Plainville, the largest city in Rooks [RO] county is located at the intersection of highways US183 and K18. It's in a fairly flat valley that once was the path of a branch of the Union Pacific. The industrial park houses Schult Homes, a manufacturer of homes, and the Tomato Factory, producer of hydroponic tomatoes.

The countryside surrounding Plainville is some of the most productive in the west central region of Kansas, earning the community the title "Queen City of Paradise Flats", bestowed decades earlier. The Paradise Flats name was derived from the fact it is a large level plain situated at the head of Paradise Creek. Plainville was also known in its early days as the "windmill city" because of all the windmills to pump water.