"In 1869, Concordia, Kansas, was declared the county seat of what would become Cloud County. At first, the town existed only on paper as a project being pushed by James M. Hagaman and a small group of partners. Once development started, Concordia rapidly grew to become a center of commerce south of the Republican River that eventually attracted four railroad lines. It became a town of landmarks, including several famous hotels, two opera houses, Nazareth Convent, and a thriving downtown area. Characters in the story of Concordia include French Canadian immigrants, nuns, pilots, quarreling newspaper editors, German prisoners of war, and politician Frank Carlson. Readers can enjoy visiting the community's past in the pages of Images of America: Concordia. Dena Bisnette is a native of Concordia with a background in newspaper journalism. She is a member of the Cloud County and Harvey County Historical Societies and enjoys history-related volunteer work. Joe Gilliam is her husband and technical assistant. They currently reside in Newton, Kansas, the subject of their previous Arcadia Publishing book, Images of America: Newton."--Cover, p. 4