Show TOPEKAS VANQUISHED RIVAL Indianoln and Its Sad History + Kansas Kan-sas Pacific Caused Its Downfall that There are few people who know > had avery less than forty years ago Topeka very active rival In Indlnnon I a flourishing flour-ishing village wlfleh has since bcen almost al-most entirely obliterated from thC face fast of the earth A single building going to decay and used as a shelter for hogs and horses Is < t U that I Is = left There are a few old citizens ot Shaw stories of neo county who can recount this flourishing little town but It Is believed of the lieved that there aro only two actual residents of IndUinola before the and resi clog ot the war still alive Indlanola was dents of this county of the situated about a halfmile west reform school near the bank of Soldier of the town was creek In fact part In Jack on tho east bank of the creeleIn son county when the county line was was the Kansas river The town the founded lu 1854 and was about artlcular same age as Topeka In one j > Indlanola had the advantage of Topeka road the Government peka It was on from Fort Lcavenworlh to Fort Riley which was also the stage road Tho road heavy trade on the military missed Jppckn entirely and consequently conse-quently Indlanola was a very active place while Topeka wati considered nonprpgressivo and Inactive I Topeka and Indlanola was u freeState center was a proski very town and was consequently con-sequently a favored spot with the Government Gov-ernment In the 60s While Indlanola was decidedly pro slavery in the Kerrtlment ot Its citizens there were few open ruptures between the proslavery and freeState settlers who were numerous In the vicinity of the village The proslavery people belonged be-longed to the better class There Is astor a-stor of a clash between the two factions fac-tions in 1856 which has come down with startling variations In his book on > John Brown Richard Hinton recounts re-counts the story of open warfare in which several periple lost their lives and which resulted in the complete rout of the proslavery forces followed by the destruction the hotel in which tho prosin vcr > men were barricaded But historians sometimes err and Mr Hinton l came wide of the mark of accuracy ac-curacy In reality not a gun was fired during the socalled battle and not a man was hurt though there Were a few who were pretty badly frightened The hotel which still stands ixs a monument monu-ment to the prosperity of Indlanola was built lii 1860 As late us January 3SGS a bib public ball was held In this hall It was 1 given by the Masons and the members of the Legislature which was In session In Topeka were especially espe-cially invited and a large number of them attended the dance This was really tho last large social event In the towir of Indlanola for Its sun was already al-ready low in the horizon Indlanola was sacrificed on the altar of the Kansas Pacific railroad and Topeka To-peka started the fire In 1865 the Kansas Kan-sas Pacific railroad was surveyed and the survey mlsSed Topeka but went through Indiunohu It was then planned that the railroad should not follow the bend of the Kansas river to reach Topeka To-peka but mn straight across the country coun-try from Calhoun Bluffs The people of Imllaiiola were naturally delighted and their enthusiasm was heightened when a contractor arrived and gave the contract to the citizens for cutting the ties for the new road There was plenty plen-ty of timber along Soldier creek and the people of the town and neighborhood neighbor-hood went to work with a will The right of way had be ° n secured and the cutting of the ties was done under the supervision of a man named Jones one ot the railroad contractors The ties were cut and delivered but when pay day came Mr Jones was not to be found And then tho people heard that Topeka had taken thplr railroad and it was not long until now grade slakes were driven leaving Indianola far to the north The people hitched up to their wagons and hauled the ties home and built corn cribs of them and their dream of greatness was over They said that Topeka had more money than they did and made the railroad promoters pro-moters an offer they could not refuse but no matter how It was done the Kansas Pacific railroad was built and itdid l pass through Topeka and missed Indlanola three miles When the rall 1 road i I had boon completed and trains wero running the people slmply took their town and moved to Topeka The hotel was top large to move and so It still stands a crumbling monument to the town that was Topeka State Cap ital |