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==History== The community was founded in 1857 by Robert Wilson as '''Rock Post'''. The area was once part of the [[Potawatomi]] Hunting grounds and a large majority of the settlers were either associated with the Pottawatomie Indian Reservation or commerce on the [[Oregon Trail]].<ref name=faded>Fitzgerald, Daniel. ''Faded Dreams: More Ghost Towns of Kansas''. [[Lawrence, Kansas|Lawrence]]: [[University of Kansas|U of Kansas P]], 1994, 29-33.</ref> Louisville was named for Robert Wilson's son, Louis, and for Louis Vieux, a successful businessman in the area. The town was a contender for [[county seat]] of Pottawatomie County but lost to [[St. George, Kansas|St. George]] in 1861 and [[Westmoreland, Kansas|Westmoreland]] in 1882.<ref name=faded /> On November 8, 1875, Louisville was struck by an [[earthquake]].<ref name=faded /> In 1882, with the county seat in Westmoreland and the [[Union Pacific Railroad]] built through [[Wamego, Kansas|Wamego]], the town's population swiftly declined. ===Louis Vieux=== Louis Vieux Sr.<ref>VIEUX, Louis Sr., The Oregon Trail, Pottawatome County, KANSAS COLLECTION ARTICLES, http://www.kancoll.org/articles/otrail/ortrail5.htm</ref> was a prominent citizen of Louisville who operated a trail crossing across the Vermillion River. He was born in 1809 in [[Wisconsin]] to Angelique Roy, a [[Potawatomi]] woman, and [[Jacques Vieau|Jacques Vieux]], a Canadian-French trader. Vieux and his wife, Sha-Note, moved first to Cedar Bluffs, Iowa in 1832 until moving to [[Indianola, Kansas]] (northwest of [[Topeka, Kansas|Topeka]] along Soldier Creek) in 1846. Sha-Note died in 1857 and Vieux moved to the Vermillion River near present-day Louisville. Vieux began his trail crossing business and worked as a caller for the U.S. Government working the pay station in [[St. Marys, Kansas|St. Mary's]] and he also served on the tribal council and made trips to [[Washington, D.C.]], on behalf of the Pottawatomies. Vieux also signed the treaty that split the Pottawatomies into two separate tribes-the [[Prairie Band of Potawatomi Nation|Prairie Band]] and [[Citizen Potawatomi Nation]]. Vieux died in 1872 and left behind a 200-page will leaving half the town of Louisville, all of [[Belvue, Kansas|Belvue]] and other personal property to his wife and children. ===Oregon Trail crossing=== [[File:Louis Vieux Elm Tree Park.JPG|thumb|left|The Louis Vieux Elm Tree park, in 2009, located three miles east of Louisville.]] About three miles east of Louisville was the Vermillion Crossing of the Oregon Trail operated by Louis Vieux. Vieux is buried in the Vieux Family Cemetery on top of a hill. Nearby, on the banks of the river, is a [[cholera]] cemetery from 1849, which is estimated to contain at least fifty graves, although only two stones—both native sandstones—remain. The Louis Vieux Elm Tree is across the river and is estimated to be over 300 years old. The tree had been afflicted with [[Dutch elm disease]], a lightning strike and vandalism and efforts were taken to protect and shelter the tree's stump. In August 2011, the stump was destroyed by fire.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://cjonline.com/news/2011-08-24/arson-claims-historic-elms-stump | title=Arson claims historic elm's stump }}</ref> Near the tree are the graves of seven unknown soldiers.
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