When a town dies, there is no funeral.
But at Saratoga's Summit Hill Cemetery, the wild Iris' still bloom. And perhaps, on occasion, someone remembers a loved one with flowers on Memorial Day.
I ventured here on a cold and rainy day, stopping by the Carter Barker home. His home is situated in where a platted town should be - but nothing remains of Saratoga, except for the 10-acre cemetery.
By the size of the cemetery, they had plans for a big community. But when Saratoga lost the county seat to Pratt, located just a few miles to the west, the town disappeared. I'll have a story in Sunday's Hutch News about the town and its death.
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Dorotha Giannangelo has written five books on Pratt County history. She is a great source of information on Saratoga. |
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Besides the cemetery, there are a few brick remains of the school atop this hill by the trees. |
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Some of the things found around Saratoga that are on display at the Pratt County Museum. |
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Here's a rendition of the old flour mill. |
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Another pictorial shows the school. |
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Residents set aside 10 acres for the cemetery. They definitely expected to get the county seat honor.s Here's what it would have looked like. A quarter of the cemetery was designated for the town's African American settlers. |
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Some of the graves are cracked. Some have been stolen over the years. |
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The cemetery's condition isn't great. But a man named Price Gibbons set up a fund for upkeep before he died a few years ago. |
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The stone for Jane Martin rests against a tree. |
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I believe her name was Lizzie Eisenhour. |
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One of the few graves still standing - His name was Miles. |
Sad to see the condition of so many cemeteries in rural areas. Kansas does have a law that allows townships to levee a property for the upkeep of cemeteries.
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