Towns, Cities and Churches

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The Townships of Harvey County

Alta Township (T22 R3W) was first settled by a French colony of ten persons, who located there on Turkey Creek in 1869-70. In the fall of 1870 the settlement was augmented by Palmer and Daniel Heath and others.  It was named for Alta Muse, the daughter of Judge RWP Muse who died young.

Burrton Township (T23 R3W) was settled by John W. Blades and others in April, 1871.

Darlington Township (T24 R1E) was pioneered by Edward Doty & Thomas Winn in July 1870, C. E. Berry in August 1870,  & E. Marks, O. B. Hildreth, William Geary and I. Stockwell on Section 4 in October, 1870.  They were followed by O. B. Gingress and James Allen and others in the fall of the same year.  The early settlers came from Darlington, LaFayette County, Wisconsin, from which the early Darlington settlement and township derives its name.

Emma Township (T22 R1W) was settled in April, 1871, by William Bean,.Charles Bean, E. C. Munger, G. Webster, and others.  Emma Township was named after the three creeks of that name which run through it.  These creeks were named in memory of a "beautiful young lady" who died and was buried on the bank of one of the streams.

Garden Township (T22 R2W) was pioneered with an Irish settlement that was formed on the Little Arkansas River early in 1870.  It increased September 12, 1870 when F. P. Munch and A. E. Munch settled there.

Halstead Township (T23 R2W) was settled in September, 1870, by John N. Corgan (who had sold his claim where Sedgwick City now stands) when he located near the present town of Halstead. He was followed in October of 1870 by G. L. Cooper, J. Schoonover, A. Olson, Allen Miller, L. D. and A. Brewer.

Highland Township (T22 R1E) was settled in March, 1871, by John Hengst, C. W. Patterson, J. V. Sharp, H. Beery and F. Livingston, followed in April by J. S. Hackney, F. W. H. Hackney, J. C. Johnston, W. E. Johnston, J. M. Johnston, R. T. Elwood, J. C. Caveny, W. Davis, and others.

Lake Township (T24 R3W) was pioneered in March of 1871 by James McMurray, James Patterson, John Gorgas and others, in the vicinity of the eventual community of Patterson..

Lakin Township (T24 R2W) was settled early in June 1869 by Mr. Kimball and Mr. Howard, who located on Section 7.  It was named in honor of D.L. Lakin who was the Land Commissioner of the A.T. & S.F. Railroad at the time.

Macon Township (T23 R1W) was settled in the summer of 1869 by George F. Perry, William Cleveland, M. Alexander and Seth Goodley, who established a cattle ranch at the mouth of the three Emma creeks.  It was named by settlers who had come from Macon County, Illinois.

Newton Township (T23 R1E) was first homesteaded in February, 1871, by A. W. Baker, Miles Davids, and Joshua Perkins.

Pleasant Township (T23 R2E) was settled in January, 1871, by John Harlan, J. Ray, P. Ray, L. B. Owen, & D. E. Sheldon.  The following month, in February, 1871, H. D. Kettle, C. Kettle, D. Denny, S. Chamberlain, & S. A. Powell followed.

Richland Township (T24 R2E) was inhabited by H. Nieman, who took up a claim on the West White Water in June 1869.  He was the first bona fide settler in what is now known as Harvey County. It has also been shown that certain parties had located claims prior to that date but were not actual settlers. Mr. Nieman was followed in July of the same year by William Lawrence and Hubbard Wilcox, who settled in the immediate vicinity.. In June of 1870 A. G. Richardson came to the area and purchased the claims of Lawrence and Wilcox, and made a permanent location. Other settlers in the township were C. S. Fink (July 3, 1870), R. W. Denny (September 18, 1870), and Joel Parker, Jesse Parker, H. W. Bailey, B. P. Parks, S. Saylor, T. Ezra,& R. Smith (October, 1870).

Sedgwick Township (T24 R1W) was settled by John Corgan and others near what became the city of Sedgwick.

Walton Township (T22 R2E) was pioneered in March, 1871 by Theodore Kline and family.  It was named after one of the original stockholders of the A.T. & S.F. Railway.