In This Issue

The President's Protege

Beginning Genealogy Classes are a Big Success!

The beginning genealogy class for SCGS members and visitors, the first in a series of classes taught by Midwest Historical and Genealogical Society, Wichita, was a big success.

Bev Malone, Wichita, spoke to an enthusiastic group on August 10 about beginning genealogy - how to fill out charts, and where to look for information.

"The ancestor charts are like a roadmap," said Malone, "There are so many sources there. You can see where you've been, and where you're going."

The second class in the series, "Searching the Census" will be held September 14.

Jo Eslinger will speak on census research; how to do it, why it is important, and where to do it in Kansas.

"If I can, I find all my people on all the census," said Eslinger. "If you don't do your census - I'm sure you can eventually get it (family tree) done, but it just simplifies it."


The ancestor charts are like a road map," said Malone, "....You can see where you've been, and where you're going."

The third class will be held on October 12, and will be "How to Search the Probate Records."

These classes are being held at the Wellington Steak House, East Highway 160 at 7:00 p.m. on the second Monday of the month, and members and visitors are urged to come early to eat and get acquainted with each other."

SUMNER COUNTY ON THE WEB

Kansas State Historical Society

Sumner County Web Sites

Sumner County Home Page

Everton's Kansas Sources

WELCOME TO THE NEW MEMBERS

We welcome all our new members! Thank you for helping to preserve our counties' history.

Treasurer's Gold

Sumner County Pioneer's Story

Orr Family History by Howard G. Orr
(excerpted by Della Orr Shafer, Niece)

Gates Orr and his family came to Sumner County, Kansas in the fall 1878. When they first arrived in Kansas they camped near El Dorado on the Jesse Varner land (his sister's family). Grandpa rode on and found the farm near the present town of Conway Springs and bought it from A. B. Trask, the man who had homesteaded it. When he returned to the Farner's, he reported, "You can farm every foot of it." The house was the only building on the farm. (The present one was built about 1906.) It was a frame building with weatherboarding on the outside and completely ufinished on the inside. Grandpa Orr nailed burlap (gunny sacks) on the inside to make it a little warmer, but when the wind blew, it bulged inward from the wall. The horses were tied to the wagon and moved from one side of the house to the other for shelter as the wind changed.

The buffalo were all gone when they arrived; however a few antelope were still here. The buffalo had been slaughtered by the millions for their hides a few years earler. The bones were still here though, and many a man was able to eke out a living by gathering them for shipment east to be made into fertilizer.

There was railroad service to Wichita and the rails were being laid on to Wellington. Conway Springs was not in existence. The Post Office was established November 22, 1878 by the name of Glen Valley. It was changed to Cisne June 15, 1881, to Northfield February 7, 1884, and then to Conway Springs, October 13, 1884. Grandma Orr was in charge of the Post Office for a period, probably in 1914. There were only three trees in the area: two in what is now the city park south of the springs; the other on the Eli Wise place, two miles west of the Orr home. All were cottonwoods.

By 1910, all of the houses, farm buildings, trees, fences, roads, telephone lines and other evidences of civilization were in place and well established. All of the virgin prairie had been broken with the plow and converted to farm land. The farm population was at it's maximum. The trees were nearly all mature and some groves and orchards had begun to die of old age. None of the buildings had the appearance of being new and some were becoming dilapidated. From that time on, the number of farms became fewer and larger and some farm buildings had begun to disappear. The whole area had been settled and become civilized in the incredibly short period of about twenty-five years. This was the largest known migration in the history of the world.

Calendar of
Area Events

Mexican-American Research in Newton

September 26, 1998

ANCESTOR WATCH

They'll be jumping for joy if you can help the following people find their lost ancestors. Queries of our members are mentioned here free of charge. Send your query to the society address or by e-mail to: dellasha@juno.com.

NAMES TO WATCH FOR:

Hoisington, Hatfield, Combs, Davis, Hart
Willing to share information on any of the above names. They all lived in Sumner County at one time or another during the 1880's and then most of them moved on to Oklahoma (mostly Kay and Logan Counties).
Harriete Jensen E-Mail: hariji@sirius.com

CONFAR
An old article on Belle Plaine, Kansas mentions a teacher named T. Confar who taught 1875 and 1876 in a subscription school, District #2. T. Confar was a single man living with his father and mother, William and Rebecca Bennett Confar. Would appreciate any help in learning more about this man.
Carole Confar, 5821 Calle Barquero, Santa Barbara, CA 93111. E-Mail: confar@silcom.com

NELSON, LUDUSKA(Y), SCOTT, NORVEL Searching for the Nelson family who lived in Corbin,Kansas. William A. Nelson, born about 1835 MO, married abt 1858 MO to Sarah Luduska(y) Hudgins, born 1838 TN. They moved from MO to Sumner Co., KS abt 1876.

Sarah died shortly after the birth of her last son in 1877. William remarried Rebecca J. ?(maybe Norvel). He died about 1907 and was bured in the Corzine Cemetery.
Children: William Thomas, married Sally Maranda Scott; John; Marion; Henry; Mary; Lewis. Would like to correspond with anyone researching or with information on this family.
Linda Bock, 524 W. 13th St., Grand Island, NE 68801. E-Mail: bock@nebi.com

Sumner County Genealogical Society Box 402
Wellington, Kansas 67152