Selma is an unincorporated community in Anderson County, Kansas, United States.[1] It is located approximately four miles north-northeast of Kincaid next to a railroad.
Selma, Kansas | |
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  Selma  Selma | |
| Coordinates: 38°08′05″N 95°07′24″W / 38.13472°N 95.12333°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Kansas |
| County | Anderson |
| Elevation | 1,063 ft (324 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (CST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| FIPS code | 20-63925 |
| GNIS ID | 477894[1] |
History
A post office was opened in Selma in 1887, and remained in operation until it was discontinued in 1956. At one time, Selma had a one room elementary school, two churches (Christian and Methodist), a blacksmith shop, a hotel, a general store, a drug store, a lumber yard, service station, and other small businesses. The town even had a physician for a short time. The town had two newspapers in its history, The Telephone (published April 1895-March 1896) and The Selma News-Herald (1965-1968).[2]
Selma was established at the junction of the Kansas, Nebraska and Dakota and the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroads in 1887. The town initially had two names, as the KN&D named its depot "Trilby," but the MKT named the location "Selma." The latter became the permanent name for the town (the KN&D discontinued its operations in 1934). The MKT maintained its depot until some time in the 1940s. Selma was once a livestock loading point on the Katy's Kansas City to Parsons line, which was purchased by the Union Pacific in 1988. The line is still active today.[citation needed]
Although the town lost its business district over the years, two symbols of the community remained: the Methodist Church and the School (which served as a community center after Selma Elementary School was closed and consolidated with the elementary school in Kincaid in 1964). The community had an active 4-H club and church organizations. The Methodist Church remained the central point for the community until 2001 when the declining number of parishioners forced a consolidation of the Selma church with its counterpart in nearby Kincaid. The consolidated congregation built a new church in Kincaid, and, with no need for separate facilities, the original church buildings in each community were torn down.[citation needed]
Today, only a handful of people live in Selma. The century-old school building, originally built in 1921, still stands.