Tecumseh 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 ...

Shawnee County, Kansas Shawnee County (county code SN) is located in northeast Kansas, in the central United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 178,909, making it the third-most populous county in Kansas. Its most populous city, Topeka, is the state ...

, United States, and situated along the

Kansas River The Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, is a river in northeastern Kansas in the United States. It is the southwesternmost part of the Missouri River drainage, which is in turn the northwesternmost portion of the extensive Mississippi River dr ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population of the community and nearby areas was 696. The community and township are both named for the Shawnee chief.

History

By September 1, 1854, Thomas Stinson platted the townsite of Tecumseh, having settled in the area 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 ...

. It was settled by pro-slavery partisans in the turbulent days of

Bleeding Kansas Bleeding Kansas, Bloody Kansas, or the Border War was a series of violent civil confrontations in Kansas Territory, and to a lesser extent in western Missouri, between 1854 and 1859. It emerged from a political and ideological debate over the ...

. It temporarily served as the pro-southern capital of the territory and prospered, even having a newspaper. The town's post office opened in March 1855. In 1886, the brick courthouse was sold for and removed. After the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, the town rapidly declined and remained so for the next ninety years. Construction of the Kansas Power & Light Co. power plant in 1924 and 1925. In 1958, Du Pont established a cellophane plant east of town which created a minor boom. As

Topeka Topeka ( ; Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the seat of Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeast Kansas, in the Central Un ...

grew in the 1950s, Tecumseh again started to grow, this time as a suburb of Topeka, with numerous suburban housing subdivisions.

Geography

Tecumseh is located at (39.0480558, -95.5791453), in Section 36, Township 11 south, Range 16 east. It is situated south of the

between Tecumseh Creek to the east and Stinson Creek to the west. Contained entirely within Tecumseh Township, it is about 2 miles east of the

city limits. U.S. Route 40 passes the south side of Tecumseh. A BNSF rail line—running between

Lawrence Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparator ...

and Topeka—passes north of the town between it and the river.

Demographics

Tecumseh is part of the

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 ...

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

. For statistical purposes, the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

has defined this community as a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

(CDP).

Economy

The community includes a public school (part of USD 450), two churches, a post office, a large electrical generating plant and a cellophane factory.Japanese firm to invest $30 million in Tecumseh cellophane plant, the last plant of its kind in U.S.; The Topeka Capital Journal; May 18, 2016.
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Education

The community is served by Shawnee Heights USD 450 public school district.

References

External links

* Shawnee County maps
CurrentHistoric
KDOT {{Authority control Unincorporated communities in Shawnee County, Kansas Unincorporated communities in Kansas Topeka metropolitan area, Kansas