1951 flood, Topeka, Kansas
Date: 1951
Fourteen photographs showing flood waters in the business areas of Topeka, Kansas.

A. Venard to Thaddeus Hyatt
Creator: Venard, A.
Date: October 3, 1860
This letter is from A. Venard, a medical doctor from Pleasant Grove, Kansas Territory, who wrote to Thaddeus Hyatt, president of the National Kansas Committee. The letter described the sickness and disease that plagued the settlers along the Verdigris River in southeast Kansas. Dr. Venard had worked diligently to aid the settlers, even using funds from his own pocket to purchase medicine, but he requested that the committee give him 100 dollars worth of drugs. Attached to this letter is an itemized list of the drugs he wished purchased with the requested funds.

A. W. Johnson and Isabella Johnson to Robert S. Wickizer
Creator: Johnson, A. W.
Date: March 24, 1875
In this letter to his cousin, A. W. Johnson relates news from his homestead near Osage Mission, Neosho County. Johnson describes the grasshopper plague in vivid terms, and also mentions how the recent hard times in Kansas should not discourage emigration into the state. In fact, he goes so far as to state that now is the time to come, since land is cheap and the spring weather is "deliteful[sic]." Johnson also states, however, that the price of corn is high, and that high prices on goods make it difficult for him to support his family.

Abraham Eitzen farm, Marion County, Kansas
Date: 1904
A photograph of the Abraham Eitzen farm located 2 miles east and 2 1/2 miles south of Hillsboro, Kansas.

A dust cloud near Hugoton, Kansas
Creator: Stovall Studio
Date: April 14, 1935
A dust cloud rolling over the prairie near Hugoton, Kansas. Southwest Kansas was among the hardest hit areas during the Dust Bowl. Dust storms, such as the one depicted here, could blow for a full day, coating everything in their path with a layer of dirt.

Aftermath of a dust storm in Kansas
Date: Between 1934 and 1936
A photograph showing agricultural equipment covered with dust after a storm, possibly in Scott County, Kansas.

A handbook of useful information for immigrants and settlers
Creator: Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway Company
Date: 1880-1889
Published by the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad, this pamphlet encouraged agricultural settlement on railroad lands in Kansas by glorifying the state's natural resources including water, soil, mineral deposits and plant life. Printed by the Kansas Farmer in Topeka, Kansas.

Albert C. Morton to Hiram Hill
Creator: Morton, Albert C.
Date: January 1858
Albert Morton wrote from Quindaro, Kansas Territory, to Hiram Hill in Massachusetts, describing at length the efforts of Quindaro's citizens to grade a large avenue through the town. Morton added that Quindaro was about to establish a city charter, which, if approved by the Legislature, would require the taxation of the citizens. He also mentioned a shooting the night before of a proslavery man who had lost his seat to free statesman Charles Chadwick in a recent election under the Lecompton Constitution.

An appeal from Kansas!
Creator: Parrott, Marcus J., 1828-1879
Date: December 14, 1860
This circular describes the beginnings of the Territorial Executive Committee, which was in charge of collecting relief to aid the struggling settlers of Kansas Territory during the 1860 drought. This committee met in Lawrence, Kansas Territory, on November 14, 1860, and passed several resolutions. From one hundred and one delegates were present from twenty-four Kansas counties. Out of this number, four men, including Samuel Pomeroy, were elected officers. The circular concludes with "Suggestions and Directions to those who purpose Aiding us in our Distress."

Anna Margaret Watson Randolph, diary
Creator: Randolph, Anna Margaret Watson, 1838-1917
Date: August 17, 1858 - August 22, 1858
This diary, kept by Anna Margaret (Watson) Randolph, begins with her move to Kansas in an entry dated August 17, 1858. These six entries at the beginning of her diary provide details about her family's journey from Ohio to Kansas Territory, included a number of interesting accounts of their journey on a riverboat. Their boat ran aground several times and, interspersed among her descriptions of these difficulties, Anna wrote about her sister Mary Jane, the weather, and her personal observances of other passengers. She also filled her diary with her frustrations and concerns during their arduous journey west.

Appeal for the Kansas sufferers!
Creator: Foster, Daniel, 1816-1864
Date: 1860
This pamphlet, written by Daniel Foster, general agent of the New England Kansas Relief Committee, attempts to dispel any doubts about the severity of the nine-month drought in Kansas Territory. Many settlers had left Kansas Territory, and those remaining needed relief. Foster calls on people to provide aid to those in Kansas by contributing money or goods. The pamphlet lists names of people serving on a Boston committee who had met to discuss relief efforts in Kansas, including such well-known individuals as John A. Andrew, George Luther Stearns, Samuel Gridley Howe, and Thomas H. Webb.

Apple tree, Shawnee County, Kansas
Date: 1936
This black and white photograph shows drought damage to an apple tree in Shawnee County, Kansas.

Approaching dust storm
Creator: Conard, Frank Durnell, 1884-1966
Date: 1935
View of an approaching dust storm somewhere on the southern Plains. The photograph was taken by Frank D. ("Pop") Conard, a well known photographer in Garden City, Kansas. Dust storms, such as this one, rolled over the the southern Great Plains from 1932-1936, removing top soil from agricultural lands and prompting important changes in agricultural practice.

Approaching dust storm
Creator: Conard, Frank Durnell, 1884-1966
Date: Between 1935 and 1936
A photograph of an approaching dust storm in the Middle West; most likely in southwest Kansas. The southwest corner of the state was one of the hardest hit areas during the Dust Bowl. Dust storms, such as this one, rolled over the the southern Great Plains from 1932-1936, removing top soil from agricultural lands and prompting important changes in agricultural practice.

Approaching dust storm
Date: Around 1935
This undated photograph captures a large dust storm about to hit this family's homestead. These storms were frequent occurrences in western Kansas during the 1930s Dust Bowl.

Approaching dust storm
Creator: Stovall Studio
Date: 1935
A postcard view of a huge wall of dust approaching a farm during the Dust Bowl period. The photograph was possibly taken in Ford County, Kansas.

Approaching dust storm, Hugoton, Kansas
Creator: Stovall Studio
Date: April 14, 1935
Approaching dust storm five miles away, Hugoton, Kansas.

Approaching dust storm in middle west
Creator: Conard, Frank Durnell, 1884-1966
Date: Between 1935 and 1936
A postcard showing a dust cloud rolling across a field in Kansas. Frank "Pop" Conard of Garden City, Kansas, created this and other postcards of the Dust Bowl during the mid 1930s.

Arkansas River flooding, Cimarron, Kansas
Date: June 9, 1921
A panoramic photograph showing the Arkansas River flooding near Cimarron, Kansas.

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Company's exchange building, Chicago, Illinois
Creator: Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway Company
Date: December 1979
This photograph shows the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Company's exchange building during a snow storm in Chicago, Illinois.

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway bridge, Topeka, Kansas
Creator: Booth, Norman C.
Date: July 28, 1951
Viewing the aftermath of the 1951 flood to the Santa Fe Railway bridge in Topeka, Kansas. The extremely heavy rains during June and July of 1951 caused some of the greatest flooding ever seen in Kansas history. These high waters affected all the area river basins of the Kansas, Neosho, Marais des Cygnes and Verdigris.

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway engine 1080, Holyrood, Kansas
Creator: Goebel, Charles, 1898-1987
Date: January 09, 1932
This photograph shows Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway's steam engine #1080 taking on water at Holyrood, Kansas. The front of the engine is covered with snow.

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe shop after a tornado strike, Topeka, Kansas
Creator: Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway Company
Date: June 8, 1966
Photograph showing the damage of an Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe shop after a 1966 tornado strike in Topeka, Kansas.

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe shop after a tornado strike, Topeka, Kansas
Creator: Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway Company
Date: June 8, 1966
Photograph of Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe shops after a 1966 tornado strike in Topeka, Kansas.

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe shop damage after a tornado strike, Topeka, Kansas
Creator: Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway Company
Date: June 8, 1966
Photograph of Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe shop damage after a 1966 tornado strike in Topeka, Kansas.