Gas (also called Gas City), an incorporated city of Allen county, is situated in Elm township and is the first station east of Iola on the Missouri Pacific railroad. When natural gas was discovered in Elm township in the summer of 1898 E. K. Taylor sold 60 acres of his farm to some spelter companies and in October sub-divided the remainder into lots, which was the beginning of "Gas City." The place grew rapidly, the cheap fuel afforded by the immense supply of natural gas bringing in a number of large manufacturing plants of various kinds. In 1910 the population was 1,281. Gas has a bank, a daily and a weekly newspaper, an opera house, an international money order postoffice from which mail is distributed to the surrounding country by rural free delivery, several good mercantile houses, telegraph and express offices, etc. The city is divided into four wards. Excellent transportation facilities are afforded by the Missouri Pacific and Missouri, Kansas & Texas railroads.