Pierceville, Kansas

Pierceville is an unincorporated community in Finney County, Kansas, United States. Pierceville is located along U.S. Routes 50 and 400, 12 miles (19 km) southeast of Garden City. Pierceville had a post office with ZIP code 67868, but it was disestablished April 11, 1992.[2] A few houses, a community building, an empty elementary school, a grain elevator, and a church are all that remain of the community.[3][4]

Pierceville, Kansas
Unincorporated community
Pierceville
Pierceville
Coordinates: 37°52′42″N 100°40′37″W
CountryUnited States
StateKansas
CountyFinney
Elevation
2,749 ft (838 m)
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code
67868
Area code(s)620
GNIS feature ID471624[1]

History

The Western Trail (a cattle trail) played a part in the founding of this town. The Barton Brothers drove a herd of 3,000 cattle over the trail, and the cattle were the first to feed on the government lands in western Kansas. In the fall of 1872, they came to the area and established a ranch along the Arkansas River. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway was laying track in southwestern Kansas, and they chose the Barton Ranch as headquarters for the town site. It was named Pierceville in honor of Chas. W. and Carlos Pierce, who were members of the original Atchison & Topeka Railroad company.

The post office was established on June 10, 1873, and the town began to grow with a store and dugouts. Then tragedy struck on July 3, 1874. Indians who had been defeated in a fight in Texas were heading north and were looking for settlements along the Santa Fe Railroad. Once they got to Pierceville, they set fire to the store and chased the train that came through the town firing their arrows at the train and into the windows. It was learned later that this was the same group of Indians who had attacked the German family and killed the parents, a son and a small child before kidnapping the four daughters. The girls were with the Indians during the attack on Pierceville but were rescued later.

It was not until 1878 that a house and a store were built and the post office was reestablished on July 24. The town was platted in 1886 and the population was 400. There was a newspaper, hotel and a hardware store. By 1930, the population was 166. [5]

Climate

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Pierceville has a semi-arid climate, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps.[6]

Education

The community is served by Garden City USD 457 public school district.

References
  1. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  2. "Kansas Post Offices, 1828-1961 (archived)". Kansas Historical Society. Archived from the original on October 9, 2013. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
  3. ZIP Code Lookup
  4. List of Historical Post Offices in Finney County
  6. Climate Summary for Pierceville, Kansas
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