An act to regulate the infliction of the death penalty and to amend an act to establish a code of criminal procedure
Creator: Kansas Legislature.
Date: 1872
Following the controversial, public execution of William Dickson in Leavenworth (1870), the state legislature passed Senate Bill 18 (1872) to regulate procedures for carrying out a death sentence. The act provides that the punishment of death must be by "hanging by the neck." The act also provides that the time of the execution must be ordered by the governor. In effect, this law imposed a ban on state executions since no governor ever ordered an execution between 1872-1907, the year the law was repealed. Dickson's execution would be the last conducted under state law for 73 years.

Arkansas City, Kansas
Date: 1872
This black and white photograph shows the store fronts along the west side of the 100 block of South Summit Street in Arkansas City, Kansas. Includes the city meat market, stoves and tin ware, and several other businesses. An inscription on the print reads" compliments of Fitzpatrick and McDowell Real Estate."

Atchison,Topeka & Santa Fe Railway track construction east of Hutchison, Kansas
Creator: Knight, J. Lee
Date: 1872
A stereograph titled "End of the Track" showing the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway's track construction three miles east of Hutchinson, Kansas.

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad. Land department
Creator: Railway Directory and Advertiser
Date: 1872
This advertisement promotes the sale of 100,000 acres of land along the line of the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad. According to the ad, these lands have fertile soil and "considerable timber," and are in such high demand that white immigrants are flooding the area.

August Schulz diary
Date: 1872-1878
This diary was written by August(us) Schulz, who resided in McPherson County, Kansas. The diary describes the work and events that took place on the family farm in Canton Township, McPherson County. Schulz and his wife Luisa were born in Germany, according to the 1880 U. S. census. Augustus's age was listed as 54 and Luisa was 58. The first two pages of content labeled 1872 and 1873 are in German. They have four children, The two girls were Agnes, 24 years old, and Ottilie, age 16. The two boys were Alexander (23) and Hugo (20). In 1880 they were all living at home. Schulz provides details about the crops he is planting and several entries describe planting several hundred trees. The diary also mentions establishing land claims for the older children.

Barton County organization records
Creator: Kansas. Secretary of State
Date: 1872
In order for an unorganized county to be recognized by the state of Kansas, a certain number of householders/legal electors had to petition the governor. The governor would appoint a census taker. Initially, unorganized counties were required to document that they had at least 600 inhabitants in order to be recognized as a county by the state legislature. Over time the number of residents needed to organize a county changed to 1500 and later to 2500 residents. The census was submitted to the governor who then issued a proclamation indicating that the requirements had been met, appointing county commissioners and a county clerk, and naming a county seat. Not all of these documents are available for each county. Included in this file is the completed 1872 census for Barton county, several letters about the organization and census of the county, a list of people stating that the census that was taken did not comply with legislative law, and the proclamation by Governor Harvey appointing county officials and designating Great Bend as the temporary county seat.

Bender family house, Labette County, Kansas
Creator: Gamble, G. R.
Date: 1872
This is a photograph showing people on the north or front side of the Bender house. The Bender family operated a remote road house on a farm near Cherryvale, Kansas. When several travelers disappeared, local residents became suspicious of the Benders. A search of the property revealed eleven bodies buried in the yard and all of them died of injuries consistent with blows to the head. The Bender family members escaped and were never found.

Bird's-eye view of Ottawa, Kansas
Date: 1872
This color lithograph shows a bird's eye view of early Ottawa, Kansas. The view is from the northeast with the Marais Des Cygnes River in the foreground. Several buildings including the Union School, Ottawa University, and the First National Bank building are inset at the bottom of the print.

Bird's eye view of Humboldt, Kansas
Date: 1872
A bird's eye view of Humboldt, Kansas showing the town's layout and a portion of the Neosho River.

Bird's eye view of Ottawa, Kansas
Creator: Glover, E. S. (Eli Sheldon), 1844-1920
Date: 1872
This colored lithograph is a bird's eye view of Ottawa, Franklin County, Kansas. It shows an extensive community and the references (legends) identify schools, churches, manufacturing plants, and railroads. The population of Ottawa at this time was 4000. The lithograph shows an extensive railroad machine shops for the Lawrence, Leavenworth, and Galveston Railroad. Insets across the bottom from left to right show: Union School, Ludington House, Hamblin's block including the 1st National Bank, and Ottawa University. The title section of the illustration identifies George W. Hamblin as land agent. Forest Park is shown. The Marais des Cygnes River flows the Ottawa north of the business district. The lithograph was drawn by E. S. Glover and published by the Strobridge & Co. Lith., Cincinnati, Ohio.

Boarding House, Dodge City, Kansas
Creator: Knight, J. Lee
Date: September 1872
This stereograph shows a boarding house, possibly for railroad workers, at the end of the tracks west of Dodge City, Kansas.

Boarding House, Dodge City, Kansas
Creator: Knight, J. Lee
Date: 1872
This stereograph shows a number of boxcars serving as a boarding house for railroad workers near Dodge City, Kansas.

Board of Agriculture Treasurer's Annual Reports
Creator: State Board of Agriculture
Date: 1871-1873, 1876
These records include the treasurer's annual reports of the State Board of Agriculture and related vouchers. The January 10, 1872 report, written by treasurer Thomas Murphy, itemizes the proceeds of the Kansas State Fair. Murphy's reports were audited by J.K. Hudson and E.S. Niccolls. The 1873 report was prepared by treasurer George N. Veale and the 1876 report by J.C. Wilson. Additional auditors include A.J. Burdick, W.A. Johnston, J.P. Davis, C.H. Graham, and D.W. Finney.

Bull train on the Dodge City Trail leaving Hays, Kansas
Date: 1872
This is a photograph showing A. E. Buedeck's bull train on the Dodge City Trail leaving Hays, Kansas.

Covered wagon crossing the Arkansas River at Great Bend, Kansas
Date: 1872
Covered wagon crossing the Arkansas River at Great Bend, Kansas.

Dodge City, Kansas
Creator: Knight, J. Lee
Date: 1872
This photograph of a street scene in Dodge City, in Ford County, depicts three of the town's buildings. The building on the left was the first dance hall in Dodge City, owned by a man named Jones. The second building was a grocery and general store owned by George O. Smith and J. B. Edwards, and the third building, also a general store, was owned by a man named Wolf. Also visible are a crowd of men standing in the street, and two horse-drawn wagons loaded with buffalo hides. Dodge City is located on the Santa Fe Trail in western Kansas.

Enlisted men's barracks, Fort Leavenworth
Date: Between January 01, 1872 and December 31, 1872
Photo of the interior of the enlisted men's barracks showing Springfield rifles locked in stands.

Enlisted men's barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Date: 1872
Soldiers posed at the enlisted men's barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The soldiers are still wearing the Civil War type cap.

Field artillery, Fort Leavenworth
Date: 1872
A battery of field artillery at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Ford County organization records
Creator: Kansas. Secretary of State
Date: 1872-1873
In order for an unorganized county to be recognized by the state of Kansas, a certain number of householders/legal electors had to petition the governor. The governor would appoint a census taker. Initially, unorganized counties were required to document that they had at least 600 inhabitants in order to be recognized as a county by the state legislature. Over time the number of residents needed to organize a county changed to 1500 and later to 2500 residents. The census was submitted to the governor who then issued a proclamation indicating that the requirements had been met, appointing county commissioners and a county clerk, and naming a county seat. Not all of these documents are available for each county. Included in this file is the 1873 census of Ford County, the memorial to the governor, miscellaneous letters, and the proclamation appointing county officials and designating Dodge City as the temporary county seat.

Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Date: 1872
Officers' quarters on Doniphan Avenue, Ft. Leavenworth, 1872.

Fraser Hall at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas
Date: 1872
A pamphlet giving the dimensions and floor plans for Fraser Hall at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas. Built in 1872, it was named for John Fraser the university's second chancellor.

General Staff School, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Date: 1872
Originally built in the 1860s as a storehouse for the arsenal department, this building was subsequently converted for use as the first General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Also visible are trees, a cannon mounted on a carriage, and a cupola with a flag.

George Armstrong Custer
Creator: Reveille
Date: 1872
This is a copy of a 1872 studio portrait of George Armstrong Custer, 1839-1876, and Duke Alexis, as published in the February 15, 1895 issue of "The Reveille."

George Armstrong Custer
Creator: Illingworth, W. H.
Date: 1872
This copy from a stereograph shows George Armstrong Custer during the Black Hills Expedition. The image identified by Elizabeth B. Custer, shows her husband gathered around the carcass of a grizzly bear with Indian scout Bloody Knife, Captain William Ludlow; the chief engineer of the expedition and Private Noonan in the background. The military expedition to the Black Hills of South Dakota was a strategic plan by the United States government to explore the benefits of the uncharted land.