Outline of Kansas
Kansas leads all the states of the United States in wheat production. In early summer, the vast wheat fields on the state's prairies look like golden seas of grain. Busy mills throughout Kansas grind wheat into flour, to be shipped to the world's bakers.
Kansas was once called Midway, U.S.A. because of its location. The state lies midway between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Before Alaska and Hawaii joined the Union, the geographic center of the United States was near Smith Center, in north-central Kansas. The geodetic center of North America is in Osborne County. This point serves as the reference point, or point of origin, for all U.S. government maps of North America. The governments of Canada and Mexico also use this point in producing their maps.
Kansas received two nicknames because of its stormy history during the mid-1800's. The conflict over slavery led to such violence that newspapers of the 1850's called the area Bleeding Kansas. Kansas also came to be called the Jayhawker State. Raiders crossed from Kansas territory into Missouri to attack and sometimes kill slaveholders. They would return to Kansas with stolen goods and freed slaves. This activity came to be called jayhawking, and the raiders were known as jayhawkers.
The state's history of the 1860's through the 1880's has become well known through books, motion pictures, and TV programs about the cattle trails, cattle towns, and lawmen of that time. The nickname of Dodge City, Kansas-Cowboy Capital of the World-suggests Kansas's background as cattle country. When Dodge City got its nickname, it was a major regional shipping point for cattle. Cowboys herded Texas longhorns great distances to reach the railroads in Dodge City, Abilene, and other cattle centers. Such famous lawmen as Wyatt Earp, Wild Bill Hickok, and Bat Masterson tried to keep the peace among the cowboys and outlaws who gave these cattle towns their reputations as brawling, lawless places.
Dodge City is still a cattle center, but some of its cowboys no longer ride horses. Mounted on motorcycles or on all-terrain vehicles (ATV's), the cowboys herd cattle in Dodge City's feedlots. Today, Kansas ranks among the leading states in production of beef cattle.
Wichita is the state's largest city. The state's other large cities, in order of population, include Overland Park, Kansas City, Topeka, Olathe, and Lawrence. Topeka is the state's capital. Garden City ranks as the largest city in the western part of Kansas. It has a population of fewer than 30,000 people.
Kansas offers visitors a variety of tourist attractions. Towns that were once wild cow towns feature museums depicting the exciting days of cattle drives. Visitors can see wheel ruts left by wagons on the Santa Fe Trail and other westward trails. Preserved forts that once provided travelers protection now offer living history events during the year. Museums and harvest festivals throughout Kansas, a leader in wheat production, celebrate the state's farming heritage. Visitors to Kansas's aviation museums can see displays of the many commercial and military aircraft built in the state.
Kansas was named for the Kansa, or Kaw, Indians who once lived in the region. The word Kansas means people of the south wind. Kansas has been called the Wheat State and the Breadbasket of America. The state is known as the Sunflower State, for its state flower. The tall, yellow prairie flowers grow abundantly in fields and along roadsides throughout the state.
