Aggieville is a retail district of roughly six square blocks consisting of college-age oriented bars, restaurants (including the world's oldest continuously-operated Pizza Hut), and shops in Manhattan, Kansas. Primarily known for it's bars(especially Last Chance Saloon) the retail shops in the district get little notoriety yet are some of the best homegrown businesses the Midwest has to offer.
Origins:
Before 1898, students at the Kansas State Agricultural College had to inconveniently purchase their textbooks in downtown Manhattan(of course,this was before roads and cars). The college decided to build a bookstore (and a dining facility) closer to the campus, but it was shut down in June of 1899 after a political upheaval in the college's Board of Regents. Later that September, a group of students started the Student Co-Operative Association, and bought the bookstore among other efforts to cut down on the costs of college education. This bookstore on Moro Street became the foundation of Aggieville, drawing momentum towards new business development, including the venerable Joseph "Guy" Varney, owner of Varney's Bookstore which still is a staple of Aggieville.
After World War I,Aggieville experienced enormous growth. Trolley lines were built, and later they were paved over during the car boom of the 1940s. Aggieville was home to riots following pivotal football game rivalries, and home to the 1998 infamous celebration/riot after the team's first defeat of Nebraska since 1969 - which included the tearing down of the goal posts and dragging them to the rooftop of a local bar, Rusty's Last Chance.
Suggested links:
Aggieville Business Association
This map of Aggieville is not to scale and is intended as for guide purposes only, it does not represent every business or their exact locations.
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