Richland, Kansas
Encyclopedia
Richland was a town in southeastern Shawnee County
, Kansas
. It is notable for being the birthplace of Georgia Neese Clark Gray
, the first female Treasurer of the United States
.
. In 1857 a post office was opened north of town and a schoolhouse was constructed, out of logs, on the northeast corner of Matney's land.
Richland eventually became the center of a rich agricultural region and its businesses included a bank, a barber shop, a church, two blacksmiths, two doctors, a pharmacy, several lodges, a hotel and a general store. in the early 1870s, Richland became a station on the St. Louis, Lawrence and Denver Railroad however the railroad would be short lived and the railroad stopped running in 1894.
By the 1890s the population had come close to 300 with more businesses including a lumber yard, two millinery shops and an ice cream parlor, among others. Richland also established a newspaper, Argosy, in 1893 and it included local news but also news about nearby communities including Twin Mound
, Overbrook
and Clinton
. In the summer of 1894, Laura Ingalls Wilder
passed through Richland with her husband and daughter. Wilder noted in her diary, based on the friendliness of the townspeople, that "[we] may come back here if we do not like it there [in Missouri
]."
In October 1903, Richland started its annual Richland Street Fair which featured parades, games and talent shows. In 1949, Georgia Neese Clark
was appointed by President Harry S Truman as Treasurer of the United States
which she served until 1953. By 1967, Clinton Lake
was becoming more of a reality. Some businesses in Richland moved one mile north of the construction site naming the new "town" New Richland Corners and the farewell street fair was held in July 1967, however the next year the Richland Fair Association held one more final fair.
The post office closed in 1969 and the last of the town was leveled in 1974. Today little remains of Richland, only some ruins of buildings, fragments of paved streets and the cemetery. Most of town site is located on land owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Shawnee County, Kansas
Shawnee County is a county located in northeast Kansas, in the central United States of America. Its most populous city, Topeka, is the state capital and county seat. The county's population was 177,934 for the 2010 census...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
. It is notable for being the birthplace of Georgia Neese Clark Gray
Georgia Neese Clark
Georgia Neese Clark Gray was the first woman Treasurer of the United States, serving from 1949 to 1953. No subsequent Treasurer has been a man.-Early life:...
, the first female Treasurer of the United States
Treasurer of the United States
The Treasurer of the United States is an official in the United States Department of the Treasury that was originally charged with the receipt and custody of government funds, though many of these functions have been taken over by different bureaus of the Department of the Treasury...
.
History
In October 1854, Charles Matney settled in the area that was to become Richland, near the confluence of Camp Creek with the Wakarusa RiverWakarusa River
The Wakarusa River is a tributary of the Kansas River, approximately long, in eastern Kansas in the United States. It drains an agricultural area of rolling limestone hills south of Topeka and Lawrence.-Description:...
. In 1857 a post office was opened north of town and a schoolhouse was constructed, out of logs, on the northeast corner of Matney's land.
Richland eventually became the center of a rich agricultural region and its businesses included a bank, a barber shop, a church, two blacksmiths, two doctors, a pharmacy, several lodges, a hotel and a general store. in the early 1870s, Richland became a station on the St. Louis, Lawrence and Denver Railroad however the railroad would be short lived and the railroad stopped running in 1894.
By the 1890s the population had come close to 300 with more businesses including a lumber yard, two millinery shops and an ice cream parlor, among others. Richland also established a newspaper, Argosy, in 1893 and it included local news but also news about nearby communities including Twin Mound
Twin Mound, Kansas
Twin Mound was a townsite in western Douglas County, Kansas, United States. It was named for two natural mounds that rise gently from the landscape.-History:...
, Overbrook
Overbrook, Kansas
Overbrook is a city in Osage County, Kansas, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 947. It is part of the Topeka, Kansas Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Overbrook is located at...
and Clinton
Clinton, Kansas
Clinton is an unincorporated community situated on a peninsula in the middle of Clinton Lake in Douglas County, Kansas, United States.-Bloomington:...
. In the summer of 1894, Laura Ingalls Wilder
Laura Ingalls Wilder
Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder was an American author who wrote the Little House series of books based on her childhood in a pioneer family...
passed through Richland with her husband and daughter. Wilder noted in her diary, based on the friendliness of the townspeople, that "[we] may come back here if we do not like it there [in Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
]."
In October 1903, Richland started its annual Richland Street Fair which featured parades, games and talent shows. In 1949, Georgia Neese Clark
Georgia Neese Clark
Georgia Neese Clark Gray was the first woman Treasurer of the United States, serving from 1949 to 1953. No subsequent Treasurer has been a man.-Early life:...
was appointed by President Harry S Truman as Treasurer of the United States
Treasurer of the United States
The Treasurer of the United States is an official in the United States Department of the Treasury that was originally charged with the receipt and custody of government funds, though many of these functions have been taken over by different bureaus of the Department of the Treasury...
which she served until 1953. By 1967, Clinton Lake
Clinton Lake (Kansas)
Clinton Lake is a reservoir on the southwestern edge of Lawrence, Kansas. The lake was created by the construction of the Clinton Dam, and the 35 square miles of land and water is maintained by the U.S...
was becoming more of a reality. Some businesses in Richland moved one mile north of the construction site naming the new "town" New Richland Corners and the farewell street fair was held in July 1967, however the next year the Richland Fair Association held one more final fair.
The post office closed in 1969 and the last of the town was leveled in 1974. Today little remains of Richland, only some ruins of buildings, fragments of paved streets and the cemetery. Most of town site is located on land owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.