Riley County, KS

History

Organized in 1855. County seat Manhattan. Received its name from the adjacent military post which was established in 1853, and called Fort Riley in honor of General Riley of the United States army.

Map and text from History of Kansas, Noble Prentis, (Winfield: E.P. Greer. 1899)

Fort Riley was established as Camp Center in 1853 to help defend against raiding Indians. It was renamed Fort Riley later that year in honor of Major General Bennet Riley.

William G. Cutler's History of Kansas, first published in 1883, tells about early Riley County.

The Special Collections of the Ablah Library at WSU contain historical images of Army City, Cleburne, Manhattan, and Winkler.

The Kansas State Historical Society also has more historical data for Riley County online including a rich bibliography and lists of cemeteries, post offices, and newspapers.

Cities, Towns, & Villages of Riley County

                      2000
     Town          Population  ZIP         Year Elevation
     ------------- ----------  ----------  ---- ---------
     Bala                                         1280
     Bluemont Hill                                1180
     Elm Hollow Corner                            1320
     Eureka Lake                                  1025
     Fairmont                                     1020
     Keats                                        1138
     Lasita                                       1430
     Leonardville         398  66449              1385
     Manhattan         44,831  66502       1855   1020
     Ogden              1,762  66517              1048
     Pillsbury Crossing                           1020
     Randolph             175  66554              1250
     Riley                886  66531       1870   1300
     Rocky Ford                                   1086
     Sunset Park                                  1080
     Walsburg                                     1301
     Winkler                                      1150

Census Bureau Profile & Map

Libraries

Leonardville Library
P. O. Box 141 / Leonardville, KS 66449
Manhattan Public Library (785) 776-4741
629 Poyntz Ave, Manhattan, KS 66502
Riley City Library (785) 485-2978 rc3lib@kansas.net
206 S. Broadway, Box 204, Riley, KS 66531-0204
Ogden City Library (785) 537-0351
220 Willow St., Ogden, KS 66517
KSU Libraries (785) 532-6515
Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66502

Museums

Arts & Memories (785) 485-2876 E-mail: artsmem@kansas.net
223 S. Broadway, Riley, KS 66531
Town memories, rocks, fossils, military, and four generation collection, 1781-1970's.
Manhattan Center for the Arts (785) 537-4420
1520 Poyntz Avenue, Manhattan, KS 66502
Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art at KSU (785) 532-7718
701 Beach Lane, Manhattan, KS 66506
Riley County Historical Museum (785) 565-6490
2309 Claflin Road, Manhattan, KS 66502
Includes Goodnow House Museum, Wolff House Museum, Riley County Historical Society, and Library.
Strecker-Nelson Gallery (785) 537-2099
406 1/2 Poyntz Avenue, Manhattan, KS 66502
Monday -- Saturday, 10 am -- 6 pm

Riley County School Systems

USD 378 Riley County (785) 485-4000 Riley
USD 383 Manhattan (785) 587-2000 Manhattan
USD 384 Blue Valley (785) 293-5256 Randolph

Colleges, Universities & Institutes

American Institute of Baking (785) 537-4750
1213 Bakers Way, Manhattan, KS 66502
Kansas State University, (785) 532-6011
Manhattan, KS 66506
Manhattan Area Technical College (785) 587-2800, or (800) 352-7575 FAX: 587-2804
3136 Dickens Ave., Manhattan, KS 66503
Manhattan Christian College (785) 539-3571, FAX: 539-0832
1415 Anderson Ave., Manhattan, KS 66502-4081

Hospitals

Mercy Health Center (785) 776-3300
1823 College Ave., Manhattan, KS 66502-3351

Newspapers

Kansas State Collegian, (785) 532-6555
Fax: (785) 532-6456
Kedzie Hall 103, Manhattan, KS 66506
Manhattan Mercury (785) 776-2300
318 N. 5th St. / P.O. Box 787, Manhattan, KS 66502
Riley Countian (785) 485-2290
P. O. Box 333, Riley, KS, 66531

More Data About Riley County

Economic Development

Kansas County Profile Reports
Statistical data from The Institute for Policy and Social Research, the University of Kansas

Health Data

KDHE's Riley County Health Profile

Genealogy

Riley County KSGenWeb

References

Midwest Research Institute. The Capper/MRI Quick-Fact Book of Kansas ( Topeka: Capper Press. 1990)

Riley County Offices

Riley County (785) 565-6200
110 Courthouse Plaza, Manhattan, KS 66502
Extension Service (785) 537-6350
110 Courthouse Plaza, Room B220 / Manhattan, KS 66502

For more about Riley County contact:

Manhattan CVB (800) 52-VISIT or (785) 776-8829
501 Poyntz Ave, Manhattan, KS 66502