Santa Fe Trail travelers and traders passed through, traded, camped and hunted where the Barton County Courthouse now stands in the center of town. Historically, Great Bend's downtown has served as a focus for the city's business, civic, and social activities.
The courthouse square has beautiful archways, park benches, decorative lighting, landscaping, and bricked walks.
The "Kansas Quilt Walk" displays a series of seven selected quilt patterns that have been laid out in tiles in the sidewalk around the courthouse. The Rocky Road to Kansas quilt is the oldest pattern shown in the quilt walk and dates back to the Santa Fe Trail.