By Wayne Kruse
The Downtown Marysville Historic District was officially listed on the Register of Historic Kansas Places on Saturday, June 27, following action by the Kansas Historic Sites Board of Review.
The designation recognizes the historic character and architectural integrity of Marysville’s downtown district.
Brenda Spencer, owner of Spencer Preservation, prepared the nomination and presented it to the Kansas Historic Sites Board of Review.
“Downtown Marysville tells the story of how transportation, commerce, agriculture and community life shaped this town,” Spencer said. “It is a strong district because so many of those pieces are still visible today.”
The Downtown Marysville Historic District includes portions of Broadway, Center and Elm streets. The district generally stretches from Fifth to 11th streets along Broadway, from Sixth to Ninth streets on the north side of Center Street, and from Eighth to 10th streets on both sides of Elm Street.
According to Spencer, Marysville was already well developed by the time the first Sanborn map was created in 1885. Buildings in the district span 167 years, from the Pony Express Barn, built in 1859, to recent downtown construction.
The district includes 86 resources. Seven already were listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Of the remaining resources, 53 are contributing buildings, meaning they retain enough historic character to help tell the story of the district.
Spencer said one of Marysville’s strengths is the way downtown reflects multiple eras of development. Nearly one-third of the district’s buildings were built before 1900, and nearly half were built from 1900 to 1930.
“The district is not just one building or one block,” Spencer said. “It is a collection of buildings, streets and patterns that show how Marysville grew and how downtown remained the center of community life.”
Transportation played a major role in shaping the district. U.S. 36 and U.S. 77 intersect in downtown Marysville, and the railroad once crossed both Broadway and Center Street at Seventh Street. Spencer noted that downtown’s brick streets, installed from 1919 to 1922, remain an important historic feature.
Spencer said downtown’s strength is in the variety of historic places that still work together.
That includes the Koester Block, the former agricultural and auto-related buildings in the 500 block of Broadway, former department stores, longtime banks, the post office and the building that houses the Marysville Advocate. It also includes the storefront details from Victorian ornamentation to early 20th-century brickwork.
“Downtown is still the heart of Marysville,” Spencer said. “Historic districts are strongest when they are not frozen in time, but continue to serve the community.”
The Kansas listing is an important step in recognizing downtown Marysville’s historic significance.
The nomination was led by OneMarysville in partnership with the City of Marysville and supported through a Historic Preservation Fund grant administered by the Kansas State Historic Preservation Office. The grant funded Spencer Preservation’s work to research, document and prepare the nomination, with assistance from the Marshall County Historical Society, local property owners, volunteers and community members.
The nomination will now move forward for consideration by the National Park Service for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
For more information about the historic district, contact the OneMarysville office at 785-562-3101.
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