Phillipsburg, Kansas – Phillips County Seat

 

Phillipsburg, Kansas, is a city in Phillipsburg Township, Phillips County, and the county seat. Nicknamed “City Of The Hills,” Phillipsburg sits in the uplands of Deer Creek in northwestern Kansas on the western edge of the Smoky Hills region of the Great Plains. Approximately 20 miles south of the Nebraska border, it sits on the north side of Deer Creek, a tributary of the North Fork of the Solomon River. Plotner Creek, a tributary of Deer Creek, flows south along the western edge of the city. As of the 2020 census, its population was 2,337, and it had a total area of 1.67 square miles, all land.

At about the same time, the first sermon was preached in Samuel Plattner’s house by Reverend A. Hitchcock.

The first post office was established on December 23, 1872, with Fred A. Dutton as the first postmaster. By the end of the year, there was one building on the site, for which the lumber was hauled over 250 miles. The home was used as a general store and later as a hotel.

Due to its central location in Phillips County, Phillipsburg was eventually named the official county seat. The land office originally was in Kirwin, then in Colby, before moving to Phillipsburg.

In the spring of 1873, Jacob Close built a sawmill on the west edge of town. That year, a frame building was constructed on the northeast side of the public square for use as a schoolhouse. The first teacher was Cyrus Hickenlooper. The building was also used when the District Court needed a place to meet. In fact, the court was in session one day when people sighted a herd of buffalo. Court adjourned – except for the judge – while the town’s people gave chase. When sufficient buffalo had been taken, the court resumed.

The Sentinel newspaper was the first paper in Phillipsburg, but it lasted only a few weeks. It was followed by the Phillipsburg Advance in 1877.

The Phillipsburg Advance, a five-column, Republican, continued until the following year, then stopped.

The Phillipsburg Herald \was established in the early part of 1878, with Charles F. Jenkins as editor. In September following, G.W. Stinson purchased the office and again started at No. 1, Vol. 1. Soon afterwards, Ed. F. Korns purchased a half-interest

That year, 1878, the county purchased a frame building from Fred A Dutton as the third courthouse.

The Phillips County Democrat succeeded the Advance in July 1878 and was the first Democratic paper to be started in northwestern Kansas. After a fitful existence of one year, its publication was discontinued.

That Phillips County Bank was organized in 1880 with $50,000 in capital.  The first president was B.L. Harding, and O.M. Millard was the first cashier. The bank was located on the east side of the public square. Its primary purpose was to make farm loans. The same year, an abstract office opened, and Hardman Lumber began business.

The town was also organized as a third-class city that year, and the following were the first officers: Mayor, H.L. Sprague; city marshal, William Featherly; clerk, E. Korns; councilmen, C.H. Leffingwell, G.A. Spaulding, F.A. Dutton, D.B. Bailey, and Frank Strain.

Around 1880 and 1881, the county suffered from drought, and more families moved away. Gradually, the population returned.

The fourth courthouse was a two-story brick structure donated by the town to the county in 1880.

 

On June 23, 1882, a severe electrical storm struck the city, destroying property valued at $12,000. Fifteen buildings were blown down, among them the Baptist Church, a handsome and commodious frame structure measuring 40 by 50 feet. There were injuries but no loss of life. That year, the jail was moved into the courthouse.

The Chicago, Kansas, and Nebraska Railroad came through Phillipsburg in 1887. That year, complete telephone systems were installed in the city.

In 1891, the Chicago, Kansas, and Nebraska Railroad was taken over by the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad. Phillipsburg was a division point with 5.26 miles of sidetrack, a roundhouse, turntable, stockyard, boiler house, repair shop, freight house, and passenger depot.

On June 14, 1893, the spelling of the town’s name changed from Phillipsburgh to Phillipsburg.

A very bad storm in 1903 blew down the town’s wooden water tower.

Unfortunately for the town, a 1906 fire almost completely destroyed the south side of the square. Except for the building housing the newspaper office, which suffered considerable damage, and a bank with less damage, all buildings were destroyed. The only equipment available to fight this fire was a hose cart with a hand pump.

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In 1907 the following businesses existed in Phillipsburg: a flour mill, shoe store, produce house, dentist, brick plant, book store, bowling alley, auto garage, shoe shop, carpenter shop, two banks, lumberyards, meat markets, jewelry stores, furniture stores, billiard parlors, fine hotels, blacksmith shops, machine shops, three drug stores, coal yards, clothing stores, livery barns, barber shops, newspapers, five general merchandise stores, churches, six restaurants, eight physicians, nine attorneys, public schools, a thriving farm community, and an opera house. A new water tower with a steel standpipe was also completed that year.

In 1910, Phillipsburg was still on the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad. At that time, it had waterworks, a fire department, a flour mill, a grain elevator, an opera house, two banks, two weekly newspapers — the News-Dispatch and the Post, a daily stage to Glade, telegraph and express offices, and an international money order post office with five rural routes. The population in 1910 was 1,302.

On March 16, 1912, a snowstorm covered the city with several feet of snow. On March 14, 1935, a dust storm hit town in mid-afternoon. By 7:00 p.m., it was pitch dark, and with the electricity off, people were reduced to using candles to see inside their homes.

The fifth and present courthouse was built from 1912 to 1913. The Neo-Classical building was designed by R.A. Curtis of the Curtis Engineering Company in Kansas City, Missouri. It was built by Cuthbert & Sons of Topeka, Kansas, at a cost 0f $66,110.

The three-story, white-stone-and-concrete structure is located on landscaped grounds in Courthouse Square, in the center of Phillipsburg. On each of the four sides of the building are projecting center sections with two large columns rising from the second to the third story, a clock, and a curved hood at the roofline. The main entrance is on the north side. The County District Court courtroom is located on the south side of the third story. The building houses the County District Court of the 17th Judicial District, which includes Decatur, Graham, Norton, Osborne, and Smith Counties. It is located at 301 State Street and 3rd Street.

In 1923 and 1924, a group of cowboys came through town, finding that several farmers in the area had horses that needed to be broken, and offered to put on a wild west show using the animals and breaking them in the process.

In August 1929, the Phillipsburg Rodeo was born, with events held at the site now used as the high school athletic field. This event continues today at the arena north of town on the first Saturday in August, with a parade through downtown. It follows the Phillips County Fair, once held at the National Guard Armory, and now takes place in the area east of the rodeo grounds. Although “Kansas’ Biggest Rodeo” officially began in 1929, there were earlier events.

Oil was discovered in Phillips County in 1939. That year, the Consumers’ Cooperative Association opened the world’s first cooperative oil refinery on the northern edge of town. It was the first cooperative refinery in the United States.

In 1940, Phillipsburg’s population jumped to 2,140, making it a second-class city.

Fort Bissell was reconstructed in the city park in 1962 and today serves as a museum.

In 1969, TAMKO Building Products’ roofing shingle plant was constructed on the north side of Phillipsburg, and it is now the city’s largest manufacturer.