Kalida Post Office
Contributed and transcribed by Cousin Don Henkle.
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				KALIDA Post Office
 
	 The Thomas Davidson family moved to Chellis in the spring of 1870 
and in September of that year, purchased a controlling interest in the 
townsite of Chellis, and on 24 September the townsite was again platted, 
this time by D.V. Dow, who was the surveyor for Woodson county; also on this 
day Mr. Davidson changed the name of the little town to KALIDA, a Greek name 
meaning "Beautiful". So the town of Kalida was founded by Mr. Davidson on 
the 24 September 1870.
 
	 Neosho Falls had been the county seat of Woodson County. It was a 
town of 800 people but was in the northeastern corner of the county. At an 
election in 1873 the people voted to take the county seat away from Neosho 
Falls and locate it at Kalida. The trouble with Kalida as a county seat was 
that it had no water. Kalida lost the county seat the next year to the town 
of Defiance, four miles to the east. And then it was found that Defiance was 
also short on water.
	 Kalida school district #16 was organized in 1867. The first school 
was held that year in an abandoned log cabin that had been built about a half 
mile to the west of the South Branch of Owl Creek. The first teacher of this 
school was Miss Faler. Just before the start of school there was no door on 
the log cabin. Abe Woodruff, who became a well-known carpenter, hung a new 
door and made the crude benches that the pupils used for seats. The first 
day was a very trying one for the teacher and pupils. Miss Faler, the teacher, 
rode a pony to school. Sometime during the day a band of Indians were seen 
coming towards the school house. The teacher got all of the pupils and also 
her pony inside of the school, for fear that they would take her pony. But 
the Indians went on by on their way to the next camping place.
 
	 A new school house was built across the road east from the townsite
of Kalida. Later it was moved to the west side of the road where the last 
term was held in the winter of 1889 - 1890. The Kalida schoolhouse, like a 
good many other schools, was the place for Literary, debates, Sunday School, 
and other religious services, box & pie socials & programs & possibly other 
social & civic affairs.
	 Kalida was a town of 500, two miles southeast of where Yates Center 
now stands. Hauling water with ox-teams for the town supply from the Neosho 
river, twelve or fourteen miles distant had its drawback.
 
	 The town of Kalida had a hotel, livery stable, two grocery stores, 
two stores that advertised "Hats & caps; boots & shoes."; a barber shop, drug 
store, Shoe shop, blacksmith shop, post office, billard hall, meat market, 
three doctors, two preachers, one lawyer and a newspaper  "THE KALIDA 
ADVOCATE."