During the early 1800s, thousands of caravans traveled the Santa Fe Trail, the main trade route across the plains.
In southeast Douglas County, worn ruts left by covered wagons still remain in a field of tall prairie grass about 3 miles east of Baldwin.
But a few hundred feet away, new houses are being built, destroying the once-pristine view, said Katie Armitage, a Lawrence historian who gives a yearly tour of the trail route in Douglas County.
"What really shocked me was to look up and not far from the top of the hill was a brand new house just sitting there," she said. "It just totally changed the atmosphere of the vista where you could once see these huge wagon trains filled with raw (or) manufactured goods. It takes more imagination to create that image in your mind with that house there."
New development is encroaching several historic places around Baldwin, where the population has grown 15 percent during the last decade. The U.S. Census Bureau in 2000 reported the population was 3,400 compared to 2,961 in 1990.
Down the road from the 15-acre Santa Fe Trail prairie preserve is the Battle of Black Jack historic site, where abolitionist John Brown's men fought in 1856. The battle is considered the first regular battle between Free State and pro-slavery forces. Both historic park areas are owned by Douglas County.
East of the battle site is the Black Jack Cemetery. Nearby, red flags dot the landscape outlining areas where new houses soon will be.
Little protection for scenery
Keith Dabney, the county's director of zoning and codes, said the nearby houses are being built under the county's five-acre exemption rule, which means the houses need not be platted. Stephens Real Estate, Baldwin, is developing the area. To prevent construction so close to historic places, he said the county's codes would need to be modified.
County commissioner Charles Jones said he would like to eliminate the five-acre exemption because it creates urban sprawl and bad planning in rural areas. He said he's unsure if revised county codes could protect historic sites, but it's an issue worth exploring.
"Our heritage is a tremendous asset and we sprawl all over it," he said.
Jones said one of the goal's of ECO2, the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce planning panel, is to preserve the county's historic open spaces, which can be done by purchasing land or easements.
Without the right planning tools in place, said Ramon Powers, executive director of Kansas State Historical Society, there's little protection offered for historic places. He said the state cannot do anything unless the sites are placed on the Kansas Register of Historic Places.
"These are really great resources that we have and we'd like to promote people coming to these sites like the ruts along the Santa Fe Trail or the one of the first important battles in Kansas," he said. "Yet, instead of having any sense of the place, all you see is the development of tract housing."
Lost history
It's a story that Hal Jackson, president of the national Santa Fe Trail Assn. and co-author of a new book, "Following the Santa Fe Trail," has heard dozens of times. Across the country, he said remains of the trail have been plowed under on private land, and cellular communications towers are being placed along the trail in New Mexico. He said he heard about the development occurring near Baldwin's trail when he visited Kansas a few months ago.
"In eastern Kansas, there are very few ruts and that one is really clear," he said.
Brenda Day, curator at Baker University's Old Castle Museum, said she fears some of the county's history may be lost unless more concerned residents step forward. She said she is trying to get the Battle of Black Jack site placed on the Civil War Trust's list of most-endangered battlefields.
"These sites are endangered and they need to be protected for generations to come," she said.
Even when the protection is offered, it doesn't always help.
In Baldwin, a new McDonald's restaurant, a car wash and gas station soon will be built next to the Bishop William Quayle house, which has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1995. Quayle was Baker's first graduate to become one of the university's presidents. On display at Baker is a gift from his estate, the Quayle Rare Bible Collection, that includes a leaf from the Gutenberg Bible.
Last month, the city council decided there was no feasible alternative to the new commercial construction. The rest of U.S. Highway 56 is zoned commercial except for this small section which is zoned residential. The property owner, Frank Foye, Baldwin, has taken measures to minimize harm to the historic property. But the council's approval will allow new commerce within 500 feet of the historic house.
Lori Sieber, who bought the house with her husband, John, in 1999, said she is surprised the corner of County Road 1055 and U.S. Highway 56 is being developed so quickly. She said she and her husband are concerned about the trash, lighting and noise the new businesses could create. She said Foye has talked with them about placing a privacy fence and additional landscaping to separate the house from the businesses.
"I guess I don't think there's any way around it," she said. "There will be some loss of the historic atmosphere around our place. I wouldn't have moved here if there wasn't some type of charm about it."
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