History & Hauntings of Atchison, KS

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This was the first Saturday in a long time that we slept in as we were not looking at a three plus hour drive to wherever we want to go. Instead this destination was less than an hour away and promised to hold a trove of historical and the occasional haunted experience. Atchison, KS was originally plotted in July 1854 by men from Missouri who named it after a well known Missouri senator, David Rice Atchison.
The most informative way to see and learn about the history of Atchison is to stop by the Santa Fe Depot building which also is home to the Chamber of Commerce, Visitors Center, and the Historical Society Museum. The museum has displays ranging from the days that Native Americans called the area home to how the Missouri River helped bring people and commerce to the town of Atchison. The Historic Trolley Tour also departs from the museum entrance and offers an up close view to some of the more interesting buildings with historical significance and the occasional haunted houses that Atchison is also known for.
One of the first locations the trolley will drive by is Jackson Park, where a young girl named Molly supposedly ended her own life after her boyfriend broke up with her. According to the guide, there is a legend that if you are in the area on a moonlit night that you can hear the girl screaming. True or not, I do not know but it helps add some interesting aspect to the park.
Most of the tour is based in history but the detours into the haunted side of the town add an amusing sidetrack while you are there. One of the buildings that you will experience is the Glick Mansion B & B. The Glick Mansion was built in 1873 for the 9th governor of Kansas, George W. Glick.
The Evah Cray Historical Home Museum sits at 805 N. 5th St. and is a glorious 25-room mansion that was built in 1882. At one corner is a three-story caste like tower that was built for the owners (at the time) wife who had fallen in love with Scottish castles during a visit there.
Another structure was the B. P. Waggener Home at 819 N. 4th St. that was built in 1884-1885. Unusual to this house is the number of balconies that number at least two on each side of the building. Perched atop the home are a couple of gothic creatures that were explained to us to be griffins, but we did not think they resembles griffins at all, more like gargoyles or even demonic figures.
Mount St. Scholastica Monastery at 801 S. 8th St. is the current home was completed sometime around 1901. Unfortunately I could not get a shot of it due to trees obscuring the view from the trolley.
Atchison is also home to the St. Benedict’s Abbey Church located at 1020 N. 2nd St. was designed by a student of Frank Lloyd Wright and finished in 1957. According to the guide the Abbey is home to between forty to sixty monks that teach classes at the Benedictine College and some are in South America doing mission work.
St. Benedict’s Parish Church which sits at 1001 N. 2nd St., is an example of Romanesque style that construction began on 1865 and was finally completed in 1905 when work on the west tower was finished. Jacques Bueller was hired in 1906 and painted 21 panel pictures and frescoed the church.
There is a famous structure located in Atchison that has been the subject of many articles and segments on television shows. The house itself is nothing special to look at and looks as though maintenance has been lacking over the last few years or so. The stories that have emanated from this place far exceed the unassuming appearance. The Sallie House is one of the most haunted houses in Kansas. I have never been there before but had seen the shows and read a few article about the occurrences that have been reported from residences of the property. All I can say for sure is that in the two minutes we sat in front of the building we did not see anything peering from the windows or mists moving through the house. It was, however, interesting to finally see the house I had heard so much about.
After the trolley pulled back into the parking lot we could hear thunder rolling off to the west but Connor still wanted to walk through the train museum which offers a 12” gauge train for people to ride for a small donation. Train cars are open to the public during weekends throughout the summer months.
At last it was time for lunch so we returned to Jackson Park and found an available picnic table and everyone had their sandwiches and I had my salad. A trail ran just behind where we sat, a bridge leading it around a bend. Across the gravel road where we parked a fence lined with barbed wire with the red, white, and blue signs indicating that the property beyond the fence belongs to the United States government. Padlocked access panels that lead under mounds of earth made me curious, just not enough to cross the fence.
One of the last places we only had time to drive by was the birthplace of Amelia Earhart.
With that the drops of rain were slowly beginning to fall upon the leaves and it was time to call an end to the day and head home.

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