The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-03-28
ROCK ROAD THERE.
Bourbon County Sets Pace for
Other Counties in Kansas.
so Miles BuiIt-5O Miles More
Asked by Petitions.

Fort Scott, Kan, March 2S.-One
day last week Mr. S. J. Delano, of
Fulton, who has been managing the
rock road petitions for the nine mile
stretch north of Fort Scott to extend
the present rock road north to the
Linn county line. completed the work
of securing so per cent of the land
and so per cent Of the land owners
and it is now only a matter of formal
ity of having the county commission
ers approve the petition and the next
step will be the contract for the rock
road
The rock road petition southwest of
Fort Scott through Pawnee to the
Crawford county line north of Girard
had been granted by the county COM
missioners several weeks ago. This
completes the rock road across the
county along the proposed Jefferson
highway. With the five miles already
built on each side of Fort Scott and
the contracts for the balance of the
twenty miles to be let soon, inSureS
Bourbon county its part of the big
highway in the shortest time of any
county in Kansas and 80 far as known
any of the counties in any of the
eleven states through which the JEFF
ferson highway passes.
Bourbon county now has fifty miles
of rock road already built extending
in eight directions from Fort Scott.
There are now about fifty miles of
rock road petitions under the Hodges
law either granted or assured which
will give that county 100 miles of rock
roads. This will stand as the high
mark of any county in Kansas in the
matter of rock roads.
How and Why 1t Was Done.
Education. along the lines of the
So
chants is the one big element in the
success of this record for good roads.
About ten years ago a special act of
the Kansas legislature made Fort
Scott and Scott township a special
road district and made the mayor and
township trustee the road commission
to carry out the terms of the law. 1t
levied a one mill tax which produced
$4,000 each year and this fund was
to be expended in building rock roads
line in eight directions. Last year the
work was completed, giving Fort
Scott and Scott township fifty miles
of rock roads and streets.
At the same time the people of Fort
Scott built at a cost of about $462,-
10000 Is miles of brick paved streets
which added to the so miles of rock
roads gave the people of that town and
county a system of IS miles of hard
roads and streets. Every farmer COM
ing into Fort Scott had a chance to
see the difference between rock roads
lesson and the practical demonstra-
ton every time they went TO Fort
Scott.
Every farmer who lived on the
rock road and helped to pay the extra
tax found that the road was worth
many times what it cost. He became
booster for rock roads. He told his
neighbors who lived on mud roads
what a benefit and what a saving the
rock roads were over mud roads.
The good roads boosters decided last
November to extend the rock roads
beyond the boundary lines of Scott
township. The socalled Hodges law
was their only hope. At first it look
ed hard. The farmers baked for a
time at themselves and the township
the matter was fully understood and
the tax was spread out over a district
four miles wide it was found that $1.00
per acre would meet the expense and
they could have ten years in which to
pay the tax or only 10 cents per acre
for ten years.
Average Cost of Rock Roads.
The average cost of the rock roads
in Pourbon county, and they are
splendid macadam roads, was $3.720
per mile. The township pays $50 of
the cost. And in some counties the
build all of the culverts and bridges.
I'm other counties the commissioners
pay 25fc of the cost out of the gem
eral funds. In a district four miles
wide there are 1850 acres and if the
township pays 25ct or SS53.0O and the
land s1.00 per acre it will make a
fund of S2.413 or practically enough
to build the rock road.
The campaign for rock roads in
Rourbon county has been enthusiasts
tically supported by the two daily
newspapers all of the merchants and
business men. by all of the farmers
now on rock roads and with numerous
meetings and general discussions the
people all over the county have learn
ed the value of rock roads and are
ready to build them. A group of far
mers living out from Fort Scott cir
culated petitions recently for six
miles of rock road and completed it
I'm just two days.
Bourbon county should be an ex-
ample and an inspiration to all other
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