In the early 1880s, the mill had already spent $5,000 in making this a good property, and contemplated further expenses and improvements. The post office moved to Beverly.
Denmark 1872-1904
1917-1954
One of the first permanent settlements in Lincoln County, it was settled about 1869 by Danish Lutherans who laid the cornerstone for a stone church in 1876. The church and several other buildings still stand.
Dewdrop 1899-1902 A small settlement about eight miles northwest of Lincoln, the nearest railroad station. The population in 1910 was 20.
Elkhorn 1868-1871
Glen 1898-1905 A hamlet located near the head of Spillman Creek, about 16 miles northwest of Lincoln. Vesper, on the Union Pacific, was the nearest railroad station.
Golden Belt 1879-1886
Harshbarger 1874-1876
Herman 1874-1893
Hinckley 1886 The post office was only open for a few months, from February 23, 1886, to July 28, 1886.
Josalina 1886 The post office was only open for a few months, from February 23, 1886, to July 28, 1886
Lone Walnut 1878-1887
1888-1900
Margaret 1882-1902 A hamlet located 20 miles southwest of Lincoln and five miles northeast of Wilson, in Ellsworth County, the nearest shipping point.
Milo 1872-1938 A country trading point on the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad, about 16 miles northeast of Lincoln. In 1910, it had two stores, an express office, a money order post office with one rural route, and a population of 50.
Monroe 1871-1886 Mrs. Skinner taught the first public school in Lincoln County, at Monroe, in 1870.
Orbitello 1880-1899
Orworth 1879-1892
Paris 1878-1898
Pinon 1879-1888 The post office moved from Battle Creek.
Pleasant Valley 1873-1896
Pottersburg 1870-1904 Pottersburg, sometimes spelled Pottersburgh, was laid out and platted by A. S. Potter in June 1874. This town was in the center of the coal region of Lincoln County. It was located at the confluence of Bacon and Spillman Creeks and on the proposed line of the Topeka, Salina & Western Railroad. A Methodist Episcopal Church was established in 1875. It also had a Sabbath School. The post office closed on February 29, 1904. it was located about 15 miles northwest of Lincoln and six miles north of Vesper, from which it received its mail after the post office closed.
Red Rock 1869-1871 M.D. Greene established a post office on April 08, 1869, on Red Rock Creek. It was located five miles east of Lincoln, and it was named for the red sandstone along the creek banks. The post office moved to Rocky Hill.
Rocky Hill 1871-1880 Rocky Hill sprang up just east of the old paper town of Abram, which was, for a brief time, the county seat. The most important industry in this town was the Graham Brothers flouring mill, established in 1871 by Ezra Hubbard. It was the first mill in the county. The post office was moved from Red Rock on April 4, 1871. Good trade centered around the mill, and several stores and substantial dwellings were built. In 1872, the post office was briefly moved to Abram but back to Rocky Hill the same year. The post office closed on August 30, 1880. In February 1881, Lincoln County voted $75,000 in bonds to aid in building the Topeka, Salina & Western Railroad through the county. Some writers of the time predicted that the railroad’s arrival would make Rocky Hill a place of importance. This did not occur.
Rosette 1879-1900
Shady Bend 1880-1963 A hamlet located on the Union Pacific Railroad nine miles east of Lincoln. In 1910, it had two grain elevators, a general store, a mill, a money order post office, and a population of 40. The town came into the limelight in August 1911, when a young lady named Mary Chamberlain was taken from a buggy at night by masked men and tarred. A number of the most prominent citizens of the community were involved in the affair.
Syria 1881-1887
Topsy 1879-1886
Towerspring 1879-1904 A country hamlet located on east Elkhorn Creek, ten miles south of Lincoln, the nearest shipping point.
Union Valley 1877-1888
Vesper 1872-1966  Vesper, Kansas is an extinct town in Lincoln County. However, it still has a small population and a few old homes and buildings.
Westfall 1917-1971 Located in Madison Township, eight miles south and eight miles east of Lincoln on Elk Drive and 270th Road. The Westfall school closed in 1973, and the building is now used as a community center and as a fire department. Children attend school in Lincoln today. Though there are no active businesses, there are several homes, some old business buildings, and a small population.
Woodey 1874-1888
Yorktown/Allamead 1880-1894
1894-1906
The town’s name was changed from Allamead to Yorktown on September 5, 1894. In 1910, it was a country hamlet with a general store and a population of 60. Vesper, 12 miles south, was the nearest shipping point. It was located 16 miles northwest of Lincoln.

©Kathy Alexander/Legends of Kansas, September 2022.

Also See:

Kansas Ghost Towns

Kansas Towns and Cities

Lincoln County, Kansas

Lincoln County Photo Gallery

Sources:

Blackmar, Frank W.; Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History, Vol I; Standard Publishing Company, Chicago, IL 1912.
Collections of the Kansas State Historical Society, 1911-1912, Edited by George W. Martin, Secretary, State Printing Office, Topeka, KS
Connelley, William E.; A Standard History of Kansas and Kansans, Lewis, Chicago, 1918.
Cutler, William G; History of Kansas; A. T. Andreas, Chicago, IL, 1883.
Historical Directory of Kansas Towns
Kansas Post Office History