Rock City, a conglomeration of more than 200 rocks located in an area the size of two football fields near Minneapolis in Ottawa County has been a part of the Kansas landscape for millions of years.
Located above the Solomon River Valley and within sight of the Smoky Hills, the area is unique because no other spot on the globe can lay claim to so many sandstone concretions. Several of the huge rocks are more than 30 feet tall and 25 feet in diameter, eclipsing the size of a typical Kansas home. This isn't something one would expect to see in a north-central Kansas pasture. Birds fly throughout the rock singing their way alongside at least 74 flowering plants that grow among the concretions.
Until the 1960s, the rocks were in private ownership and served as nothing more than an obstacle course for herds of grazing cattle in a Kansas pasture. Wildlife made Rock City home for centuries. Then, in modern times, other forms of wildlife -- humans -- visited Rock City for parties and decided to carve their names or initials in the rocks.
In the late 1960s, a local non-profit group purchased the portion of the pasture that included the rocks and converted it into a world-class tourist attraction.
Today, the area is neatly manicured and is visited by more than 10,000 tourists annually from throughout the world. It is not uncommon to see young people crawling inside several of the large rocks, some of which are hollow on the inside. On the day before our visit, a couple from Mexico City stopped by to tour the area.
This writer couldn’t help but wonder what the Native Americans and pioneers must have thought when the crossed they nearby hills to see these huge circular rocks. One explorer theorized the rocks were petrified eggs laid by thunderbirds; so, Rock City was an important landmark for early pioneers and hunters.
During the summer of 1807, explorer Zebulon Pike crossed the prairies ten miles north of this location, near what is now the town of Delphos. He must not have seen Rock City because it seems he would have taken note of the huge rocks.
Pike’s visit coincided with a typical hot, dry Kansas summer which prompted him to write in his journal that anyone would have to be crazy to consider settling in this part of the new nation.
George Washington Carver, who spent his formative years in Minneapolis, told of spending countless afternoons at Rock City hoping to learn more about its origin. Even the learned Carver was perplexed on this one.
A brochure, which is distributed by the Ottawa County Historical Society, explains the origin of Rock City in geologic terms.
“Geologists are now in general agreement that they (the rocks) were formed millions of years ago in Dakota Sandstone which had been deposited when areas of Kansas were covered by an Inland Sea. After the seawater receded, the bottom of the sea became land surface. Groundwaters containing dissolved calcium carbonate seeped through the porous sandstone, cementing the sand grains together. The spherical concretions slowly increased in size as additional layers of sand grains were cemented. Eventually, wind, rain and flood, lowering the land surface eroded the softer, surrounding sandstone. This left many of the cement-hard concretions exposed, while others are still partially embedded with only their rounded tops showing.”
It is a unique and quiet place to visit, which is a part of its lore. A promotional brochure accurately describes Rock City as “the silent sentinels on the vast Kansas plains, and only when you walk among the massive formations will you experience the magnitude of these gentle giants.”
Rock City is a geologic wonder like no other place in the world. And, it is believed that many more rocks of similar size lay below the surface of the ground. On a walking tour, we noted several that are peeking through the ground.
Also, it was good to take a drive through the town of Minneapolis, which saw its origin 152 years ago in 1866, with a city park that has few equals among Kansas cities of its size. The city’s population hovers at 2,000, ranking it as one of the few rural towns in Kansas that is not dealing with a decline in population. On this day, the town was making final plans for the Ottawa County Fair, an annual event that saw its start soon after the city’s founding.
And, the locals were talking about a local steakhouse that is open only three hours each week on Friday evening. Reservations are required, which makes one assume the food must be good; so we may return to check out this dining option.
Richard Shank is a retired AT&T manager, is employed in the healthcare industry and has farming interests in Saline County. Email him at firstname.lastname@example.org.