Elmo is an
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
in
Dickinson County, Kansas
Dickinson County (county code DK) is a county in Central Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 18,402. Its county seat and most populous city is Abilene. The county was named in honor of Daniel S. Dickinson.
History
Early ...
, United States.
Elmo is located south of
Abilene at the northwest corner of
K-15 and
K-4.
History
Early history
For many
millennia
A millennium (plural millennia or millenniums) is a period of one thousand years, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting point (ini ...
, the
Great Plains
The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
of
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
was inhabited by
nomadic
A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the popu ...
Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the
Kingdom of France
The Kingdom of France ( fro, Reaume de France; frm, Royaulme de France; french: link=yes, Royaume de France) is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the medieval and early modern period. ...
claimed ownership of large parts of
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
. In 1762, after the
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...
, France secretly ceded
New France
New France (french: Nouvelle-France) was the area colonized by France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Great Britain and Spai ...
to
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, per the
Treaty of Fontainebleau.
19th century
In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France. In 1803, most of the land for
modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase (french: Vente de la Louisiane, translation=Sale of Louisiana) was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or app ...
for 2.83
cents per
acre
The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imp ...
.
In 1854, the
Kansas Territory
The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Slave and ...
was organized, then in 1861
Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
became the 34th
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
. In 1857,
Dickinson County Dickinson County is the name of three counties in the United States:
* Dickinson County, Iowa
* Dickinson County, Kansas
* Dickinson County, Michigan
See also
* Dickenson County, Virginia
Dickenson County is a county located in the Commonw ...
was established within the
Kansas Territory
The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Slave and ...
, which included the land for modern day Elmo.
Elmo started about one mile from its current location, but the source of the name is unknown. When the
Missouri Pacific Railroad
The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad ...
was built through the area, the railroad didn't like the Elmo location because it was sloping ground, so it built a station at nearby Banner City (current location of Elmo). The old Elmo post office was moved to Banner City around 1887. The name Banner City already existed in Jackson and Trego counties, so eventually the Elmo name replaced it.
[''Kansas town of Elmo now quiet after a busy past''; Lawrence Journal-World; January 16, 2012.](_blank)
/ref> The post office was opened in Elmo on December 16, 1884, and remained in operation until it was discontinued on May 6, 1966. The railroad was removed in the 1990s.
20th century
In 1899, Elias Sellerds discovered a well-preserved trove of insect fossils
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved in ...
about 3 miles south of Elmo in the Lower-Permian Elmo-Limestone member of the Wellington Formation
The Wellington Formation is an Cisuralian, Early Permian geologic Formation (geology), formation in Kansas and Oklahoma. The formation's Strataca, Hutchinson Salt Member is more recognized by the community than the formation itself, and the salt ...
. In 1925, Frank M. Carpenter begins studying the fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
bed. In 1928, Robert John Tillyard
Robert "Robin" John Tillyard FRS (31 January 1881 – 13 January 1937) was an English–Australian entomologist and geologist.
Early life and education
Tillyard was the son of J. J. Tillyard and his wife Mary Ann Frances, née Wilson and was ...
researched the same fossil bed. The Elmo site has produced tens of thousands of specimens, with more than 150 species of insects described, including large fossils of Meganeuropsis
''Meganeuropsis'' is an extinct genus of griffinfly, order Meganisoptera, known from the Early Permian Wellington Formation of North America, and represents the largest known insect of all time. ''Meganeuropsis'' existed during the Artinskian ...
. The site is located on private land and closed to the public.Elmo Fossil Beds; Winds of Kansas.
/ref>
21st century
In 2014, a group of locals adopted the Sesame Street
''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) a ...
character Elmo
Elmo is a red Muppet monster character on the long-running PBS/ HBO children's television show ''Sesame Street''. A furry red monster who has a falsetto voice and illeism, he hosts the last full five-minute segment (fifteen minutes prio ...
as its mascot to be placed on a new sign.
Geography
Elmo is located at the northwest corner of K-15 and K-4 (also known as 600 Ave in Dickinson County), which is south of Abilene or west of Herington.
Education
The community is served by Chapman USD 473 public school district.
Gallery
Historic Images of Elmo
Special Photo Collections at Wichita State University
Wichita State University (WSU) is a public research university in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs in more than 200 areas of study in ...
Library
Image:Welcome to Elmo.jpg, Welcome signage outside Elmo (2016)
Image:Elmo church bell.jpg, Stone structure housing a statue and bell at the church (2016)
Image:Elmo church statue.jpg, "Our Lady of the Farmland" statue (2016)
See also
* Banner Township, Dickinson County, Kansas
Banner Township is a township in Dickinson County, Kansas, USA. As of the 2000 census, its population was 148.
Banner Township was organized in 1877.
Geography
Banner Township covers an area of and contains no incorporated settlements. Acc ...
(location of Elmo)
* Mid-June 1992 tornado outbreak
References
Further reading
* ''Carlton Area History: Carlton - Elmo - Holland, Dickinson County, Kansas''; Carlton Book Committee; Bell Books; 1995.
External links
St Columba Catholic Church
Kansas Ghost Towns
Historic Images of Elmo
Special Photo Collections at Wichita State University
Wichita State University (WSU) is a public research university in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs in more than 200 areas of study in ...
Library
* Dickinson County maps
Current
Historic
KDOT
{{Authority control
Populated places established in 1884
Unincorporated communities in Kansas
Unincorporated communities in Dickinson County, Kansas
1884 establishments in Kansas