Brief
History from Kansas State Historical
Society:
On March 17, 1874,
the Edwards County boundaries were defined
by the Legislature and on August 1, 1874,
the county was
organized by Taylor Flick; Robert
McCanse; Captain Peter H. Miles; and C. L.
Hubbs. The county was named for W. C.
Edwards of Hutchinson who promised
that when the county was organized he
would build a brick block of buildings in
Kinsley if the county was named for
him. He was the senior partner of the
House of Edwards Brothers in Kinsley. It
contains
the cities of Belpre, Kinsley,
Offerle and Lewis.
The Battle of Coon
Creek was a major event in county history.
Fought on June 18, 1848, between some 200
Comanche and
Osage Indians and 140 soldiers on
their way to fight in the Mexican War,
this was the first battle to use
breech-loading rifles.
The story also tells of an Indian
woman mounted on a horse, who seemed to be
their queen, directing the handling of the
wounded. On January 27, 1878,
bandits attempting to loot the Santa Fe
railroad station's safe, and also rob the
westbound
Pueblo Express, were foiled by a
young telegraph operator named Andrew
Kincaid. Four of the gang were later
captured by
Bat Masterson. In 1939 a "Half-Way"
sign was erected two miles west of Kinsley
denoting Kinsley's location as half-way
between New York and San Francisco.
The signing was done in commemoration of
the 1939 World Fairs being held
simultaneously in the two cities.
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