Gnadenau was a communal village of German-speaking Mennonite immigrants from Russia in Marion County, Kansas, United States. It is currently a

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

that was located approximately southeast of Hillsboro. No buildings remain at this former community site. The Gnadenau Cemetery still exists.

History

Early history

For many

millennia A millennium () is a period of one thousand years, one hundred decades, or ten centuries, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting p ...

, the

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were inhabited by

nomadic Nomads are communities without fixed habitation who regularly move to and from areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the population of nomadic pa ...

Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...

claimed ownership of large parts of

. In 1762, after the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

, France secretly ceded

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Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, per the Treaty of Fontainebleau.

19th century

In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France. In 1803, most of the land for modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile

Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase () was the acquisition of the Louisiana (New France), territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. This consisted of most of the land in the Mississippi River#Watershed, Mississipp ...

for 2.83 cents per

acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...

. In 1854, the

Kansas Territory The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Slave and ...

was organized, then in 1861

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

became the 34th

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

. In 1855, Marion County was established within the

, which included the land for modern day Gnadenau. In 1874, the German-speaking Mennonites of the Krimmer Mennonite Brethren of Annefeld near

Simferopol Simferopol ( ), also known as Aqmescit, is the second-largest city on the Crimea, Crimean Peninsula. The city, along with the rest of Crimea, is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine, but controlled by Russia. It is considered the cap ...

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decided to relocate in the United States because Russia removed their exemption from military service. In August, the group arrived at the site and named it Gnadenau, meaning ''Meadow of Grace'' or ''Grace Meadow''.''Settlement of the Krimmer Mennonite Brethren at Gnadenau, Marion County''; Alberta Pantle; Kansas Historical Quarterly; Vol. 13, No. 5; pages 259-285; February 1945.
/ref> Unlike the majority of

Mennonite Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...

s, this body adopted ''trine forward immersion'' as the mode of

baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

. In 1879, the beginning of the demise of the village occurred when the Marion and McPherson Railway Company built a railway north of village and established the nearby town of Hillsboro.

21st century

No buildings presently exist in Gnadenau; it is therefore considered a ghost town. A Gnadenau Village Memorial monument still exists.

Geography

Gnadenau was located at (38.326226, -97.180523), along 175th Street between Jade Road and Kanza Road in Marion County. Most residents lived on the north side of 175th Street. A descriptive monument for the Gnadenau Village currently stands on the south side of 175th Street, and the Gnadenau Cemetery is immediately south of it.

Area attractions

* Mennonite Settlement Museums, 501 South Ash Street, Hillsboro, main museum on Memorial Drive (one block west). ** Jacob Friesen Flouring Wind Mill is a detailed replica of the 1876 mill that stood in Gnadenau.

History

Early history

19th century

21st century

Geography

Area attractions

See also

References

Further reading

External links