Publisher Description

The WPA Guide, the first and only guidebook ever devoted to Kansas, was published in 1939. After six decades and more, its pages still provide a wealth of reliable historic, geographic, and cultural information on Kansas, as well as some intriguing lore that many modern-day readers will find new. Not the least of its contributions is the accurate picture it gives of Kansas between the Great Depression and World War II--of its industrial, agricultural, and natural resources. The book is divided into three sections: seventeen topical essays covering subjects such as Indians, folklore, religion, and architecture; touring information of the eighteen largest Kansas cities and towns; and twelve automobile tours spanning Kansas and border states. Included are eighty photographs, four maps, and an essay on the "contemporary scene" by William Allen White.

Table of Contents

General Information Calendar of Events I. The State and Its People Contemporary Scene-- By William Allen White Natural Setting and Conservation Archeology Indians History Agriculture Transformation Industry, Commerce and Labor Folklore Education Religion Sports and Recreation Journalism and Journalists Literature Art Music and the Theater Architecture II. Cities and Towns Arkansas City Atchison Coffeyville Dodge City Emporia Fort Scott Hutchinson Kansas City Lawrence Leavenworth Lindsborg Manhattan Medicine Lodge Newton Ottawa Salina Topeka Wichita III. Highways and Byways Tour 1. (St. Joseph, Mo.)-Marysville-Belleville-St.Franics-(Denver, Colo.) [US 36] Section a. Missouri Line to Belleville Section b. Belleville to Colorado Line Tour 2. Manhattan-Clay Center-Stockton-Goodland-(Colorado Springs, CO) [US 24] Tour 3. (Kansas City, MO.)-Kansas City-Topeka-Manhattan-Salina-Hays-(Denver, Colo.) [US 24-40, US 40] Tour 4. (Kansas City, Mo.)-Baldwin City-Council Grove-Great Bend-Garden Ctiy-(La Junta, Colo.) [US 50, US 50N] Section a. Missouri Line to Junction with US 50N and US 50S; US 50 Section b. Junction with US 50, US 50S, and US 59 to Garden City Section c. Garden City to Colorado Line Tour 4A. Junction US 50-50N and US 59-Emporia-Newton-Hutchinson-Dodge City-Garden City [US50S] Tour 4B. Dodge City-Sublette-Hugoton-Elkhart-Oklahoma Line [STATE45) Tour 5. (Jefferson City, Mo.)-Fort Scott-Wichita-Pratt-Liberal-(Hooker, Okla.) [US 54] Section a. Missouri Line to Wichita Section b. Wichita to Oklahoma Line Tour 6. (Springfield, Mo.)-Pittsburg-Parsons-Winfield-Medicine Lodge-Ulysses-(Trinidad, Colo.) [US 160] Section a. Missouri Line to Wellington Section b. Wellington to Junction with US 83-160 Section c. Junction with US 83 to Colorado Line Tour 7. (Joplin, Mo.)-Baxter Springs-Coffeyville-Arkansas City-South Haven [US 66 and US 166] Tour 8. (Kearney, Nebr.)-Norton-Oakley-Scott City-Garden City-Liberal-(Turpin, Okla.) [US 83] Tour 9. (Columbus, Nebr.)-Concordia-Salina-Wichita-Wellington-(Enid, Okla.) [US 81] Tour 10. (Lincoln, Nebr.)-Marysville-Junction City-Eldorado-Arkansas City-(Oklahoma City, Okla.) [US 77] Tour 11. (Omaha, Nebr.)-Sabetha-Topeka-Yates Center-Independence-(Tulsa, Okla.) [US 75] Tour 12. (St. Joseph, Mo.)-Atchison-Lawrence-Iola-Parsons-(Vinita, Okla.) [US 59] Tour 12A. (Falls City, Nebr.)-Hiawatha-Atchison-Leavenworth-Victory Junction-Kansas City-(Kansas City, Mo.) [US 73] Tour 12B. Junction with US 59-Osawatomie [Osawatomie Rd.] Tour 13. (Kansas City, Mo.)-Fort Scott-Pittsburg-Columbus-(Muskogee, Okla.) [US 69] IV. Appendices Chronology Bibliography Index

Review

"A magnificent time capsule . . . fascinating, eye-opening, intriguing. This book is special. Its 538 pages add up to far more than a simple road guide. It is a richly detailed portrait of Kansas. Looking through it, a reader immediately discovers how different the Kansas of 1984 is from the Kansas of 1939, and how much alike. [It contains] a thoughtful and candid review of the state by theme. . . . But the real delight of the guide, the part of the book most essentially Kansas, is the section of auto tours that crisscross the state. The thirteen tours describe hundreds of hidden places, the fascinating yet little-known sites where the past is still vividly present. Armed with a modern Kansas map, it's easy enough for a traveler to retrace the tours. [This is] the best work of its kind."--Wichita Eagle and Beacon"Almost anyone could enjoy looking through this book. It gives the facts, but more importantly, the flavor of Kansas nearly a half century ago."--Manhattan Mercury"A treasure trove for information-seekers. [The book] cuts through the romantic haze of allusions of 'the good old days' and enables readers to recapture that 'elusive sense of place' that confronts shaky perception with reality."--Kansas City Star
"Written in grim times, and years in the making, [the WPA guides] were nonetheless infused with quiet pride and some sense of the astonishing richness and variety in this nation, and some sense of what it could be. Twentieth-century America is a good deal more comprehensible because of them."--Edwin Newman, former NBC News correspondent and author of Strictly Speaking". . . still fascinating after forty-five years. This book . . . is 'good stuff'"--James Fisher, Kansas City Times"Don&#t travel the blue highways of Kansas with out it."--William Least Heat-Moon, author of Blue Highways

Review Quote

"Written in grim times, and years in the making, [the WPA guides] were nonetheless infused with quiet pride and some sense of the astonishing richness and variety in this nation, and some sense of what it could be. Twentieth-century America is a good deal more comprehensible because of them."Edwin Newman , former NBC News correspondent and author of Strictly Speaking ". . . still fascinating after forty-five years. This book . . . is good stuff"James Fisher , Kansas City Times "Don't travel the blue highways of Kansas with out it."William Least Heat-Moon , author of Blue Highways

New Feature

General Information Calendar of Events I. The State and Its People Contemporary Scene-- By William Allen White Natural Setting and Conservation Archeology Indians History Agriculture Transformation Industry, Commerce and Labor Folklore Education Religion Sports and Recreation Journalism and Journalists Literature Art Music and the Theater Architecture II. Cities and Towns Arkansas City Atchison Coffeyville Dodge City Emporia Fort Scott Hutchinson Kansas City Lawrence Leavenworth Lindsborg Manhattan Medicine Lodge Newton Ottawa Salina Topeka Wichita III. Highways and Byways Tour 1. (St. Joseph, Mo.)-Marysville-Belleville-St.Franics-(Denver, Colo.) [US 36] Section a. Missouri Line to Belleville Section b. Belleville to Colorado Line Tour 2. Manhattan-Clay Center-Stockton-Goodland-(Colorado Springs, CO) [US 24] Tour 3. (Kansas City, MO.)-Kansas City-Topeka-Manhattan-Salina-Hays-(Denver, Colo.) [US 24-40, US 40] Tour 4. (Kansas City, Mo.)-Baldwin City-Council Grove-Great Bend-Garden Ctiy-(La Junta, Colo.) [US 50, US 50N] Section a. Missouri Line to Junction with US 50N and US 50S; US 50 Section b. Junction with US 50, US 50S, and US 59 to Garden City Section c. Garden City to Colorado Line Tour 4A. Junction US 50-50N and US 59-Emporia-Newton-Hutchinson-Dodge City-Garden City [US50S] Tour 4B. Dodge City-Sublette-Hugoton-Elkhart-Oklahoma Line [STATE45) Tour 5. (Jefferson City, Mo.)-Fort Scott-Wichita-Pratt-Liberal-(Hooker, Okla.) [US 54] Section a. Missouri Line to Wichita Section b. Wichita to Oklahoma Line Tour 6. (Springfield, Mo.)-Pittsburg-Parsons-Winfield-Medicine Lodge-Ulysses-(Trinidad, Colo.) [US 160] Section a. Missouri Line to Wellington Section b. Wellington to Junction with US 83-160 Section c. Junction with US 83 to Colorado Line Tour 7. (Joplin, Mo.)-Baxter Springs-Coffeyville-Arkansas City-South Haven [US 66 and US 166] Tour 8. (Kearney, Nebr.)-Norton-Oakley-Scott City-Garden City-Liberal-(Turpin, Okla.) [US 83] Tour 9. (Columbus, Nebr.)-Concordia-Salina-Wichita-Wellington-(Enid, Okla.) [US 81] Tour 10. (Lincoln, Nebr.)-Marysville-Junction City-Eldorado-Arkansas City-(Oklahoma City, Okla.) [US 77] Tour 11. (Omaha, Nebr.)-Sabetha-Topeka-Yates Center-Independence-(Tulsa, Okla.) [US 75] Tour 12. (St. Joseph, Mo.)-Atchison-Lawrence-Iola-Parsons-(Vinita, Okla.) [US 59] Tour 12A. (Falls City, Nebr.)-Hiawatha-Atchison-Leavenworth-Victory Junction-Kansas City-(Kansas City, Mo.) [US 73] Tour 12B. Junction with US 59-Osawatomie [Osawatomie Rd.] Tour 13. (Kansas City, Mo.)-Fort Scott-Pittsburg-Columbus-(Muskogee, Okla.) [US 69] IV. Appendices Chronology Bibliography Index

Details