DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR BULLETIN UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY IsTo. 154 WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1898 UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CHARLES U. WALCOTT, DIRECTOR BY HENRY GANNETT WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 18-98 ILLUSTRATIONS. Page. PLATE I. Contour map of Kansas.......................................... 1 II.' Territory of Kansas.............................................. 9 III. Density of population in 1860,1870, and 1880 ...................... 10 IV. Density of population in 1886,1890, and 1896 ...................... 10 V. Mean annual rainfall and mean annual temperature .............. 12 VI. Geology and magnetic declination................................ 14 FIG. 1. Progress map........................................................ 22 5 LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. DEPARTMENT .OF THE INTERIOR, UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, Washington, D. (7., May 6,1898. SIR: I beg to transmit herewith, for publication as a bulletin, a gazetteer of Kansas. Yery respectfully, HENRY GANNETT, Geographer, Hon. CHARLES D. WALCOTT, Director United States Geological Survey. 7 U.S.GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. BULLETIN N° 154 PL. TERRITORY OF KANSAS. Scale 50 25 0 50 STAT MILES JULIUS BIEN aco.N.v. A GAZETTEER OF KANSAS. By HENRY GANNETT. GBNEKAJL DESCRIPTION OF THE STATE. The Territory of Kansas was organized W May 30, 1854, its area -having formerly been under the jurisdiction- of Missouri Territory. Nearly all the region comprising the Territory was originally acquired by the United States as a part of the Louisiana purchase in 1803. The following clause from the act of organization of the Territory defines its limits: All that part of the territory of the United States included within the following limits, except such portions thereof as are hereinafter expressly exempted1 from the operations of this act, to wit: Beginning at a point on the western boundary of the State of Missouri, where the thirty-seventh parallel of north latitude crosses the same;, thence west on said parallel to the eastern boundary of New Mexico; thence north on said boundary to latitude thirty-eight; thence following said boundary westward to the east boundary of the Territory of Utah, on the summit of the Rocky Mountains; thence northward on said summit to the fortieth parallel of latitude; thence east on said parallel to the western boundary of the State of Missouri; thence south with the western boundary of said State to the place of beginning, bej and the same is hereby, created into a temporary government by the name of the Territory of Kansas. In 1861 the Territory of Colorado was organized, taking from Kansas Territory all that part which lay west of the twenty-fifth meridian west of Washington. At the same time, on January 29,1861, Kansas was admitted into the Union as a State, with its present boundaries, which are thus defined in the enabling act: The said State shall consist of all the territory included within the following boundaries, towit: Beginning at a point on the western boundary of the State of Missouri, where the thirty-seventh parallel of north latitude crosses the same; thence west on said parallel to the twenty-fifth meridian of longitude west from Washington; thence north on said meridian to the fortieth parallel of latitude; thence east on said parallel to the western boundary of the State of Missouri; thence south Avith the western boundary of said State to the place of beginning. As will be seen, besides the reduction for the formation of Colorado, Kansas was increased by the area on the southwest, which was taken from New Mexico. This addition was derived from territory brought into the Union by the annexation of Texas and purchase from that State by the United States. Although the settlement of Kansas has been practically effected within the last half, century, its exploration began at an, early period. 9 10 A GAZETTEER OF KANSAS. [BULL. 154. More than three and a half centuries ago, in 1541, Yasquez de Coro- nado, a Spaniard, led an expedition from Mexico through New Mexico and across Kansas toward the northeast, searching for the mythical city of. Quivira. His expedition, however, came and went and left no trace behind. In latter years settlement spread from New Mexico northward upon the plains of Colorado, but, so far as known, none reached the western or the southern boundary of this State, and there is no record of further attempts at exploration until the territory passed into the hands of the United States in 1803. Then commenced a series of explorations, under conduct of army officers, beginning with the famous expedition of Pike, in 1807, and ending with the Pacific Rail­ road explorations in the early fifties. These expeditions traversed the region in all directions and in an exploration sense made its area well known. In the days of the early movement to California the State was trav­ ersed by a vast migration, which followed, in the main, two routes: One .ran from Independence, in western Missouri, northwestward across the northeast corner of the State to Fort Kearney, Nebraska, and thence up Platte Eiver; the other, starting from the same point, ran southwest to the Arkansas, and then followed up that river, going to Santa Fe. This, which is called the Santa Fe trail, traversed the whole breadth of Kansas from east to west. This vast migration across the State, how­ ever, left but few traces in the way of settlement, for in 1855 the region contained but 8,600 inhabitants. Five years later the number exceeded 100,000, and rapidly increased until, in 1888, it reached a maximum with 1,518,552. Since then it has diminished, from causes to be hereinafter explained, and in 1895 reached a minimum of 1,334,734. In 1896 it had slightly increased, the population numbering 1,336,659. The following table gives the population, as derived from censuses taken by the United States and the State, at different periods : Population of Kansas at different times since 1855. Tear. Population. Census. 1855........................ 8, 601 1860........................ 107,206 Federal. 1865........................ 140, 179 1870........................ 364, 399 "P/a/lpT ol 1875........................ 528, 349 1880........................ 996, 096 1885........................ 1, 268, 530 1886........................ 1, 406, 738 1887........................ 1, 514, 578 State. 1888........................ 1, 518, 552 1890........................ 1, 427, 096 1895........................ 1, 334, 734 1896........................ 1, 336, 659 U.S.GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. BULLETIN N9 154 PL. III. DENSITY OF POPULATION 1860. DENSITY OF POPULATION 1870. : 6 to 18 ^T^]f.; - "ISSre^J , wp^-^ i C Ka/ina/\ x ,. -- iL Kfl 'j A .\ ^¥x. .-<:D ;,.,'/ / . ' !,\| " V Nx \.k ^fefvax>Py\- -M?1*^ (V "' !>^-\;^8t^-fvj>j^s^v V'-^ X'"^^s^fl ^" ! ' \^ -4*=i \ >f \^ ^C-KI ''-' '^V^'Vfl \ DEVSlT^f 0 F P OP U L AT ION 18 80. U.S.GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. BULLETIN N° 154 PL.IV. " ' ' etoie ^-. tL DENSITY OF POPULATION 1886. DENSITY OF POPULATION 1890. DENSITY OF POPULATION 1896. GANNETT.] A GAZETTEER OP KANSAS:. 11 The early settlement of the State was effected by two factions, one largely made up of immigrants from Missouri, who were determined to make it a slave State; the other mainly from New England, equally determined that it should be a free State. During the late years of its life as a Territory war between these factions was continuous and often bloody, and the struggle was terminated only by the election of the free-soil candidate for President in 1860. Since the admission of the State to the Union its progress in popula­ tion and industries has been, in great part, dependent upon climate. As will be seen from an examination of the series of maps (Pis. Ill and IV),. showing the density of population at different dates, settlement com­ menced at the eastern end of the State and progressed westward. The eastern portion of the State is, in ordinary years, well watered. On the other hand, only in occasional years has the western portion of the State a rainfall sufficient for the needs of agriculture. The rainfall shows a somewhat regular diminution from east to west across the State. Settlement, in its westward progress, encountered this defi­ ciency of rainfall, but, encouraged by .a succession of rainy seasons, it pushed forward in the early seventies much, beyond.the safe limit of agriculture; and this movement was .efficiently aided aud abetted by the railroad interests, which were .concerned in the disposal of their lands. Then followed a succession of dry seasons, and the settlers in middle Kansas were literally starved out. In the next decade, forgetting this bitter experience and encouraged by a second succession of wet seasons, settlement again advanced. Indeed, by 1886 or 1887 it had reached the western boundary of the State. The inevitable again happened in the form of a succession of dry seasons, and the western portion of the State was almost depopulated, the settlers suffering almost unheard-of hardships/ In this second attempt to set the climate at naught the results were vastly more dis­ astrous than in the first, inasmuch as the number of people concerned was many times as great. The entire State suffered seriously from the results. During the succeeding years nearly every county lost popula­ tion, and the entire State, as is shown by the foregoing table, lost nearly one-seventh of its inhabitants. The rapid growth of the State between 1880 and 1887 was attended by a tremendous boom, land values rising enormously not only in the rural portions but in the cities, and the following reaction and depreciation in values were disastrous not only to farmers but to real-estate speculators. The slight increase in population during the year 1896 indicates that the State is about to enter upon another period of prosperity. The area of Kansas is 82,080 square miles. Speaking broadly, the surface is an undulating plain, rising gradually from an elevation of 700 or 800 feet at its eastern boundary to 3,000 or 4,000 feet at its west­ ern boundary.