Kansas Post Rock

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Click on Photos for larger view.

The above sign stands overlooking Wilson Dam, and states:

Between Lucas and Wilson, Kansas, sets Wilson Dam and Reservoir. It was built in the early 1960s. Because the land in this area is more hilly then land near Kensington, Debbie and her sister always enjoyed driving up and down the hills and enjoying the beautiful view.

"This is Post Rock Country

The miles and miles of stone fence posts seen in this area stand as a tribute to the ingenuity of early settlers, who solved their fencing problems on treeless plains by quarrying rock to use as posts. These stone fence posts have become a trademark of the Smoky Hill region of north-central Kansas. The fence posts were quarried from a bed-rock, appropriately called Fencepost limestone. This rock, a chalky limestone, is the uppermost bed of the Greenhorn formation of Cretaceous a geological period that existed between 60 million and 130 million years ago.

Fence post limestone found near the surface in this area, is a layer of rather uniform thickness (averaging about 8 or 9 inches) and when freshly quarried it is soft enough to be sawed, notched, drilled or shaped with hand tools. After prolonged exposure to the air, it hardens into a relatively weather-resistant rock."

To the right is a photo of limestone posts.

Debbie's grandfather built his home and barn from post-rock. Since this was before electric drills, he would measure the length needed, mark it on the in-ground rock, drill holes 8" apart and fill them with water. In the winter the water would freeze, expand, and split the rock. Each fence post weighs about 400 pounds.