North Topeka, Kansas


North Topeka, Kansas is an area of Topeka, Kansas. Although not officially a city, it is treated like one by many of its residents, and experiences relatively low crime rates compared to the rest of Topeka. Unlike most of the City of Topeka, North Topeka is served primarily by the Seaman USD 345 School District. The City of Topeka was actually incorporated in North Topeka.

Historic North Topeka

William Curtis and Louis Laurent laid out a town in 1865 that they called Eugene. Less than a year later, on New Year's Day, what is now North Topeka welcomed the first train to town. The advent of the railroad assured that this area would for much of the 19th century be the industrial heart of the Kansas capital.
In April 1867, southside Topeka annexed Eugene, the first such city expansion. At the time more evenly matched in population and economy, north and south played a tug-of-war for industry and commerce during the remainder of the 1800s. In 1903, North Topeka suffered the devastating effects of a major flood. However, many fine buildings dating from that period remain, and, when restored, will make North Topeka a showplace of Victorian-era commercial and residential architecture.

Landmarks of North Topeka include