Best small town in KS? Why? (Wichita, Kansas City: houses, college, live in)

[thriftylefty]

Originally Posted by AnywhereElse

I recently saw a map of crimes for Pittsburg and I was shocked! Morning Sun - Pittsburg, KS - Morning Sun I don't care for southeast Kansas at all. I have lived in Manhattan, Junction City, Salina, Wilson and here, Fort Scott. I have a strong preference for I-70 north.

I think that area in Southeast Kansas near the Missouri border suffers from Missouri's reputation a the National Meth Capital ten years running

[MOKAN]

Originally Posted by AnywhereElse

I recently saw a map of crimes for Pittsburg and I was shocked! Morning Sun - Pittsburg, KS - Morning Sun I don't care for southeast Kansas at all. I have lived in Manhattan, Junction City, Salina, Wilson and here, Fort Scott. I have a strong preference for I-70 north.

Is it just shocking to see an all inclusive map of crime laid out before you or is Pittsburg's crime really worse than, say, Emporia, a similar sized university town?

How is I-70 north any better?

[AnywhereElse]

I like I-70 north because of personal preferences like work ethic, pride of ownership in one's possessions, drug enforcement, quality of education, etc. We originally were going to move to Pittsburg and until we actually arrived there. We stayed in Emporia a couple of months several years ago and it was enough like Pittsburg for us not to want to be there. I also prefer the differences in the landscape.

[geekychick]

Derby! Close to Wichita. Has everything you need... GREAT SCHOOLS, PARKS, PEOPLE.

Small enough to meet people big enough to not see them all the time.

VOTED BY FAMILY CIRCLE 10 BEST TOWNS FOR FAMILIES

10 Best Towns for Families: Cedar Park, TX, and Derby, KS

[thecowgurl]

Originally Posted by thriftylefty

IMO A small town in Kansas that would be considered desirable is interdependent on towns in a four or five county area. I remember hearing that Kansas counties are spaced by the distance it took a man on a horse to ride in a day. Of course that could just be an anecdote but there are a lot of counties in Kansas. This is my top ten things that make a small town in Kansas the best.

A good small town in Kansas would :
1. Be under 20,000 in population
2. have a hospital and a University
3. Balanced economy between,business, Light industry and agriculture
4. Have at least one multinational type employer
5. should be under or around two hours from a major airport and a city larger than 50,000
5. at least one school athletic team who are; league, regional , state or national champs every year
6. should have a Public Library, municipal pool, auditorium or Civic center
7. more than one shopping district
8. Should have an Arts Council
9. Should have a Historic Museum
10.Should be located near at least one major interstate

Check Ottawa Kansas. http://www.city-data.com/city/Ottawa-Kansas.html

[j_k_k]

Council Grove is a nice small town with some history, civic spirit and a very pleasant feel. Plus, steaks at the Hays House. I love Chase County but to live, I'd probably pick Council Grove over Strong City.

[malarkey]

Originally Posted by geekychick

VOTED BY FAMILY CIRCLE 10 BEST TOWNS FOR FAMILIES

10 Best Towns for Families: Cedar Park, TX, and Derby, KS

From the article: "Cedar Park is a haven for families."

Well yes, it is. I live there now, and let me just inject this: it is NOT a haven for single people! Boooooooring!

[itsMeFred]

It would seem my idea of "small town" is considerably smaller than everyone else's. lol

[itsMeFred]

Laura Ingalls Wilder is from south of Independence and this is the location from her book and the TV series. On the TV show, when the family was going to the "big town", it was Independence, KS.

Quick FYI: The original TV series, that is, the one from 70-something to the early 80s, was "located" in western Minnesota. The area of "On the Banks of Plum Creek." Mankato, MN was their Big Town.
However, there was a Disney miniseries a few years back that was the book Little House on the Prairie that did indeed take place south of Independence. Is that maybe what you're thinking of?

Laura Ingalls Wilder was originally from Wisconsin (Little House in the Big Woods), moved to Kansas briefly where Pa had hopes of being there when homesteading opened up but were instead kicked out for squatting. If I'm not mistaken they were there for approximately one year.

They then moved up to Minnesota (On the Banks of Plum Creek) and then out to DeSmet, in south eastern South Dakota where the next five books took place. (By the Shores of Silver Lake, Little Town on the Prairie, The Long Winter, These Happy Golden Years and The First Four Years).

[okcali]

I live in Bartlesville, and if I had to move to southeast KS, I would most likely choose Independence, because it shows diversity, opposing from other SE KS towns.