News, Events & County History

Presbyterians’ church was the first in Lakin

Lakin’s Presbyterian congregation was officially organized with 16 charter members on May 6, 1887, at the home of D.C. Hawthorne. The Rev. David Kingery, pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Garden City, served as moderator, and according to the Lakin Pioneer Democrat, $300 had already been donated to build a Presbyterian church at Lakin. The financial backing came from Senator F.J. Pringle, J.M. Jones and Dr. J.H. Rodgers, all of Springfield, Ohio. “Each of the gentlemen have large landed interests near here and are ready to work for the upbuilding of Lakin, and to secure the county seat for this place.”

In April of 1888, fundraising efforts began in earnest when Hawthorne and Jones began circulating a subscription paper, and on June 2, the Advocate announced that Jones had selected a lot for the new church. The church was to be constructed of brick and stone for around $3,000. A tin box filled with relics of value, church records and other important papers was placed in the cornerstone which was laid in front of a large congregation on July 22, and the following week, the Advocate reported that the material was “mostly on the ground, the foundation is done and the workmen are erecting the building according to plans and specifications adopted.”

Notices began running in the paper asking subscribers of the church fund to pay their first and second installments. “Please pay promptly that work may go forward rapidly.” The Sept. 8, 1888 Advocate printed a letter from Jones who was back in Ohio at that time. “I hope, as soon as possible, to be with my friends in building the church at Lakin,” and that was the last mention of the building that could be found in the local papers. Where the church was being erected and what happened with the project is not known.

The Presbyterians used the 1886 school for services, taking turns with Methodists and other denominations until 1895. In February of 1895, word broke that the Presbyterians were considering purchasing an abandoned church building near Kinsley and having it moved to Lakin. The Lakin Index voiced its support of the Presbyterians’ project, “We sincerely hope they will consummate the deal, as we are badly in need of a church building. It is an improvement which should receive the hearty support of every citizen of Lakin.”

The Kinsley church was purchased and torn down, and the lumber was transported to Lakin where a force of men went to work immediately rebuilding the church at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Western Street on land donated by L.I. Purcell. In late May, the Advocate reported that the tin-box and its contents which had been placed in the cornerstone of the Presbyterian church in 1888 were transferred to the cornerstone of the new church. By mid-June, the church was under roof, and later that month, many strong and willing arms hoisted a large bell to its position in the church’s belfry.

Dr. Browning of Garden City delivered a stirring sermon at the first services in the church on Thursday, July 11, 1895. This was the first segment of a four-day grand dedication service which included sermons by C.E. Williams, pastor of the local Methodist congregation, and ministers from Wichita and Hutchinson. On Sunday, July 14, the church building was crowded to full capacity with many friends from Hartland and Deerfield in attendance. Dr. S.B. Fleming of Wichita surprised the crowd when he announced that $450 was to be raised before the dedication exercises could be completed. In less than 30 minutes, $460 had been given either in cash or by promise.

“The Presbyterian folks are to be congratulated on their success in erecting so beautiful a church free of debt. It is the finest church building in this part of the state, and is a credit to the Presbyterians and an ornament to the city,” proclaimed the Index.

When the church was first opened, local Methodists were invited to use the facility. While a number of them accepted the invite, others opted to continue using the school house. Eventually, the church was used by all denominations for services, funerals, school and other community affairs. Often there was ‘standing room only’ for the evening services and special occasions in the church. When the Presbyterian primary department decided to raise funds for a Sunday School room of their own, practically everyone in town, regardless of creed, contributed. A 12×26 building was erected for this purpose and opened in March of 1904.

The church’s manse sat to the east of the church and was built with a great deal of donated labor from members of the congregation as well as the Rev. F.F. Thomas family. “Rev. Thomas is as happy as a little boy with a new wagon, and well he may be, for after so long a time of working and waiting he has realized his long-cherished dreams of a manse. The family took possession of the new home this week,” revealed the Aug. 6, 1908 Advocate. The manse opened to the public the following month.

The old wooden church served the congregation until 1950 when a new $65,000 church was dedicated free of debt on Sept. 24, 1950. Morning services started in the old church which had been moved to the back of the lot, and following weekly announcements and instructions, a prayer was given by pastor W.E. Dysart. “Onward Christian Soldiers” was sung as the congregation marched from the old to the new church where the remainder of the dedication services were held. The 1895 building was sold to the Community Church at Holcomb and moved there.

In July of 1961, a contract was awarded to Lee and Woolman Construction Company of Garden City to construct a new educational wing on the 1950 building. The church observed its diamond anniversary on Feb. 4, 1962, by dedicating the church’s new facilities which included six classrooms, expanded kitchen facilities, a women’s parlor, storage facilities, two rest rooms and the remodeled chancel which expanded the choir and added a study and choir room. The old manse was purchased by Maxine Campbell and moved in 1967 to 115 N. Campbell Street where it is still used as a residence, and the brick home located at 406 W. Washington was purchased the following year to serve as manse. In 1988, after a severe thunderstorm had caused considerable damage, the flat roof on the north wing of the church was remodeled into a pitch roof, and in 2022, a new shake metal roof was installed by Lianro Construction.

During a severe thunder storm in the summer of 1896, the entire front of the church’s bell tower was downed by lightning and laid flat on the ground. It was picked up and replaced practically unscathed.

The manse which sat east of the church was moved in 1967 to 115 N. Campbell where it is still stands today.

A new $65,000 church was dedicated free of debt on Sept. 24, 1950.

SOURCES: Special thanks to Donna and Martin Neff; archives of the Finney County Democrat, Lakin Pioneer Democrat, Index, Advocate, Lakin Pioneer and Lakin Independent; information provided by the late Olivia Tate Ramsey for History of Kearny County, Vol. 1, and Museum archives.

Harry and Maria Browne, Kearny County Pioneers

David Harold Browne came to Kearny County to work as a clerk in the railroad eating house. The oldest of three boys born to Charles Browne and Helen Potter Browne, Harry was born at Cowansville, Canada on April 18, 1859. While growing up, he spent much of his leisure time ice-skating and attending “sugar-off” parties, a French-Canadian tradition that brought friends and families together to enjoy the sugar high that comes from boiling maple sap into taffy. Harry’s father was a doctor, and Harry often helped in his office and rode with him to visit patients and help with emergencies. The knowledge of medicine which Harry gained in this way was most useful to him in later years as a pioneer in Western Kansas.

His father died five days before Harry’s seventeenth birthday, and his mother moved the family to Chicago, Illinois where her people lived. Harry had to quit school and go to work to help support his mother and brothers. His first position was as a clerk for a packing company, and in 1880, Harry joined his maternal uncle, Guy Potter, who was managing the eating house here. Shortly after Fred Harvey became the proprietor of the dining hall/hotel, the building was moved to Coolidge which became the division point of the Santa Fe Railroad. Harry remained here, and for a time, he joined Alonzo Boylan and Rolla Walter in catching and taming wild horses which they sold to cowboys and horse traders. After a time, Harry took a clerk position at John O’Loughlin’s general store.

While working for O’Loughlin, Harry met Maria Dillon, one of Lakin’s most popular young women. Born in New York City on June 17, 1866, Maria lost her mother as a small child and was educated in a convent in Montreal, Canada. She came to Kearny County in 1879 with her father, step-mother and younger siblings, and she made a name for herself as one of the best compositors in Kansas while working at the Lakin Herald where her father served as editor. Wearing a blue silk taffeta dress fashioned with a fitted basque and pleated bustle, Maria married Harry in an evening ceremony on April 7, 1886, at the dugout home of her brother in-law and sister, Alexander and Annie Cross. Three children were born to Harry and Maria: Helen Florence (Mr. J.H. Rardon), Charles Harold, and Hazel Louise (Mrs. F. Ivor Williams).

Harry was the first elected county clerk of Kearny County, and the Browne family moved eventually to Hartland and then back to Lakin when Lakin won the 1894 election. Harry recalled that one of the most dramatic events in his life was counting votes for the location of the county seat. Each town that had entered the race had the privilege of sending men to see that the votes were properly counted. Barney O’Connor was Lakin’s representative and stood over the election judges with six-shooter in hand, and Harry said he never expected to get out of the building without someone being killed. He was re-elected to the county clerk position several times, serving until 1896, and also worked as assistant cashier in the Kearny County Bank.

When Harry’s health failed, his doctor recommended a change of climate. Harry decided to buy a team and wagon and go overland to Colorado Springs, taking his herd of purebred jersey cattle and selling them along the way. One fine June morning in 1896, the Browne family stored all their worldly possessions in a covered wagon and started to Colorado. First was Maria with one of the girls in a top buggy drawn by a blaze-faced bay horse named Bally, then came the wagon to which were hitched two large gray mares with Harry as driver, and then the herd of cattle urged on by Doc Miller, the hired hand. Except for being awakened one night by water flooding their campground, the trip was uneventful. It took about a month to complete the journey and dispose of the cattle. At Colorado Springs, Harry engaged in the coal business with his friend, Frank Kelly, whom he had made acquaintances with earlier in life.

After three years and the death of Ben Bacon who was the cashier at Kearny County Bank, Harry was beckoned back to Lakin to fill Bacon’s shoes. Harry was always interested in everything for the advancement of his town and county and gave generously of his time to that end serving as a member of the board of education and on the city council. He was an ardent fisherman and lover of nature, and when worries and pressures of business weighed heavily upon him, he would spend the day fishing at Lake McKinney. Harry always came back with a cleared mind and refreshed body. He had the gift of being a good listener and gave to others a feeling of strength and confidence.

Harry maintained his position at the bank until his death on March 8, 1931. He had been in failing health for some time, but the trooper that he was, Harry continued working until three days before his death. He was loved and respected by all who knew him, and all the banks and business houses in Lakin closed during his funeral. Known as Gippy to his grandchildren, his granddaughter, Cora Rardon Holt, wrote of him, “I shall always remember his long fingered, iron strong hands. They revealed his character and always gave me a sense of comfort and security.”

Maria, or Gammy as she was known to her grandchildren, died on Oct. 18, 1948, as a result of shock caused by burns she received earlier that day. It was thought that her robe may have caught on fire as all three burners of her oil stove were lit, and coffee was boiling on the middle burner. Maria also was very much loved in the community, and she was remembered for the sunny disposition that characterized her her entire life. She had been a lifelong caregiver; first to her younger siblings, then to her own children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Left to right: Charles, Hazel and Helen, the children of Harry and Maria Browne. 1892.

The home of Harry and Maria Browne stood near the corner of Campbell Street and Smith Avenue in Lakin but was later moved west on the river road. The house later became the home of Otis and Shirley Jennings and stood next to the Jennings Indoor Arena.

SOURCES: Information provided by the late Hazel Browne Williams and Charles R. Browne, great grandson of D.H. and Maria Browne; History of Kearny County Vol. 1; Ancestry.com; museum archives, and archives of The Advocate and Lakin Independent.

Happy Birthday, Kansas!

The U.S. House of Representatives voted to admit Kansas as a state in April of 1860, but the Senate was under the influence of pro-slavery leaders and refused. The failure to admit Kansas became a national political issue. At the Republican’s national convention the following month, Abraham Lincoln was nominated as the Republican candidate for president. A strong proponent for Kansas, Honest Abe had visited the territory and spoke at several sites in December of 1859. When he won the presidency, news of his election caused 11 southern states to withdraw from the Union and set up a separate government. As each state withdrew, their senators and representatives resigned their seats in Congress, vastly reducing the number of those in the Senate who opposed Kansas’s admission. The Senate passed the Kansas Bill, and President Buchanan signed the bill officially admitting Kansas to the Union on January 29, 1861. While on his way to Washington for his inauguration in 1861, President-elect Lincoln had a stop off at Philadelphia’s Independence Hall where he hoisted the first United States flag bearing the Kansas star on February 22 (George Washington’s birthday).

The difficulties that Kansas faced in gaining statehood led John J. Ingalls, secretary of the first Kansas state senate, to suggest the state motto of “Ad Astra per Aspera” which is Latin for “To the Stars Through Difficulties.” The motto was placed at the top of the state seal, and below it 34 stars, representing Kansas as the 34^th state to join the union, are boldly arranged. Pictured in the right-hand corner of the seal is a rising sun for the east. Commerce is represented on the seal by a river and a steamboat, and agriculture as the basis of Kansas’s future prosperity is represented by a settler’s cabin and a man plowing with a team of horses. Also depicted are a wagon headed west and pulled by oxen, as well as a herd of retreating buffalo being pursued by two Native Americans on horseback.

In 1903, the sunflower was adopted as the state flower by the Kansas Legislature, and on Kansas Day in 1925, the western meadowlark was announced as the state bird of Kansas. In an election coordinated by the Kansas Audubon Society, nearly 50,000 of 121,000 votes were cast by Kansas school children for the meadowlark; however, the Kansas Legislature did not officially make it the state bird until 1937. Adopted in 1927, the Kansas state flag was designed by Lincoln, Kansas seamstress Hazel Avery. The flag was modified in 1961 by adding the word, “Kansas,” in gold block letters below the seal.

The cottonwood was adopted as the state tree in 1937, and in 1947, “Home on the Range” became the official state song.” In his cabin on Beaver Creek near Smith Center in 1871 or 1872, Dr. Brewster Higley wrote the lyrics to the song which was originally entitled, “My Western Home.” Druggist Dan Kelly composed the music. In 1955, the American buffalo was named as the state animal, and the honey bee was adopted as the state insect in 1976. It was not until 1986 that the ornate box turtle was established as the state reptile. These are but a few of Kansas’s more well-known state symbols, but did you know that our state soil, established in 1990, is harney loam silt, , and the barred tiger salamander was named state amphibian in 1994? In 2010, little bluestem was named the state grass, and the tylosaurus and pteranodon became the state fossils in 2014. In 2018, limestone was established as the state rock, galena the state mineral, jelinite the state gemstone, and channel catfish the state fish. In 2019, chambourcin was named the state’s red wine grape while vignoles, the state white wine grape. In 2022, the sandhill plum was recognized as the state fruit, and silvisarus condravi, the woodland lizard that lived from the Early to Late Cretaceous Period, has been the state land fossil since 2023.

Alexander Le Grande Copley, a teacher in the Paola school system, is credited with the origination of Kansas Day. On January 29, 1877 after spending two weeks gathering information on the geography, history and resources of Kansas, Copley’s students presented their maps, drawings, songs and speeches to their community. The event was so well attended that there was not room for everyone in the small school. Copley later became the superintendent of Wichita schools and implemented Kansas Day there. Copley attended county teachers’ institutes and state teachers’ association meetings where he encouraged teachers to celebrate Kansas Day. In 1882, at the first meeting of the Northwestern Teachers Association, a decision was made to publish a small pamphlet which included information about Kansas, its songs and sample speeches suitable for the observance of Kansas Day. The 32-page booklet was simply called, “Kansas Day.” At the next State Teachers Association meeting in Topeka, every teacher took home one or more copies. For a short time, the booklet was used as a textbook in the state normal school at Emporia.

The popularity of Kansas Day continued to grow and is celebrated by teachers and students across the state. For the past several years, Lakin Grade School students have enjoyed Kansas Day tours at the museum where they learn about Kansas, the Santa Fe Trail, one-room schools, pioneer life and local history. Today, January 29, we welcome Lakin’s third graders and celebrate the 164^th birthday of our grand state. Happy Birthday, Kansas!

Jim Woodrow gives a tour of the depot to Mrs. Miller’s second graders in 2016.

Third graders get the opportunity to feel a buffalo hide at the Museum in 2023.

KANSAS

Not for what she hath done for me,

Though it be great,

For what she is, her majesty,

I love my State.

Thomas Emmet Dewey

SOURCES: Sunflowers, A Book of Kansas Poems; The Story of Kansas by Bliss Isely and W.M. Richards; Kansas … Our State by Goebel, Heffelfinger and Gammon; Kansas State Historical Society, and Museum archives.

The illustrious Barney O’Connor

Barney O’Connor was quite the character. The Canadian-born Irishman had already lived a colorful life before his arrival in Kearny County. One of 10 children, he moved with his family from Canada to Lincoln, Nebraska in 1870, and soon found his way to Kansas where he secured work as a cowboy. He was the first boy to ride horseback between Wichita and Medicine Lodge, accomplishing the difficult and dangerous feat in 1871 at the tender age of 14. That same year, O’Connor went to Matagorda, Texas, and drove a herd of cattle back to Newton which was at that time the terminus of the Santa Fe Railroad.

Barney eventually hired on as a pony express rider on the old Hutchinson-Medicine Lodge trail, and in 1874, he played a major role in one of the last Indian battles of Kansas. He started out early one morning on his regular route but had travelled only a few miles when he sighted a large war party of Indians camped on Sand Creek. Barney raced to Medicine Lodge to give warning then led a troop of 35 mounted soldiers back to where he had spotted the encampment.

In the spring of 1884, O’Connor organized a posse of men to chase down four men who had attempted to rob the Medicine Lodge bank and killed the bank president and cashier in the process. The gang of criminals was led by the very jaded Henry Brown, city marshal of Caldwell, Kansas, and his deputy, Ben Webster. With Barney at the helm, the posse pursued the gang with shots flying all the while until they cornered the would-be robbers in a canyon about eight miles west of Medicine Lodge. The gang was taken to the jail at Medicine Lodge, but an angry mob broke them out of jail and hung them, including Marshal Brown who was killed while trying to run away. As a memento of the escapade, O’Connor took a time piece from one of the assailants and a Winchester rifle from another. The watch, which did not belong to the criminal who was wearing it, led to Barney being arrested about 11 years later when it was spied upon his wrist.

The Medicine Lodge Posse. This group of men were responsible for capturing marshal Henry Newton Brown of Caldwell, Kansas, and the would be robbers of the Medicine Valley Bank. Barney O’ Connor is standing second from the left on the back row.

Later in 1884, O’Connor proved up a claim north of Lakin where he engaged in cattle raising and farming. He and Frank McAlister, a pal from the Medicine Lodge area, established Parlor Livery Feed and Sale Stable, and many of their horses were used for the mail hacks in an area of Western Kansas from Wallace to Hugoton which was known as Hugo at the time. O’Connor was also president of the Northwestern Stage line.

Soon, Barney was appointed as Undersheriff of Kearny Township of Finney County. In January of 1886, he was shot while helping a deputy United States marshal bring in a suspected horse thief by the name of Al McClure. McClure was wanted in Montana Territory and was working on a ranch on Bear Creek when O’Connor and the marshal went to bring him in. O’Connor knew McClure and thought he could be trusted so he didn’t handcuff the suspect. All three men were in a buggy riding back to town when McClure grabbed O’Connor’s revolver from his hip pocket and aimed it at the marshal’s head. Barney sprung into action, and the bullet intended for the marshal hit O’Connor’s left arm just above the elbow. A scuffle ensued, but McClure was finally secured and brought to Lakin without further ado. In December of 1886, Barney received the appointment as Deputy United States Marshall.

O’Connor also took a prominent part in the Kearny County seat battle after Hartland cowboys stole the records from Lakin, strapping on his guns and riding to Hartland with Tommy Morgan to retrieve the county books. Six-shooter in hand, O’Connor stood over the election judges while votes were counted in February of 1889.

In the spring of 1889, Barney and his family left for Hutchinson, but the nomadic Irishman was not one to let the grass grow beneath his feet. Eventually, the O’Connor family relocated near Boise, Idaho. In 1892, a herd of 4,000 steers were shipped from Flagstaff, Arizona to Wyoming where Barney took over and drove the cattle overland more than 800 miles to Saskatchewan, Canada. By the mid 1890’s, O’Connor was back in central Kansas but became entrenched in legal woes for peddling liquor. Next, he made his way to Kansas City, Missouri where he operated a livery stable, but O’Connor returned to Lakin in 1904 and located in the sandhills. In 1909, he moved to Garden City. In 1911, Barney purchased the 1,700-acre Pig Pen Ranch on the Cimarron River in northeast Grant County which had been originally established by fellow Irishman and Lakin’s founding father, John O’Loughlin. O’Connor’s holdings grew to more than 6,000 acres.

Barney O’Connor at Pig Pen Ranch in Grant County.

In 1924, Barney suffered a stroke which left him almost helpless, and nine years later he died at his Garden City home on the corner of Seventh and Chestnut streets. The Lakin Independent wrote that “O’Connor’s life was filled with experiences that would have filled many a Wild West novel, and which would have eclipsed those of many a frontiersman who was less reticent about his experiences.” It was said that Barney traveled all over the country from Old Mexico to Canada on horseback with nothing but a gun and a pair of boots.

Bernard H. O’Connor was buried at Valley View Cemetery in Garden City, and beside him rest the remains of three young sons. Daniel died at the age of 18 months and was Barney’s firstborn with first wife, Mercy Catherine Young. Bernard Young, also born of his marriage with Mercy, was struck and killed by a train at Walla Walla, Washington when he was 11. Bernard Keroher O’Connor, the first child of Barney and his second wife, Dove Agnes Keroher, died at 5 months of age. Barney had four other sons: Patrick, Michael and James with his first wife, and Collins with his second. The large yellow house on the corner of Kansas Street and Russell Road in Lakin was originally the O’Connor home.

Barney O’Connor with his second wife, Dove, and their son, Collins.

SOURCES: Conquest of Southwest Kansas by Leola Howard Blanchard; History of Kearny County Vol. 1; Find a Grave; Ancestry.com; and archives of The Helena Star, Wichita Star, Wichita Daily Eagle, Garden City Irrigator, Kearny County Advocate, The Lakin Investigator, Pioneer Democrat, and Lakin Independent.

Lawman John Henry Carter

When Mike Fontenot takes the oath of office as the new Kearny County Sheriff on January 13, he will become the latest in a long and storied list of local lawmen dating back to the 1800s. John Henry Carter was the first man charged with keeping the peace in our area. He was appointed undersheriff of Kearny Township in 1879 when what is now Kearny County was part of Ford County. Southwest Kansas was considered part of the wild, wild west at that time, and Carter’s heroics are well documented.

In 1882, a lucrative reward was offered for the capture and conviction of Thomas Wooten (sp.) and James McCullom who had robbed and murdered a railroad section foreman near WaKeeney. After hearing that the fugitives had been seen in our neck of the woods, Carter guessed the duo was headed to Point of Rocks Ranch in the extreme southwest corner of the state. Carter secured a good horse and reached the area about nightfall but learned that no strangers had been seen there. He cautioned the ranch’s owner and cowboys to show no surprise nor suspicion if the men arrived later. After everyone had gone to their bunks, two men rode up on worn-out horses and asked to spend the night. They were given coffee and food and allowed to sleep in their blankets on the kitchen floor which was next to where Carter was to sleep. But Carter saw no sleep that night, remaining constantly alert for any movements from the suspected men.

At dawn, lawman Carter slipped his rifle over the kitchen window sill and made his way out of the house, walking through the area where the desperadoes were still wrapped in their blankets. Carter secured his rifle and went to a deep buffalo wallow between the house and where Wooten and McCollom’s horses were tied. The wallow afforded partial concealment to John. Wooten came out of the house and started for the horses, and when he was about 50 feet away, Carter shouted, “hands up.” Wooten swiftly pulled two revolvers out and sent bullets flying in Carter’s direction. Carter returned fire, missing with his first shot but hitting Wooten with his second which left a silver-dollar-sized hole in the man’s shoulder.

McCullom reached the scene, and seeing his compadre lying on the ground in great agony, fired several bullets at Carter. The shots missed the lawman but raised a cloud of dust. McCullom then rushed towards Carter before firing his last charge. Carter waited until McCollom was within such close range that his vision was clear, took aim and killed McCollom with one shot. Carter brought Wooten to Lakin where the killer’s wound was dressed. Trego County undersheriff Joseph Lucas came to Lakin and took custody of the prisoner, but Lucas was later assaulted at WaKeeney by a masked angry mob who took Wooten. Some accounts say the mob hung Wooten while others say he escaped; regardless, Carter was deprived of the very handsome reward despite a concerted effort to secure a special $1,000 appropriation from the Legislature for his bravery. One account claimed that Carter did receive $300 for his efforts.

In August of 1887 when talk was circulating in the area about the Governor appointing a temporary sheriff here, both Chantilly and Hartland endorsed Carter for the position. Nearly 500 voters signed a petition asking the Governor for Carter’s appointment. “If Governor Martin should see fit to appoint John H. Carter to this office the people will secure a careful, honest and courageous Sheriff, and one whom the lawless element yet remaining in the county have a wholesome fear,” decreed The Hartland Times.

“That gentleman has lived on his present farm ten years, and has succeeded, by careful management and industry, in making himself comfortable well off. During that time he has seen the country grow from a border territory, ruled by the cowboy, and occupied only by cattle and their owners, to its present thriving condition of handsome towns, farm homes, school houses and other evidences of advanced civilization. But such changes were not made without trouble, and though he himself engaged in cattle raising, John Carter was always in the front, protecting the rights of the weak settler . . . he has done the state signal service in arresting murderers and other desperate criminals, always at the risk of his life, and sometimes when human life had to be taken in order to protect law abiding citizens.”

This was a time of rampant hijinks and game play between towns vying for county seat and some shady characters vying for offices. Governor Martin appointed R.F. Thorne, not Carter, as the first Kearny County sheriff, but John Carter’s public service did not end there. He served multiple terms as a county commissioner, as an officer with the Hartland Republicans, school director for the Hartland school district, was undersheriff again in the 1890s, and was a member of the GAR, having served during the Civil War.

Born in 1844 at Collinsville, Illinois, John arrived in the Hartland area eight years before the town was platted. He built a homestead and filed a timber claim on his property which was adjacent to the townsite near Indian Mound and the famed Chouteau Island. Carter’s was the first timber claim proved up in the county, and the grove was a popular venue for early-day celebrations. Carter also ran a butcher shop and farmed. He and his first wife, Mary Penn Carter, had four children: Amy, Ezra, Hattie, and Alice who was the first girl born in this county. John Carter died at the age of 80 at San Diego, California in 1924.

SOURCES: History of Kearny County Vol. 1; Southwest History Corner by India Simmons; Buffalo Jones’ Forty Years of Adventure by Charles Jesse Jones; archives of The Hartland Times, Lakin Pioneer Democrat, Lakin Herald, Lakin Index, Western Kansas World and Topeka Daily Capital; Museum archives; and Ancestry.com. Special thanks to Charlotte Carter Isaacs, great-great granddaughter of John H. Carter.

Talking Turkey

As if the Dust Bowl didn’t make matters difficult enough, a deluge of grasshoppers made the bleak farming situation of the 1930s even more complicated. To battle the pests and ultimately save his alfalfa crop, Orlie White began raising turkeys on his Kearny County farm located on the north shore of Lake McKinney. According to a story written by his wife, Prudence, “Turkeys were the best grasshopper catchers in the world.”

Orlie had a dealership with Red Wing Hatcheries in California for ‘broad-breasted turkeys,’ an improved meat bird. The poults arrived by freight train, and each was taught to drink water and then put in a heated brooder house for the first few months. White built three brooder houses to house 1,000 poults the first year. These structures were on skids so they could be pulled by horse or tractor to fresh ground and a new supply of grasshoppers, sometimes as often as every two to three days. These moves were also made to lessen the threat of a disease called blackhead to which the turkeys were very susceptible. In making these moves, the feeders and roosts were pulled slowly a quarter to one-half mile to the new location. Sometimes the turkeys would follow, but more often than not, they had to be driven.

“If a few managed to get away through the line of drovers, the whole flock would suddenly turn, and half-flying, stampede back to the old location,” wrote Prudence. Drovers would have to protect themselves as best they could from the onslaught of “hurtling birds, flapping wings and choking dust.”

Later, the Whites added three more houses, and increased the number of poults to 2,100. In summer, portable roosts were built as turkeys “have a yen” to be put out in the open at night. To keep coyotes, coons and other predators at bay, lighted lanterns and sometimes even flares were put around the turkeys and someone slept near the turkeys each night.

Severe dust storms could also prove fatal to young birds. A particularly severe dust storm hit April 9, 1935 and was still raging two days later. Because of the storm, the White’s telephone was not working, and it became necessary for Orlie to ride a horse into Lakin and send a telegram to Red Wing asking them not to send the poults until further notice. When the dust storms died down about two weeks later, the Whites ordered the turkeys again.

Quite a bit of work had to be done before receiving the poults. Boiling hot water was used to scrub the fourteen feeders and water fountains. The brooder stoves were checked out to make sure they were working perfectly, and litter was spread on the floor of the brooder houses. As turkeys tend to crowd into corners and trample or smother one another, the Whites rounded the corners in the brooder houses with wire netting.

On April 29, 1935, Orlie met the early morning train and soon returned with 17 boxes of poults, each box containing 60 poults. Each was given a drink before being set loose in the brooder houses, and in a week’s time, “the little gobblers were strutting.” On May 27, a haziness appeared in the sky, and Prudence drove the little birds from their pen enclosures into their houses. She was not a moment too soon as the storm came fast and she had barely enough time to get them all inside.

“A cloud of darkness settled over us and stayed that way about 20 minutes. Then it began to rain, hail and blew so hard that large branches were broken off the trees. Eventually, the clouds broke, and we could see the Amazon ditch overflowing its banks, and deep water swept through the recently evacuated turkey yards. I shall always recall my good fortune in that I went to check on the small turkeys before lying down with the baby,” Prudence recalled.

Pilots from the Garden City Army base often flew overhead and would dip low enough to see the turkeys which caused the birds to panic. The pilots didn’t realize how much trouble they caused.

“In fact, a hawk flying overhead could cause a like disturbance. Any unusual noise in the middle of the night could send all of them into flight. . . Turkeys could think up the most novel ways to commit suicide, sometimes by hanging themselves on a piece of machinery.”

Because the gobblers required constant watching, the White family was closely confined at home when raising turkeys. They enlisted men to help with the operation, but the World War II draft resulted in a shortage of hired help. Two of their men, James D. Porter and Lawrence Epperson, were called into the service, and both gave their lives for the cause.

White’s turkey business ended by 1942. In addition to saving their alfalfa, the venture also ended up being very profitable for Orlie and Prudence who marketed their birds for the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons at the Swift plant in Garden City. “We always figured we made at least a dollar per head on every poult we bought.” By 1938, the White’s home had let so much dust in that they had a new one built. According to Prudence, the completed house and furnishings in pre-war 1938 cost $11,000 and was paid for with “turkey money.”

Orlie and Prudence were not the first large-scale poultry producers in Kearny County. According to the Nov. 19, 1904 Investigator, Barney O’Connor was the first poultry dealer here to ship carloads of turkeys out by train. O’Connor loaded his first car on November 15, 1904, and approximately 850 fine gobblers made their way across Kansas and to the Kansas City market courtesy of O’Connor and the Santa Fe Railroad.

Here’s wishing all of our followers and friends a very Happy Thanksgiving!

May your turkey be tasty! The Museum will be closed Thursday and Friday.

Orlie and Prudence White with their three children. Jimmy is seated beside his mother. Standing left to right are daughters Lois (Creveling) and Shirley (Henderson).

SOURCES: History of Kearny County Vols. I & II; archives of the Investigator and Museum archives.

A little history on school mascots

The “Spartan” was adopted as the Deerfield High School mascot in December of 1931. This announcement came via the December 23, 1931 DHS SPYGLASS, the school’s newspaper. “The name SPARTANS was unanimously chosen by the student body as an appropriate name for the school, at a chapel program which was held Friday, Dec. 18 in the auditorium. The name Spartan implies that we are brave, mighty and powerful although small in numbers.”

The history behind Lakin’s mascot is not so cut and dry. The naming of a mascot was announced in the School Notes section of the October 16, 1931 Lakin Independent. ““Bronchos” is the name by which the Lakin Rural High School athletic and forensic teams will be known. The journalism class christened them this week.”

Just a few days earlier, the new rural high school building had been dedicated in grand fashion with a key address by U.S. Congressman, the Honorable Clifford R. Hope. The school’s completion that fall was a feat in itself. Building contracts were let out in March of 1931 with the stipulation that the building be completed in 120 working days using as much local labor as possible. The opening of school was postponed not because the building wasn’t ready, but because part of the furniture had failed to arrive on time. The first day of classes was September 14, 1931. Some of the classroom desks had still not arrived, but enough of the equipment had been received to start regular school work. The new facility accommodated twice as many students as the 1920-1921 school and included an auditorium with a seating capacity of over 600 and a gymnasium of the same size on the opposite end. This came in handy as Lakin has always loved and supported its teams.

By 1940, both spellings of “Bronchos” and “Broncos” were being used when referring to Lakin teams. “Broncs” began being used in the fall of 1947 when the football team was referred to in the paper. This was the first year for football at Lakin since the sport had been discontinued in the fall of 1921. Perhaps the change was made to coincide with that event; however, the changeover to “Broncs” was gradual. Both terms – “Broncos” and “Broncs” – were still being used. Despite our best efforts, our staff could not locate an official announcement when the final “o” was dropped.

Although Lakin Grade and Middle School students are now also known as “Broncs,” they weren’t always. The debut column of “THE COLTS KICK” appeared in the September 25, 1942 Lakin Independent. This was Lakin Grade School news as compiled each week by the English classes of the 6th, 7th and 8th grades. As far as what our staff could find, this was the first time in the local papers that LGS students were referred to as “Colts.”

The pictures accompanying this post are a random sampling of artifacts from Deerfield and Lakin schools. They are not on display at the Kearny County Museum at this time; however, visitors are welcome to look at our yearbook collection in the Museum library. The Deerfield collection starts with small pamphlet-type books produced in-house. In the 1940s, the Spartan transformed to a commercially produced and bound publication. Our Lakin collection begins with the 1916, 1927 and 1931 Prairie Breezes. We have 1949 through 2022 of the Lakin Bronc/Bronco yearbooks.

Memorial Building a tribute to Kearny County’s veterans

Seventy-five years ago, construction of the Veterans Memorial Building on Lakin’s Main Street was well underway, but it had been a project years in the making. By January of 1946, around $18,000 had been donated and another $16,400 pledged for the construction of an all-purpose building that would honor the valorous achievements of the citizens of Kearny County who served our country as soldiers, sailors, marines and Red Cross nurses. That money had been secured through an all-out effort by a building committee composed of Pat Halloran, Bernard Nash, Wayne Clarkson, Ralph Stees and Ralph Hutton, but the amount fell short of what would be needed to complete the project. In addition, many residents had expressed that they felt the project should be funded through taxation rather than donation.

At a special meeting called on January 11, 1946, the American Legion passed a motion to ask citizens by way of a petition if they were in favor of erecting and maintaining a memorial building through taxes. The response was favorable, and at the August primary, a bond issue for $50,000 was resoundingly approved by a vote of 485 to 105. Monies that had been previously donated were returned to the respective donors. Three lots were purchased from Mary Thornbrough, but it was July of 1949 before commissioners approved architectural plans for the building. D.C. Bass & Son Co. of Oklahoma City was awarded the building contract that August.

The building was in use by mid-April of 1950, and an elaborate celebration was planned to dedicate the Kearny County Veterans Memorial Building and the new Lakin Grade School the following month. An estimated 1,600 persons attended the ceremonies on May 8, 1950. The day’s activities opened with a parade that included veteran groups, the Kearny County Saddle Club and the Lakin High School band as well as bands from Garden City and Holcomb. Following the parade, the bands assembled in front of the Memorial Building where together they played the “Star Spangled Banner” following a moment of silence in honor of Kearny County’s war dead. The flag was hoisted as a bugler sounded, “To the Colors.”

Rev. Marvin Brown of Garden City, state chaplain for the American Legion, gave the invocation, and the dedication was made by Wayne Muncy of Dodge City, state commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. A free barbecue dinner was served by the American Legion, VFW, and VFW auxiliary.

Following the meal and inspection of both buildings, the crowd assembled at the grade school where musical numbers were provided by the grade school’s band and the Lakin Barbershop Quartet. Bernard Nash served as the master of ceremonies, and Col. Ernest White introduced Harry Colmery, former national commander of the American Legion and candidate for U.S. senator, who gave the main dedication address. To complete the festivities, a dance was held that evening at the Rainbow King featuring square-dancing, modern, and old-time music provided by Tait’s Orchestra of Colorado Springs.

Today, just as then, Kearny County appreciates, respects and admires those who have served our country. Veteran’s Day is November 11. If you see a veteran, please be sure to let him or her know how much you appreciate their service.

Tate to be inducted into Cowboy Hall of Fame

Another of Kearny County’s finest will soon be inducted into the Kansas Cowboy Hall of Fame. Brad Tate will receive the honor in the Ranchers/Cattlemen category at the Hall of Fame’s induction ceremony slated for November 2. Born with ranching in his blood, Brad is the fourth generation of his family to reside in southwest Kansas and make a life from horses, cattle, and agriculture. His maternal great-grandfather, Alonzo Boylan, established a horse ranch on White Woman Creek 40 miles north of Lakin, capturing, breaking and selling hundreds of wild horses. Boylan also farmed, raised cattle, and built up a prized Jersey dairy herd. Brad’s paternal great-grandfather, George H. Tate, Sr., arrived in Lakin 10 years later and opened a general store on Main Street. The elder Tate also had interests in ranching and agriculture.

Brad’s grandparents, Harry and Lena Tate, acquired land in several southwest Kansas counties. They raised cattle, work horses, brood mares and mule colts which they sold to the U.S. Army and farmers who were still using the animals to plant and harvest crops. Harry and Lena purchased 11,000 acres in Hamilton County in 1927, and Brad was born there on a ranch south of Syracuse in 1934, the son of Cecil and Maude Tate. His dad took baby Brad on the wagon when he ran windmills.

When Brad’s father became cashier of the Kearny County Bank a few years later, he moved his family to Lakin. Brad grew up working cattle and was involved in rodeo throughout high school and college. After graduating from Lakin High School in 1952, he pursued a degree in animal husbandry at Colorado State University where he was a member of a national championship rodeo team, won the regional championship in calf roping and was the runner-up in steer wrestling.

Brad also met his life partner while at college. He and Ann Counter were married in June of 1956 at Greeley, Colo. In 1957, Brad entered the Army and served two years at Fort Bliss where he achieved lieutenant status. The Tates came home to Lakin, and Brad ranched and farmed with his father. In 1960, the father-son duo started Tate Quarter Horse Ranch. They acquired some colts and started showing them at local shows, and in 1961, they bought their first race horse, a stallion named Bar Caro. This was followed by the purchase of Glory Be Good, a stakes-placed son of Top Deck. Later, a Kentucky thoroughbred by the name of Hannibal was acquired. Brad’s racing and breeding career took off. One of his biggest money winners in the 1980s was Fast and Racy which won two futurities and was undefeated as a two-year-old. A few of the Tates’ other top horses include Nu Gnu, Queen of Vail, Queen of Aspen, Tate Express, Sir Veza, Baja Jazz, and Wicked Valentine which earned eight wins in 44 starts from 2013 to 2020.

Brad became a member of the board of directors for the Kansas Quarter Horse Racing Association in 1962, and during his three years as president of the KQHRA, he successfully lobbied for pari-mutuel wagering in Kansas. Brad became a director in the American Quarter Horse Association in 1967, and in 1977, he joined the AQHA Racing Committee. He was a chairman of that committee for two years. In 1985, he was elected to the AQHA’s Executive Committee and became president of the organization in 1989, the 50th anniversary of the AQHA. During his tenure, Brad was instrumental in increasing awareness of the AQHA and American Quarter Horse with the opening of the American Quarter Horse Heritage Center & Museum at Amarillo, TX. After serving on the executive committee, Brad continued to serve the AQHA by chairing the finance committee. In 1998, he was recognized as a 30-year cumulative breeder and was inducted into the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in 2000.

Through the years, the Tate family’s holdings continued to increase. Brad became a partner in Tate Enterprises and worked alongside his son, Bret, and cousin George Tate in running Tate Ranch and Triple T Farms. Brad was also a partner in Kearny County Feeders.

Brad and Ann Tate have been staunch supporters of the Kearny County Historical Society and our community. Both served as elders in the Presbyterian Church. Ann faithfully delivered Meals-on-Wheels for years, served on Medical Procurement Committees, and the Kearny County Hospital Board while Brad served terms on the USD 215 school board and the City Council.

In the early 2000s, the Tates moved their ranching operation to northeast Oklahoma, but Brad and Ann retained their Lakin home and return occasionally. Their eldest daughter, Tamara Meisel, resides in Lakin, and daughter Susan Locklear lives in McKinney, Texas. Son Bret was an accomplished horseman like his dad and held the local high school records for calf roping and steer wrestling and was the 1978 All-Around Champion. He too was on the Colorado State University rodeo team, and graduated with honors from the ranch management program at Texas Christian University. Bret passed away in October of 2008, and his son, Ben, now manages Tate Ranch, the sixth generation to have “ranching blood” coursing through his veins.

The Kansas Cowboy Hall of Fame has proudly celebrated the enduring legacy of the cowboy since 2002, and Brad is the fourth inductee with Kearny County ties. Otis Jennings, Vicki Lohman Johnson and Jim Arnold were all inducted in the Working Cowboy/Cowgirl category. Several events surrounding the induction ceremony will take place at Boot Hill Museum in conjunction with the Western Cattle Trail Association’s annual conference which will be commemorating the 150th Anniversary of the Western Cattle Trail. Events scheduled include speakers, trolley tours and museum tours. For tickets or information about this year’s induction ceremony and related festivities, check out the Kansas Cowboy Hall of Fame’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kscowboyhalloffame, boothill.org or westerncattletrailassoc.com.

SOURCES: Kansas Cowboy Hall of Fame; “Pioneering Tate Family Celebrates 100 Years in Kearny County” by Florence Fletcher; “Wild Horses Couldn’t Drag Him Away from the AQHA” by Barbara Oringderff; The Quarter Horse Journal; Kansas Horseman Magazine; Diggin’ Up Bones by Betty Barnes; Tate Ranch on Facebook.com; equibase.com; racingandsports.com; archives of the Lakin Independent, and Museum archives