ROUTE 36
KANSAS
The photo gallery in this section is just a sampling of the astonishing swath of Americana awaiting travelers along US36.
All photos are by Allan Ferguson unless otherwise noted. Many more attractions are featured in Route 36: Ohio to Colorado—America’s Heartland Highway. Order the book on Amazon here.
Kansas – Map 1
Travelers on US36 pass through thirteen county seats on the upper tier of Kansas, and each one has a county building of considerable architectural merit. This beauty is at Troy, fifteen miles west of St. Joseph.
As in Missouri, settlement westward in Kansas followed the rail lines leading toward construction of the “cathedrals of the plains”—the ubiquitous grain elevators where crops from the hinterlands are gathered for shipment by rail.
Antiques are a BIG deal in Kansas. The US36 Association sponsors a 400-mile “Treasure Hunt” on the 3rd weekend in September. Good stops include Seneca, Marysville, Scandia, Phillipsburg, Norton, and Oberlin.
Marysville is among the most vibrant cities on the top tier of Kansas. There’s a Pony Express Museum and much more to entice the touring public.
Kansas – Map 2
The Pawnee Indian Museum a few miles west and north of Belleville is another “must” stop on US36. This is one of the finest museums of its kind in the Trans-Mississippi West.
Phillipsburg will be remembered for its wide, wide streets and welcoming downtown where Route 36 skirts the south side of the town square.
The Norton Public Library testifies to the important place these public institutions hold in small-town America. Norton’s library grounds are graced by several Western-themed sculptures executed by Frederick Remington.
