Council Grove - Page 2

Morris County received its last Indian scare in June, 1868 when some 400 Cheyenne Indians flooded Council Grove armed and painted for war. Though they were destined for a confrontation with the Kanza Indians, the settlers of Council Grove, taken completely by surprise, held themselves in readiness for whatever might happen. The Indians; however, moved on taking up their differences with the Kanza Indians. An Indian battle then occurred outside of Council Grove referred to as Cheyenne Outbreak of Morris County.

On April 30, 1869, the city settlement became a city of the third class and in June, 1870, the first election was held for city officers, at which R. B. Lockwood was chosen Mayor. By 1871, a number of new settlements had sprang up in the county, at which time a county seat contest occurred. When Parkerville became an incorporated town, it challenged Council Grove for the county seat and an election was called to settle the matter. All sorts of trickery was resorted to by both sides, including bringing in men by the hundreds for voting purposes. At that time the population of the county was 2,225. The number of votes cast was 1,312, of which 899 were for Council Grove and 413 for Parkerville. The question was not brought up again.

By 1872, the Santa Fe Railroad was completed to the Colorado border and the days of the Santa Fe Trail as a main transportation route were over.

In 1873, the Kanza Indians were removed from their reservation in Morris County to Oklahoma Territory, thus opening more land in the county for white settlement.

On November 9, 1875, a fire destroyed the school building, Shamleffer’s Mill and other property in the city, totaling a loss of $35,000. No steps were taken to rebuild the schoolhouse until 1883, at which time a stone building was erected..

Though Council Grove had its ups and downs it continued on and by the early 1880s had a large stone courthouse, a large steam-powered flouring mill, nine grocery stores, a two hardware stores, several dry goods stores, three restaurants, a furniture store, a bank, three livery stables, a lumber yard, four hotels and four churches.  

By the early 1900s, the town had grown to a population of over 2,500 people and had two banks, an international money order post office with five rural routes, express and telegraph offices, a telephone exchange, an electric lighting plant and waterworks, grain elevators, three newspapers, an opera-house, several good hotels, an numerous retail businesses.

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