In the very heart of America lies the federal state of Kansas, which borders Nebraska to the north, Oklahoma to the south, Missouri to the east and Colorado to the west. It is the same distance from here to the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The name of the country is derived from the Native American word “kansa” which means “People of the South Wind”.
In 1803, the Kansas Territory was purchased from France, as was Louisiana. In 1821, Kansas became part of the state of Missouri, only in 1854 it separated from Missouri and 2 separate states of Kansas and Nebraska were formed. Many people who passed through eventually chose Kansas as their home and settled here. The main attraction was the fertile soil here, which guaranteed plenty of food. On January 29, 1861, Kansas became the 35th state of the Union. Kansas subsequently became the first state where Prohibition was introduced and thus prohibited the consumption of any alcohol.
- LIUXERS: Offers a list of schools with federal school code in Kansas, including contact information, graduation rate, retention rate and transfer rate for each college located within Kansas.
Kansas is mostly a flat country, only in the west there are mountain ranges with the highest mountain measuring 1231 meters above sea level. Major rivers such as the Kansas River, Republican River, Smoky Hill River, Arkansas River, and Missouri River flow through the state. You will also find the beautiful Turtle Creek Reservoir, Cheney Reservoir or Waconda Lake.
Thanks to the fertile soil, agriculture thrives here, mainly growing wheat, soybeans, cereals and corn. Pig and cattle breeding is also important. The aviation, chemical and food industry also became an important sector of the economy. The main industrial products include transport and agricultural equipment, food processing, chemical products, machinery, extraction of oil and other raw materials, textile production.
According to COUNTRYAAH, since 1864, the capital of Kansas has been Topeka, located on the banks of the Kansas River in Shawnee Country. Other larger cities are Wichita, Kansas City, Overland Park, Lawrence or Olathe.
Brown v Board Of Education National Historic Site
In 1954, the United States Supreme Court decided to reinstate an order from 1896 that declared that separate public schools must be established for black and white children in some American cities. However, this decision made it impossible for black Americans to receive the same education as white children.
This fact was widely condemned at the international level as morally unsustainable. Moreover, in this area of Kansas, only 4 schools were reserved for black children, while there were 18 schools for white children. The black population strongly disliked this situation and began to sue all schools that refused to admit their children to classes because of the color of their skin.
Today, there is a museum in Kansas that is a reminder of these times when the black population was oppressed and denied opportunities for a quality education. Many people who visit this museum today cannot understand how someone could separate and discriminate against another race just because of the color of their skin.
However, it was not only about schools, for example, blacks could not ride on the same bus with white residents, they were forbidden to use public telephone booths, drink water from city fountains or even go swimming in the same swimming pool as whites. Fortunately, today’s people find these incomprehensible prohibitions absurd, even if some people still have prejudices.
Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail
Between 1804 and 1806 there was an expedition led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the Missouri River and its tributaries. The expedition was approved by the then president of the United States, Thomas Jefferson, and a total of 33 men took part in it, of which 25 were volunteers.
The goal was to see if the Columbia, Oregon, and Colorado rivers offered any practical, direct water route across the continent. The expedition thus followed the path to the Pacific, while traveling more than 8,000 miles. Preparations for this journey had been going on since the spring of 1803. The entire expedition finally set off on the expedition on May 14, 1804, from the Camp Wood camp near the Wood River in the state of Illinois. Already in August of the same year, the expedition reached Nebraska and South Dakota. However, problems began in North Dakota, where the temperature reached a freezing -40°C and the group had to set up camp for the winter.
The expedition continued towards the Pacific Ocean and on the way she often met native Indians who helped her in many ways. Clark once helped a young Native American girl give birth to a son, and that would come back to him a hundred times in the future. The Shoshone Indians were very grateful and helped the expedition cross the Rockies. In August 1805, they therefore reached Montana, where they learned from the Indians how to make dugout canoes. They were thus able to navigate the Clearwater and Columbia Rivers and on November 24, 1805, they finally found themselves on the shores of the Pacific Ocean.
With the coming of winter, they were forced to build another winter camp. They placed it near an Indian tribe called Clatsop, and a fort of the same name was later built at this location. Everyone got through the winter in order, because it was completely classic and almost all of it rained. As soon as it warmed up a bit and spring began to arrive, the expedition set off on its return journey. On September 23, 1806, a group of adventurers returned home to St. Louis as heroes.
This expedition made a significant mark in the history of America and is considered a deed that changed the face of the country. Thanks to her, it was possible to find out that the desired northwest route, along which it would be possible to transport cargo by water from the center of America to the west coast, unfortunately does not exist. One of its participants died during the expedition, but it could still be considered very successful. All other members completed it and returned home safely.
Another reason why this expedition was undertaken was to obtain the center of the continent for America. The English occupied the territory from the north and the Spanish from the south. Therefore, the center of the continent could only belong to the one who thoroughly explores it and thus obtains it for his land.
