Gems of Jewell County
Queen Anne Style Home
This home, on the National Registry of Historic Places, features a turret tower, wraparound and pillared porch, Palladian windows, and patterned gables. Built by O.W. Francis in 1909, it rests just north of Burr Oak and is picturesque against the Jewell County countryside. It may be drive-by only, but it’s worth swinging by to witness this beautiful architectural feat.
Ft. Jewell Historical Marker
In 1870, Native Americans killed three men along the Solomon River. Not long after, a fort of four-feet thick, seven-feet high walls was erected. The Fort was abandoned in the fall of 1870 and the marker sits at the southwest corner of Maag Memorial Park in Downtown Jewell.
Robbery Alarm
This stained glass, 1930’s-era robbery alarm is no longer in use. Resting on the south side of Guaranty State Bank in Jewell and attached to the bank vault, it would sound, if it wasn’t disarmed, before the vault door opened.
Architectural Features/Limestone
Original YMCA Building: This building now operates as a thrift store and is owned by the City of Mankato
First National Bank: This building has served many different functions since its completion in 1988. It represents the Richardsonian revival style and operated as everything from a bank to a chiropractic clinic.
White Rock Creek Scenic Back Road
This route takes you on a tour of some of the most beautiful scenery of Jewell County and Kansas at large. Starting on Highway 36, just north of Formoso, go 5 miles north on 280 Rd. to the ghost town of Lovewell, then 2 miles west on V Rd, then 4 miles north on 260 Rd, ½ west on Z Rd, then ¼ north on, ending in Webber. Along this trip you’ll see the hills south of White Rock Creek, Lower Courtland Canal, visit the former town of Lovewell, then Lovewell Lake, where you will pass the reservoir before reaching Webber. As time allows, continue west from Webber to K-14, and then take your pick of any southwest routes towards Burr Oak, completing your tour with farmland and wooded and hilly countryscapes.
Canals
While most of the Kansas Bostwick Irrigation District’s canals are within Republic County, Jewell County can lay claim to a few square miles of irrigated land. The canals of Jewell and Republic county are part of a Bureau of Reclamation project that began in 1931 for irrigation and flood control. Construction was completed in 1968 and though many of the original canals have been buried, they are a mainstay of everyday life and economic stability in eastern Jewell County and very western Republic County.
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