Missouri Pacific Railroad depot in Baker, Kansas by H. Killam, 1957.
The Missouri Pacific Railroad established Baker, Kansas, in Brown County in June 1882. The town was named for the Baker family, the original owners of the site.
Speer & Hulburd of Hiawatha erected a grain elevator in August 1882 for about $1,500. It had a capacity of 3,500 bushels. Mr. George E. Selleg was the superintendent. C.D. Baker, who dealt in general merchandise, opened one of the first stores.
In August 1882, John C. Stapleton settled in Baker and became a grain, lumber, and coal dealer. He soon shipped thousands of bushels of corn and grain to St. Louis, Missouri, and Chicago, Illinois. He also shipped lumber and coal used in Baker and its vicinity.
A Christian Church was erected in September 1882. It was 34 by 50 feet, crowned with a belfry, and cost about $2,000. A post office was established on October 5, 1882.
W.W. Littreal, a physician and surgeon, moved to Baker in November 1882. In addition to practicing medicine, he was also the senior member of the firm Littreal & Bowman, dealers in drugs and books, stationery, wallpaper, paints, oil, glass, and dishes.
In the early 1880s, Baker was described as a “new and prosperous town.” It boasted six business houses, 15 private residences, two grain elevators, and a thriving commercial center.
In 1910, Baker was still a station on the Missouri Pacific Railroad, from which goods were shipped in and out of the community. At that time, it had a money order post office with one rural route, express and telegraph offices, telephone connections, and a population of 112.
Baker’s post office closed on November 15, 1933. It was located eight miles south of Hiawatha.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of Kansas, updated June 2024.
Also See:
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.