Leavenworth – First City in Kansas
Leavenworth, Kansas, a city steeped in history and brimming with captivating narratives, proudly holds the distinction of being the first incorporated city in the Sunflower State. Founded in 1854, its origins are inextricably linked to Fort Leavenworth, a crucial military outpost established years prior. However, Leavenworth quickly transcended its role as a mere support system for the fort, evolving into a vital gateway to the American West. This article delves into the rich tapestry of Leavenworth’s past, exploring its indigenous roots, its pivotal role in westward expansion, its tumultuous involvement in the "Bleeding Kansas" era, and its enduring legacy as a city of firsts.
Before the arrival of European settlers and the subsequent Louisiana Purchase of 1803, the land that would become Kansas was home to a vibrant array of Native American tribes. Among these were the Kanza (or Kaw), Osage, Wichita, and Pawnee, each with its own distinct culture and traditions. During the 18th century, France and Spain vied for control of the region, with the French ultimately gaining the upper hand due to their more amicable relationships with the indigenous populations. In 1744, the French established Fort Cavagnial in the vicinity of present-day Fort Leavenworth. Two decades later, France ceded its territories west of the Mississippi River to Spain, leading to the fort’s abandonment. The territory then reverted to French control briefly before its acquisition by the United States.
The Lewis and Clark expedition, traversing the vast expanse of the Louisiana Purchase between 1803 and 1806, left its mark on the Kansas landscape. The region, once dubbed the "Great American Desert" due to its perceived aridity and unsuitability for agriculture, was initially designated as a permanent residence for Native American tribes. However, the westward expansion of the United States soon disrupted this arrangement. From 1825 to 1840, nearly 30 tribes relinquished their lands in the eastern and northern parts of the nation, relocating to the Kansas territory. These tribes included the Shawnee, Delaware, Chippewa, Iowa, Wyandot, and Kickapoo, each forced to adapt to new environments and challenging circumstances.
In 1827, Colonel Henry Leavenworth and the Third Infantry Regiment, dispatched from St. Louis, Missouri, established Fort Leavenworth, marking the official presence of the U.S. military in the area. This strategic post, the oldest active Army post west of the Mississippi River, perched atop the bluffs overlooking the Missouri River, initially functioned as a quartermaster depot, arsenal, and troop barracks. Its primary purpose was to safeguard the burgeoning fur trade and protect the vital commerce flowing along the Santa Fe Trail. The establishment of Fort Leavenworth was a pivotal moment, paving the way for the future development of Leavenworth, the first city in Kansas.
Fort Leavenworth quickly became a central hub for the countless soldiers, surveyors, and settlers making their way westward. Soldiers from the fort provided essential protection to wagon trains laden with supplies, traversing the Santa Fe, Oregon, and other trails leading to far-flung forts and military camps as distant as the Pacific Ocean. In 1839, Colonel S. W. Kearney led a significant force of ten companies of dragoons from the fort against the Cherokee, representing the largest U.S. mounted force ever assembled. The fort served as a staging ground for military operations and a vital point of contact between the expanding nation and the indigenous populations.
During the 1840s, Kansas found itself strategically positioned along the path of settlers rushing toward Oregon and California, driven by dreams of fertile land and gold. While thousands of wagons passed through, some pioneers recognized the agricultural potential of the Kansas territory and chose to settle in the area, laying the foundation for future communities. The promise of land and opportunity drew a diverse population to the region, transforming the landscape and setting the stage for the formal establishment of Leavenworth.
The establishment of Leavenworth in 1854 was primarily driven by the need to support Fort Leavenworth. The burgeoning settlement soon blossomed into the springboard to the West, becoming the first officially incorporated town in Kansas. However, this influx of white settlers led to broken treaties with Native American tribes, igniting retaliatory uprisings and raids that persisted until 1878. While Leavenworth itself and the fort remained untouched by these attacks, the military personnel at Fort Leavenworth played a crucial role in protecting the pioneers traversing the early trails. Later, a network of forts would be erected further west, extending the reach of military protection.
The genesis of Leavenworth can be traced back to a meeting in Weston, Missouri, held shortly after the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act. On June 12, 1854, George W. Gist, John C. Gist, and Samuel Farnandis marked off the townsite on Delaware Trust Lands, situated immediately south of the Fort Leavenworth military reservation. Existing squatters agreed to relinquish their claims to the town association. The 320-acre townsite was divided into lots and allocated among the 32 members of the association. The first sale of town lots took place on October 9, 1854, marking a significant step in the formal development of Leavenworth.
The Delaware Indians, understandably displeased by this encroachment upon their ancestral lands, petitioned the government for intervention, fueled by emissaries from the rival city of Atchison. The government responded by ordering troops from Fort Leavenworth to evict the settlers. However, the Leavenworth Town Association managed to secure a temporary reprieve and, after assuring the Delaware chiefs that they would pay the price fixed by the government, were permitted to remain. This delicate negotiation highlighted the complex relationship between the settlers, the Native American tribes, and the U.S. government.
Despite the initial challenges, several businesses had already taken root in the fledgling city. The Herald newspaper, a small warehouse and general store operated by Lewis N. Rees, and the Leavenworth Hotel were among the first establishments. Jerre Clark constructed the first dwelling on Walnut Street. In October, the Murphy & Scruggs sawmill began operations at the mouth of Three Mile Creek, providing lumber for the construction of future buildings. On October 8, W. C. Capels, an elder of the Methodist Church, conducted the first religious service in the town under the shade of a large tree. These early pioneers laid the groundwork for the growth and development of Leavenworth as a thriving community.
By January 1, 1855, the population of the fledgling city had reached 200. The opening of a post office in the general store on March 6, with Lewis Rees as the first postmaster, officially designated the town as Leavenworth City. More businesses emerged, including a brickyard and another sawmill. Within six months, approximately 100 buildings of various types had been erected. By May 1855, Leavenworth City was home to over 400 residents. The town was formally incorporated in the summer of 1855, and an election was held on September 3 to elect councilmen and officers.
Leavenworth County was established in July 1855, and an election was scheduled for October to determine the county seat. The primary contenders were Leavenworth City, Kickapoo City, and Delaware City. Like other Kansas counties, the struggle for the county seat was fiercely contested and marred by fraudulent voting practices. Steam ferries transported voters from Weston, Platte City, and other Missouri towns, heavily influenced by pro-slavery sentiments, to Kickapoo City and Delaware City. Kickapoo City initially claimed victory, followed by Delaware City and Leavenworth City. However, Delaware City contested the results, alleging that some of its citizens had been barred from voting. A second day of polling resulted in a win for Delaware City. A legal battle ensued, ultimately resulting in Delaware City being declared the county seat in January 1856.
The early commercial development of Leavenworth was rapid, fueled by its strategic location and its role as the starting point for the overland transportation company owned and operated by Majors, Russell & Company in the fall of 1855. Employing over 500 wagons, 7,500 head of cattle, and approximately 1,800 men, this venture proved to be a significant boon for Leavenworth City. The company’s arrival spurred the establishment of numerous new stores and businesses that would have otherwise taken years to materialize. Salt Lake and California traders increasingly chose Leavenworth as their starting point, shifting away from locations in Missouri. The Kansas Stage Company also established its headquarters in Leavenworth. A Lutheran minister rented a small building near the levee for religious purposes, and H. D. McCarty established the first school in the community. By October 1855, just one year after the first sale of lots, the population of Leavenworth City had reached approximately 1,200.
These freight companies, with their numerous employees, coupled with the transient population, created a demand for more hotel accommodations. This led to the construction of the Planters’ Hotel, completed in the fall of 1856, which quickly became one of the most renowned hotels on the Missouri River. However, for a brief period in 1856, Leavenworth City, like many other Kansas towns, became embroiled in the violent Kansas-Missouri Border War, temporarily hindering its growth.
During this turbulent period, William Dominick Matthews, a courageous young African-American freeman from Maryland, arrived in Leavenworth. Matthews established the Waverly House, a boarding establishment located on Main Street. His boarding house soon became a station on the Underground Railroad. This was a daring undertaking, given the volatile nature of Leavenworth’s border troubles. Despite the turmoil, Matthews actively harbored slave fugitives from Missouri and Arkansas, with the assistance of local abolitionists, including Daniel R. Anthony, a local newspaper editor and brother of Susan B. Anthony. Matthews would later become one of the few colored captains in the Civil War.
In the meantime, a small county building was completed in Delaware City in February 1857, along with plans to construct a new jail. However, the Kansas Legislature ordered another county seat vote to be held in October 1857. This time, Kickapoo City emerged victorious. However, Leavenworth City challenged the results, arguing that voting had not been confined to the county. Following the death of Joseph W. Hall, a commissioner from Kickapoo City and a key figure in the county seat war, Leavenworth’s claims were finally recognized. It was determined that Leavenworth had received the majority of the legal votes and was entitled to the county seat, a position it continues to hold today.
While land was donated for a courthouse square and bonds were issued to finance its construction, years passed before a courthouse was actually built. Instead, the courts and county offices were housed in the City Hall, above the Market House, and in a building later occupied by the Fire Department. By the fall of 1857, the town’s population had grown to 5,000, and it would double over the next year. In July 1858, the city’s first school board was established, a house was rented for the school, and a teacher was hired.
That same month, a disastrous fire struck Leavenworth. Starting in the theater on the corner of Third and Delaware Streets, it engulfed a significant portion of the business district. The heroic efforts of the citizens and a fortuitous rainstorm ultimately quelled the fire, but not before it caused over $200,000 worth of property damage. The year 1858 also brought a surge of westward-bound emigrants through the city, spurred by the discovery of gold in Colorado. More significantly, the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth arrived in the city, establishing a presence that would have a lasting impact on the community.
Before arriving in Leavenworth, the Sisters, who had resided in Nashville, Tennessee, found themselves burdened by a debt not of their making. After selling most of their possessions to pay their creditors, they established a new base of operations in Leavenworth, which eventually grew into a hospital and a college that still exist today. Within a week of their arrival, they were teaching in a boys’ school. In November, they opened a day and boarding school for girls on the north side of Kickapoo Street. The following year, the girls’ school was relocated to downtown Leavenworth and renamed St. Mary’s Institute. The Sisters also provided care for the sick, visiting homes and wagon trains and traveling to towns during epidemics. They educated black children who had fled to the free state of Kansas, took in orphans, visited prisoners, and cared for the poor, embodying a spirit of compassion and service that defined their mission.
In 1859, Leavenworth City gained access to telegraph lines, enabling communication with the East. Its streets were graded, sidewalks were laid, and gas works were constructed. On December 3, 1859, the day after Kansas abolitionist John Brown was hanged, Abraham Lincoln delivered a speech in Leavenworth. Speaking on the steps of the Planters Hotel, he urged voters to refrain from violence and instead utilize their voting power to prevent the expansion of slavery into the territory. His speech is considered to be similar to his first presidential campaign speech, delivered months later at Coopers Union in New York. From that day forward, the Planters Hotel became a prominent landmark in Leavenworth, serving the traveling public for decades. However, by the 1950s, the building was deemed unsafe for occupancy and was eventually demolished.
With the growth of the city, Leavenworth soon became a crossroads. Two major military roads from Fort Leavenworth converged with the emigrant road at Whitfield City, along with another route known as the Oregon and California Road. Roads were constructed to connect Leavenworth with towns along the Missouri River and to Lawrence, Lecompton, and Topeka. Hack and mail lines were established, providing weekly and tri-weekly trips to important towns in the territory. The telegraph line was extended from St. Louis, Missouri, to Leavenworth in June 1859, and the following spring, the Pike’s Peak Express Line began operating from Leavenworth to Salt Lake, Utah. The first railroad to approach Leavenworth was the Atchison & St. Joseph, completed in Weston, Missouri, in 1861, connecting with river transportation to Leavenworth. Two years later, Leavenworth became a terminus of the Kansas Pacific Railroad, connecting with the main line at Lawrence. Over the years, numerous other railroads passed through the city, including the Union Pacific; Missouri Pacific; Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe; Chicago & Rock Island; Chicago, Burlington & Quincy; Leavenworth, Kansas & Western, and the Kansas City-Leavenworth electric line, which connected the two cities.
In May 1860, the county first proposed the establishment of a poor house. Soon after, a 200-acre poor farm was established approximately four miles southwest of the city. It also included a pest house and typically housed around 30 occupants. In 1861, the African Methodist Episcopal Church was organized by Reverend John Turner. The initial meetings were held in an old basement room, and a small building was soon erected. The church played an active role in the Underground Railroad. Though a permanent church building was not constructed until 1865, it continues to stand in Leavenworth as a testament to its service as an Underground Railroad station. The current church is located at 411 Kiowa Street.
By the time the Civil War erupted, pro-slavery sentiments had largely faded. As the largest town in the state, Leavenworth raised more troops and furnished a longer array of prominent leaders than any other city in the region. Its proximity also led many Unionists from Missouri and other exposed areas to seek refuge in Leavenworth. Many of these men enlisted in the ranks of the Union army, contributing to the swelling number of Union soldiers from Leavenworth.
The first Leavenworth company to be formally mustered into the United States service was the Steuben Guards on May 27, 1861. Comprised entirely of German men, they joined the Union as Company I of the First Kansas Infantry. They participated in the Battles of Wilson’s Creek, Tuscumbia, Tallahatchie, Bayou Macon, Lake Providence, and others. Other Leavenworth military organizations also joined, including the Kickapoo Guards, Captain Black’s Guards, the Lyon Guards, the Fourth Ward Guards, the Third Ward Guards, the Leavenworth Mercantile Guards, and others.
Several Leavenworth men distinguished themselves as Union leaders, including Powell Clayton, who became a brevetted Brigadier-General in August 1864 and later served as a U.S. Senator for Arkansas; Daniel McCook, who was initially commissioned as Captain of the Shield Guards, later appointed Brigadier-General by the President of the United States, and killed during the Civil War; Thomas Moonlight, who joined as a Captain of the Leavenworth Light Battery, became a brevetted Brigadier-General in February 1865, and after the war, served as the Adjutant-General of the State of Kansas; and John A. Halderman, who served as Governor Andrew Reeder’s private secretary during his brief tenure as the first territorial governor of Kansas, became a Major-General during the war, and later served two terms as the Mayor of Leavenworth, a regent of the State University, a member of both Houses and Consul to Siam (later Thailand). These are just a few of the many men from Leavenworth who bravely served in the Civil War.
Unlike many cities during the Civil War, Leavenworth prospered due to the constant activity at the military reservation. By the end of the war, the city’s population had grown to approximately 20,000.
Amidst the Civil War, construction began on the Kansas State Penitentiary south of Leavenworth at Lansing. While the Kansas Legislature had authorized the construction of a state penitentiary in 1859, it would be years before it was completed. Forty acres were purchased in November 1861 on Seven Mile Creek, about five miles south of Leavenworth. Before construction even commenced, a warden was appointed in 1862 and directors in 1863 to determine how the prison would be built. Modeled after the prison in Joliet, Illinois, the Kansas penitentiary finally began construction in the summer of 1864, utilizing convict labor. However, it would not be ready to house prisoners until 1868. Several years later, the town of Lansing would grow around the penitentiary.
In March 1864, the Sisters of Charity opened the first private hospital in Kansas – St. John’s Hospital. It was operated by Sister Joanna Bruner, the first trained nurse in the state and likely the first woman in the West to serve as a hospital administrator. Sister Bruner also taught nursing care to other sisters. The hospital continues to operate today.
Later that year, the cornerstone of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception was laid in September. Work on the beautiful church continued for the next four years before it was dedicated in 1868. A boys’ school was also opened in conjunction with the cathedral. Unfortunately, the magnificent church was destroyed by a fire in 1961. The present church was begun in 1962 and dedicated in May 1964. In the meantime, the Sisters of Charity opened the St. Vincent Orphan Home in 1866. It would continue to operate until it was moved to Topeka in 1948.
In 1865, Fred Harvey, of Harvey House fame, moved his family to Leavenworth. Starting as a ticket agent and rising through the ranks of several railroad companies, he eventually persuaded the manager of the new Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad that he could provide quality food in pleasant restaurants inside railroad stations. Soon, Harvey Restaurants and Hotels were born, featuring the popular Harvey girls. Harvey later purchased a lovely three-story stone building for his family. Today, the building is preserved as the Fred Harvey Museum.
One of the most significant events of 1866, which caused a considerable stir in Leavenworth, as well as in the state and the rest of the country, was the suicide of General James H. Lane. While Lane certainly had his flaws, he was recognized for his vigorous efforts in securing Kansas as a Free-state. After the Civil War, Lane was re-elected as a United States Senator and, in June 1868, returned to Kansas for a short period. Despite appearing to be in poor health and depressed, he began his return to Washington with his wife, but upon reaching St. Louis, Missouri, his symptoms worsened. Doctors feared he was suffering from softening of the brain and advised him to return to Kansas. On June 29, he stopped with his brother-in-law at the Government Farm outside Leavenworth. On July 1, he shot himself and died on July 11. His remains were returned to his home in Lawrence, where he was buried.
By 1870, the population of Leavenworth had declined, however, the Sisters of Charity began work on St. Mary’s Academy in April 1870. The following month, the Kansas State Legislature granted the school a charter to confer degrees and academic honors. Today, called the University of St. Mary, the private liberal arts university is coeducational and continues to be sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth.
In 1871, the town’s name was officially changed from Leavenworth City to Leavenworth. In 1873 the Leavenworth County Courthouse was completed. The first courthouse building was destroyed by a fire in 1911. A new courthouse was built at the same location the following year, which continues to be used today.
By the turn of the century, the population had grown again to almost 21,000 people. With its ideal location on the Missouri River, several railroads running through the city, and several coal mines which opened in the area, Leavenworth became a hub of factories producing mine and mill machinery, steam engines, stoves, wagons, shoes, bakers’ ovens, pumps and implements, furniture and more.
In 1897, the War Department deeded the reservation for the U.S. Penitentiary to the Justice Department to build a new Federal Penitentiary in Leavenworth County. The U.S. Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth provided labor. The prison housed Al Capone, Machine Gun Kelly, and Robert Stroud – the "Birdman of Alcatraz.”
Today, Leavenworth is a community of about 35,000 people. Situated just on the outskirts of the Kansas City metropolitan area, it continues to provide a small-town flavor with quick access to the amenities of a larger city. The city continues to thrive with several large employers, including Hallmark Cards, federal institutions such as Fort Leavenworth, the Dwight D. Eisenhower Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and the Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary. Saint Mary College continues operation after over 140 years.
Leavenworth offers many historical attractions, including the Parker Carousel Museum, the Carroll Mansion, the Fred Harvey Museum, the Black History Museum, Frontier Army Museum, and much more. There are 13 Waysides in the riverfront downtown area that can be experienced as a walking tour and eight Waysides as a driving tour.