Colby, a town of 8,451, is part of the high plains in Northwest Kansas where the buffalo once roamed--and just 53 miles east of Colorado and 42 miles from Nebraska . The first homesteader arrived here just four or five generations ago, in 1879, and Colby proper was organized in 1885. After the railroad arrived in 1887, the town quickly became a regional trading center and later the county seat for Thomas County.
Except for the drought years of the 1930s, Colby has thrived as a financial and commercial center serving the wheat and cattle industry of northwest Kansas. Agriculture continues as the dominant local industry, with wheat, corn, sorghum and sunflowers as key crops.
The Prairie Museum of Art & History in Colby reflects this farming heritage. It includes a furnished sod house, which volunteers built in 1984 from sod blocks one foot by two feet and 4 inches deep. The museum also includes a 1930s farmstead, a country church and a one-room school. The centerpiece of the museum is the Cooper Barn, Kansas' largest barn, at 114 feet by 66 feet, and 48 feet tall. It was moved 16 miles in one piece, and the cavernous upper level is still used for dances.
Nearby, Hoxie, Kansas is the county seat of Sheridan County, which takes its name from General Phillip H. Sheridan of Civil War fame. It was settled in the 1860s and 1870s, and today is a thriving town in the center of a hunter's paradise--pheasant hunting, that is. Among the town's landmarks is Cottonwood Ranch, some 15 miles east of Hoxie, which was established as a sheep ranch in the late 1800s by some well-to -do English settlers. Purchased by the Kansas Historical Society in 1982, the stone house and buildings are now a state historical site.
As for attractions, Hoxie boasts Mickey's Museum. Not that Mickey--this is a living museum donated by Vernon Mickey of Hoxie and operated by the Sheridan County Historical Society. It covers generations of county history through exhibits of photos, farm tool, and other local artifacts. It also has an authentic one-room schoolhouse on the premises.
Stephens Home
As a child in Colby, Jackie Ochs used to walk by and admire a 1916 Arts and Crafts -style house. The thought of owning it only entered here mind after she had married , moved away and returned to her hometown of Colby. She and her husband, contractor Curt Stephens, sensed the jewel hidden beneath years of neglect, and they have spent years renovating it while striving to maintain its architectural integrity.
Ochs Home
Jackie Ochs Stephens' brother, Carl, was considering his own restoration project in the nearby town of Hoxie. With his sister's encouragement and the shining success of her home's restoration, Carl decided to give it a go. His 1913 red clay and stucco house, with its circa-1920 barn, faced the wrecking ball until he and his wife, Cheryl , realized that the buildings' sturdy construction warranted a reprieve.
The Ochs' restoration included repairing the home's intricate woodwork and stained glass windows, expanding the kitchen, and enlarging bathrooms for the family of four . Except for electrical and plumbing, the Ochs tackled most of the work themselves , with occasional advice and guidance from Curt Stephens
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