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Ellsworth County, Kansas

Ellsworth County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Named after Fort Ellsworth, a military post built on the bank of the Smoky Hill, in 1864. This fort was so called by General Curtis, in honor of the officer who constructed it, Allen Ellsworth, Second Lieutenant of Company H, Seventh Iowa Cavalry. When the name was adopted for the county it was supposed that the fort had been named in honor of Colonel E. E. Ellsworth of national fame.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Ellsworth County, located nearly in the geographical center of the state, was created in 1867 with the following boundaries: "Commencing at the southeast corner of the county of Lincoln, thence west 30 miles; thence south 24 miles; thence east to the west line of McPherson county, thence north to the place of beginning." It was formed out of unorganized territory and has an area of 720 square miles. The county was named in honor of Allen Ellsworth, a lieutenant in the army, who built Fort Ellsworth on the Smoky Hill river in 1864. At the present time it is bounded on the north by Lincoln county, on the east by Saline and McPherson, on the south by Rice and on the west by Barton and Russell counties

Fort Harker near Kanopolis was a frontier Army post originally founded in 1864 as Fort Ellsworth. It was renamed Fort Harker in 1866 and was abandoned in 1872. The fort, the town, and the county were named for Lt Allen Ellsworth, Co. H, 7th Iowa Cavalry.

Geography

The surface of the country is diversified and may be divided into "bottom" land, upland or rolling prairie and bluff land. The "bottom" lands or valleys are from a quarter of a mile to a mile in width and aggregate about one-eighth of the entire area. The bluff land is found near the rivers and creeks, while the south half of the county is nearly all undulating prairie or table land. The principal water course in the Smoky Hill river, which enters the county about 6 miles south of the northwest corner and flows in the southeasterly direction, leaving the county about 5 miles north of the southeast corner. Its main tributaries are Blood, Buffalo, Turkey, Ox Hide, Oak, Ash, Clear, Thompson's, Elm, Bluff and Mule creeks. Plumb creek crosses the southwest corner. The soil is well adapted to grains and the most important crops are corn and winter wheat, but oats, Kafir corn and prairie hay are also extensively raised. The county ranks high in live-stock raising and there are over 50,000 bearing fruit trees. Magnesium limestone is abundant in the northeastern portion and red sandstone in the central and southwestern parts. Mineral paint of a good quality and excellent potter's clay are found in many localities. Large quantities of gypsum exist in the high lands and in the central part are vast beds of rock salt which is extensively mined at Ellsworth and Kanapolis. Coal is the chief mineral product, however, three mines having been opened in the early '80s, near Wilson, south of the Smoky Hill river.

Neighboring Counties:

• Lincoln County (north)
• Saline County (east)
• McPherson County (southeast)
• Rice County (south)
• Barton County (southwest)
• Russell County (northwest)

Cities and Towns:

County Resources:

Ellsworth County - KS-Cyclopedia - 1912
 

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