Sod house in Decatur County, Kansas, about 1885.
| Town | Post Office Dates | Additional Information |
| Allison-Toiyabe | 1879-1919 | This place was first named for Toiyabe when a post office was established on February 11, 1879. It was on the North Fork of the Solomon River, in Allison Township. Its name was changed to Allison on December 20, 1880, in honor of a pioneer. It was platted in September 1885 and soon began thriving as the county’s second city. In 1910, it had a money order post office and some local trade, and reported a population of 25. It was nine miles from Jennings, its nearest banking and shipping point. Stagecoaches ran daily to Jennings and Lucerne. In 1900, it had the Continental Creamery Company, a blacksmith, a general store, and a population of 18. |
| Bassettville | 1879-1908 | Bassettville was located on Sappa Creek in Bassettville Township. In 1885, it was on the mail stage route from Wallace to Oberlin. It was 19 miles southwest of Oberlin, the county seat, and 45 northwest of Buffalo Park, on the Kansas division of the Union Pacific Railroad, its shipping point for livestock. |
| Borin | 1892-1899 | The post office’s Order of Change was rescinded. Mail was then sent to Allison. |
| Cedar Bluffs | 1873-1958 | A village of Beaver Township, Cedar Bluffs was situated on Beaver Creek and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, about 12 miles North of Oberlin, the county seat. In 1910, it had a bank, a money-order post office with two rural routes, express and telegraph offices, telephone connections, good schools and churches, a large retail trade, did some shipping, and had a population of 200. Cedar Bluffs was never incorporated. Its post office closed on August 31, 1958. |
| Connersville | 1875-1883 | Connersville was in Finley Township. |
| Decatur | 1874-1897 1900 |
Decatur was part of the Harlan-Roosevelt Townships. After the post office’s 1900 Order of Change was rescinded, the office was discontinued, and mail was sent to Oberlin. |
| Decatur Centre | 1879-1880 | Decatur Centre was in Center Township in the exact center of the county. It was the only rival for the county seat. The post office moved to Rufo after it closed. |
| Diggs | 1884-1886 | Diggs was a part of Prairie Dog Township in the southern part of the county. |
| Dresden | 1888-2007 | Dresden, Kansas, is a small town in Dresden Township of Decatur County. It is also an extinct town, as its post office closed in 2007. |
| Hawkeye | 1879-1896 | Hawkeye was in Cook Township, in the southwest corner of the county. In 1885, its mail was delivered weekly by stagecoach from Grinnell to Atwood to Mrs. Electa A. Claar, postmaster. It was 24 miles southwest of Oberlin, the county seat and nearest bank, and 36 miles from Grinnell, its shipping point, on the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad. It was in a splendid grazing district and shipped livestock only. |
| Hooker-Saint John | 1879-1907 | The name changed from Saint John To Hooker on April 30, 1880. This small settlement was on Sappa Creek, seven miles southwest of Oberlin, the county seat, nearest banking point, and nearest railroad station, from which its mail was delivered after its post office closed. |
| Jackson | 1879-1889 | Jackson was located in Jennings Township, just West of the present site of Jennings. It was 16 miles southeast of Oberlin, the county seat, and 40 miles North of Buffalo Park, on the Kansas Division of the Union Pacific Railroad, its nearest railroad point. It is on Prairie Dog Creek, which furnished power to run a flour mill. The closest Bank facilities were at Oberlin. In 1885, mail was delivered by Mail, tri-weekly by stagecoach from Norton to postmaster S.A. Beers, postmaster and general store. At that time, it had a population of 25. When the post office was discontinued, Jennings took over the mail duties. |
| Kanona-Altory | 1881-1955 | Located in Altory Township, this town was first called Altory when a post office was established on September 13, 1881. When the town died out, the town’s name changed from Altory to Kanona on April 2, 1887. |
| Keith | 1895-1899 | Keith was in Summit Township. |
| Leoville | 1923-1980 | Located in Dresden Township, Leoville had the county’s last established post office. It is an unincorporated community in Decatur County. It is also an extinct town, as it no longer has a post office. |
| Lund | 1892-1907 | Lund was in Summit Township, 12 miles south of Oberlin, the county seat, and 10 miles northwest of Dresden, the nearest shipping point. In 1910, its population was 24. After its post office closed, its mail is distributed by rural route from Dresden. |
| Lyle | 1877-1907 | Lyle was on the original Norton-Oberlin mail route in Grant Township. Located on Sappa Creek about 20 miles northeast of Oberlin, the county seat, and eight miles North of Norcatur, the nearest railroad station. After its post office closed, it received mail by rural route from Norcatur. Its population in 1910 was 30. |
| Mendota | 1873 | The post office was open for less than seven months. |
| Plato | 1880-1883 | Plato was located in Sherman Township. When the post office was discontinued, the mail was sent to Oberlin. |
| Rufo | 1880-1881 1895-1904 |
Rufo was located in Olive Township. |
| Sheffield | 1881 1882-1887 |
Sheffield was located in Sappa Township. After its post office closed, the mail was sent to Enne in Rawlins County. |
| Shibboleth | 1875-1904 | Shibboleth was in Prairie Dog Township. When its post office was discontinued, mail was sent to Dresden. |
| Stephen | 1883-1888 | Stephen was in Summit Township. When the post office was discontinued, mail was sent to Shibboleth. |
| Sykes | 1881-1883 | Sykes was located in Summit Township. After its post office closed, mail was sent to Oberlin. |
| Traer | 1883-1971 | Traer, Kansas, is a ghost town in Decatur County, Kansas. |
| Vallonia | 1879-1887 | Vallonia was located on Sappa Creek in Harlan-Roosevelt Township. It was in the central part of Decatur County, 10 miles northeast of Oberlin, the county seat and nearest bank location, and 25 miles northwest of Lenora, on the Missouri Pacific Railroad, its nearest shipping point. In 1885, wool was the principal export, and the population was 100. Mail was delivered tri-weekly, by stagecoach from Oberlin to Norton, to H.C. Miller, the postmaster. When the post office was discontinued, mail was sent to Decatur. |
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of Kansas, July 2026.
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.
Decatur County, Kansas
Kansas Post Office History
Decatur County Directories, 1884-1885, R.L. Polk & Co., Chicago
Wikipedia