Grant County, Kansas - History and Information

Grant County - Page 3

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In 1930 the county built a new courthouse that replaced a wood frame structure that had been utilized since 1888. The building combines classical forms with Art Deco styling with linear projections, terra-cotta ornamentation, and decorative brickwork. The courthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.

The 1930's also brought with it the "dust bowl days," and Grant County, like many other areas of the High Plains Region, suffered terribly. On April 14, 1935 the county was engulfed by a massive wall of black dust. Known as Black Sunday, the region went from daylight to total darkness in just one minute. When it cleared, farmsteads, fence rows, and homes were covered with dust and the trees were stripped bare. Afterwards, many deserted their farmsteads, heading for better climates. However, more persevered, determined to save the farms and homes. From 1930 to 1940, the county population reduced in size by 37%, from 3,092 to 1,946.

The Grant County Courthouse was listed on the National Historic Register

in 2002, Kathy Weiser, April, 2009.

A huge black cloud of dust rolls into western Kansas in the 1930's.

On December 17, 1936, citizens got good news when an announcement was made in the local newspaper that Grant County was to become a manufacturing center. Early in 1937, the Peerless Carbon Black plant became the county's first gas related industry. This sparked off more drilling, with about 40 wells completed by the end of that year. Grant County was moving into a new era.

Soon, the population began to grow again and by 1950, the county was called home to 4,538 people.

Over the decades, growth remained steady and today Grant County supports some 8,000 people.

Encompassing 24 square miles of mostly flat land, the county boasts some of the most spectacular sunrises and sunsets in the nation. Situated on the High Plains, the area is also home to deer, pheasants, wild turkey, coyotes, rabbits, and other wildlife and hunters come from around the world to partake of the excellent deer and pheasant hunting.

The passenger depot originally built by the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad, but utilized by the Cimarron Valley Railroad in Ulysses today, still stands, though there is no longer passenger service.

The Grant County Museum, situated at 300 East Highway 160 in Ulysses, provides the history of the area. The museum is housed in an old County Shop building that was originally built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1938. The museum features historical artifacts and exhibits that tell the story of life on the High Plains, including Indian artifacts, Santa Fe Trail memorabilia, and information regarding both old and new Ulysses. The museum complex also displays the old 1887 Hotel Edwards that was moved from “Old Ulysses,” as well as a one-room schoolhouse. It is open daily.

Grant County Museum, Kathy Weiser, April, 2009

The Hotel Edwards today is a museum in Ulysses, Kathy Weiser, April, 2009.

About 12 miles south of Ulysses, the old site of Wagon Bed Spring, which was situated along the Santa Fe Trail, can still be seen and is today, a National Historic Landmark.

If you can add additional information or photographs regarding this article, please feel free to send us an Email. We welcome updates and additional information.

More Information:

Grant County Kansas

108 S. Glenn
Ulysses, Kansas 67880
620-356-1335

If you can add additional information or photographs regarding this article, please feel free to send us an Email. We welcome updates and additional information.

Also See:

Grant County Towns

Grant County Extinct Towns

Santa Fe Trail Thru Kansas

Ulysses - Born Twice and Still Kickin!

Wagon Bed Spring

Wagon Bed Spring in Grant County, Kansas Kathy Weiser,

September, 2008.

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