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Kingman County Courthouse in Kingman, Kansas. Photo by Susan Howell.
 Kingman County Courthouse 

Kingman County

 Location in Kansas of Kingman County.
 
 
County Seat: Kingman
Founded: 1873
Population:
    ·   8,683 (2000)
    ·   8,292 (1990)
    · 10,663 (1900)
Area: 865 Square Miles
Standard Abbreviation: KM 

Description

Much of Kingman county is grassland covering red sand. The South Fork of the Ninnescah river winds its way across the north part of the county and the Chikaskia River crosses the southern part. Tradition has it that there was only one tree in the county when it was founded; early settlers planted windbreaks that are magnificent now. The heart of this county is the huge Byron Walker game preserve and public hunting area. Cheney Lake touches the northeastern corner of the county and the state lake is near Calista in the center.
 
Highway US-54 crosses the heart of Kingman County, going east to Wichita and west to Pratt. K-42 also crosses the county from east to west. Highways K-14 and K-17 go north-south and K-2 cuts across the southeastern corner. Wichita's 21st Street winds around the dam at Cheney Lake, and runs across northern part of the county, joining Mt. Vernon, Varner, and Penalosa.

Cities, Towns, & Villages of Kingman County

                 2000
  Year  Elev  Population Name              ZIP
  ====  ====  ========== ================ =====
        1450             Adams
        1588             Alameda
        1595             Basil
        1585             Belmont          67068
        1590             Calista
        1650             Cleveland
  1885  1705         514 Cunningham       67035
        1466             Georgia
  1872  1550       3,387 Kingman          67068
        1405             Lansdowne
        1430             Midway
        1475             Mount Vernon
  1884  1472             Murdock          67111
        1740         111 Nashville        67112
  1885  1490         551 Norwich          67118
        1725          27 Penalosa         67035
        1450             Rago             67128
        1760             St. Leo
        1700             Skellyville
  1887  1510          80 Spivey           67142
        1525             Varner
        1450             Waterloo
        1675             Willowdale
  1887  1663         123 Zenda            67159

Historical Notes

Map of Kingman County, KS in 1899
Organized in 1874. County seat Kingman, which was organized in honor of Samuel A. Kingman, who was then Chief Justice of Kansas.
 
Map and text from History of Kansas, Noble Prentis, (Winfield: E.P. Greer. 1899)
 
Kingman County was created after Governor Osborne received a somewhat questionable petition claiming that the county had over 600 settlers. The town and the county were named for Samuel A. Kingman, early president of the Kansas Bar Association and Chief Justice of the state supreme court as well as first president of the Kansas State Historical Society.
 
Highway 54 is officially designated as the Cannonball Stageline Highway from the east edge of Kingman thru Greensburg--so named for the colorful stagecoach driver who ran the Cannon Ball Stage Line beginning originally in Wichita, moved westward to Kingman, and from there on westward ahead of the railroads. Without him and other stage lines, western Kansas would have been settled much slower.
 
Clyde Cessna built a monoplane on his farm near Rago in 1910.
 
William G. Cutler's History of Kansas, first published in 1883, tells about early Kingman County.
 
One of the rail lines that served Kingman County was the Hutchinson & Southern, a remarkable railroad built by a group of Kansas businessmen without spending any of their own money. It later became part of the A.T.&S.F.
 
The courthouse in Kingman, completed in 1908, was one of several beautiful courthouses in Kansas designed by George P. Washburn.
 
There is a section on Kingman County in the book Kansas: a Cyclopedia Of State History by Frank Blackmar (1912).
 
The Special Collections of the Ablah Library at WSU contain historical images of Cunningham, Kingman, Norwich, & Spivey.
 
County death records from 1900-1912, compiled from local sources by the Kingman Carnegie Library are available online.
 
Sample the local news from the Kingman Journal for September 18, 1885 or from the Norwich Herald for June 2, 1905.
 
The Kansas State Historical Society also has more historical data for Kingman County online including a rich bibliography and lists of cemeteries, post offices, and newspapers.
 
With the permission of the Kingman County Historical Society, excerpts from the book Kingman County, Kansas, And Its People. (Kingman: Kingman County Historical Society. 1984) are online:
Adams
Belmont
Brown Spur
Calista
Cleveland
Cunningham
Eunice 		Lashmet
Nashville
Mt. Vernon
Murdock
Norwich
Penalosa
Rago 		Skellyville
Spivey
St. Leo
Varner
Waterloo
Willowdale
Zenda

Special Places in Kingman County

  • Kingman County Courthouse, Kingman
  • Santa Fe Depot, Kingman
  • Zenda Community Museum
  • St. Peter's Church, Willlowdale
  • Byron Walker Wildlife Area

Special Events in Kingman County

  • The Kingman Annual Arts & Crafts Fair is mid-October.
  • County Fair - mid-July.

Libraries

  • Cunningham Public Library   (620) 298-3163
    105 N. Main / Cunningham, KS 67035
  • Kingman Carnegie Library   (620) 532-3061
    455 N. Main Street / Kingman, KS 67068
  • Norwich Public Library
    P. O. Box 397 / Norwich, KS 67118
  • Zenda Public Library   (620) 672-3041
    P. O. Box 53 / Zenda, KS 67159

Museums

  • Cunningham Museum  
    107 West First, Cunningham, KS 67035
  • Kingman County Museum   (620) 532-5274
    400 North Main / Kingman, KS 67068
  • The Santa Fe Depot   620-532-2142
    201 E. Sherman, Kingman, KS 67068
    Open year-round; 8:30-11:30am Mon.-Fri., some afternoons & some Sat. mornings.  Cannonball Welcome Center and a railroad museum.
    Meeting rooms available; No charge, donations welcome.
  • Zenda Community Museum   (620) 243-5531

Kingman County School Systems

Health Care

  • Cunningham Clinic   (800) 530-5853 or (620) 298-2397
    120 N. Main / Cunningham, KS 67035
  • Kingman Community Hospital   (620) 532-3147
    750 W. Ave D / Kingman, KS 67068
  • Norwich Clinic   (620) 478-2292
    111 N. Main, Norwich, KS 67116

Newspapers

More Data About Kingman County

Economic Development
  • Kansas County Profile Reports Statistical data from The Institute for Policy and Social Research, the University of Kansas
Health Data

Genealogy

References

  • Hurd, Fred. A History of Kingman County (North Newton: Mennonite Press. 1970)
  • Kingman County, Kansas, And Its People. (Kingman: Kingman County Historical Society. 1984)

Kingman County Offices

  • Kingman County   (620) 532-2521
    130 N. Spruce St. / Kingman, KS 67068
  • Extension Service   (620)532-5131
    125 North Spruce / Kingman, KS 67068-1659

For more about Kingman County contact:

 
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Last updated on November 29, 2009 by COUNTIES@KSLIB.INFO
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Graphics by John Howell,
photos by Susan Howell,
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