From a spring wagon pulled by mules, A.W. Purinton found his home. It was fall 1878 and settlement was only beginning. Western Kansas was vast and empty. Trego County hadn’t been organized. The only community center was a small settlement north of the Smoky Hill River that would become WaKeeney. Yet, for a few days on the sparsely settled prairie, the pioneer and a couple others from his native Vermont searched for the best free land to stake their hopes and dreams and build a future. Purinton found it along the Hackberry Creek in the southwest part of the county, not [...]

One facility has been in the same location for more than a 100 years. Another for close to 20 years and one more is just getting its feet wet. For three places that host equine events in southwest Kansas, the impact on their communities can be measured in a couple of ways. Many equine enthusiasts and competitors travel to events around their local areas while others criss-cross the country competing. When they travel, they need food, fuel, feed for the horses and hotel rooms. Some bring shopping lists when they travel to bigger cities and stock up on necessities before or [...]

Public feedback has prompted city manager Brent Trout to drop his earlier request that Topekans be asked to raise the citywide sales tax to three-quarters of a cent. A resolution he is sponsoring would arrange for Topekans to instead vote on whether to extend the current half-cent tax for another 10 years. The city on Thursday made public a copy of the preliminary agenda for its governing body’s July 17 meeting, which shows that body plans to consider scheduling a citywide Nov. 6 ballot question election on whether to renew the current half-cent tax for 10 more years, through Oct. 1, [...]

A proposed labor contract amendment and incentives for promoters to bring acts to the Kansas Expocentre are among matters local governing bodies plan to take up this coming week. The Shawnee County Commission will meet at 9 a.m. Monday in its chambers in Room B-11 of the county courthouse, 200 S.E. 7th. The Topeka City Council will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday in its chambers at 214 S.E. 8th. Commissioners plan to consider entering into an agreement through which Philadelphia-based Spectra Venue Management, which manages the Kansas Expocentre under contract for the county, would provide the county $200,000 to establish an [...]