In 1860 eight new counties were created: Irving, out of the north part of Hunter, less a strip three miles wide on the east, and plus two ranges of townships on the west; Republic, Shirley (later Cloud), Ottawa and Saline, with boundaries as they exist to-day; Marion, south of Dickinson; Otoe, south of Marion and west of Butler, and Peketon, including all the unorganized territory south of township 16 and between the sixth principal meridian and New Mexico (General Laws of 1860, pp. 83-87). Through a discrepancy in the definition of boundaries, that part of township 26 of ranges 3 and 4 east, lying north of the Osage Trust Lands, was included in both Otoe and Irving counties.
Many changes were made in boundary lines. The south line of Butler county was pushed three miles south to the fifth standard parallel (id. p. 68). The name of McGee county was changed to Cherokee, and its western boundary was pushed two miles east to the line between ranges 21 and 22 (id. p. 68-70). The east line of Chase and Butler was pushed three miles east to the line between ranges 9 and 10, east (id. p. 70). The line between Shawnee and Jackson, instead of following the Kansas river, was fixed at the second standard parallel and the line between Shawnee and Osage was pushed nine miles north to the south line of township 13 (id. p. 88). The line between Wabaunsee and Davis was pushed four miles west to the second section line west of the east guide meridian (id. p. 89). Davis county was enlarged by cession from Dickinson and Riley counties so that the line between ranges 3 and 4 became its western boundary and the second standard parallel its northern boundary, except between the Kansas and Republican rivers, where the boundary ran through the middle of township 11, south (id. pp. 72, 73).
 Map I, 1855 includes origin of county names for those counties not existing in 1904. |
 Map II, 1857-'59 |
 Map III, 1860 |
 Map IV, 1861-1864 |
 Map V, 1865-1866 |
 Map VI, 1867 |
 Map VII, 1868 |
 Map VIII, 1869-1872 |
 Map IX, 1873 |
 Map X, 1874 |
 Map XI, 1875-1880 |
 Map XII, 1881, '82 |
 Map XIII, 1883,'84 |
 Map XIV, 1885 |
 Map XV, 1886-1892 |
 Map XVI, 1893-1904 |
Article Introduction |
 |