Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 8.djvu/676

 KANSAS

598

KANSAS

Vaca passed in 1535 was the covintry north of the Arkansas River and the Old Santa F6 trail, now a part of Kansas. The Spaniards under Coronado entered the limits of the present State of Kansas in 1541, and traversed it in a north-easterly direction marking the limit of the expedition with a cross. This was on the bank of a great tril:)utary of the Mississippi River. Another large river which was crossed by the Span- iards was named Sts. Peter and Paul; Coronado was accompanied by several friars. Among them was Father Juan de Padilla, who remaining to convert the Indians after the departure of Coronado, was here slain by the aborigines. Father Marquette's map of the Mississippi region in 167.3 designates various In- dian tribes that dwelt within the borders of Kansas. Thus he is the first to mention the Kanzas — the tribe from whom the state derives its name. The French in 1705 ascended the Missouri River as far as the Kansas River. Du Tissenet erected a cross with the arms of the King of France in the countrj' of the Padoucas, on 27 September, 1719. According to Du Pratz, in 1721 a band of Spaniards, ha\-ing a Domini- can for their chaplain, were all, with the exception of the priest, massacred by the Missouris whom the}' had mistaken for Osages, their allies. This happened probably on the present site of Leavenworth. In 1724 M. De Bourgemont made a journey across the terri- tory of Kansas, but during his absence in the following year the entire garrison he had left at Fort Orleans (in JOssouri) was massacred by the Indians. Louisi- ana, of which Kansas was a part, was subject to France until 3 November, 1762. when it became a Spanish possession; only to be retroceded to France in ISOO; it was purchased by the United States 30 April, 1803. Lewis and Clark traversed the region in 1804, 1805, and 1806. In 1806 Zebulon M. Pike explored the south of Kansas; at his instance (29 Sept., 1806) the United States flag replaced the Spanish flag at the Pawnee Indian village in the present Republic Coimty.

For some years previous to this the Choteau family carried on the fur trade in Kansas. In 1S19 and 1S20 Long's scientific exploration of the country h'ing west of the Allegheny and east of the Rocky Mountains between 35° and 42° N., emlaraced the state of Kansas. Ft. Leavenworth was established by the Federal gov- ernment in 1827. Except a few missionaries, Indian traders, hunters, and trappers, there were no whites in Kansas until 1854. In 1844 Captain Fremont ex- plored the valleys of the Kansas and Republican Rivers. In June, 1846, General Kearney set out from Fort Leavenworth for the conquest of New Mexico and California. In 1804 Kansas became a part of the District of Louisiana, for which laws were made by the Governor of Indiana Territory, acting with the judges of that territory. In 1805 Congress changed the Dis- trict of Louisiana to the Territory of Louisiana, still embracing Missouri and Kansas. When in 1812 the Territory of Orleans became the Territory of Louisi- ana, what was hitherto known as the 'Territory of Louisiana was called Missouri Territory. The 7776 square miles lying south of the Arkansas River and west of longitude 100° W., now within the hmits of Kansas, were not a part of the Louisiana Purchase, hut were acquired from Mexico. In 1820 Congress passed an Act enaliling the people of Missouri Territory to become a state, Ijut prohibiting slavery in all of the Louisiana Purchase north of 36° 30'. By the organi- zation of Missouri as a state in 1821, Kansas received an eastern boundary. In 1823 the wagon-trains from .Missouri to Santa F6 passing through Kansas opened the commerce of the plains. Besides the Santa F6 trail there was the Oregon trail leading to the valley of the Platte in Nebraska. Propertj' worth millions of dollars was transported by the pack-trains and wagon-trains. An army of men, Americans and Mexi- cans, were employed as teamsters and packers. In

addition to the native Indian tribes, Osages, Pawnees, Kansas, and Padoucas or Comanches, Indians of east- ern states were given reservations in Kansas, designated Indian Territory until 1854 when it was organized as Kansas Territory. Kansas Territory extended westward to the summit of the Rocky Mountains, in- cluding a large portion of the present State of Colorado under the name of Arapahoe County. In 1854 the Kansas-Nebraska Act abrogated the Missouri Com- promise of 1820, and left the question of slavery to the people of the respective territories when adopting a state constitution. In consequence, the North and South entered into a contest to people the Territory of Kansas. It led to acts of \-iolence and bloodshed be- tween the pro-slavery and anti-slavery parties that resulted in the loss of two hundred human lives and in the destruction of property valued at two millions of dollars. The cities of Leavenworth, Atchison, Topeka, and LawTence were founded in 1854.

The internecine struggle in Kansas, in which John Brown was a prominent factor, was potent in forcing the great war that followed between the Northern and the Southern States. A census taken in February, 1855, showed a white population of 8601. In 1860, according to the United States census, there were 107,206 inhabitants; the drought in this year was a severe calamity. Kansas was admitted as a free State on 29 January, 1861. The motto of the State seal is ^d astra per aspera. In 1S61 Topeka was made the permanent capital. The state furnished 20,151 men to the Union army, though the proper quota would have been but 12,930. Out of her mili- tary force, Kansas lost 472 officers and 7345 private soldiers. On 21 August, 1863, the notorious guerilla (Juantrell attacked Lawrence at daybreak and within five hours left the city a smouldering ruin, i\-ith 143 of its citizens slain, and 43 others wounded. Property worth .?2,000,000 was destroyed. In October, 1864, some 20,000 Kansas men were under arms to oppose Gen. Sterling Price, who with a large force of Confed- erates threatened the eastern border of the state. He was decisively beaten on Kansas soil in the battle of Mine Creek following the Battle of the Blue and the Battle of Westport, near Kansas City. Kansas troops were mainly engaged in Missouri, Arkansas, and Indian Territory (now Oklahoma), but saw service as far south as Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas. Charles Robinson and Thomas Carney were the war governors of Kansas.

After the severe trials of the preceding years, Kan- sas was greatly helped by the Homestead Law of 1862. In 1866 the State Legislature granted 500,000 acres of State lands to four railroad companies. The counties voted bonds in favour of the railroads; and the United States Congress by hberal grants encouraging the building of railroads, as early as 1867, there were 523 miles of railways in the state. These were of ma- terial aid in the development of the great natural re- sources of Kansas. 'The early settlers in remote places were justly in dread of the Indians who made their last raid in 1878, when 29 white people were killed by the savages. Since then the red men have left no mark on the pages of Kansas history, and their number within the state has been reduced to about 2000. The legislature of 1863 located the Insane Asylum at Osawatomie, accepted the congressional grant of lands for an agricultural college at Manhat- tan, and provided for the state university at Law- rence and the state normal school at Emporia. In the following year the deaf and dumb asylum, the blind asylum, and the penitentiary were located, and suitable buildings were erected for these institutions. There followed two reformatories for boys, a reforma- tory for girls, a hospital for epileptics, a school for feeble-minded youth and the Soldiers' Orplians' Home, besides an additional hospital for the insane at Topeka. The state makes liberal appropriations for the maintenance of each of them.