Timeline of Kansas history facts for kids

The timeline of Kansas tells the story of important events that happened in the area we now call Kansas. This U.S. state is located on the eastern edge of the Great Plains. Long ago, it was home to many Native American groups. Some of these groups farmed, while others were hunter-gatherers who hunted buffalo.

Kansas first appeared in Western history in the 1500s. This was when Spanish explorers, called conquistadors, came to the area after conquering Mexico. Later, French fur traders explored Kansas and traded with the Native Americans. In 1803, most of Kansas became part of the United States through the Louisiana Purchase. Early American explorers called the area the "Great American Desert."

When people from Europe and America started settling in the 1850s, Kansas became a key battleground in the lead-up to the American Civil War. After the war, Kansas had famous "Wild West" towns that helped with the cattle trade. As railroads arrived, many people moved to Kansas. This included immigrants from Europe and formerly enslaved people called "Exodusters". For much of its history, Kansas's economy relied on farming, especially wheat, along with oil and railroads. After 1945, fewer people lived on farms, and manufacturing became more important. A good example is the aircraft industry in Wichita.

Important dates in Kansas's history

July–August 1541 Coronado explores Kansas April 30, 1803 Louisiana Purchase; US buys most of Kansas May 30, 1854 Kansas Territory organized July 29, 1859 Constitution adopted; prohibits slavery January 29, 1861 Kansas becomes 34th state August 21, 1863 Quantrill's Raid on Lawrence Spring 1879 Exodusters arrive February 19, 1881 First state to prohibit alcohol 1890s Populist Revolt July 1951 Great Flood of 1951 May 1954 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

Early History of Kansas

• 9000–10,000 BCE: The first signs of humans living in Kansas appear.
• 1500–1800: Native American groups like the Pawnee, Kansa, Wichita, and Apache live in Kansas.
• 1541: Francisco Vásquez de Coronado, a Spanish explorer, visits Kansas.
• 17th century: The Kansa (also called Kaw) and Osage Nation tribes arrive in Kansas. The Kansa say they have lived there since 1674.
• 1650–1750: The Dismal River culture, related to the Plains Apache, build villages in Kansas.
• 1702: The El Quartelejo Pueblo is built by Picuris Pueblo people. They fled the Spanish in New Mexico.
• 1719: The first Europeans visit the Northern Pawnees.
• 1724: A French commander, Etienne de Bourgmont, visits the Kansas River. He sets up a trading post near the main Kansa village. The Otoe tribe also lives in northeast Kansas around this time.
• 1780: The Kansa tribe moves its village further up the Kansas River. This new settlement, called Blue Earth Village, is near where the Big Blue River joins the Kansas River, at the site of modern-day Manhattan, Kansas.
• Late 1700s: The Kansa and Osage Nation tribes are powerful in eastern Kansas. The Kansa are along the Kansas River, and the Osage are along the Arkansas River. The Pawnees are strong on the plains to the west and north. These areas have huge herds of buffalo.
• 1803: Kansas becomes part of the United States as an unorganized territory after the Louisiana Purchase.
• 1806: Zebulon Pike travels through the region. He labels it the "Great American Desert" on his maps.
• 1812: The Kansa and Pawnee tribes fight a big battle at Blue Earth Village.

Kansas in the 1820s to 1840s: Treaties and Trails

• 1820s: The U.S. government sets aside the Kansas area as Indian territory. It is closed to white settlers.
• 1821: Kansas briefly becomes part of Missouri Territory before returning to unorganized status.
• 1821: The Santa Fe Trail opens across Kansas. This trail connects Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico.
• June 3, 1825: The Kansa Nation gives up 20 million acres (81,000 km²) of land to the United States. The Kansa tribe is then limited to a reservation in northeast Kansas.
• June 1825: The Osage Nation is limited to a reservation in southeast Kansas.
• November 7, 1825: The Missouri Shawanoes (or Shawnees) are the first Native Americans moved to the territory by treaty.
• May 8, 1827: Fort Leavenworth is built to protect travelers on the Western frontier. This is the first permanent settlement by white Americans in what will become Kansas.
• 1830: The Indian Removal Act speeds up the process of moving Native American tribes.
• August 30, 1831: The Ottawa give land to the United States. They move to a small reservation on the Kansas River.
• October 24, 1832: The U.S. government moves the Kickapoos to a reservation in Kansas.
• September 21, 1833: A treaty is made with the United States and the Otoe tribe. They give up their land south of the Little Nemaha River.
• September 17, 1836: The Sacs and Foxes tribes move north of the Kickapoos in a treaty with the United States.
• February 11, 1837: The United States agrees to give the Potawatomis an area on the Osage River.
• 1840s: Parts of the Santa Fe Trail through Kansas are also used by people moving west on the California Trail and Oregon Trail.
• 1842: The Wyandots move to where the Kansas and Missouri Rivers meet.
• 1844: The Great Flood of 1844 is the biggest flood ever recorded on the Missouri River.
• 1846: The Kansa reservation is made smaller by a treaty.
• 1847: The Potawatomis are moved again to a large area of land that the Kansa tribe gave up in 1846.

Kansas in the 1850s: Opening the Territory

• 1850: American pioneers demand that the entire area be opened for settlement.
• September 17, 1851: The Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes make a deal with the United States for land in western Kansas (now Colorado).
• 1852: Congress starts the process of creating the Kansas Territory.
• December 13, 1852: A representative from Missouri suggests a bill to organize the Territory of Platte. This would include all the land west of Iowa and Missouri, stretching to the Rocky Mountains.
• 1854: Almost all the Native American tribes in eastern Kansas give up most of their lands. They are eventually moved south to the Indian Territory (which later became Oklahoma).
• May 30, 1854: After much debate, the Kansas–Nebraska Act becomes law. This creates the Nebraska Territory and Kansas Territory. The Kansas Territory borders are set from Missouri to the Rocky Mountains. The southern border is the 37th parallel north, and the northern border is the 40th parallel north.
• 1854: A new political party, the Republican Party, is formed to protest slavery.
• June 10, 1854: Missourians hold a meeting near Fort Leavenworth. They form a "Squatter's Claim Association" to claim land.

Kansas State Formation (1855-1859)

• 1855: The Massachusetts Emigrant Aid Company helps send anti-slavery settlers to Kansas.
• March 30, 1855: Missourians, known as "Border Ruffians," cross the border and stuff ballot boxes. This leads to pro-slavery candidates winning almost all the elections. The first official legislature is mostly made up of pro-slavery delegates.
• 1855: Violence and small battles increase in Kansas Territory.
• November 11, 1855: The Topeka Constitution is adopted by a group of Free-Staters (people against slavery).
• December 1, 1855: A small army of Missourians attacks Lawrence, a Free-State stronghold. This event is known as "The Wakarusa War."
• December 15, 1855: The people of the Territory approve the Topeka Constitution, but it is never accepted as a legal document.
• May 21, 1856: Pro-slavery forces attack Lawrence again. They kill two men, burn the Free-State Hotel, destroy printing presses, and rob homes.
• Night of May 24 to morning of May 25, 1856: The Pottawatomie massacre occurs. John Brown, an abolitionist, and his group murder five settlers who were thought to be pro-slavery. This happens north of Pottawatomie Creek in Franklin County, Kansas. Brown and his men then escape to Iowa.
• November 7, 1857: The Lecompton Constitution is adopted by a convention called by the official pro-slavery government.
• 1858: Violence and battles in Kansas Territory slow down.
• April 3, 1858: The Leavenworth Constitution is adopted by a new Free-State legislature in Leavenworth.
• May 18, 1858: The people vote for the Leavenworth Constitution, but Congress refuses to approve it.
• 1859: Land is given to individual Chippewa families.
• July 29, 1859: The fourth constitution, the Wyandotte Constitution, is drafted and adopted by a convention.
• October 4, 1859: The people vote to adopt the Wyandotte Constitution. It outlaws slavery but is less progressive than the Leavenworth Constitution.
• End of 1859: The violence known as "Bleeding Kansas" mostly stops.

Kansas in the Late 1800s

• January 29, 1861: Kansas is admitted into the Union as a free state under the Wyandotte Constitution.
• May 25, 1861: The Great Seal of the State of Kansas is created by the Kansas Legislature.
• June 3, 1861: The first Kansas regiment is called to duty in the American Civil War.
• 1863: The Union Pacific Eastern Division is established in Kansas.
• August 21, 1863: William Quantrill leads Quantrill's Raid into Lawrence. They destroy much of the city and kill over a hundred people.
• October 6, 1863: The Battle of Baxter Springs, a small battle in the Civil War, happens near Baxter Springs, Kansas.
• April 1864: A war begins between Native Americans and frontier settlers in Kansas and Nebraska.
• July 28, 1864: The Seventeenth Kansas regiment is the last one raised during the Civil War.
• October 25, 1864: The Battle of Marais des Cygnes takes place in Linn County, Kansas.
• 1867: Joseph G. McCoy builds stockyards in Abilene, Kansas. He helps develop the Chisholm Trail, encouraging Texas cattlemen to drive their cattle to his stockyards.
• 1869: The Union Pacific Eastern Division is renamed the Kansas Pacific Railway.
• 1871: Wild Bill Hickok becomes the marshal of Abilene, Kansas.
• 1877: Nicodemus, the first all-black town in Kansas, is founded by African Americans from Kentucky.
• 1879: A large number of formerly enslaved people move from Southern states to Kansas.
• February 19, 1881: Kansas becomes the first U.S. state to add a rule to its Constitution that bans all alcoholic beverages.
• November 22, 1890: College football comes to Kansas with the 1890 Kansas vs. Baker football game.

Kansas in the 20th Century

• 1916: Kansas troops serve on the U.S.-Mexico border during the Mexican Revolution.
• 1922 and 1927: Legal battles in Kansas against the Ku Klux Klan lead to their removal from the state.
• 1925: The flag of Kansas is designed.
• 1927: The flag is officially adopted by the Kansas State Legislature.
• 1928: Charles Curtis of Topeka becomes the first Native American to be elected as Vice-President of the United States.
• 1930: The Independence Producers play the first Night game in professional baseball history in Independence, Kansas.
• 1951: The Great Flood of 1951 affects eastern Kansas and Missouri.
• May 17, 1954: The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Brown v. Board of Education. They say that separate schools for different races are not equal. This goes against the 14th Amendment which promises "equal protection of the laws."
• 1950s and 1960s: Intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), designed to carry nuclear warheads, are placed in underground silos across Kansas.
• 1961: The state flag is changed to include the word "Kansas" in gold letters below the seal.
• June 8, 1966: Topeka is hit by a very strong F5 tornado. It causes $100 million in damage and hits places like Washburn University.
• 1980s: The ICBM facilities in Kansas are shut down.
• 1993: The Great Flood of 1993 affects several states, including Kansas.

Kansas in the 21st Century

• 2006: Restoration work begins on the Kansas State House.
• 2013: The restoration of the Kansas State House is completed.