Gove County, Kansas Prairie by Kathy Alexander.
Gove County, Kansas Location.
Towns & Places:
Gove City (county seat)
Grainfield
Grinnell
Park
Quinter
Gove County, KS, Map by L.H. Everts & Co., 1887.
Gove County, Kansas, is located in the northwest portion of the state. Its county seat is Gove City, and its most populous city is Quinter. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 2,718, and it has an area of 1,072 square miles, of which 1,072 square miles is land and 0.1 square miles is water. The county was named for Grenville Llewellyn Gove, a captain of Company G of the 11th Kansas Cavalry Regiment Volunteer Cavalry, who died from battle wounds during the Civil War.
The county is the third from the Colorado state line, the third south from the Nebraska line, and the fifth north from Oklahoma. It is bounded on the north by Thomas and Sheridan Counties, on the east by Trego, on the south by Lane and Scott, and on the west by Logan County.
The county’s surface was undulating with bluffs and rough lands along the streams. Bottomlands averaged one-half mile in width. The most significant stream is the Smoky Hill River, which flows from west to east through the southern part. Two branches of Hackberry Creek enter in the northwest and join two other creeks near the center of the county, forming the larger Hackberry Creek, which continues in a southeasterly direction, joining the Smoky Hill River in Trego County. Gypsum, limestone, and mineral paint were found in considerable quantities.
Gove County, Kansas Landscape by Kathy Alexander.
Due to its geography, transportation patterns in the 1850s and 1860s developed based on east-west routes that followed the more easily traversed valley flatlands. Most of those who passed through this area entered from the east from starting points like Independence and Kansas City, Missouri, and Leavenworth, Kansas, en route to destinations in the west such as Denver, Colorado, and the gold mining towns of the Rocky Mountains Front Range.
Overland mail stagecoach.
The Smoky Hill Trail and the Butterfield Overland Despatch stagecoach line crossed the county. As a result, in the mid to late 1860s, it was dotted with trading posts, feed stations, and animal care stops that once possessed populations of 10 to 20 residents. Located in the southern part of the county along the Smoky Hill River, none of these trail settlements developed permanent populations.
After the Kansas Pacific Railroad was completed between Salina, Kansas, and the Colorado Territory border in 1868, Gove County was created in 1868 in anticipation of a rush to settle northwestern Kansas. At that time, the county was relatively devoid of human settlement and ready for development. The state legislature hoped the rail line would attract townsite companies, business people, and homesteaders within the year. However, this westernmost stretch of the Kansas Pacific Railroad’s territory proved less suitable for settlement than Kansas’s eastern and middle portions. European-Americans in the east were still concerned with the threat of raids from the Plains Indian tribes and the severe droughts.
By 1869, James N. Paul surveyed Gove County. The first settlers to immigrate permanently were primarily single men such as George Von Dehsen, who came to the county from Colorado with a party of buffalo hunters in 1871 and stayed in the area of present-day Grinnell, settling on Hackberry Creek. Charles A. Sternberg laid claim to sections in the eastern and central parts of the county.
Eventually, settlement of the area slowly spread westward as eastern counties had fewer and fewer tracts of land available for homesteading. Because of the rainfall patterns, the county was suited for dryland wheat farming and cattle ranching.
Union Pacific Railroad Depot in Park, Kansas.
In the late 1870s, the Union Pacific Railroad was built throughout the state, and the first towns were established along the railroad line. The railroads ultimately replaced early overland trails, such as the Smoky Hill Trail, and many trading posts and stagecoach stops were abandoned.
Buffalo Park (now Park) was the first town established in about 1878 along the railroad. One of the most important early settlements was the Bristol colony, from Bristol, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, in 1879. Its officers were President M.E. West, Secretary R. Robinson, and Treasurer R. Shaw. Eleven families constituted the party. They came first to Buffalo Park and, after prospecting through the surrounding territory located southwest of where the town would be established. The people found native building stone to construct buildings, plenty of good grass for cattle, and water at an average depth of 50 feet. There was no timber, and the government granted timber claims requiring the claim holder to plant ten acres of timber. Hundreds of these timber claims were taken, resulting in the planting of thousands of acres of trees.
The drought of 1880 was rather severe in Gove County and reduced many families to destitute circumstances. Outside aid was sent in, and much suffering was relieved. There were several little towns in the county by this time, and two newspapers were established this year, the Grainfield Republican and the Buffalo Park Express.
Gove Township, as it was called then, was attached to Ellis County for judicial purposes. In 1881, the legislature removed it from Ellis and attached it to Trego.
By the mid-1880s, land availability was the major driver of immigration into the area. The northern third of Gove County grew in population faster, benefitting from its proximity to a railroad line. However, the south and middle sections of the county also experienced population growth in the 1880s. Farming communities and trade centers supplying goods and equipment to the surrounding farmers began building up in all corners of the county.
Gove County was formally organized by the state legislature in Topeka on September 2, 1886. Soon, the governor appointed L.F. Jones as census taker. He made his returns in August, showing that the population was 3,032, and there was $549,909 worth of taxable property. Two petitions were sent on the county seat matter, one asking that Grainfield be made the temporary county seat and the other asking for Gove. Delegations from each town went to Topeka, Kansas, to interview the governor, help count the names on the petitions, and prefer charges of fraud against each other. Initially, the petition for Gove had 612 names, and for Grainfield had 336. Some of the names on the Gove petition were not on the census taker’s list, which cut the Gove majority down to 71. Then, it was found that some of the names on the Grainfield petition were open to the same objection. After a thorough investigation, the governor proclaimed Gove the temporary county seat.
Gove County Courthouse in Gove, Kansas, courtesy of American Courthouses.
The following officers were appointed: Commissioners Jerome B. McClanahan, William T. Stokes, and Lyan Raymond; Clerk Dell A. Borah. The election was held at the time of the general election on Nov. 2, 1886, and Gove was made the permanent county seat despite the offer of Grainfield to furnish the site, put up a $6,000 courthouse, and buy $1,200 worth of books. The officers chosen were as follows: Clerk, Dell A. Borah; Sheriff, J. W. Hopkins; Probate Judge, C. E. Hebard; Treasurer, George S. Dyer; Register of Ceeds, L.F. Jones; Clerk of the District Court, U.W. Ohlinger; superintendent of public instruction, G.G. Lehmer; attorney, R.C. Jones; surveyor, F.B. Cope; coroner, David Blackwell; commissioners, Lyman Raymond, J.W. Campbell and Gustavus Peterson.
The first courthouse was kept in the handsome post-rock Benson House hotel purchased in 1886. Offices were moved into the building in 1887. At some point in its history, the stone courthouse was stuccoed over, and it existed as a white-colored stucco building for most of the 20th Century. Later additions were made to the rear of the structure, and the exterior was bricked over. It is located at 420 Broad Street in Gove, Kansas.
Gove County was divided into nine townships: Baker, Gaeland, Gove, Grainfield, Grinnell, Larrabee, Lewis, and Payne. The post offices in the county in 1910 were Gove, Alanthus, Ball, Campus, Catalpa, Coin, Grainfield, Grinnell, Hackberry, Jericho, Jerome, Orion, Park, Quinter, Tweed, and Valhalla.
By this time, there were eight towns in the county and 41,590 acres of cultivated soil. The settlers had recovered from the hardships of the early beginnings, and most of them raised fair crops.
Edwin Boyer driving his Buick in Grainfield, Kansas, in 1908.
Some of the county’s smaller, more rural settlements did not survive into the 20th Century as they were poorly connected to emerging trade routes. In 1900, the five most significant towns of Gove County were all relatively the same size, with populations of around 100 to 200 residents each. Some minor shifts and swings occurred in the following decades, but the population size remained constant for Gove, Grinnell, Grainfield, and Park. Quinter was the only town to experience more significant growth.
In 1910, Winter wheat, corn, barley, and sorghum were the principal field crops. Livestock raising was profitable. The value of the farm products in 1910 was $1,194,476, of which field crops amounted to over $1,000,000, livestock, poultry, eggs, and dairy products making up the balance. The county’s population peaked in 1910 at 6,044, nearly three times that of 1900. The assessed valuation of property was $10,373,486. The school population was 1,437, and there were 46 organized school districts.
As the automobile culture took root and transportation corridors advanced local economies, a significant shift occurred in Gove County that saw the towns of Quinter, Park, Grainfield, and Grinnell outgrow the county seat town of Gove.
Castle Rock in Gove County, Kansas.
In 2020, Gove County was called the “deadliest place in America” during the COVID-19 pandemic. This was due to it having the highest death rate from COVID-19 compared to any other county in the nation: one out of every 132 people. The first deaths were reported on October 7; as of November 2020, 20 residents died from the virus, and 314 other positive cases were reported. The high death rate was attributed to predominant public opposition towards wearing face masks, doubts over the pandemic’s severity, and the county’s high median age, all of which left residents highly vulnerable.
Gove County is best known for its incredible rock formations. Castle Rock is a 70-foot-tall chalk pillar landmark 11 miles south of I-70 near Quinter, Kansas. Located on the Butterfield Overland Despatch stagecoach route, the chalk was deposited in the area by an ancient inland sea and carved by the weathering of the chalk by wind and water. It received its name because it is said to look like a castle rising above the prairie.
Monument Rocks, also called the Chalk Pyramids, are a series of large chalk formations in Gove County, Kansas, rich in fossils. The carbonate deposits were laid down during the Cretaceous Period in what was then the Western Interior Seaway, which split the continent of North America into two landmasses. They are estimated to have been formed 80 million years ago. The chalk formations reach a height of up to 70 ft with multiple buttes and arches. The formations were the first landmark in Kansas chosen by the U.S. Department of the Interior as a National Natural Landmark. Monument Rocks is located about 25 miles southeast of Oakley, Kansas.
On January 29, 2008, Monument Rocks and Castle Rock were jointly named as one of the eight Wonders of Kansas.
The Queen Anne-style two-story Opera House at Main and Third Streets in Grainfield was constructed in 1887 to symbolize permanence. The auditorium was used for performances, dances, and church programs. The building held various shops, school classes, and lodge meetings. The opera house was put on the National Register of Historic Places in November 1980.
“The Grainfield Opera House is undoubtedly the finest building between Salina and Denver.”
— Grinnell Golden Belt Newspaper
Another great stop for visitors looking for a tasty treat is Ray’s Pharmacy at 414 Main Street in Quinter. This small-town pharmacy/variety store has a 30-foot-long bar built in 1904 and a working soda fountain.
Monument Rocks in Gove County by Kathy Alexander.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of Kansas, December 2024.
Opera House in Grainfield, Kansas, by Kathy Alexander.
Also See:
Sources:
American Courthouses
Blackmar, Frank W.; Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History, Vol I; Standard Publishing.
Fort Hays State University
Harrington, W.P.; History of Gove County, Kansas, Gove City, 1930.
McAlister, Jordan; History and Geography of Gove County, Kansas; Kansas State University, 2014.
Wikipedia