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History · Burden

Burden’s post office opened in 1884, and 46% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1889 on, and the census since 1880.

1884first post office
0on the National Register
46%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Art davis · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Burden began

When was Burden founded?

1884

The Burden post office opened in 1884, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 157 in 18802020 census: 512142 years
Founding year: the first Burden post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Burden’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18893 editions of the USGS map, 1889 to 1985. Watch Burden change.Old housesHalf of Burden’s homes were built before 1948.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Burden’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Burden’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Burden on the map, 1889 to 1985

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Burden. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Burden on the 1889 USGS mapBurden on the 1964 USGS mapBurden on the 1985 USGS map1889Burden sheet · 1:125,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Burden.

The story

How Burden came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Burden.

Read it all →

In 1879, in anticipation of the coming of the Kansas City, Lawrence and Southern Railroad, a town was surveyed and laid out by a local company. Among its staff was Robert F. Burden, for whom the town is named. The railroad, whose name changed to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe, arrived on February 1, 1882, making Burden one of its stations and shipping points.

The early buildings included a general store, drug store, and post office. The post office, called Burdenville until 1884, was established in 1879. The first newspaper, printed in 1880, was The Enterprise, with a circulation in 1882 of 900. A school that had been one mile north of Burden was relocated to the town in the summer of 1881.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Burden, decade by decade

Date unknown1 to date
Burden 1885 1-125,000 - PCL Map Collection - txu-pclmaps-topo-ks-burden-1885Date?Burden 1885 1-125,000 - PCL Map Collection - txu-pclm…Map
Today2 recent
BurdenKansasWaterTower2015BurdenKansasWaterTowerMap of Cowley Co, Ks, USA2005Map of Cowley Co, Ks, USAMap
People over time

Burden, census by census

010020030040050060018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 580

Between 157 and 580 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Burden’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

Famous people close to Burden

Nobody well known was born in Burden itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Eugene PalletteAmerican actor · b. 1889
D
Darren E. BurrowsAmerican actor · b. 1966
Ira DavenportAmerican track athlete, baseball player, Americ… · b. 1887
B
Bob BrannumAmerican basketball player-coach · b. 1925
Mary McCartyAmerican actress · b. 1923
Trixie FriganzaAmerican actress · b. 1870

Questions about Burden’s history

What year was Burden founded?

The Burden post office opened in 1884, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (3), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.