When driving through southeastern Kansas there's a good chance you'll cross the Neosho River. And because of its 460 mile length and it winding path, you may see the Neosho again and again. One of the most prosperous cities in Woodson County, also the first county seat, was the town of Neosho Falls. Today, some consider this city a ghost town. Perhaps, to some of its few hundred residents, the term ghost town is not very endearing.
      The town's demise dates back to the Great Flood of 1951, when June rains saturated eastern Kansas and western Missouri. Major rivers, including the Neosho, reached their worst flood stages when 8 to 16 inches of rain fell in four days during July. Almost two million acres were flooded in Kansas and Missouri, creating almost a billion dollars in damage in 1951 dollars. The Neosho river crested 12 feet above flood stage, chasing away the town's residents, most never to return.
      The rock group Kansas released a concept recording about the Neosho Falls flood. Their 1988 release, In the Spirit of Things, was one of the last record albums in vinyl format.
      This view captures one of the many abandon Neosho Falls homes, found near the city limits.