Marysville, Kansas
November 1, 2022
I found the above video on YouTube. After I watched it, I thought about how those folks drove BY Preston, not through Preston. And how lucky I am to have the time to drive into communities like Preston. Driving by you would get the impression that Preston is just another small rural community with grain elevators. Driving into it, I saw a town that is struggling, that lost its school, that has no post office or bank and whose one main street has only empty buildings. It has dirt roads and too many houses that are abandoned.
I was very fortunate to meet a man who was driving through town that had spent several grade school years growing up in Preston -- when there were schools here. Im guessing that would have been 50-60 years ago. He said at that time it was a vibrant community with a couple of banks, a grade school and a middle/high school, a couple of restaurants, a hardware store and a post office. He said the schools closed in the late 1960s and were consolidated into schools ten miles way. He was saddened by how the town is dying.
I continue to be hit hard emotionally when I see towns like Preston. I feel for the folks still there because "it ain't what it used to be." There is still some spirit there, but it must be harder and harder to see what used to be fading away.
Preston is a city in Pratt County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 115.
History
19th century
In 1887, the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway built a main line from Herington through Preston to Pratt. In 1888, this line was extended to Liberal. Later, it was extended to Tucumcari, New Mexico and El Paso, Texas. It foreclosed in 1891 and taken over by Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway, which shut down in 1980 and reorganized as Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas Railroad, merged in 1988 with Missouri Pacific Railroad, merged in 1997 with Union Pacific Railroad. Most locals still refer to this railroad as the "Rock Island".
Preston was founded in 1887. Preston had a post office from 1887 until 1990.
Redevelopment
Although the city has been considered to be dying, the city is being revitalized. An Arizona undertaker has announced to build a crematorium in the city, helping to revive business there. The city is being revitalized. A mortuary is currently open; and during 2011 a fabric store, a used car lot, a diner, and a convenience store are scheduled to open. [There is no sign of any of this today.]
Demographics
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 158 people, 67 households, and 43 families residing in the city. The population density was 336.2 inhabitants per square mile (129.8/km2). There were 82 housing units at an average density of 174.5 per square mile (67.4/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 98.1% White, 1.3% African American, and 0.6% Native American.
There were 67 households, of which 26.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.8% were married couples living together, 13.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.8% were non-families. 29.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.95.
The median age in the city was 40.5 years. 25.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 18.3% were from 25 to 44; 32.3% were from 45 to 64; and 15.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.4% male and 50.6% female.
Education
The community is served by Pratt USD 382 public school district.
Preston High School was closed through school unification. The Preston High School mascot was Wildcats..
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