Bois d'Arc is an
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
in
Butler County, Kansas
Butler County (county code BU) is a county in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Kansas and is the largest county in the state by total area. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 67,380. Its county seat is El Dorado and its m ...
, United States.
It is located about six miles southeast of
Augusta in
Bloomington Township.
History
![Bois d'Arc, Kansas Post Office and Bridge](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Bois_d%27Arc%2C_Kansas_Post_Office_and_Bridge.jpg)
The name Bois d'Arc is taken from one of the names for a common tree in the area, the
Osage Orange
''Maclura pomifera'', commonly known as the Osage orange ( ), is a small deciduous tree or large shrub, native to the south-central United States. It typically grows about tall. The distinctive fruit, a multiple fruit, is roughly spherical, b ...
tree. The
Osage Indians
The Osage Nation ( ) ( Osage: ππ» ππΌπ°ππΌπ°Ν ('), "People of the Middle Waters") is a Midwestern Native American tribe of the Great Plains. The tribe developed in the Ohio and Mississippi river valleys around 700 BC alon ...
used these trees to make their bows.
The post office was established December 21, 1892, and was discontinued March 31, 1904.
The nearby
Little Walnut River Pratt Truss Bridge
The Little Walnut River Pratt Truss Bridge is a Pratt truss bridge constructed shortly after 1885, in Bois d'Arc, Kansas. It was constructed by the Kansas City Bridge and Iron Company as a carriage, horse and pedestrian bridge over the Little H ...
is on the National Register of Historic Places. According to the National Register of Historic Places registration form, the bridge crosses Little Walnut Creek, one mile below where Hickory Creek flows into it. This is on SW 157th Terrace between SW Commanche Road and SW Purity Springs Road.
The remains of a
grist mill
A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...
can be found upstream.
The name and spelling of the town was eventually corrupted to Boder.
Later, the spelling of the town name changed to "Bodarc" reflecting its present-day pronunciation.
Remaining structures in Bois d'Arc comprise the former post office, a farmhouse, the bridge, and the ruins of the grist mill.
Education
The community is served by
Bluestem USD 205
Bluestem USD 205 is a public unified school district headquartered in Leon, Kansas, United States. The district includes the communities of Leon, Latham, Beaumont, Bois d'Arc, Haverhill, Keighley, Wingate, and nearby rural areas.
Schools
The ...
public school district.
See also
*
**
Little Walnut River Pratt Truss Bridge
The Little Walnut River Pratt Truss Bridge is a Pratt truss bridge constructed shortly after 1885, in Bois d'Arc, Kansas. It was constructed by the Kansas City Bridge and Iron Company as a carriage, horse and pedestrian bridge over the Little H ...
References
Further reading
External links
Photos of Bois D'ArcHow a Kansas ghost town got its name KSN 3 TV
* Butler County maps
CurrentHistoric KDOT
{{Authority control
Unincorporated communities in Butler County, Kansas
Unincorporated communities in Kansas
Wichita, KS Metropolitan Statistical Area
Populated places established in 1892