Formerly enslaved African Americans left Kentucky at the end of the post-Civil War Reconstruction period to experience freedom in the "Promised Land" of Kansas. Nicodemus represents the involvement of African Americans in the homesteading movemen...
The A.M.E. (African Methodist Episcopal) Church formed in Nicodemus in 1879 and met in different buildings until they obtained this building from the Mount Pleasant Baptist Church in 1910, which had built it in 1885. The A.M.E. Church worshipped here until around the 1950s when it closed due to a declining congregation. The restored building is open to the public during site business hours.
The A.M.E church is a one-story building that is 30 by 100 feet with a steep shingle roof and a small vestibule added onto the main building. The entire exterior is covered in white stucco. Concrete steps lead up to the doors in front of and to the left of the entrance; a very gradual concrete ramp leads up from the right. In front of the concrete ramp is a black metal silhouette of a young girl, a woman, a man, and a young boy holding hands and walking toward the entrance. The double doors are white, and the top half of each door has a large pane of glass. Above the double doors the following is painted in black: "A.M.E. CHURCH 1885". Inside the church is a small vestibule with two tan upholstered chairs. Open doors lead from the vestibule to the main sanctuary. In the main sanctuary, a red rug runs down the middle of the floor. On both sides of the red rug on the main floor are three rows of old stadium-style seats with cast iron frames and wooden seats and backs, then two rows of large, modern, tan upholstered chairs. The floors are hardwood, the walls are a rosy pink, and the ceiling is white painted boards. At the "back" of the church is a three-tiered raised platform. The first tier is a step. On the second tier is a dark wooden podium with a dark wood chair on either side of the podium. The front and back middle sections of the second tier have a dark mulberry purple railing. The third tier is empty and goes up to the "back" wall, which has a small apse in the middle. Six simple globe lamps hang from the ceiling. There are four tall windows on the south side of the building. In each of the four corners of the sanctuary there is a tall, vinyl exhibit panel. Outside the church, at the start of the ramp leading to the entrance, is an interpretive wayside sign with the title "Leaning On The Lord". The backdrop of the sign is a black and white photo of the AME Church in the 1920s. It looks similar to how it does today, except there is no stucco, so the large limestone bricks are exposed, and there are only a couple steps leading to the front doors. There is also an extra entrance on the right, or north side of the church, with a leaning roof, an arched entrance, and two solid white doors. On the top right of the photo is the caption: " Nicodemus AME, 1920s. As Nicodemus' population declined so did the AME congregation. After the 1960s, members worshiped with the First Baptist Church, a block northwest of here." On the right third of the sign (where the photo is just sky and ground) are three paragraphs of main text. This text reads: "The harsh Kansas prairie inspired the Nicodemus AME (African Methodist Episcopal) congregation even more to their faith. Rev. Jerry Meyers and five others organized the church in 1879. Members first met in dugouts and then in the First Baptist Church. Community leader, Rev. Meyers led the organization of the first school. In 1885, Rev. Charles H. Brown and the forty-member congregation raised funds for their own wood-frame building, St. Paul’s AME Church. Fire destroyed the original church building in 1896. The congregation persevered and in 1910, purchased the Mt. Pleasant Baptist's building here at this location. They added the front foyer to the building at that time, and the date "1885" was set over the door to commemorate Rev. Brown and the congregation’s first church structure." Below this text is a black and white photo of a man in a suit and bowler hat sitting on a front porch. The photo is captioned: "Reverend Joe Wilson was pastor here in the 1950s. He also pastored at First Baptist Church after the AME Church closed."
As the Plainville Branch of the Missouri Pacific Railroad moved westward, Mr. Fagan, a railroad surveyor, founded a town he named Fagan 1 ½ miles west of what is now Bogue. He anticipated the railroad would go through Fagan. Instead, the Missouri Pacific established a town to the east of Fagan that they named Bogue after Virgil Bogue, their civil engineer. In the end, the railroad went through Bogue. Fagan businesses moved to Bogue, and all that’s left of Fagan is a graveyard. By 1926, Kansas designated Highway 18, travelers can see remnants of the Sturgeon School Farm. In 1901, the state established it to teach Nicodemus youth farming practices. As a bonus, area farmers borrowed and rented farm equipment. The farm had a big house for Andrew Alexander, Jr., and his family purchased the farm. They lived there until the late 1980s when they sold it to a white family.
The first wave of settlers arrived in fall of 1877 and stayed in and around the town site of Nicodemus until spring. Once warmer weather arrived, people left the safety of the town site and went to their homesteads. As settlers established claims, they formed satellite communities, including this one they called Fairview. Using crude hoes and spades they brought from Kentucky, families broke virgin sod for agricultural use. By the end of 1878, the average homesteader planted three to fifty acres of winter wheat. Tom Johnson and his family were among the first settlers to venture out of Nicodemus. He homesteaded northwest of here on Spring Creek. Many families and friends who traveled together to Nicodemus homesteaded near one another. His friend and first pastor Rev. Lee as well as Tom’s daughters, Emma (Williams) and Ella, and his son Henry claimed adjacent lands. After holding services in his dugout and hosting the first baptism on Spring Creek, Tom helped organize the First Baptist Church in Nicodemus. The Fairview are had its own school.
A number of large families homesteaded this area and in 1908 established Fairview School, a one-room building at this site. Five Years later, it burned, so the community built a new school and added two out houses and a coal building. After 1945, due to consolidation, students attended the Nicodemus School in town so Fairview School closed. Families moved the building to town next to School District #1 to provide additional classroom space. In the picture, Hattie Craig and her pupils depict the wide age range of the children attending Fairview School in 1915.
The First Baptist Church was the first church in Nicodemus, organized in 1878 by Reverend Silas Lee. The congregation met in private residences, a sod church, and a smaller limestone church until this building was built in 1907. The First Baptist Church served not only as a religious meeting place, but also a community building. The congregation built a new church north of this building in 1975 and are still active in Nicodemus.
The First Baptist Church is covered in white stucco, approximately 75-100 feet in height and has a triangle pitched roof with dark gray shingles. The main part is a rectangle with a small addition on the west side, plus a small entrance room at the corner where the main part and the addition meet. A square concrete platform serves as the step to the door, which is white-painted wood and padlocked. The building has five boarded up windows, two on the main south wall, one on the south wall of the entrance room, and two on the main west wall. The east wall has three large, triangular concrete buttresses supporting it. Rose bushes grow under the west windows. Outside the Baptist Church is an interpretive wayside sign on a wood plank platform with a large title that reads: "We've Come This Far By Faith". The left half of the sign shows a black and white photo of a crowd of people dressed in their Sunday best in front of the church entrance. The photo is from the 1940s and shows the church with its limestone walls, bell atop the entrance room, windows with pointed tops, and arched detail above the entry door. The photo is captioned "Church members proudly posed by the entrance, 1940s." On the right half of the sign is text that reads: "Sunday school, prayer meetings, gospel singing, spirited preaching, church suppers, and special events all graced the sanctuary of the First Baptist Church. Churches are the cornerstone of black communities throughout the US. Before Emancipation, restrictive laws often prohibited blacks from gathering in larger numbers, except in churches. Rev. Samuel Roundtree, one of the five Nicodemus organizers and promoters, recruited homesteaders from Baptist churches in Central Kentucky. Soon after arriving in the fall of 1877, Rev. Silas Lee organized the Nicodemus First Baptist Church. At first the congregation worshiped in a dugout at Tom Johnson’s homestead north of town. Later they worshiped in a large sod structure at this location. In 1880, they built a large limestone church here on the main street of the growing town. In 1907, the congregation substantially enlarged the church and the front entrance moved to this side of the building. The original church was incorporated within the new one. 'Weekends were what I remember most about Nicodemus. We would come up for weekends and play in the streets and go to church. After church there'd be dinners and the candy at the little old store that used to be there.' Loretta Buckner, Nicodemus descendant At least one wall of that earlier, limestone church remains, supporting the east side of the building. Oral tradition has it that when the larger, new church was complete, the old church was disassembled and taken out through the windows of the new one."
In 1926 Nicodemus descendant Reginald (Reg) Henrie recognized a commercial opportunity and opened a service station on the south side of this busy intersection. His two gas pumps faced north toward Highway 24 in front of his two-story building. Large cottonwood trees provided shade from behind. Reg Henrie built and rented two one-room cabins located east of his service station. After he died in 1944, descendants Harry and Loretta Green took over, providing pop, cold beer, and open-air dances for travelers and area residents. About 500 feet south of the station, another descendant, mechanic Alvin (Tink) Bates operated a service garage. North across the busy intersection, Bill and Dorotha Garland ran a grocery store in their one-story house. A stone garage to the east housed their Model A Ford. This highway intersection was one of the busiest in eastern Graham county, providing groceries, gas, repairs, and lodging to Highway 24 and 18 travelers and area residents.
Nicodemus National Historic Site lies four miles east of here. Former enslaved African Americans from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi established Nicodemus in 1877. They left the effects of Jim Crow in the South to homestead in western Kansas. Established at the end of Reconstruction, Nicodemus is the oldest and only remaining all-black town west of the Mississippi. Town organizers solicited large groups to settle the site and homestead within the 4x7 mile Nicodemus township (see map). At its peak, the population reached nearly 650 residents, but steadily declined after the Missouri Pacific Railroad bypassed Nicodemus in 1887. South of here, the town of Bogue became the railroad hub. This caused several businesses to relocate there, which weakened Nicodemus’s economic foundation and potential growth. Nearly a century later in 1976, the Department of the Interior designated the town a Historic Landmark District. In 1996, an act of Congress established Nicodemus National Historic Site, a unit of the National Park Service.
Baseball, a major entertainment during Nicodemus’ annual Emancipation Celebration, attracted visitors from around the state and region. Spectators watched the games from under towering cottonwood trees that surrounded the large field located here across the road from Welton/Scruggs Grove. Teams competed here until the 1950s. Cyclones was the name of the first baseball team organized in the 1880s. Other teams existed, but the most popular was Nicodemus Blues, created after the turn of the century. When committee members moved The Celebration from the grove to the town site, they also moved the baseball field. Most recently, the Nicodemus Historical Society built the Roberta Robinson Baseball Field on Washington Street. Several descendants had the talent to play professionally. Tall, muscular, and fast, Freddie Switzer hit a home run off a Satchel Paige pitch when the Kansas City Monarchs played at Nicodemus. The Monarchs urged Freddie to try out for the team, but he chose to stay and raise his family. Clarence Sayers, descendant and one time resident remembered, “When the Groves (Raymond, Jr.) came to play, you’d better get you some good gloves. Get you some good gloves and put a glove on underneath the one you have on.” 2011 Raymond Grove Jr. remembered, “We’d go all over the country and play baseball. And everybody was glad to see us… and when Hill City had their first Graham County Fair, we won the tournament.” He added,”…they wanted me to go down there, but I couldn’t get down there to Kansas City to try out…I might have been a professional ball player if I had gotten there. Yeah, I couldn’t get to Kansas City.” 2011
The Mt. Olive District was established when Reverend Daniel Hickman and twenty-five families came with the second wave of settlers to Nicodemus in the spring of 1878. This community developed its own school, church, and cemetery. The church and school no longer exist, but the cemetery remains, and descendants continue to use it for family burials. Reverend Hickman’s large headstone marks his plot in the southwest part of the cemetery. Perry Bates homesteaded in the area. His white, military, curved headstone is located in the first row. Although Perry settled this area, his son James Perry and Family, who are also buried here, homesteaded 2 miles east on this road in the Nicodemus District. Reverend Daniel Hickman and his congregation established a sod church on this site in 1878 near the present flagpole. The church was named after his former church in Georgetown, Kentucky, and served the community until the 1920s. A limestone structure that replaced the original sod building burned in the 1930s when an intentionally set grass fire in the cemetery flared out of control. “…...those old slave people built that church out there, and it was a good sized church. And they even made the benches to put in there.” Hattie Burnie
Mt. Olive School District #57 was established to provide education to the children in the Mt. Olive area. Settlers of the second group that arrived from Kentucky to settle at Nicodemus in the spring of 1878 populated this area. Reverend Daniel Hickman, and Morris Bell who arrived with the first group established the school and named it after their former church in Kentucky. The one room building located near here on the north of this sign held classes from first through eighth grade. The school closed in 1945 when consolidation forced students in the area to attend school in nearby Bogue.
Nicodemus Cemetery is the original graveyard for Nicodemus settlers, and descendants continue to use it for family burials. The graves farthest to the east are the oldest. The little white curved-top headstones indicate Civil War veterans. Tom Johnson, Civil War veteran and one of the original 1877 settlers, and his family are buried here. So is his grandson Henry Williams, the first child born (October 1877) in Nicodemus. Also buried here are St. Francis Hotel owners Zach Fletcher, the first postmaster, and his wife Jenny, the first school teacher. Famous barbecue entrepreneur Ernestine Van Duvall rests here, as well as National Football League, Green Bay Packer Player, and descendant, Veryl Switzer. Mt. Olive Cemetery (4 miles west) and Samuel Cemetery (5 miles south of Bogue) are two other historic cemeteries that descendants still use for burial.
Town speculator W.R. Hill, his partner W.H. Smith, and five African American ministers originally from Kentucky and Tennessee organized and established the town of Nicodemus. They recruited groups of formerly enslaved people from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi to Homestead. According to the dates they arrived, the new residents settled in four general districts: Nicodemus, Fairview, Mt. Olive, and Wildhorse/Kebar. The Nicodemus district encompasses the townsite and 1 mile north and south and 4 miles west. The first immigrants settled this area in 1877, and subsequent groups homesteaded lands farther away when they arrived.The Nicodemus township history trail invites visitors to tour all four districts to discover the schools, churches, cemeteries, and homestead sites. You will discover when immigrants arrived and where they homesteaded. YOU ARE IN the Nicodemus district and can visit the historic townsite and other area landmarks. The National Park Service uses the township hall behind here as their temporary visitor center. We encourage you to visit it and/or obtain a walking tour brochure of the historic townsite from the dispenser in front of the building.Select the district map the fits your schedule. If time permits, travel to all four districts to explore Nicodemus township History.
Nicodemus is the longest-lasting black homesteader colony in America. In 1877 six black entrepreneurs in Topeka joined with a local white developer to form the Nicodemus Town Company. They located their town in the Solomon River valley in north-central Kansas. Most who stayed filed homestead claims. By 1899 they had received 114 homestead patents, making them owners of 18,126 acres. Nicodemus still stands as a small village and is designated as a National Historic Site.
The remains of the only remaining western town established by African Americans during the Reconstruction Period following the Civil War are preserved today as Nicodemus National Historic Site.
When the last group of settlers arrived at Nicodemus, they ventured to the southwest to homestead land in Wildhorse Township. This area, referred to as Kebar was noted for its natural springs and tall native grasses. The newcomers soon established the Samuel Cemetery. It marks the final resting place of many early settlers, and descendants continue to bury loved ones on this hill overlooking the entire region. Notably, Buffalo Soldier Sam Garland of the 10th US Cavalry rests here among other family members. He homesteaded east of this site. Another remembered, but unmarked grave is that of Amanuel Napue, son-in-law of Reverend John Samuels. According to descendants’ oral histories, famous scout and Wild West showman Buffalo Bill Cody shot Amanuel in the leg. The wound resulted in gangrene that led to his death. His burial was one of the earliest in the cemetery.
Nicodemus residents saw education as foundational to their community and organized School District No. 1 in 1879, the first in Graham County. After the previous 1887 schoolhouse burned down in 1916, the District No. 1 Schoolhouse was built in 1918 and used by the district until it closed in the early 1960s.
On one acre of grassy land, the school is a square, one-room building on a cement block foundation. It has a triangle pitched roof with small gray shingles and a chimney. The front of the school has a porch with four thin cylindrical columns supporting a roof over it. Four concrete stairs lead to the porch. The school has white siding that is fading and peeling in some spots and two windows in each of the four walls. The top half of the front door has four small windowpanes. Thirty feet south of the school is old, metal, rusty playground equipment: a slide, a swing set, and a small jungle gym.
The St. Francis Hotel has lived many lives: first as a place of business operated by early settlers Zachary and Jenny Fletcher, then as private residence and restaurant of the Switzer family. The original two-story limestone structure was built in 1881 and was a successful hotel in Nicodemus. The Switzer family bought the building in 1921 and built several additions while they lived there.
The Saint Francis Hotel is a two-story building with a small front screened porch and several small windows. The front and back of the house has white siding, and the second floor and sides of the house are covered in light blue stucco. The size is approximately 50 feet by 30 feet. The front second floor has a boarded window. The western side of the building has exposed limestone bricks that are bowing outward and toppled on the ground. In front of the building are two interpretive wayside signs on a wood board platform. The left sign is titled "Mail From Back Home". The entire background of the sign is a colorful illustration of a frontier town (representing Nicodemus). Against a bright blue sky, a two-story stone building with the sign "ST. FRANCIS HOTEL" and "POST OFFICE" hanging from an awning, a windmill, and a plain wooden building line a wide dirt road. A bright red stagecoach with yellow wheels pulled by four brown horses is stopped in front of the buildings. Various people, mostly men in brown pants, white shirts, and brown vests, and a few men in brown suits and bowler hats, are in the image. Some are walking around, some carrying items, some standing on the porch of the St. Francis, others talking. A woman in a white shirt and long orange skirt holding the hand of a young boy walks toward the stagecoach. On the bottom left of the sign is the caption: "By 1880, Nicodemus had a population had a population of almost 500, and boasted a bank, two hotels, three churches, a newspaper, a drug store, and three general stores-surrounded by twelve [cut off text]. The main text covers most of the top half of the image (the sky). The text reads: "Eager for word from loved ones back home, people gathered at the St. Francis Hotel when the mail wagon arrived. The right, upright section of this building was the original limestone St. Francis Hotel, Nicodemus’ first stone building along the main street. Civil War calvary [sic] veteran Zachary T. Fletcher and his wife, Jenny came from Kentucky with the first Nicodemus settlers. Initially they homesteaded a few miles west of town. Then in 1881, hopeful that a railroad line would promote business, Fletcher and his brother Thomas built the hotel. The St. Francis was often full. Lodging for homesteaders and travelers was hard to find. Jenny Fletcher prepared hot meals for hotel guests. She also ran a millinery (hat) shop and later served as postmaster. 'This house is in first-class order and is prepared to furnish the best accommodations to the traveling public. Charges reasonable.' Western Cyclone, May 27, 1886". To the right of this text are cut-out black and white photos of a man and woman from the shoulders up. The man is wearing a suit and dark hat and has a bushy mustache. The woman is wearing a plaid dress with a white collar and neatly pulled-back hair. To the right of these photos is the caption: "Zachary Fletcher was not only the first postmaster in Nicodemus but also the first black postmaster in a non-slave state. He established the St. Francis Hotel and a livery stable. His wife, Jenny was a charter member of the AME Church." The right wayside sign is titled "Main Street Boom and Beyond." On it, text overlays a black and white photo that looks west on Washington Avenue, captioned "Nicodemus, 1940". A black and white photo of a crowd of people in town is in the top right corner of the sign and is captioned "Nicodemus, 1885". Above this photo is the following text: "'About the year 1885, the country began to boom. Things looked promising. The colonists were able to raise farm products on their land and Nicodemus herself took on a new life.' - Lula Craig". There are two columns of main text. Between the two columns is small oval black and white photo of a man from the chest up wearing a black hat and a suit and tie. It is captioned "Zach Fletcher". The main text reads: "'Nicodemus was growing into a busy little town. New houses were being built by people coming in. Different enterprises began to originate. Conditions began to improve.' Nettie Craig Teacher, 1886 Main Street Nicodemus grew out of hard work and determination into a viable business district through the hands of former slaves. Zachary T. Fletcher became one of the town's most successful merchants after opening the first black business in 1878. A bank, law offices, two newspapers, a hotel, post office, several stores, and cafes also lined these streets. Abuzz with the prospect of securing a stop on one of the railroad lines to the expanding West, most merchants moved to other towns along the rail line, like nearby Bogue. Despite this setback a few black merchants persevered—Zach and Thomas Fletcher, Nicodemus' perennial capitalists, still operated the Saint Francis Hotel, the livery stable, and a farm implement business. Jenny Fletcher, Zach's wife, ran a millinery shop. Jake Riley operated another livery stable and G.M. Sayers ran a general store—demonstrating determination, resilience, and commitment to a land they loved." Below the main text, red lines point out different buildings in the main photo and describe each one. From left to right, they read: "Julia Lee's Cafe, 1920s. The cafe seated more than 30 patrons. The J.B. Crowley Grocery and General Merchandise operated here until the early 1900s. Blow In Cafe, 1949. Fredonia and Ray De Priest owned the Cafe in the 1950s. A team of mules moved this building into Nicodemus from the township. St. Francis Hotel, 1881. Owned by Zach T. Fletcher included the livery stable and coral. The Switzer family lived here since the 1930s. [The next buildings are on the right or north side of the street.] The First Baptist Church, 1907. The first church established in Nicodemus. The original 1880 building is within the 1907 church. The congregation continues to meet in a newer, adjacent building. S.G. Wilson General Store, 1880. Built of locally cut stone, the store was purchased and operated by G.M. Sayers starting in 1896. S.W. Green General Store, 1880. Became the Masonic Hall in 1893. Post Office. Closed in 1953. Priscilla Arts Club, 1940s. Previously this structure was the Cracker Box School moved here from Nicodemus Township. Nicodemus Township Hall, 1939. A depression-era project, it served as the community's center for social activities." A quote on the bottom right of the sign reads: "'A visitor here in 1918 found only two businesses in existence, one a restaurant with a two-by-four counter, a box turned upside down for a table, and the rest of the fixtures of the same type...No stores remained in 1950, and three years later the government withdrew its post office there. The black haven on the Solomon had become almost a ghost town.' Norman Crockett in The Black Towns".
More than a means of travel, highways and railroads link individuals and communities to commercial opportunities. Over time, routes in the Nicodemus Township changed and now reveal their stories through old maps, abandoned roadbeds, and Google Map views. Counties built roads in the 1880s, including the old Stockton trail. It traveled west from Stockton into Graham County 3 miles north of Nicodemus. From there, it continued west 4 miles. At that point, it turned south where it connected with a westerly road from Nicodemus right here. Finally, in the late 1950s, transportation authorities rerouted Highway 24 so it passed the town of Nicodemus on its northern border.
Settler Lewis Welton held the first Emancipation Day Celebration at Nicodemus on August 1, 1878, at his 160-acre homestead. It attracted hundreds who came to celebrate freedom. The annual Celebration became a popular event, attracting thousands from nearby settlements and towns. Wagons, buggies, and later automobiles lined adjacent roads for three miles in each direction. Food stands barbecue, lemonade, fried chicken, desserts, and more. Organizers added two dance platforms, one for black people and one for white people. Attendees listened to political spiels, watched horse races, gambled, and danced to local bands. Children rode the Ferris Wheel and merry-go-round. A representative from the famous Kinsley, Kansas, Brodbeck Carnival Company referred to the Nicodemus Celebration, saying, “You haven’t been to a carnival until you went to Nicodemus.” Descendant Orlo Van Duvall commented,” Las Vegas didn’t have nothing on them.” R.B. Scruggs later purchased the Welton property and planted cottonwoods alongside walnut trees, creating what locals referred to as the Grand Arbor. The location of the celebration was then changed to the Scruggs Grove. Beginning in the early 1930s, the Celebration transitioned to the townsite and the new township hall. In 1951, descendants celebrated for the last time in Scruggs Grove. Organizers eventually changed the name from Emancipation Day to Emancipation/Homecoming Celebration, which is still used today. The celebration now occurs the last weekend in July nearest to August 1st. In 2020, due to the Covid pandemic, planners hosted the first virtual Emancipation/Homecoming Celebration. In 1983, Mary Elizabeth Gage spoke for all descendants, saying, “Something we looked forward to from one year to the next. I think we were as anxious about the Emancipation Celebration affair…as we were about Christmas.”
Built from 1937-1939 as a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project with local limestone, the Nicodemus Township Hall has served as a central meeting place for the community for decades. Representing the pillar of self-determination in African American communities, this building hosted everything from voting and township meetings to dances and roller-skating. It currently houses the site's visitor center.
The Nicodemus Township Hall is a large limestone building with triangle front gable roof that has black shingles and is about 30 feet high. The limestone bricks are yellowish and different sizes. The main section is 40 feet by 80 feet, and the front of the building (the south side) has a small entrance vestibule also made of limestone and with the same type of roof. The two front doors are white and have nine rectangular panes in the top two thirds. On either side of the doors are tall rectangular paned windows painted with dark red trim. Above the doors the following words are inscribed in rectangles in the stone, in three rows: "NICODEMUS TWP. HALL 1939". A sidewalk leads up to the front door, and there is a bench and trash can on the left side of the sidewalk. A few elm trees dot the grounds around the building. The long west and east walls have five huge paned windows, painted with dark red trim. Near the curb to the left of the sidewalk are three wayside signs on a wooden platform. The left wayside sign is titled "Main Street Boom and Beyond." On it, text overlays a black and white photo that looks west on Washington Avenue, captioned "Nicodemus, 1940". A black and white photo of a crowd of people in town is in the top right corner of the sign and is captioned "Nicodemus, 1885". Above this photo is the following text: "'About the year 1885, the country began to boom. Things looked promising. The colonists were able to raise farm products on their land and Nicodemus herself took on a new life.' - Lula Craig". There are two columns of main text. Between the two columns is small oval black and white photo of a man from the chest up wearing a black hat and a suit and tie. It is captioned "Zach Fletcher". The main text reads: "'Nicodemus was growing into a busy little town. New houses were being built by people coming in. Different enterprises began to originate. Conditions began to improve.' Nettie Craig Teacher, 1886 Main Street Nicodemus grew out of hard work and determination into a viable business district through the hands of former slaves. Zachary T. Fletcher became one of the town's most successful merchants after opening the first black business in 1878. A bank, law offices, two newspapers, a hotel, post office, several stores, and cafes also lined these streets. Abuzz with the prospect of securing a stop on one of the railroad lines to the expanding West, most merchants moved to other towns along the rail line, like nearby Bogue. Despite this setback a few black merchants persevered—Zach and Thomas Fletcher, Nicodemus' perennial capitalists, still operated the Saint Francis Hotel, the livery stable, and a farm implement business. Jenny Fletcher, Zach's wife, ran a millinery shop. Jake Riley operated another livery stable and G.M. Sayers ran a general store—demonstrating determination, resilience, and commitment to a land they loved." Below the main text, red lines point out different buildings in the main photo and describe each one. From left to right, they read: "Julia Lee's Cafe, 1920s. The cafe seated more than 30 patrons. The J.B. Crowley Grocery and General Merchandise operated here until the early 1900s. Blow In Cafe, 1949. Fredonia and Ray De Priest owned the Cafe in the 1950s. A team of mules moved this building into Nicodemus from the township. St. Francis Hotel, 1881. Owned by Zach T. Fletcher included the livery stable and coral. The Switzer family lived here since the 1930s. [The next buildings are on the right or north side of the street.] The First Baptist Church, 1907. The first church established in Nicodemus. The original 1880 building is within the 1907 church. The congregation continues to meet in a newer, adjacent building. S.G. Wilson General Store, 1880. Built of locally cut stone, the store was purchased and operated by G.M. Sayers starting in 1896. S.W. Green General Store, 1880. Became the Masonic Hall in 1893. Post Office. Closed in 1953. Priscilla Arts Club, 1940s. Previously this structure was the Cracker Box School moved here from Nicodemus Township. Nicodemus Township Hall, 1939. A depression-era project, it served as the community's center for social activities." A quote on the bottom right of the sign reads: "'A visitor here in 1918 found only two businesses in existence, one a restaurant with a two-by-four counter, a box turned upside down for a table, and the rest of the fixtures of the same type...No stores remained in 1950, and three years later the government withdrew its post office there. The black haven on the Solomon had become almost a ghost town.' Norman Crockett in The Black Towns". The middle wayside sign is titled "The Art of Enrichment." Most of the bottom half of the sign features a black and white photo of women in dresses in front of a car, captioned "Priscilla Arts Club members on an outing in the 1950s." To the right of these women is the text: "The Priscilla Arts Club disbanded in 1980. A series of Nicodemus groups have used this building since: the Nicodemus Historical Society; the Buffalo Soldiers Association; and Ernestine's Barbeque have all been based here. The Nicodemus Township Board owns and uses the building today." The main text on the top half of the sign reads: "'In the Priscilla Arts Club, women would work on individual quilt blocks with their names, then they'd assemble it into a quilt—they raffled it off.' Charlesetta Bates, Nicodemus descendant The Priscilla Arts Club, a women's club, met in members' homes from 1925 until they bought a former schoolhouse in the 1940s. The Arts Club not only provided social enjoyment and enrichment to the members, but they also contributed heavily to the community by hosting luncheons, making quilts and handwork, planning benefits, and holding gift exchanges. From church activities to the annual Homecoming (or Emancipation) Celebration, from community dinners to hunting, dances, along with 4-H and other youth clubs—these inter-related family, church, and other networks strengthened the social fabric of the community. Wood is scarce on the Kansas prairie. Frugal farmers got as much out of their buildings converting them for new uses as needed. Built in the 1910s this was the county's Lone Star or 'Crackerbox' School, located in the northwest part of Nicodemus Township. The Priscilla Arts Club bought the school after it closed in the 1940s. Members' husbands moved it six miles to this location." The third wayside sign is titled "Together We Gather." The left half of the sign shows a recent photo of the front of the Township Hall. On the bottom part of this photo is the text: "'One of the main things we did at (Nico) Demus was skate and dance at the Hall at Christmas. Oh man, old and young tried to skate.' Bernard Bates, Nicodemus descendant". The right half of the sign has two paragraphs of text and two photos below it. The text reads: "Construction of the Township Hall gave Nicodemus a community building with electricity and a stage. Twelve residents—black and white—quarried rock and built the Hall from 1937-39. People gathered here for weekly dances, community events, roller-skating, "pay parties," and elections. Community life has always been vital in Nicodemus. Churches and benevolent societies were active social forces from the 1870s. During the Great Depression, the federal government's Works Progress Administration (WPA) paid unemployed people to learn new skills. Nicodemus residents learned new trades while building their own community center." The left photo below this text is black and white and shows two men installing the Hall's front doors. Its caption reads: "Workers planed the door for the front of the Hall. They quarried magnesia limestone in neighboring Rooks County since it was stronger than local stone." The right photo below this text is in color and taken from the stage inside the Hall. It shows the backs of people performing for a crowd of people sitting in the main room. Its caption reads: "The Hall continues to host town meetings, special programs, and Homecoming gatherings. The National Park Service's Visitor Center here includes exhibits, a park store, and an audiovisual program." Inside the hall, the entrance vestibule has one closet on either side and two brown doors, each with a large pane of glass, that leads to the main room. This main room has old yellow-brown wooden floors and contains a variety of exhibits on the walls and in the middle. In the front left corner is a reception deck. In the front left corner is a gift shop. At the back of the room is a large stage. The floor in front of the stage has two rows of upholstered seats. On both sides of the stage is a doorway that leads to stairs that go up to the stage and exit doors.
You are no longer in the Nicodemus Township. You are in Wildhorse Township. The last of the three large groups that migrated west to Kansas to settle at Nicodemus arrived in spring of 1879. Earlier settlers homesteaded land in and around Nicodemus, compelling these newcomers to locate farther from town. Some of the homesteaders settled 4 miles south of here and called their area of Wildhorse Township Kebar after the local post office. This area had a cemetery and school but not a church. However, Reverend John Samuels who organized the group that settled here was an ordained Christian minister and held services in his home for family members. Rev. Samuels, his family, and others arrived in prairie schooners rather than by train from Leavenworth. Napue, Samuels, Craig, Sadler, Garland, Hall, and Travis are common family names of those who resided in this region that teemed with native grasses and natural springs. Area explorers can still view remnants of the Napue Homesteads, one directly across from the other on a hill 4 miles south on Road 360, south of the Samuel cemetery.
The visitor center is open year-round for five (5) days of the week. We are closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The visitor center is closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year Day. Hours are 9 am to 5 pm central time
Picnic areas are available at Nicodemus with picnic tables, sun shelters, grills, and water.
Photography and Art
Taking photos in Kansas? What's even out there? Nicodemus has plenty of landscapes, buildings, wildlife, and skies that you will want to capture with photos.
Park Ranger Programs
Discover the vibrant history and community of Nicodemus through ranger programs! Request a guided tour of the town, plan a field trip with your school or group, or keep an eye out for special events throughout the year.
Tours
Count: 2
Audio Tour of the Town
Learn about the living community of Nicodemus as you explore the oldest living African American settlement west of the Mississippi. The audio tour route is about .6 miles (1 kilometer). The route follows flat paved and dirt roads and can also be traveled by car, bicycle, and covered wagon. This is an extension of the self-guided Nicodemus Walking Tour brochure. Please be mindful of cars on the road and do not trespass on private property.
Nicodemus Township History Trail
This guided tour takes you through the greater township of Nicodemus to explore the areas homesteaded by the original settlers of the Nicodemus colony. The signs, provided by the Nicodemus Historical Society, inform you about the different areas that you encounter. Most of the roads in the township are narrow dirt roads so use caution when following the tour. NOTE: This tour covers miles of roads throughout the greater township. This is not the tour in town and should NOT be walked.
