1880 - "KANSAS / THE BEST PART OF THE WEST TO BUY A GRAIN FARM . . . STOCK FARM . . . SHEEP RANCH . . . OPEN A STORE, OR TO PRACTICE A PROFESSION." The Immigrants' Guide to the Most Fertile Lands of Kansas. . . by J. S. Gilmore, Land Commissioner - 1880

This 6-panel brochure measures approximately 7.5" x 10.25" unfolded. It was published by the "Land & Immigration Office of the Kansas Division (formerly Kansas Pacific Railway) Union Pacific Railway Company." The brochure was printed by J. M . Jones Stationery & Printing Company of Chicago. In nice shape.

One panel proclaims "Kansas / The best part of the west in which / To buy a Grain Farm, / To buy a Stock Farm, / To buy a Sheep Ranch, / To open a Store, or /To practice a Profession." It bears a handstamp of "R. B. Griffen / Emigration Agent, / Manchester, Iowa."

One panel provides contact instructions and advertises discounted train tickets. "When you Reach the Union Depot at Kansas City go at once to the Land & Immigration Office of the Kansas Division (formerly Kansas Pacific Railway) Union Pacific Railway Company. There you will always find polite and well-informed Agents . . . who will furnish all the information you desire, and you can get Land Explorers' Tickets at Reduced Rates and Money Refunded if you Buy Land. . .."

Three panels provide more in-depth information about the state under several headings: "Why it is the Choicest Land," "The Golden Grain Belt," "Coal," "Magnesian Limestone," "Churches and Schools," "Stock," "The Water Courses," and "Kansas in a Nutshell."

The sixth panel contains a full-page railway map across the Kansas and half of Colorado that stretches from Kansas City, Missouri to Denver, Colorado.

A rather scarce western expansion advertising piece. At the time of listing, no others are for sale in the trade. OCLC reports a number held by institutions, but most appear to be microform or digital copies. The Rare Book shows three have been sold at auction since 2007, the most recent for $330 at a PBA sale on November 18, 2010.