Nicodemus National Historic Site • Kansas

Frame one story schoolhouse with most of white paint worn off to show gray.

The First Baptist Church

Front view of limestone building. A sidewalk leads up to white double doors of the building.

White stucco church with white double doors and text above the doors that reads "A.M.E. CHURCH 1885"

Nicodemus Descendants outside Visitor Center

White frame with a second story gable on the right side, tan roof, and small screened porch.

Formerly enslaved African Americans left Kentucky at the end of the post-Civil War Reconstruction period to experience freedom in the "Promised Land" of Kansas. Nicodemus represents the involvement of African Americans in the homesteading movement across the Great Plains. It is the oldest remaining Black settlement west of the Mississippi River.

District Number 1 Schoolhouse on a cloudy summer day.
NPS Photo

View of the First Baptist Church from street corner.
NPS Photo / Brendan Oates

The Township Hall on a beautiful summer day.
NPS Photo / Valerie Blubaugh

Nicodemus A.M.E. (African Methodist Episcopal) Church
NPS Photo / Valerie Blubaugh

Nicodemus Descendants outisde the park Visitor Center
NPS Photo

The St. Francis Hotel (Fletcher-Switzer Home)
NPS Photo

A limestone building with an American flag and park sign.

Community Interviews

Watch interviews with descendants from the Nicodemus community.

The Five Historic Buildings

Five Historic Buildings

The five historic buildings were declared a unit of the National Park System on November 12, 1996.

A large group of young students sit on the wooden floor of a large hall facing people speaking.

Check out our February 2026 Newsletter!

Catch up on Nicodemus happenings in 2025 and learn what we have planned for 2026!

Black and white photo of many well-dressed people standing in front of frame and stone buildings.

History & Culture

Learn about the oldest remaining Black settlement west of the Mississippi River.

corner view of a large limestone building with white doors with glass panels and a brown lawn

Declaration 1776 Traveling Exhibit

Come on down to Township Hall in Nicodemus to see the traveling exhibit Declaration 1776: The Big Bang of Modern Democracy.

A picture of a white-painted wooden schoolhouse with trees in the background

Listen to some of the oral history interviews collected from Nicodemus descendants over the years.

Last updated: March 20, 2026

Trips to Nearby Parks

Contact Info

Mailing Address:

304 Washington Ave.
Nicodemus, KS 67625-3015

Phone:

785-839-4233
Phoneline for Nicodemus Township Hall and visitor center. Use this number to speak with park staff.

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Reconstruction Era