Troy Travel Guide

Having taken what I thought was my last photo in Troy, and lunch under my belt, I drove around the court house square to head toward the highway. I spotted this, thought it looked like Abraham Lincoln, and decided to check it out.

It is a modest little monument commemorating the fact that The Great Emancipator visited Troy and spoke on behalf of some Republican candidates for office to an assemblage of about 50 persons. This occurred in 1859, before Kansas was a state, and before Lincoln grew a beard and became president.

I noticed a rather old looking house behind the monument and then a gentleman came out of the house. I asked him how old the house is and he told me it was built in 1856 and asked if I would like to see it.

(See my next Activity Tip - Nelson Rodgers Residence)

The historical society spokesman was pleased show this recent acquisition - a beautiful wood-burning stove to be displayed in the kitchen.

I really appreciate this group of local history buffs and what they have accomplished. There are very few occasions that we have the opportunity to learn first hand how local historical treasure become saved and restored for generations to come. Three cheers for such groups all around the globe!!

Local members of the Doniphan County Historical Society have been in the process of restoring the house since 1995. The difficult process of repairing the foundation, exterior and roof has been completed, and the group is now working on the interior. On the afternoon of my visit, they had been "painting" using the mid-19th century equivalent to our enamel. Lime was the main ingredient.

One rarity I discovered was that all of the flooring is original and in excellent condition.

Local historians identify this as the first house built in Troy, Kansas Territory. The one-and-a-half story house is constructed of hand-hewn timbers (oak, walnut and pine) by Nelson Rodgers, the town's first blacksmith and postmaster. The year was 1856. Within a couple of years, the house was purchased by pro-slavery lawyer, Sidney Tennant. Abraham Lincoln is said to have visited Tennant during his brief visit to Troy.

Troy's entire business district is included in the Court House Historical District. Obviously, not each and every one of the buildings is of historical signifance, but many are. The Sol Miller building, at the far right of the accompanying picture, dates to circa 1870.

The brick streets surrounding the court house were laid in 1920. Try to find a concrete or asphalt road that has lasted that long.

Doniphan County's handsome court house in the Romanesque style is yet another example of the work of emminent Kansas architect George P. Washburn. He must have been a busy man in the first decade of the 1900s. Like a number of his other Kansas government buildings, this court house was built in 1904.

Peter Toth's "rough" style is ideal to enable him to demonstrate the conditions in which the Indians lived. He noted that, like his Hungarian ancestors, they had been "driven from their land, ... abused and rejected, ... and suffered from humiliation and trickery"*

*from pamphlet provided by Doniphan County Chamber of Commerce