Morris County, Kansas - History and Information

Morris County, Kansas - Page 2

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In the meantime, as more and more white settlers were encroaching upon their lands, the Kanza Indians finally rebelled and 400 of them entered Council Grove on June 2, 1859, in full feathered head-dress, painted and equipped for war. Though negotiations were attempted, a battle erupted in which two white men were wounded and a bloody war was averted only by the Indians giving up the two of their warriors who had done the shooting. They were immediately hanged by the white settlers. That same year, in October, Kanza reservation was set apart, and assigned in severalty to various individuals of the tribe.

Shamleffer and C.N. James Trading Post, Council Grove, 1860-70

In 1860 Morris County settlers suffered greatly from a drought -- not a single bushel of corn was raised. About 62,000 pounds of food out of the relief supply at Atchison were issued to Morris County people in the winter of 1860. Before there was opportunity to plant another crop the Civil War broke out. The total population at that time was about 800 and consisted of many who were divided in their sympathies between the North and the South. However, before the close of the war Morris County had furnished 125 Union soldiers. A number of Kanza Indians also enlisted, which raised the total to 180. During the Civil War and for a number of years afterward Morris County was molested by guerrillas and horse thieves and a number of lynchings and murders took place.

Shortly after the close of the war a new influx of settlers came into the county, especially ranchers who drove great herds of cattle into the area for pasturage. The 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. An Indian battle did occur with the Kanza Indians referred to as Cheyenne Outbreak of Morris County.

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. Challenging Council Grove for the county seat, 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.

That same year in the summer, the county saw a disastrous prairie fire that swept in from the west. The blaze was fought fought by all the male citizens of Council Grove under the leadership of Patrick Maloney, who was said to be the best fire fighter in the state. The women pumped water and sacks were wetted by small boys. Before the fire had run its course, the crops and grass of much of the county was destroyed.

Two years later in 1873, the remaining Kanza Indians were removed from the county to Indian Territory (Oklahoma) and their remaining lands opened to white settlement. By 1875 the population of the county had grown to almost 4,600 and the area had developed into a major farming and ranching area.

Benjamin "Pap" Singleton

In the spring of 1878, Benjamin "Pap" Singleton, a former slave who escaped to freedom in 1846, claimed land in Morris County in a settlement named Dunlap. Before long, freedmen known as "exodusters" came by the hundreds from the post-Reconstruction South to seek homesteads in the area. In the early 1880s, the Presbyterian Church in Dunlap founded the Freedmen's Academy to provide an education to exodusters in Kansas. However, the Academy would later close in the mid-1890s. Today, Dunlap is a semi-ghost town.

By 1890 the county population had increased to 11,381. In the next ten years, when many of the counties in Kansas were losing in population on account of the money panic, hard times, and the boom in the southwestern states, Morris County showed a small gain, the number of inhabitants in 1900 being 11,967.

The flood of 1903 raised the Neosho River several feet above all recorded high water marks and destroyed considerable property. Another serious flood occurred in 1908. However, the county continued to thrive and by 1910, had three railroads running through it, more than $3 million in farm products annually, and a population of about 12,400.

Morris County moved on into the future over the next century, while continuing to retain its rich history and agricultural base. However, like many other Kansas counties whose economic base is primarily farming and ranching, its population has gradually diminished over the years, now supporting just a little more than 6,000 people.

Numerous sites representing its fascinating Santa Fe Trail history can still be seen including a historic tour in Council Grove; Diamond Spring, a famous stop along the trail; numerous ruts from wagon trains visible across the Flint Hills, and more. Though Dunlap is nearly a ghost town today, its history as once being an all African-American City is well worth a stop. The county is also home to the Council Grove Federal Reservoir, which provides fishing, water sports and camping.

The current towns of Morris County include:

City	Population (estimated 2004)
Burdick (unincorporated)	??
Council Grove (county seat)	2,253
Delavan (ghost town)	??
Dunlap (semi ghost town)	81
Dwight	328
Latimer (ghost town)	20?
Parkerville (semi ghost town)	72
Skiddy (ghost town)	??
White City	492
Wilsey	189

Contact Information:

Morris County

501 W. Main

Council Grove, Kansas 66846

Compiled and edited by Kathy Weiser/Legends of Kansas, updated April, 2010.

About the Article: Much of the historic text in this articles comes from Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History, edited by Frank W. Blackmar, published in 1912 as well as Kansas: History of the State of Kansas, by William G. Cutler; published in 1883. However, other sources have also been used, the content combined, and heavily edited.

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