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History · Kiowa Township

Kiowa Township dates to 1872, and 34% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1985 on, and the census since 1880.

1872founded
0on the National Register
34%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Kiowa Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Kiowa Township began, and where its name came from

When was Kiowa Township founded?

1872

Kiowa Township dates its founding to 1872 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 42 in 18802020 census: 975154 years

How did Kiowa Township get its name?

Kiowa Township was named for the Kiowa people.

Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1874. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Kiowa Township’s past

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

Boom and bustPeaked at 1,674 in 1960; 902 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Kiowa Township’s homes were built before 1956.
★ What stands out · People over time

Kiowa Township, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001,80018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,674

Peaked at 1,674 in 1960; 902 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story

How Kiowa Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Kiowa Township.

Read it all →

Kiowa was founded in 1872. It was named for the Kiowa people.

On June 7, 1900, anti-saloon advocate Carrie Nation vandalized her first saloon in Kiowa. In 1910, Kiowa became a sundown town, having a sign at each of four roads into the city that read, "Niggers Read and Run", and Black residents were given 24 hours to leave town.

In 1905, the Denver, Enid and Gulf Railroad was built from Enid, Oklahoma, to Kiowa. In 1907, it was sold to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. In 1996, the line from Kiowa to Blanton, Oklahoma, was abandoned.

Chapters19th century20th century

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Kiowa Township, 1872 to 1985

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1872
    FoundingKiowa Township is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1943In the archiveKiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling out on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad be…
  5. 1960CensusPopulation peaks at 1,674
  6. 1985On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Kiowa Township, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1940s6 items
Kiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling out on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad between Wellington, Kansas and W…1943Kiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling out on the Atchi…Kiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling out on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad between Wellington, Kansas and W…1943Kiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling out on the Atchi…Kiowa, Kansas. Train waiting for a block signal along the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad between Wellington, Ka…1943Kiowa, Kansas. Train waiting for a block signal along…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Kiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling out on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Rail…1943Untitled photo, possibly related to: Kiowa, Kansas. F…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Kiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling out on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Rail…1943Untitled photo, possibly related to: Kiowa, Kansas. F…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Kiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling out on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Rail…1943Untitled photo, possibly related to: Kiowa, Kansas. F…
1950s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
On the map

Kiowa Township on the map in 1985

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Kiowa Township.

Kiowa Township on the 1985 USGS map1985Medicine Lodge sheet · 1:100,000

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

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Kiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling out on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad between Wellington, Kansas and W…
Retake this viewKiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling out on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad between Wellington, Kansas and W…, 1943

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Kiowa Township’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Stubbs
Gone or out of use
Kiowa Airportairport
1cemetery inside Kiowa Township
Riverview

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Kiowa Township’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewKiowa, Kansas. Freight train pulling ou…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Moore TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHazelton TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townElwood TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townTownship 2Its storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Kiowa Township’s history

What year was Kiowa Township founded?

In 1872, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Kiowa Township’s post office opened in 1874, and the census of 1880 counted 42 people here.

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 the Library of Congress (6), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.