National Register of Historic Places

Silkville

Williamsburg, Franklin County, Kansas
Listed
December 15, 1972
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
72000504

About this property

Silkville is a ghost town in Williamsburg Township, Franklin County, Kansas, United States. It was located approximately two miles southwest of Williamsburg at the intersection of U.S. 50 highway and Arkansas Road. The settlement was founded in the late 1800s by a Frenchman named Ernest de Boissière, who believed in Fourierian utopian socialism. Silkville was a sericulture-based settlement, and remuneration was based what each settler could produce. Silkville's silk was praised at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876, but loss of settlers and difficulty in selling the silk resulted in the settlement's collapse. Only a few buildings remain.

Location

Williamsburg, Franklin County, Kansas
38.44039, -95.48713

Categories

INDUSTRYEXPLORATION/SETTLEMENTARCHITECTURESOCIAL HISTORY
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Overview
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The Land
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Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
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Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
The old books, county histories and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Spotlight
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Points of Interest
The most significant historic sites and landmarks near the location, and why they matter.
Timeline
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Nearby Historic Sites

Middle Creek Tributary Bridge
Industrial
7 mi
Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Pratt Truss Bridge
Industrial
9.2 mi
Tipton, Samuel J., House
Industrial
10.2 mi
Lyndon Carnegie Library
Industrial
15.7 mi
Osage County Courthouse
Industrial
15.8 mi

Questions about this property

When was Silkville listed on the National Register?

Silkville was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 15, 1972.

What type of historic resource is Silkville?

Silkville is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Silkville?

The period of significance for Silkville is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Silkville?

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