The draw of newness. The removal of blight. A forgotten community.
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A major urban renewal project in Topeka in the 1950s and 1960s permanently removed a district known as The Bottoms. Claiming the entire area as blighted, and in some cases, slums, a government commission promised to replace it with improved shopping, housing and industry. They called it the Keyway project. Living in this neighborhood were African Americans, Mexicans and Native Americans. Yes, many were low-income families. Some houses didn’t have plumbing. But this was their home.
I’m studying the history of The Bottoms. I’m seeing the lack of representation from minorities when decisions were made. I’m seeing a once proud community dispersed and moved to new homes. The area that made up this neighborhood and its schools, theaters, stores, bars, hotels and more is now a desolate, forgotten industrial zone. Bordered roughly by Sixth Street on the south, Kansas Avenue on the west, Crane Street on the north and Adams Street on the east. The prominent employers of many Bottoms citizens – Sante Fe Railroad and Hills Pet Nutrition – still have their presence on the north and east borders. The urban renewal commission spared these businesses from removal. In fact, only a few buildings still stand within The Bottoms district that weren’t removed. Many of them were white-owned businesses. Driving and walking through the area, I see desolate industry. An unattractive zone far from the exciting district promised to Topekans. I see the remains of train tracks that once hauled grain through the area or children who would hop on for a ride. I see brick roads covered in black top – black top that has deteriorated and is showing the brick again. Mostly, I see another forgotten district that will remain this way until the next promise of something new and great. I hope I have captured that in these photos. |
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Works Used and Further Reading
The Bottoms: A Place We Once Called Home. Thomas Rodriguez. Jack Cobos Design & Publishing. 2012.
Suburban Renewal: Depopulating Downtown Topeka.
African American Topeka. Sherrita Camp. Arcadia Publishing. 2013.
Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library’s Topeka Room files on urban renewal.
The Bottoms: A Place We Once Called Home. Thomas Rodriguez. Jack Cobos Design & Publishing. 2012.
Suburban Renewal: Depopulating Downtown Topeka.
African American Topeka. Sherrita Camp. Arcadia Publishing. 2013.
Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library’s Topeka Room files on urban renewal.