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Free Traveling Guides » States » Kansas History of Kansas
Kansas, popularly referred to as the American Heartland, is situated in the central region of the United States of America. The State has been named after the Kansas River, which in turn has been named after the Kansa tribe, which inhabited the area in the pre-historic times. Before the first European Americans arrived in Kansas, this region was home to the nomadic Native Americans. The first European to explore this area was Francisco Vasquez de Coronado, who set foot in the territory in 1541. The present-day Kansas was acquired by the United States in 1803 as a part of the Louisiana Purchase. Kansas was a part of the Missouri Territory from 1812 to 1821. Fort Leavenworth, the first permanent settlement of white Americans, was established in 1827. On May 30, 1854, the Kansas-Nebraska Act became law, opening the area to a broader settlement by establishing the U. S. territories of Kansas and Nebraska. The sites of present-day Colorado Springs, Pueblo, and Denver were included in the Kansas Territory. The turning point in the history of the region came in the same year, when the pro-slavery settlers from neighboring Missouri and abolitionist Free-Staters from New England rushed into the territory and turned the area into a hotbed of violence and chaos. During this time, the territory was popularly referred to as the “Bleeding Kansas”. Finally, in 1861, Kansas was added to the Union as the 34th state. However, the stage had already been set for the American Civil War. On August 21, 1863, several hundred men were led on a raid into Lawrence by William Quantrill, killing over 200 people and destroying mush of the city. This raid was the single bloodiest act of domestic terrorism in America. After the Civil War, a number of black colonies were established in the state by many African-Americans. The opening of the Chisholm Trail at the same time marked the beginning of the Wild West era in Kansas. On February 19, 1881, Kansas adopted a Constitutional amendment prohibiting all alcoholic beverages. |
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