Ness County, Kansas, Landscape, courtesy of Google Maps.
Towns & Places:
Ness County, Kansas, Location.
Arnold – Unincorporated
Bazine
Beeler – Unincorporated
Brownell
Ness City – County seat
Ransom
Utica
Ness County, Kansas, by H. Everts. Co., 1887.
Ness County, Kansas, is in the central part of the western half of the state. Its county seat and largest city is Ness City. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 2,687, and it had a total area of 1,075 square miles, of which 1,075 square miles is land and 0.3 square miles is water.
Ness County was established by the Legislature on February 26, 1867, and named for Noah Ness, a corporal of the 7th Kansas Cavalry who died of wounds received in 1864 fighting for the Union in the Civil War. The county was attached to Ellis County for judicial purposes. Its area was 900 square miles.
That year, the county was the site of a confrontation between the Cheyenne and Sioux tribes and General Winfield Scott Hancock at the Indian Village on Pawnee Fork, where the fighting helped inform George A. Custer’s tactics throughout his career.
Ness County is the fifth county east of Colorado, the fourth south of Nebraska, and the fourth from Oklahoma. It is bounded on the north by Trego and Gove Counties; on the east by Rush and Pawnee; on the south by Hodgeman, and on the west by Lane.
In the early years, the general surface of the county was nearly level, the rise from the streams being so gradual that the bottom lands were not clearly defined. The timber belts along Walnut Creek and its south fork were from 30 to 40 rods in width and contained ash, cottonwood, elm, hackberry, and box elder. Walnut Creek, the principal stream, flows east through the center of the county, its north and south forks uniting near the center. The Pawnee fork of the Pawnee River entered on the south-central border, flowed northeast a short distance, then east and southeast into Hodgeman County. Magnesian limestone of the best quality and sandstone were abundant, and gypsum existed in small quantities.
Prior to the spring of 1873, only two or three cattlemen lived in the county. At that time, Dr. S.G. Rodgers came from Chicago, Illinois, with half a dozen families.
Ness County did not settle very rapidly at first, but a few early residents were ambitious and enterprising, and very anxious to secure a county organization.
In 1873, the boundaries of Ness County were enlarged so as to include an area of 1,080 square miles.
That year, on the claim that the county had, by the Assessor’s returns, 600 inhabitants, a petition for an organization was sent to the Governor. The county was organized on October 23, 1873, and Smallwood was selected as the county seat. O.H. Perry, Thomas Myers, and John Rogers were appointed Special County Commissioners, and Charles McGuire, Special County Clerk.
A sod house in Ness County, Kansas.
As chairman of the board of commissioners, Rodgers proceeded to issue bonds, this being his object in organizing the county, and had himself elected to the legislature. He took his seat on January 13, 1874, and remained there for 30 days, when John E. Farnsworth, one of the cattlemen, not being in favor of county organization, exposed the frauds of Rodgers to the legislature. He took a census, which showed only 79 inhabitants, and gave it as his opinion that the legal voters of the county did not exceed 14. An investigating committee appointed by the legislature found these claims to be accurate, and upon presentation of a petition to Governor Osborne, signed by 20 citizens, the county was promptly disorganized. Rodgers was unseated in the legislature, and he took the money that had accrued from the sale of bonds and left the country. The families that he had induced on false representations to come to Ness county nearly starved before they could get away.
Ross Calhoun, the “Father of Ness City,” arrived in 1877 or 1878. He filed upon the quarter section embracing the original town site in the spring of 1878 and opened a pioneer store in June. He also laid out the town he would call Ness City in October 1878, inviting settlers to join him.
Afterward, settlers began to come in gradually.
The first newspaper was the Ness County Pioneer, established at Clarinda, May 10, 1879, by Henry S. Bell. That year, J.W. Miller, the deputy county superintendent of public instruction, organized 22 school districts.
Ness County Pioneer Newspaper.
On September 29, 1879, the Ness County Pioneer removed to Sidney and later to Ness City.
The Walnut Valley Times was started on October 1, 1879, with N.C. Merrill as editor. It was removed to Ness City in January 1880, and John F. Wood became editor.
November 3, 1879, Ness City petitioned for county organization, with that place as the temporary county seat. On about November 20, a memorial was filed in the office of Governor John R. St. John, asking for the organization of the county, the appointment of N.C. Merrill to take the census, and the designation of Ness City as the temporary county seat.
At Sidney, also, a committee was organized on November 20, 1879, for the purpose of organizing the county, of which J.P. Johnson was chairman, and Levi Hilligos, R. J. McFarland, and Samuel A. Smith, members. At a meeting held at the same place, January 26, 1880, the following gentlemen were recommended for appointment as County Commissioners: J.E. Farnsworth, in the east part of the county; Frederic B. Caldwell, in the central, and L. Weston, in the western part. A.M. Kelson was recommended as County Clerk.
The Ness City Times was established at Ness City in January 1880, with John F. Wood as editor and proprietor.
In 1880, the people had to decide on a county seat so that a courthouse could be established, the first county officers would have a place for their offices, and a central meeting place for the citizens.
On April 14, 1880, Governor St. John, after receiving a petition signed by 250 citizens of the county, issued a proclamation reorganizing the county, appointed and commissioned John F. Farnsworth, L. Weston, and L.E. Knowles, County Commissioners, and James H. Elting, County Clerk, and designated Sidney as the temporary county seat.
The Commissioners and Clerk met at Sidney on April 23, 1880, and proceeded to qualify. The Commissioners organized by choosing L. Weston as Chairman of the Board. The board divided the county into Commissioner Districts and into nine municipal townships of equal areas, each containing 120 square miles, being ten miles from north to south and twelve miles from east to west.
The Commissioners selected June 1, 1880, as the day for holding an election to locate the county seat and elect the necessary county officers.
Ness County Stock Farm on Walnut Creek.
The real battle was between Sidney and Ness City. Jacob Spidle, who was boosting Sidney, said Ness City should not be the county seat because it had no water and accused John Gardner of hauling water from Sunset Lake to fill the wells in Ness City so people would believe that Ness had an adequate supply. Gardner refuted this in a statement he placed in the Ness City Times. Ross Calhoun countered Jake Spidle’s water story with one about seeing driftwood around Sidney and that if the North Fork flooded, Sidney would be inundated. It was a dirty campaign.
Vote buying, drunkenness, using names of the dead, and any number of things. Ross Calhoun was the first to talk to the governor and find out what was necessary, so he had a slight advantage. Also, he offered much more in the way of real estate. Ross Calhoun gave to Ness City from his homestead, a block for a courthouse and jail, a lot for a school, every other block or alternate block in the original town, and the use of a two-story stone building for a period of ten years. Ness City won, but Jake Spidle of Sidney sued Ross, stating that he had listed five non-voters, charged him with fraud, bribery, corruption, and the exact charges the candidates use now. However, he lost the case.
“A good deal of Scurrility and unruly abuse was indulged in.”
— John Wood, Ness City Times
June 4, 1880, a canvass of the vote of this election showed the following-named persons elected: James H. Elting, County Clerk; B.F. Garrett, County Treasurer; J.A. Taylor, Register of Deeds; Gilmore Kinney, Sheriff; Dr. B.H. Crosthwaite, Coroner; L.E. Knowles, County Surveyor; F.A. Goodrich, County Superintendent of Public Instruction; Cyrus Corning, County Attorney; N.W. Shaw, Clerk of the District Court; J.K. Barnd, Probate Judge; John S. Lightner, William Harding, and Samuel C. Kagrice, County Commissioners. The county seat was located at Ness City. Since then, there have been no changes in the office of County Clerk, Surveyor, and Probate Judge. D.C. Abel succeeded Dr. Crosthwaite as Coroner; R. I. McFarland followed B.F. Garrett as County Treasurer. N. G. Carpenter was the successor of F. A. Goodrich as County Superintendent.
The first school in Ness City, Kansas, now serves as a museum.
The county was divided into ten townships: Bazine, Center, Eden, Forrester, Franklin, High Point, Johnson, Nevada, Ohio, and Waring.
The county utilized rented property for the first courthouse.
In 1880, there were 25 organized school districts, and the value of the school property was $550. At that time, there were 408 children of school age.
By 1881, the number of school districts had increased to 34, and there were 676 children of school age. The assessed valuation of the taxable property of the county in 1881 was $126,156.27.
By 1882, the number of school districts had risen to 40. At that time, the value of the school property was $2,990, and there were 1,008 children of school age.
That year, there were 5,671 acres in broom corn, in Ness County, 4,988 acres in sorghum, 4,346 acres in corn, 2,053 acres in winter wheat, 68 acres in spring wheat, 289 acres in Irish potatoes, 143 acres in rye, 55 acres in oats, and 38 acres in castor beans. There were 1,947 horses; 251 mules; 1,966 milch cows; 2,684 other neat cattle; 2,565 swine; 2,916 sheep, being an increase in sheep, in one year of 2,538. In the returns for winter wheat for 1882, Ness County reported good yields.
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad Depot in Ness City, Kansas.
With the county seat being established, the next step was to incorporate Ness City. On July 6, 1886, the notice to do so was filed and signed.
The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad was begun in 1886 and reached Ness City early in January 1887.
The number of acres under cultivation in 1910 was 380,330. The value of farm products in the latter year was $1,514,924, of which winter wheat, the largest crop, amounted lo $361,000; corn, $250,000; sorghum, $110,000; oats, $95,661; tame grasses, $176,197; Kafir corn, $78,177; live stock sold for slaughter, $138,779; eggs, $61,869; and dairy products nearly $100,000. At that time, the assessed valuation of property in 1910 was $10,835,619. The population in the same year was 5,883, which was an increase of 1,348 over the population of 1900.
Old Bank Building in Ness City, Kansas by Kathy Alexander.
The county court and offices were held in the Ness County Bank building from 1903 until 1918.
The present courthouse was built in 1917 on ground Ross Calhoun gave the county in 1880, 37 years after the great controversy between Ness City and Sidney. Located at 202 West Sycamore Street and South Kansas Avenue, the three-story stone and concrete structure was built in the Classical Revival style. It was designed by J.C. Holland & Son of Topeka and built by Cuthbert & Sons. The building houses the County District Court of the 24th Judicial District.
Ness County’s population peaked in the 1930 census at 8,358 and has steadily declined since then.
Today, the county is served by Ness City USD 303 and Western Plains USD 106, headquartered in Ransom, Kansas. There is also a Sacred Heart Catholic School, serving grades PreK-8 in Ness City.
Ness City provides three museums that provide more information about the area.
The Ness County Museum, located at 123 Pennsylvania Avenue in Ness City, Kansas, features information regarding people and events that have shaped our community and the county. This includes scientist George Washington Carver, baseball player Smoky Joe Wood, and former Kansas Governor and US Senator Andrew Schoeppel, and more. The Ness County Museum is open Thursday and Friday from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. or by appointment.
Ness County, Kansas Historical Museum by Kathy Alexander.
The School House Museum provides a step back in time as visitors explore the first schoolhouse in Ness County. Built in 1882, this one-room limestone schoolhouse sits in its original location in the center of Ness City on Highway 96. A visit to this museum will inspire a love of history in visitors of all ages. Visits are available to the public by appointment only.
The Ness County Oil & Ag Museum sits alongside the School House Museum, located at 211 E Sycamore Street in Ness City, Kansas. Oil & agriculture have been the cornerstone of Ness County for many years. The museum is home to many relics of the legacy left behind by our old settlers. The Oil & Ag Museum is open to the public by appointment only.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of Kansas, September 2025.
Also See:
Ness County Courthouse in Ness City, Kansas, by Kathy Alexander.
Sources:
Blackmar, Frank W.; Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History, Vol I; Standard Publishing Company, Chicago, IL 1912.
Cutler, William G.; History of Kansas; A. T. Andreas, Chicago, IL, 1883.
Fort Hays State University
Wikipedia