Drouth Retards Development of Kansas. Great as was the suffering from disappointment and want, the drouth brought another evil; it threw Kansas back in its development. Not only had a third of the population left the Territory, but the accounts given by those who returned tended to discourage others from coming. The old stories about the “Great American Desert” were revived. Kansas was looked upon as a place of drouth and famine, and for several years the number of immigrants was much decreased.
Statehood Begins. All this was taking place while the Wyandotte Constitution was being considered. Kansas was admitted as a State on January 29, 1861, at the close of the terrible drouth. Through the winter and spring of 1861 supplies continued to come in from other states, and included seeds for the spring planting. An excellent season followed. It might be thought that at last the Kansas settlers were to have an opportunity to cultivate their farms, build homes, and make their new State a place of peace and prosperity. But not so; Kansas was again to suffer from the troubles of the Nation. The opening of the Civil War was near.
SUMMARY
The fighting and political strife of the Territorial period left the people little opportunity for building up the country. Statehood found frontier life but little improved. The early settlers came to secure homes and to make Kansas a free state, and were not easily discouraged. The drouth of 1859-’60 caused nearly a third of the 100,000 Kansas settlers to leave the Territory, and another third had to be given aid from the East. Immigration to Kansas was greatly decreased for a time. A good crop year followed, but Kansas had yet to pass through the Civil War before it could enjoy peace.
REFERENCES
- Andreas, History of Kansas, County Histories.
- Cordley, Pioneering in Kansas.
- Hunt, Kansas History for Children.
- Historical Collections, vol. IX, pp. 33, 126; vol. XII, p. 353.
- Mrs. Robinson, Kansas—Its Interior and Exterior Life.
- Ropes, Six Months in Kansas.
QUESTIONS
1. What had been the chief interest of the Kansas people during the Territorial period?
2. What were the chief reasons for people coming to Kansas?
3. Discuss the conditions under which the pioneers lived, including travel, roads, bridges, fences, money, social life, houses, furniture, food, and health.