Established in 1867, Ellsworth became a thriving cowtown in the early 1870s, eclipsing Abilene as the leading cattle shipping point in Kansas. In 1873, one Ellsworth dry goods company specializing in cowboy related items reported $150,000 worth of business during the five-month season. Like many cowtowns, Ellsworth gained notoriety as a wild and wicked place. The last of the Texas longhorns were trailed to Ellsworth and environs settled down to an agriculturally based community. Today the "plaza", the two-block site of Ellsworth's original commercial district, still remains relatively uncluttered by modern intrusions.

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