 In 1872, Langston was appointed as president of Quindaro Freedman's School (later Western University), then located on the outskirts of Kansas City west of the Missouri River.The college closed in the 20th century and much of the site was abandoned; it was taken over by Kansas City, but major city development moved westward.Today the Quindaro Townsite is preserved for historical purposes, as the site of an early African-American community in the state.