Riley County, Kansas - History and Information

Riley County - Page 2

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Shortly after organizing Manhattan, a college was founded and a charter obtained from the Territorial Legislature for the Bluemont Central College Association. The school opened in 1860 under the supervision of the Methodist Church. In 1863, it became the Kansas State Agricultural College, and today is the Kansas State University.

Some of the first post offices in the county were in Ashland, established in 1853; one in Zeandale township, about 1857; Stanton, in May Day township in 1869; Ogden and Riley Center. The first schools in the county were at Manhattan and in Ashland Township in 1857. The next year a school was opened in Zeandale Township, Grant and Ogden townships following in 1859.

Kansas State Agricultural College, Manhattan,

J.R. Riddle, 1885

The development of the Kansas Pacific Railroad through Manhattan and Ogden in 1866, provided much growth to the two towns and over the years, a number of other lines were added to the county. As Riley County continued to attract more settlers, more towns were developed, many of which no longer exist today.

In 1870 a colony of Welsh settlers organized the town of Powys, located about two miles east of present-day Bala. When they were unable to find enough water, they relocated two miles west and formed the town of Bala in 1871. The Bala school closed in 1964 and the post office suspended delivery in 1966, leaving the old settlement a ghost town.

Other towns were settled on the trade routes including May Day in 1871 and Bodaville in 1885, neither one of which exists today. Other old settlements included Peach Grove, Swede Creek, Center Hill, Parallel, Tabor Valley, Deep Creek, Rose Hill, Alert, Grandview, and Mariadahl.

Two resort communities were also established such as Blasing Springs in 1882, which provided mineral water for medicinal drinking and bathing. The 3-story hotel that once stood there was destroyed by a tornado in 1943. Another was Manhattan Beach, also called the Eureka Lake Resort, was built by C.P. Dewey in 1899 on an elbow lake of the Kansas River. The flood of 1903 destroyed the lake and resort was later sold.

At the turn of the century, Riley County boasted almost 14,000 residents and over the years continued to grow and diversify. Today, the county supports nearly 63,000 people, many employed at Kansas State University and three other colleges as well as the Fort Riley Military Installation. The county provides a number of museums and historic sites that tell of its long history.

The Old Trooper Statue stands before the Cavalry Parade Field at Fort Riley,

Kathy Weiser, October, 2005.

This image available for photographic prints HERE!

The current towns of Riley County include:

City	Population (estimated 2004)
Ashland (unincorporated)	??
Bala (unincorporated)	??
Keats (unincorporated)	??
Lasita (unincorporated)	??
Leonardville	384
Manhattan (county seat)	47,916
Ogden	1,544
Randolph	149
Riley	760
Rocky Ford (unincorporated)	??
Zeandale	??

Contact Information:

Riley County Kansas

110 Courthouse Plaza

Manhattan, Kansas 66502

785-565-6200

Compiled 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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