Boston, Kansas

[W. Gray]

Does anyone have or know of any photos that are or might be related to the defunct town of Boston, Kansas?

[frawin]

Waldo, let me check the Hottinger Collection, there could be one/some in it. There are pictures and picture postcards of lots of Kansas towns in it.

[frawin]

Waldo, if they combine Elk and Chautauqua Counties, I think they should rename it Howard County.

[W. Gray]

Frank, I would appreciate that.

The town went out in 1879 so there probably is not a post card.

[W. Gray]

If there were ever an effort to combine Elk and Chautauqua, there would naturally be a major spat as to where the county seat should be located--Sedan or Howard.

I always thought a new town of Boston should be reconstituted and located where it originally was and be the county seat of a new Howard County.  Boston was just short of being in the geographical center of the old Howard County. A new town would be impractical, of course.

There are some counties in the US that have two county seats. Each serves half the geographic population. I dont know how this system works but it seems to occur in the south.

There are also some counties that have the only an office of the county clerk in the county seat and the main courthouse is located several miles away in another city that is not the county seat.

Right after Elk County came into being on June 1, 1875, some fellow in Union Centre offered $1,000, I think, to Elk County if it would locate the courthouse in that town. Howard's status as the county seat would not have been changed.

If Elk and Chautauqua were ever to combine, perhaps there could be two county seats but then that would seem to defeat the purpose of combining.

Counties in Kansas are sort of like post offices. There are too many of them for efficient operation.