Teter Rock offers endless vistas from the site of a Kansas ghost town
Teter Rock memorializes the founder of the town of Teterville.
This remote Flint Hills landmark, rooted atop a regional high point, can be accessed via gravel roads between Emporia and El Dorado.
Teterville, Kansas, is a ghost town, but the spirit of independent Kansans is the only spectre you’re likely to encounter. This hilltop town was once a busy center of agriculture and oil – both still important to the area today. All that remains of the town are a few foundations – and of course Teter Rock, a 16-foot-tall monument of native Kansas stone. The original Teter Rock was a pile of stones assembled at this high point by James Teter around 1880. It was built as a navigational aid for settlers headed west. As the town of Teterville formed, those stones were used to build the town. In the 1950s, Greenwood County Historical Society erected the current landmark in honor of Teter and the community that once thrived there.
The road to Teter Rock is rocky and rugged.
Today, the area retains its remote, rural qualities. You’ll possibly be escorted, or at least eyeballed, by cows as you drive down the fenceless road toward your destination. Teter Rock sits at a prominent point that provides distant vistas of the Kansas prairie. It’s popular with photographers seeking epic sunset, sunrise and starlight photos of this unique landmark.
Getting there
Teter Rock is in a remote location that’s, well, not really near anything. It’s halfway between Emporia and El Dorado, as the crow flies. You’ll take a gravel road for several miles to get to the entrance, which is marked by a sign. There, you’ll see a notice that says “PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK. MINIMAL MAINTENANCE.” Our experience was that this rock road wasn’t actually that bad. Driving 5 mph and carefully scanning the horizon for ruts, we made it just fine. However, a motorist should think twice after rain or snow. You’ll be summoning a tow truck to the boonies – if you can get a cell signal.
The view from Teter Rock.
