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Caldwell, Kansas

Caldwell, Kansas

One of only six cowtowns in Kansas, Caldwell was founded in 1871 astride the then new Chisholm Trail as an economic adventure of a group of Wichita entrepreneurs. The trail, running from Texas to the Intercontinental Railroad in northern Kansas, guided over a million longhorn steers and their guardian cowboys through Caldwell. Business people from afar made their home here to ply their trades, whatever they be, from banker toliquor dealer to prostitute.

Incorporated in 1879 when the railroad neared the city limits, Caldwell boasted a longer cowtown period (1880-1885), a higher murder rate, and loss of more law enforcement officers than other, even more famous, towns such as Dodge City, Abilene, and Wichita.

Fame, however, is not definitive of history. From the past come the true stories of Cowtown Caldwell - the hanging of the city's first lawyer for horse stealing, the unfortunate robbing of a nearby town bank and the killing of its president by a well-liked Caldwell City Marshal, the murder of another City Marshal by the town's police force, an outlaw brought to justice for a murder following a shootout where the outlaw was shot thirteen times but lived to see his trial date... and the list goes on and on.

History lives on here... A life-sized silhouette of a trail cattle drive, historical markers everywhere you turn telling the cowtown stories, boot hill cemetery with its re-enactors and "talking tombstones," and the celebrations that bring history to life and knowledge of the past to children today.

The western stories on television were born here ... enjoy the history, see a real cowtown, see Caldwell, Kansas

Attractions and Upcoming Events

Cherokee Strip Bridge

This bridge built by Grant County, Oklahoma and Sumner County, Kansas is a new monument to those hardy and determined men and women who ran the Cherokee Strip Run in 1893.

Caldwell, KS Historic Bridges

Post Office Mural

The Caldwell Post Office, built in the 1930s, is listed on the National Historic Register, as it displays one of the collection of murals commissioned during the Depression Era by the WPA. The mural, "Cowboys Driving Cattle," was painted by Kenneth Evett in 1941.

Caldwell, KS Arts

Carnegie Library

The Caldwell Carnegie Library was one of 59 public libraries constructed in Kansas. Built in 1912, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Buildings.

Caldwell, KS Carnegie Libraries

Ghost Riders of the Chisholm Trail Silhouette

The "Ghost Riders of the Chisholm Trail" are life-size cattle drive figures on stoney bluff astride the real Chisholm Trail. The "Ghosts" will forever remind us of the great cattle drives, 1866-1886

Caldwell, KS Arts

Old Mill and Elevator

The Old Mill and Elevator was originally built as a flour mill in the 1880s on the Santa Fe tracks by the Kramer Milling Company.

Caldwell, KS Historic Mills

Things to do near Caldwell, KS

Congregation Church

Built in 1913, the Congregational Church was later sold to the United Brethren and is still standing although it is now owned...

Bushton's Pioneer Life

In 1881, the only thing that marked the location of Bushton was a hedge where main street is now located. People started to c...

Cheyenne Bottoms Fishing

Fishing at Cheyenne Bottoms is limited, for the most part, to carp and bullheads. Occasional catches of channel cat, crappie ...