Southwest Kansas, Anyone?

[W. Gray]

Has anyone ever wondered why Winfield in southeast Kansas has a college named Southwestern?

The school actually began as the Southwest Kansas Conference College in the 1880s and changed its name to Southwestern around 1910.

Here is some background from the 1870s.

The Southwestern Stage Company served Longton and Elk Falls from Independence.

The Walnut Valley Times of El Dorado described William P. Campbell of that town as a leading lawyer of southwest Kansas.

The Winfield Courier writing of the newspaper press in Cowley County and surrounding areas referred to these newspapers as the press of southwest Kansas.

A Kansas Daily Tribune (Lawrence) correspondent reporting from Cowley County wrote, "The growth of Southwestern Kansas is wonderful."

The Eureka Herald began publishing in 1868. The editor noted in early 1871 that with the February 4 introduction of the Elk Falls Examiner, the Herald was no longer the pioneer newspaper of southwestern Kansas.

The Emporia News in Lyon County ran a weekly news item titled "THE SOUTHWEST." This regular feature contained news from the counties surrounding Lyon.

At the time, due to the lack of organized counties for 235 miles west beyond Wichita's Sedgwick County, many considered Cowley and Howard and surrounding counties as in southwest Kansas rather than the southeast.

[Rudy Taylor]

Waldo, you do amaze me!  What a fascinating piece of information!  Thanks for sharing it.

[Bonnie M.]

You amaze me too, Waldo!  I love knowing the "why, when and where" about "stuff," and, boy, do you come up with those answers!  I love it!  Keep it up!

[Teresa]

Do you "wonder" yourself and then do the research? Or do you kinda know and do the research.
Amazing.. and so very interesting. Thanks.

[W. Gray]

I first thought about it when I was a kid and marveled because Winfield had a college.

I did not research it specifically but stumbled upon the information looking for other things.

It was like when you are not looking for something but it falls into your lap.

Here's wishing everyone a nice Thanksgiving and we are now (again) headed for Howard.