Peabody, Kansas

Peabody, Kansas
—  City  —
1886 Peabody City Hall, in 2010.
Location of Peabody, Kansas
Detailed map of Peabody, Kansas
Coordinates: 38°10′8″N 97°6′26″W
Country	United States
State	Kansas
County	Marion
Platted	1871 (Coneburg) 1871, 1875 (Peabody) 1878 (North Peabody)
Incorporated	1879
Government
• Type	Mayor–Council
• Mayor	Larry Larsen
• City Clerk	Mac Manning Jr
Area
• Total	1.2 sq mi (3.2 km2)
• Land	1.2 sq mi (3.2 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	1,378 ft (420 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	1,210
• Density	1,008.3/sq mi (389.3/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	66866
Area code(s)	620
FIPS code	20-55100
GNIS feature ID	0477780
Website	www.PeabodyKS.com
W i k i p e d i a

Peabody is a city in Marion County, Kansas, United States. It is named after F.H. Peabody, of Boston, former vice-president of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. Peabody is well known in the region for its Independence Day Celebration on July 4, and its historic 1880's downtown main street. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,210, a decline from 1,384 in 2000.

History

1884 Peabody Bank Building was a bank from 1884 to 1922. The current bank is 1 block north.

19th century

For millennia, the land that is currently Kansas was inhabited by Native Americans. In 1803, most of modern Kansas was secured by the United States as part of the Louisiana Purchase. In 1855, Marion County, Kansas, where Peabody is located, was founded.

The first settler in the Peabody area was W.C. Coble, from North Carolina, who set up ranch headquarters a few miles east of Peabody in 1864.

The first settlement made in the area was in September 1870, by a colony of settlers from Wisconsin. In October, more settlers arrived. During the first month, the colony officers laid out a town on the north-half of section 4 township 22 and survived it into lots. The town was named Coneburg after the town company president John Cone. The town site was located between the current 9th Street and Division Avenue. During the winter of 1870, some of the settlers returned east to get supplies and bring out their families. In 1871, while the other settlers were gone, dissatifaction arose in the community and it began to break up. Claim jumping of the Coneburg town site and nearby land started to occur, thus causing a legal mess.

In 1870, T.M. Potter homesteaded the south-half of the same section of land. In spring of 1871, he and five other men started the Peabody town company. Since the land title for the Peabody town site had no legal disputes, businesses immediately moved from Coneburg. In June 1871, the town of Peabody was platted, and it included the land where the railroad was built in the same month.

In April 1872, during legal disputes, Coneburg became North Peabody. A revised plat of Peabody was made in July 1875 and a supplemental plat of North Peabody was made in April 1878. Because of the disputes, the street that ran down the middle of the border between the two towns was called "Division Avenue". The two towns merged into the city of Peabody in 1879.

The town of Peabody was named in 1871 after F.H. Peabody, of Boston, formerly vice-president of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway company. In May 1874, Mr. Peabody visited the new town, at which time he announced he would donate money for a library building, furniture, books, periodicals and landscaping if the Peabody township would secure four town lots for the site. The contract for construction was awarded in spring of 1875 and was opened to the public in June 1875, and the following February 1876 the state legislature authorized the township to levy a tax to support the library. The structure housed the library facilities until 1914 when a new Peabody Township Carnegie Library was constructed on the old location.

1893 Railroad Map.

In 1871, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway extended a main line from Emporia through Peabody to Newton. In 1996, it merged with Burlington Northern Railroad and renamed to the current BNSF Railway. Most locals still refer to this railroad as the "Santa Fe". The first depot was built south of the tracks, then later a train wreck destroyed it, so a second depot was built on the north side of the tracks. In 1873, three west-bound trains (9:05AM, 1:00PM, 8:30PM) and three east-bound trains (4:42AM, 6:50PM, 8:30PM) stopped at the Peabody depot. Rail service was still very strong five decades later. In 1925, three west-bound and four east-bound trains made stops at Peabody. The second depot was demolished in the 1970s after passenger transportation ended, then its land was converted into the Santa Fe Park, which is located at the south end of Walnut Street. Currently Amtrak's Southwest Chief passenger train currently passes through Peabody twice each day, but stops at nearby Newton.

In 1887, the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway built a branch line north-south from Herington through Peabody to Caldwell. By 1893, this branch line was incrementally built to Fort Worth, Texas. It foreclosed in 1891 and was taken over by Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway, which shut down in 1980 and reorganized as Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas Railroad, merged in 1988 with Missouri Pacific Railroad, and finally merged in 1997 with Union Pacific Railroad. Most locals still refer to this railroad as the "Rock Island". Its depot in Peabody was demolished in the early 1960s.

In 1875, Peabody held its first agricultural "county fair" and continued to hold them annually for many years. In September 1885, the Kansas State Fair was held at Peabody during the first four days of the month. An outstanding feature of the state fair was "the First Monument to General Grant", who passed away shortly before the fair. The temporary monument was an obelisk about 40 feet (12 m) tall, and built from forty bushels of ears of corn. The fair had a grandstand, which could hold 2000 people, to view horse races. The race track was used for a variety of events, including horse walking teams in harness, trotting, running, pacing, mule racing, and daily chariot races. A dining hall was built that was capable of feeding 10,000 people each day. In 1900, the Marion County Agricultural Society sold the fair grounds to the city, which renamed it the Peabody City Park, and its entrance is located at the corner of Locust and 2nd Streets.

Peabody was the home of famous race horses around the turn of the century. Three of the more famous horses were world champions. Joe Young (known as the "iron horse") sold for $10,000 by C.E. Westbrook, the first horse west of the Mississippi River to sell for such a high price. Joe Young sired Joe Patchen in 1889, who earned his owner $40,000 in race purses and then was sold for $44,000. Joe Patchen sired Dan Patch in 1896, a horse that sold in 1907 for $60,000. Other famous local racing horses included trotters McKinney, and Silver Sign. Silverthorne toured Austria where he competed for three years against the best race horses in Europe.

20th century

1914 Peabody Township "Carnegie" Library, in 2010

1974 Mennonite Centennial Memorial Monument in Santa Fe Park. A Threshing stone was cut and placed on 4 sides of this monment. In the foreground is a brick street, which is typical in most of Peabody

Peabody became an important supply point for one of the state's cattle feeding districts. By 1911, approximately 20,000 head of cattle were imported from other states and fed within 20 miles (32 km) of Peabody at 50 farms. Because of this cattle industry, local farmers grew more corn, alfalfa, and other feed crops during the 1900s and 1910s.

Peabody experienced an oil boom from 1918 to 1920. The influence of the petroleum industry remained strong in Peabody, and resulted in the greatest change upon the community in the shortest time. More than 100 residences were constructed in October and November 1919. From 1918 to 1919, the population increased by 75% or more, but later decreased as oil booms in other Kansas areas needed the workers.

The New Santa Fe Trail road was routed through Peabody in the late 1910s. Initially the road entered the north side of the city on Newell Rd (later on Old Mill Rd), and exited on the south-west side on 60th Street (known as the Old Trail). The trail became U.S. Route 50 in the late 1930s when the new highway was routed east to west on 9th Street. In 1998, the highway was moved about 1.5 blocks north so it could go over a new railroad overpass.

In 1943, German and Italian prisoners of World War II were brought to Kansas and other midwest states as a means of solving the labor shortage caused by American men serving in the war effort. Large prisoner-of-war camps camps were established in Kansas at Camp Concordia, Camp Funston (at Fort Riley), and Camp Phillips (at Salina under Fort Riley). Fort Riley established 12 smaller branch camps, including Peabody and El Dorado. Up to 150 prisoners were quartered at the Peabody branch camp. Farmers were to have first priority over other industries in requesting prisoner labor. County agents were responsible for processing the application of local residents seeking the use of the prisoners who were to be available only as group laborers. No fewer than four prisoners could be assigned to any farm, and one guard accompanied each group. The prisoners were not allowed to operate powered farm equipment. The farmer collected the workers at the camp and returned them at the end of the day. The Peabody branch camp was located in the Eyestone building, now occupied by Heckendorn Equipment Company, and located at 122 West 2nd Street. The prisoner yard was located in the north-east corner of the property and still exists as a storage area. The camp was closed in December 1945, after Germany surrendered.

There has been numerous floods during the history of Peabody. In June and July 1951, due to heavy rains, rivers and streams flooded numerous cities in Kansas, including Peabody. Many reservoirs and levees were built in Kansas as part of a response to the Great Flood of 1951.

The community gradually increased in size as a commuter town to support aircraft industries in Wichita during World War II and Soviet Union Cold War years. Over time, the aircraft industry worker requirement has shrank, thus has their influence on numerous commuter towns. Another gradual impact on the community has been the decrease in the size of farm families. Over time as farm equipment has increased in size, so has it decreased the number of family farms in the area, because fewer people are required to farm larger amounts of land. Fewer farms families has led to a gradual decrease in children at local schools. Peabody, like most rural towns, has seen a gradual loss of population do to rural flight to larger cities.

The community has always had great pride in celebrating and promoting its past. Three centennials, Kansas centennial in 1961, Peabody centennial in 1971, United States Bicentennial in 1976, caused surges of historic pride, which eventually led to the creation of the Peabody Main Street Association (PMSA) in 1989 and the Peabody Community Foundation (PCF). The Peabody Main Street Association has won numerous awards since it was founded.

In 1998, the downtown area of Peabody was placed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), and known as the Peabody Downtown Historic District. Peabody had four previous listings on the NRHP: Peabody Historical Library Museum (in 1973), Peabody Township Library (in 1987), J.S. Schroeder Building (in 1991), and W.H. Morgan House (in 1996).

21st century

In 2010, the Peabody Main Street Association received 5 state awards. In the same year, the Keystone-Cushing Pipeline (Phase II) was constructed 4.5 miles (7.2 km) east of Peabody, north to south through Marion County, with much controversy over road damage, tax exemption, and environmental concerns (if a leak ever occurs).

In 2012, the Peabody City Park was placed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), the sixth in Peabody.

Geography

Peabody is located at 38°10′8″N 97°6′26″W (38.168793, -97.107171) near the western edge of the Flint Hills in the Great Plains. Peabody is approximately 15 mi (24 km) north-east of Newton, 42 mi (68 km) north of Wichita, 164 mi (264 km) south-west of Kansas City. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.2 square miles (3.1 km²), all of it land except Doyle Creek and Spring Creek. The north-east corner of Harvey County is 2.0 miles (3.2 km) west of Peabody.

Climate

On average in Peabody, January is the coolest month with an average low of 19 °F (-7 °C), July is the warmest month with an average high of 92 °F (33 °C), and May is the wettest month with an average precipitation of 4.64 in. The hottest temperature recorded in Peabody was 115 °F (43 °C) in 1954; the coldest temperature recorded was -22 °F (-31 °C) in 1989.

Climate data for Peabody, Kansas, USA
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °F (°C)	76 (24)	82 (28)	91 (33)	95 (35)	101 (38)	112 (44)	115 (46)	111 (44)	109 (43)	97 (36)	88 (31)	78 (26)	115 (46)
Average high °F (°C)	41 (5)	48 (9)	59 (15)	69 (21)	77 (25)	86 (30)	92 (33)	91 (33)	82 (28)	71 (22)	55 (13)	44 (7)	67.9 (20.0)
Average low °F (°C)	19 (−7)	24 (−4)	34 (1)	44 (7)	53 (12)	63 (17)	68 (20)	66 (19)	58 (14)	46 (8)	33 (1)	23 (−5)	44.3 (6.8)
Record low °F (°C)	−17 (−27)	−20 (−29)	−6 (−21)	12 (−11)	27 (−3)	40 (4)	45 (7)	45 (7)	24 (−4)	10 (−12)	−9 (−23)	−22 (−30)	−22 (−30)
Precipitation inches (mm)	0.82 (20.8)	0.96 (24.4)	2.52 (64)	2.82 (71.6)	4.64 (117.9)	4.49 (114)	3.79 (96.3)	3.33 (84.6)	3.24 (82.3)	2.53 (64.3)	2.17 (55.1)	1.07 (27.2)	32.38 (822.5)
Source: The Weather Channel; National Weather Service

Area events

• July 4th Celebration In 2011, its 90th year, fireworks will be in the historical Peabody City Park. The fireworks are infamous for the ending display called the Battle of New Orleans, which explodes over 1 Million individual items. In 1960s and 1970s, up to 30,000 or more people attended the event, including a Carnival of rides.
• Memorial Weekend - Operation Celebration, a tribute to the men and women who served in the United States military. Events include a popular World War II reenactment and parade.
• Sleepy Creek Concert Series, one concert is played in the Santa Fe Park each month in the late summer.
• Doyle Valley Farmers Market, held in the Santa Fe Park, Memorial Day to Labor Day.

Area attractions

Fountain next to W.H. Morgan House (immediate right), W.H. Morgan Barn (back right with red roof), Carnegie Library (left with brown brick), Museum (back middle with green roof). Looking north-east, in 2010.

Peabody has six listings on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).

• 1880's Peabody Downtown Historic District (NRHP). The Downtown Business District of Peabody boasts of 42 contributing buildings in the district. The significant period for the district began in 1874 with the construction of the first free public library and ended in 1922 with the decline in oil production. Peabody is the 2nd community in the State of Kansas to have its entire downtown district on the National Register of Historic Places.
  • 1884 J.S. Schroeder Building (NRHP), 111 North Walnut Street. This first floor has been many types of businesses, but most older locals remember it as the McMillen grocery store. For the past couple of decades, the first floor has been occupied by the Mayesville Mercantile.
  • 1914 Peabody Township Carnegie Library (NRHP), 214 North Walnut Street.
  • 1919 Eyestone building, previously a POW camp during World War II, 122 West 2nd Street, private business.
• Peabody Museum Historical Complex, Memorial Day to Labor Day.
  • 1874 Peabody Historical Library Museum (NRHP), 106 East Division Avenue (east of Carnegie Library). After the new Carnegie library was built in 1914, the first library was moved and used for club meetings and stood idle for a number of years. In 1960, while planning for the 1961 Kansas centennial celebration, local citizens organized to move the structure to a lot near its original location. The old library building was converted and dedicated as a museum on July 3, 1961.
  • 1881 W.H. Morgan House (NRHP), 212 North Walnut Street. A two-story Queen Anne Cottage built by W.H. Morgan, first editor of the Peabody Gazette newspaper.
  • 1904 W.H. Morgan Barn, east of House. Will contain larger items that can't fit in the museum. Not open to public yet.
  • 1920 Peabody Printing Museum, 210 North Walnut Street. The Peabody Printing Museum has a collection of hot type equipment dating from 1870 to 1920.
• Peabody City Park (NRHP):
  • 1881 Fair Floral Exhibition Hall, west of the football field at the top of the hill in the park. The building is unique because of its octagon walls. It is the only remaining fair building and not open to the public .
• 1887 T.B. Townsend Barn, several miles east near U.S. Route 50. It is a three-story, 80 feet by 140 feet, limestone barn, and can easily be seen on the north side of the highway. Not open to public.
• 1927 Indian Guide Monument, several miles east near U.S. Route 50. Can be seen on bluff over-looking south side of highway. Not open to public.
• 1974 Mennonite Centennial Memorial Monument, south-east corner of Walnut and 1st Streets in the Santa Fe Park. A Threshing stone was cut and placed on 4 sides of this monment.
• Marion Reservoir, approximately 13 miles (21 km) north of Peabody.

Films

• Small Town, USA, 2011, a feature documentary, currently in pre-production, examines the challenges faced by communities, employers and individuals as they strive to develop cultural and economic models that will ensure survival. IMG Pictures filmed in many small towns in rural Kansas, including Peabody. The Peabody downtown is being used for the promotional picture.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1880	1,087		—
1890	1,474		35.6%
1900	1,369		−7.1%
1910	1,416		3.4%
1920	2,455		73.4%
1930	1,491		−39.3%
1940	1,367		−8.3%
1950	1,194		−12.7%
1960	1,309		9.6%
1970	1,368		4.5%
1980	1,474		7.7%
1990	1,349		−8.5%
2000	1,384		2.6%
2010	1,210		−12.6%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,384 people, 531 households, and 346 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,124.7 people per square mile (434.4/km²). There were 602 housing units at an average density of 489.2 per square mile (189.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.81% White, 1.52% African American, 0.43% Native American, 0.36% from other races, and 1.88% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.82% of the population.

There were 531 households out of which 30.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.9% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.7% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.6% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 21.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 93.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,792, and the median income for a family was $37,250. Males had a median income of $28,750 versus $19,028 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,493. About 6.3% of families and 14.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.6% of those under age 18 and 17.6% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The largest employer in Peabody is Unified School District 398, which has two schools in the city.

Government

The Peabody government consists of a mayor and five council members. The council meets the 2nd and last Monday of each month at 7 pm.

• City Hall, 300 North Walnut Street.
• Fire Department, 103 North Sycamore Street.
• Police Department and City Shop, 107 East 9th Street.
• U.S. Post Office, 105 West 2nd Street.

Free housing lots

The city of Peabody is offering free lots to anyone that will build a house on them.

Historical list of Mayors

Years	Terms	Mayor
2009-Now	2	Larry K Larsen
2007–2008	1	Edmund Slocombe
2005–2006	1	Tom Schmidt
2003–2004	1	Randy Dallke
2001–2002	1	Kevin Ensminger
1998–2001	1+	N.M. Patton
1977–1998	10+	Douglas Porter
1971–1976	3	Guy Meirowsky
1967-1970 1961-1964 1953-1956	6	John DeForest
1965-1966 1957-1960	3	Earl Graham
1949–1952	2	Ray Beeton

Years	Terms	Mayor
1941–1948	4	D.M. Ward
1937–1940	2	A.H. Gilfillan
1933–1936	2	Oliver Kornhaus
1931–1932	1	John Willoughby
1928–1930	1+	Herbert H Wehry
1925–1927	1+	L.W. Noble
1923-24 1916	1+	J.W. Nusbaum
1919–1922	2	Arnold Berns
1917–1918	1	Orlando Jolliffe
1915	<1	H.A. Kobel
1911–1914	2	W.H. Sulphin
1905–1910	3	J.S. Holmberg

Years	Terms	Mayor
1903–1904	2	G.W. Campbell
1902 1897-1898	3	O.J. Furst
1901	1	D.L. Sammis
1900	*	John Janett
1899–1900	1+	Thomas Osborne
1896 1891	2	W.M. Irwin
1894–1895	2	A.A. Wheeler
1893	1	W.H. Traver
1992	1	J.M Bechtel
1890	1	A.H. Smock
1889	*	W.M. Brueser

Years	Terms	Mayor
1889 1887	1+	F.B. McKercher
1888	1	J.F. Hess
1886	*	I.A. Shriver
1886	<1	G.A. Funk
1884-1885 1880	3	G.W. Neal
1883	1	D. McKercher
1882	1	F.C. Bush
1881	1	F.H. Kollock
1879	1	Philip Weidlein
1878	1	W.H. Prescott

Note: Before 1905, terms were 1 year.

Education

Peabody-Burns Junior/Senior High School (looking north-east), 2010.

Football Stadium at Peabody City Park (looking south-west), 2010. These limestone bleachers, west and north walls, and various items in the park were built in 1938 by the WPA.

Primary and secondary education

Peabody is part of Unified School District 398. The school district includes Peabody, Burns, Wonsevu, and nearby rural areas of Marion / Chase / Harvey / Butler Counties. The district has two schools in Peabody:

• Peabody-Burns Junior/Senior High School, 810 North Sycamore Street, Grades 7 to 12.
• Peabody-Burns Elementary School, 506 North Elm Street, Grades K to 6.

Academics

The high school band is well known in competitions, and especially popular in regional parades.^{[citation needed]} The high school is a member of T.E.E.N., a shared video teaching network, started in 1993, between five area high schools.

Sports

The Peabody-Burns High School mascot is the Warrior. All high school athletic and non-athletic competition is overseen by the Kansas State High School Activities Association. For the 2010/2011 seasons, the football team competes as Class 8 Man - Division I in the Wheat State league.

Championships

• 1977, 2nd Place, Class 2A, High School Boys Football, Head Coach Dennis Franchione.
• 1963, 1st Place, Class B, High School Boys Basketball, Head Coach Cal Reimer.

History

The first school in Peabody was organized in 1871. The first school building, two stone rooms, was built in 1872. The first high school classes were taught in 1879, and the first graduation class in 1881 consisted of 2 students. In 1923, a new high school was built at 900 North Walnut Street. In 1946-1947, the School Reorganization Act consolidated many one-room rural schools into the Peabody school district. In 1953, the Brown Building was built to house a larger gymnasium, band / lunch room, and vocational agriculture rooms. In 1965, the Burns and Summit school districts were unified with Peabody to form Unified School District 398. The Summit school and Burns High School were closed. In 1996-1997, the current high school was built (and attached) to the south side the existing Brown Building at 810 North Sycamore Street. Soon afterward, the former 1923 high school across the street was demolished and converted into a football practice field. The Burns Grade School, which included a junior high, was closed. Currently all students in USD 398 attend schools in Peabody.

Library

Each USD 398 school has a library for student access.

The city is served by the Peabody Township Carnegie Library at 214 North Walnut Street. The library was established in 1874, a Carnegie library since 1914, was the first free tax-supported library in Kansas. Since 2008, two computers have been available for high-speed T1 internet access, and free WiFi access allow patrons to browse the internet. The library is a member of the North Central Kansas Libraries System, which provides an inter-library book loan service between its members.

Media

Print

• Peabody Gazette-Bulletin, local newspaper in Peabody.
• The Newton Kansan, regional newspaper in Newton.
• The Wichita Eagle, major regional newspaper in Wichita.

Radio

Peabody is served by numerous radio stations of the Wichita-Hutchinson listening market area, and satellite radio. See Media in Wichita, Kansas.

Television

Peabody is served by over-the-air ATSC digital TV of the Wichita-Hutchinson viewing market area, cable TV by Allegiance Communications, and satellite TV. See Media in Wichita, Kansas.

Infrastructure

2005 KDOT Map of Marion County (map legend)

Transportation

Rail

Two railroads, BNSF Railway and Union Pacific Railroad, pass through the city. The BNSF Railway runs east-west through the city and has a spur for grain cars at the east Mid Kansas Co-Op. Amtrak's Southwest Chief passenger train travels on the BNSF Railway but stops at nearby Newton. The Oklahoma Kansas Texas (OKT) line of the Union Pacific Railroad runs north-south through the city and has a spur for grain cars at the west Mid Kansas Co-Op. The two railroads cross each other as a Level junction, and a rarely used connection between the two railroads allows eastbound BNSF trains to turn onto the northbound Union Pacific railroad.

Highway

U.S. Route 50 passes through the northern edge of the city, and follows roughly parallels the BNSF Railway.

In the early years of the highway before U.S. Route 50 was finalized in the late 1930s, the highway was known as the New Santa Fe Trail, which entered the north side of the city on Newell Rd (later on Old Mill Rd), and exited on the south-west side on 60th Street (known as the Old Trail). Up until the late 1950s, U.S. Route 50 was split into two routes through central Kansas. The routes were called 50N and 50S, and the highway through Peabody was 50S. From the late 1930s to 1998, the highway was routed east to west through Peabody on 9th Street, then a bypass and overpass was built about 1.5 blocks north to avoid a dangerous underpass which went under the Union Pacific Railroad.

It has been proposed, by the Kansas Department of Transportation, that U.S. Route 50 should be converted into a 4-lane expressway from Emporia to western Kansas. In the meantime, additional passing lanes may be added.

Utilities

• Internet
  • Wired is provided by Allegiance Communications (cable).
  • Wireless is provided by Pixius Communications (wireless), Verizon (cellular).
  • Satellite is provided by HughesNet, StarBand, WildBlue.
  • Dialup is provided by AT&T, EarthLink / Southwind, InterKan, KITUSA / Carroll's Web, WWWebservice.
• TV
  • Cable is provided by Allegiance Communications.
  • Satellite is provided by DirecTV, Dish Network.
  • Terrestrial is provided by regional digital TV stations.
• Telephone
  • Landline is provided by AT&T.
  • Cell Phone is provided by Verizon.
• Electricity
  • City is provided by Westar Energy.
  • Rural is provided by Flint Hills RECA and Butler REC.
• Natural Gas is provided by Atmos Energy.
• Water
  • City is provided by City of Peabody.
  • Rural is provided by Harvey County RWD #1.
• Sewer is provided by City of Peabody.
• Trash is provied by Waste Connections.

Notable people

The Broncho Buster by Frederic Remington, 1909

• James Henry Clay Brewer, Kansas House of Representatives, Captain in Union Army, Peabody merchant.
• Edgar F. Davison, Kansas House of Representatives, banker.
• Rebecca L. Ediger, United States Secret Service agent.
• Dennis Franchione, college football coach.
• J.G. Johnson, William Jennings Bryan Campaign Committee for 1896 presidential election, Kansas Delegate for Democratic National Committee in 1896 / 1900, various Democratic Committees for 1900 / 1904 / 1908 elections, Peabody postmaster.
• Orlando Jolliffe, Kansas House of Representatives, Peabody Mayor, Peabody banker, oilman, rancher.
• Alfred R. Kent, Kansas House of Representatives.
• F.H. Kollock, Kansas House of Representatives.
• Willard J. Madsen, University Professor, Sign Language Expert, author of two sign language text books.
• Dick Myers, Forward for 1965–66 Texas Western Miners men's basketball team and inducted into Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007.
• Fred Eugene Pettit, Kansas House of Representatives, Peabody merchant.
• Bertine Pinckney, Kansas House of Representatives, Wisconsin State Assembly, Wisconsin Senate, Colonel in Union Army, Peabody postmaster, farmer.
• T.M. Potter, Kansas Senate, Infantry in Union Army, rancher, school teacher in Marion, original owner of south half-section of Peabody, organized Peabody town company, member of Board of Regents of Kansas University, Potter Lake at Kansas University was named after him.
• Frederic Remington, American Old West artist.
• Lawrence David Slocombe, Kansas House of Representatives, rancher, farmer, businessman.
• Oscar S. Stauffer, founder of Stauffer Communications, editor of Peabody Gazette newspaper.
• William W. Waring, Kansas House of Representatives.

Famous visitors

• William Jennings Bryan, politician and speaker, gave speeches in Peabody on multiple occasions while Democratic candidate for President of the United States in 1896, 1900, 1908 because his friend and advisor J.G. Johnson lived in Peabody.

Gallery

• Historic Images of Peabody, Special Photo Collections at Wichita State University Library

• 

  Downtown Peabody (looking south), in 2010.

• 

  First Baptist Church (looking north), in 2010.

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  Prairie Lawn Cemetery, north-east of Peabody (looking east), in 2010.

See also

• Peabody-Burns Junior/Senior High School
• Main Street Programs in the United States
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Marion County, Kansas
  • Peabody Downtown Historic District
  • Peabody Historical Library Museum
  • Peabody Township Library
  • W.H. Morgan House
  • J.S. Schroeder Building
  • Peabody City Park
• Sunflower Theater
• Threshing Stone
• Historical Maps of Marion County, Kansas
• Great Flood of 1951
• Kaycee Nicole

References

1914 railroad map.

Books

Other

Further reading

Truck hauling 36-Inch pipe to build Keystone-Cushing Pipeline (Phase II) south-east of Peabody at corner of Timber Rd and 20th St in Marion County. (Whitewater Center Church in background), in 2010.

Peabody

• The Women of Peabody; Peabody Historical Society; Mennonite Press in Newton, KS; LCCN 2010928692; 250 pages; 2010. (Cover)
• The Germans We Trusted: Stories Which Had To Be Told...; Pamela Taylor; Lutterworth Press; 192 pages; 2003; ISBN 978-0-7188-3034-2. (WWII POW camp in Peabody)

Marion County

• Marion County Kansas : Past and Present; Sondra Van Meter; MB Publishing House in Hillsboro, KS; LCCN 72-92041; 344 pages; 1972.
• The Early Schools of Marion County Kansas; Wilma Stewart Stallwitz; Located at Peabody Township Library; 33 pages; November 11, 1960.
• World War Roll of Honor : Marion County Kansas 1917-1920; Mrs Alexander and Mrs Dean of Marion, Kansas; 221 pages; 1920. (11MB PDF)
• Standard Atlas of Marion County Kansas; Geo A. Ogle & Co; 103 pages; 1902.

External links

• City of Peabody
• Peabody - Directory of Public Officials

Schools

• USD 398, school district

Videos

• Driving down Walnut street in 2011
• Battle of New Orleans fireworks on July 4, 2010

Historical

• Detailed history of all buildings in Peabody Downtown Historic District (10MB)
• 1901 Peabody newspaper articles, many articles and photos
• List of Marion County cemeteries

Maps

• Peabody City Map, KDOT
• Marion County Map and Harvey County Map, KDOT
• Topo Map of Peabody area, USGS