Love Kansas

The 236-mile Kansas Turnpike was constructed in 22 months and opened to traffic October 25, 1956.

The K-Tag lets you go through without stopping.

The fee is charged to your credit card only when used.

It is recognized in KS and OK and soon TX.

A Little Kansas History

Kansas, situated on the American Great Plains, became the 34th state on January 29, 1861. Its path to statehood was long and bloody: After the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 opened the two territories to settlement and allowed the new settlers to determine whether the states would be admitted to the union as “free” or ”slave,” North and South competed to send the most settlers into the region. This quickly led to violence, and the territory became known as “Bleeding Kansas.” Kansas has long been known as part of America’s agricultural heartland, and is home to the major U.S. military installation Fort Leavenworth. In 1954, it became a battleground of the civil rights movement when the landmark Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka case was decided in the Supreme Court, ending the doctrine of “separate but equal” in public schools. Kansas is also known for its contributions to jazz music, barbecue and as the setting of L. Frank Baum’s classic children’s book The Wizard of Oz.

Date of Statehood: January 29, 1861

Capital: Topeka Population: 2,853,118 (2010)

Size: 82,278 square miles

Nickname(s): Sunflower State; Wheat State; Jayhawk

State Motto: Ad astra per aspera (“To the stars through difficulties”)

Tree: Cottonwood Flower:

Wild Native Sunflower

Bird: Western Meadowlark

Interesting Facts

•Fort Riley was established near the Kansas River in 1853 to protect settlers and trade along the Oregon and Santa Fe Trails. In 1866, the 7th Cavalry organized at the fort under General George Armstrong Custer, who later led the regiment in the infamous attack on Sioux and Cheyenne tribes at the Battle of Little Bighorn in June of 1876.

•When French astronomer Pierre Janssen first discovered the element he called helium on the sun in 1868, it was believed to be one of the most rare elements. It wasn’t until 1905, when faculty members at The University of Kansas in Lawrence began experimenting with gas from a newly drilled well in Dexter, that helium was identified as a common element found on Earth.

•Kansas is the leading producer of wheat in the United States. Referred to as “The Wheat Capital of the World,” Sumner County produced 9 million bushels in 2009.

•Meade’s Ranch in Osborne County, Kansas, is the Geodetic Center of North America—the point of reference by which all property lines and boundaries in North America are surveyed. Identified in 1901, this triangulation station for the United States, Canada and Mexico is also known as the North American Datum.

•Although the origin remains unclear, the terms “jayhawk” and “jayhawker” were originally used to describe raiders and looters during the period of unrest following the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 when settlers of the Kansas Territory were left to decide the issue of slavery. It was later used solely as a label for free-state proponents, and eventually became associated with all Kansans.

•During the Civil War, Kansas suffered the highest rate of fatal casualties of any Union state. Compiled and edited by Kathy Weiser/ Legends of America http://www.legendsofamerica.com/, updated May, 2010.

By The Numbers

12 > minimum hours needed to marinate a traditional Kansas beef brisket.

163 > Miles of shoreline at Milford Lake, Kansas’ largest lake.

184 > Pounds, weight of the heaviest watermelon in Kansas State Fair history.

2013 > The year the Kansas State Fair celebrated its 100th birthday.

13.2 > Miles historic route 66 cuts across the southeast corner of Kansas.

139 > Miles the Pony Express traveled through Kansas.

22 > Feet, length of the neck of the plesiosaur – a fossil found in Monument Rock. The entire fossil was nearly 50 feet in length.

$125 > The weekly paycheck for Terry, the dog who played Toto in The Wizard of OZ.