Ellis
County, Kansas
GenWeb
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Ellis
County, Kansas |
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Welcome to the Ellis County, Kansas GenWeb homepage, a part of the KSGenWeb Project. We hope you'll find this page useful in pursuing your genealogy. If you think you can help contribute, please contact your host, Mike Ward.
Ellis County, Kansas consists of a thirty mile square of western Kansas. Founded in 1867 when the Kansas Legislature divided the unorganized territory (that part of Kansas which was west of the Sixth Principal Meridian), into sixty-two counties. The county is named for Lieutenant George Ellis, of the Twelfth Kansas Infantry, who fought Quantrill's raiders in 1863 at Lawrence, Kansas and who was killed April 30, 1864, during the Civil War in a battle at Jenkins' Ferry, Arkansas.
An excellent guide to the early history of Kansas and of Ellis County is the 1883 edition of William G. Cutler's History of the State of Kansas. Be aware that Cutler incorrectly described three of the five Russian settlements in Ellis County during 1885-1887. Munjor is named Catharine, Catharine is named Schoenchen, and Schoenchen is named Munjor.
The Ellis County Coalition has a nice section in their Ellis County Homepage featuring the Heritage & History of Ellis County.
Michael J. Krannawitter of Hays, Kansas has been doing research on the Dreher family for about 10 years. He has recently published an updated version of a book he compiled 7 years ago. The update contains information about the original Dreher family that migrated to the Volga colonies in 1766 and all the families descended from them. The index lists over 7,000 names of people described in the book. Michael has put years of effort into this book. His paternal grandmother was Dorothy Dreher, daughter of Conrad Dreher. If anybody is interested in obtaining the book, they can contact Michael at mkrannawitter@hot.mail.com The book is entitled: Dreher Ancestors and Descendants. Gulliver's Bookstore in Hays, KS, also has the book.
Michael is also in the process of compiling a book on the Krannawitter/Kronewitter/Kronwitter/Kronewitt/Kranewitter family. It should be finished this winter. Michael is a Certified Genealogist and have been working on family history for many years.
Mike Ward,
Ellis County Host
wardm1@swbell.net
Section of an 1895 map of Kansas
| Item | Description |
| County Map | A map of Ellis County which I have drawn with various cities and locations indicated. |
| Oil Map | Sometimes you can use an oil map to pinpoint locations within a county |
| Queries | Genealogical queries for Ellis County, Kansas |
| Surnames | Ellis County, Kansas Surname List |
| Lookup's | Volunteers who will look up genealogical information about Ellis County, Kansas |
| Archives | An assortment of books, pictures, maps, cemetery listings, etc. about Ellis County |
| Antonino | Located 7 miles South East of Hays |
| Catharine (Catherine) |
Settled by a group from Katherininstadt, Russia |
| Chetola | Located in South West Ellis County, site of 1890's gold rush |
| Easdale | Located in the South East part of Ellis County |
| Ellis | Boyhood home of Walter P. Chrysler. |
| Emmeram (Norddorf) |
Located 5 miles North East of Catharine, near Sacred Heart Cemetery |
| Hays | Ellis County seat, Famous Kansas Cow Town, Home to Fort Hays State University |
| Herzog | Settled by Volga Germans in April of 1876. Located half mile north of Victoria. |
| Hog Back | Located five miles South East of Ellis |
| Hyacinth | Located ten miles Northwest of Hays |
| Martin | Located in North Central Ellis County on the Saline River |
| Mendota (Halton) |
Located in the North West corner of the county on the Saline River. Mendota means "the place of meeting." |
| Munjor | Settled by groups from Obermunjor and Wittman, Russia |
| Norddorf | Later named Emmeram. |
| Palatine | Located in South Central Ellis County on the Smoky Hill River |
| Pfeifer | Settled by a group from Kamenka, Russia |
| Rome | Predecessor of Hays, founded by Col. W. F. (Buffalo Bill) Cody |
| Schoenchen | Settled by families from Obermunjor and Schoenchen, Russia |
| Severin | Named after Catharine parish Reverand Father Severin |
| Stock Range | Located in South Western Ellis County on the Smoky Hill River |
| Toulon | Located 5 miles East and 1 mile South of Hays |
| Turkville | Located in the North East corner of Ellis County on the Saline River |
| Victoria | Home to the Cathedral of the Plains |
| Vincent | Located in the Southeast corner of Ellis County |
| Walker | Located 14 miles East of Hays |
| Yocemento | Midway between Hays and Ellis, Cement Mill built in 1907-1908 |
| Pleasant Hill Township | Settled by a group from Luxembourg |
| North Central Ellis Co | Settled by a group of English cattlemen |
| Fort Fletcher | Fort which later became Fort Hays, located 14 miles southeast of Hays |
| Fort Hays | Quartermaster depot which supplied forts throughout the West |
| Walker Air Base | Former Air base used during World War Two |
| KSELLIS-L | Ellis County, Kansas Discussion List. Instructions on how to subscribe. |
| KS-KIN-L | Kansas Ancestors and Relatives Discussion List. Instructions on how to subscribe. |
| Kansas Census Records | Online Census Finder Kansas |
| City Directories in Kansas | From the City Directories of the United States Project. |
| Courthouse | Vital records information may be obtained from the Ellis County Clerk, 1204 Fort Street, Hays, KS 67601-3831. Vital records information for all Kansas Counties can be obtained from http://www.vitalrec.com/ks.html |
| Ellis Library | Ellis Public Library, 911 Washington, P. O. Box 107, Ellis, KS 67637 |
| Forsyth Library | Fort Hays State University, 600 Park Street, Hays, KS 67601-4099. Be sure to look at "A Bibliography of Interest" by Judith Salm |
| Hays Library | Hays Public Library, 1205 Main, Hays, KS 67601-3693 (The Kansas Room has genealogical information) |
| Ellis Museum | Ellis Railroad Museum, 911 Washington, Ellis, KS 67637 |
| Ellis Museum | Walter Chrysler Home & Museum, Tenth & Washington, Ellis, KS 67637 |
| Hays Museum | Ellis County Historical Society Museum, 100 W. 7th, Hays, KS |
| Hays Museum | Fort Hays Historic Site, 1272 Alternate Hwy 183, Hays, KS |
| Hays Museum | Sternberg Museum, Fort Hays State University, Hays, KS |
| Newspaper | Hays Daily News |
| Society | Fort Hays Kansas Genealogical Society, Forsyth Library, FHS University, Hays, Kansas 67601 |
| Society | American Historical Society of Germans from Russia |
| Society | In 1886, the first Bukovina Germans arrived in Ellis, Kansas. Learn more about their history from the Bukovina Society of the Americas based in Ellis County. |
| Web Site | German Villages in the Volga Valley of Russia. This site contains history, maps, settlements, terms, and links. |
| Web Site | American Historical Society of Germans From Russia |
| Web Site | From Far Away Russia, Russian-Germans in Kansas, from the Kansas State Historical Society |
| Web Site | The Golden Jubilee of German-Russian Settlements of Ellis and Rush Counties, Kansas, August 31, September 1 and 2, 1926 |
| Web Site | The Volga Germans, A Brief History |
| Web Site | Germans from Russia Heritage Society |
| Web Site | The German-Russian Volga Research List (GRVRL) |
| Web Site | ODESSA ... a German-Russian Genealogical Library |
| Web Site | The Russian Archives |
The U. S. Geological Survey supplies Ellis County information of interest to genealogists such as the list of populated places and a list of cemeteries. Kansas on the Net from Kansas University supplies some generic information about Ellis County.
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