(Editor's note: This is the 53rd in a series of "then and now" articles on places and things of interest in Kansas City, Kan., compiled by area historian Margaret Landis in observance of the 100th birthday of KCK in 1986. Much of the information has appeared in past editions of The Kansan.)

(Transcriptions are presented without changes except to improve readability.)

The largest manufacturing concern in Kansas from 1875 to 1883 was the Kansas Rolling Mill, located in Rosedale.

Like so many pioneer towns, Rosedale benefited from the coming of the railroad through the development of industry. That railroad for Rosedale was the Neosho Valley Railroad. Incorporated in the state of Kansas in 1865, it was the first industry in the Turkey Creek Valley.

Ten years after the coming of the railroad (1875), the Kansas Rolling Mill came to Rosedale from Decatur, Ill.

The Decatur Mill was built in 1870. It was dismantled, removed and rebuilt in Rosedale, locating on the Missouri River, Fort Scott and Gulf Railroad (formerly the Neosho Valley Railroad). By today's location, the mill would have been in back of Rosedale Fire Station No. 10, 1156 Southwest Blvd. by the railroad tracks.

The 1870s were big years for railroad building and there was a big demand for iron rails farther west. And the major product of the Rolling Mill was railroad rails.

About 100 families came to Rosedale with the Rolling Mill. After the mill was located, Rosedale became a "boom town."

In addition to railroad rails, the Rolling Mill manufactured nearly every variety of railroad supplies, including fish plates, bolts, nuts, spikes, bar-iron, wrought drawheads, head chairs, etc.

A directory of the American Iron and Steel Association (1882) showed the Rolling Mill had 11 heating furnaces, two hammers, six spike machines and three trains of rolls which shaped the rails (one 9, one 18 and one 20 inch), and a set of "universal rolls attached to the 20 inch train..." Capacity: 85,000 tons annually.

The Cooper Shop was at the rear of the main building. The Rolling Mill was the railroad's largest customer.

Early records describe the mill as being an attraction for sightseers. The roaring furnaces, the clanging noise of the machinery and flying sparks presented a colorful show.

The building of the Rolling Mill brought great changes and rapid growth to Rosedale. The population of Rosedale grew and by 1877 contained the necessary population of 60-0 to become a 3rd Class City.

With the rolling mill came the first labor union in Wyandotte County. Pioneer Lodge No. 1 was a subordinate lodge of the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers of the United States.

The lodge was organized Aug. 13, 1881. There were more than 50 men admitted at the time of its organization, all of whom were employees of the Kansas Rolling Mill. By 1883, its membership had more than doubled.

In 1883 the Kansas Rolling Mill closed because of a depressed economy, industrial changes and financial difficulties. The situation was primarily a result of the railroads changing from iron to steel rails.

The mill and land were sold at auction Dec. 6, 1883 on the steps of the Wyandotte County Court House to James Permalee of Cleveland, Ohio for $100,000.

The closing of the mill was keenly felt and the town struggled to exist until the late 1880s when a business boom that started in Kansas City, Mo., spread to Rosedale. New industries and new facilities moved to Rosedale, bringing better times.

The old buildings were torn down many years ago. Probably the only remains of the Rolling Mill are to be found in the Register of Deeds Office and real estate abstracts under the titles of Rolling Mill Lands, Rolling Mill Resurvey, Rolling Mill 2nd Addition to Rosedale and Rolling Mill 3rd Addition to Rosedale.