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Copyright 2001. The Lazy 'C' - All rights reserved.
history
The Kansas flag consists of a dark blue field with the state seal in the centre. A sunflower on a bar of twisted gold lies above the seal, and below the seal is the word "Kansas." The seal contains a landscape that includes a rising sun, representing the east; and a river and steamboat, representing commerce. In the foreground, a settler's cabin and a man plowing a field represent agriculture. A wagon train heads west, and buffalo are seen fleeing from two Indians. Around the top of the seal is a cluster of 34 stars. The state motto appears above the stars.
Nickname: The Sunflower State.
Capital: Topeka.
Constitution: The 34th State.
Statehood: January 29th 1861.
Motto: Ad Astra Per Aspera - To the Stars Through Difficulties
History:
Before white settlers arrived, the Kansa, Osage, Pawnee, and Wichita Indians probably lived in Kansas. Other tribes arrived during the early 1600's.
In the late 1600's, French explorers claimed the region for France. France sold the whole region to the United States in 1803. The Plains Indians in the west battled against incoming white settlers. Eventually the tribes were moved to Oklahoma.
In the 1850's, fighting over the slavery issue gave the territory the nickname Bleeding Kansas. Kansas became a U.S. state in 1861. From the late 1860's to the mid-1880's, cattle drives took place from Texas to Kansas rail towns. The drives ended when railways reached Texas.
In the 1870's, Mennonite immigrants from Russia took Turkey Red winter wheat to Kansas. It grew well despite summer heat and insects, and wheat-growing increased.
Western Kansas suffered a severe drought with damaging dust storms during the 1930's. Irrigation with ground water, a major development of the 1960's, allowed farmers to grow crops in dry areas. Agriculture is still important, but the population of Kansas is now largely urban.
Bird:
Western Meadowlark, designated 1937.
Economy:
Agriculture: Cattle, wheat, sorghum, soybeans, hogs, corn.
Industry: Transportation equipment, food processing, printing and publishing, chemical products, machinery, apparel, petroleum, mining.
Flower:
Wild Native Sunflower, adopted 1903.
Nickname:
Sunflower State, Wheat State, Jayhawker State and Midway.
Origin of state's name:
Named after the Indians that the Sioux called the Konza, meaning "people of the south wind".
Seal:
Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution of the State of Kansas provides that "there shall be kept by the governor, and used by him officially, and which shall be the great seal of Kansas. All commissions shall be issued in the name of the state of Kansas; and shall be signed by the governor, countersigned by the Secretary of State, and sealed with the great seal." The First Session of the Kansas Legislature in 1861 provided for the creation of the Great Seal, described as follows: "The East is represented by a rising sun, in the right hand corner of the seal; to the left of it, Commerce is represented by a river and a steamboat; in the foreground, agriculture is represented as the basis of the future prosperity of the state, by a settler's cabin and a man plowing with a pair of horses; beyond this is a train of ox-wagons, going west; in the background is seen a heard of buffalo, retreating, pursued by two indians on horseback; around the top is the motto: ‘Ad astra per aspera,' beneath a cluster of thirty-four stars. The circle is surrounded by the words: Great Seal of the State of Kansas. January 29, 1861." The motto which appears on the Great Seal, "Ad astra per aspera," is Latin for "To the stars through difficulties." The thirty-four stars represent the fact that Kansas was the thirty-fourth state admitted to the Union.
Tree:
Cottonwood, adopted 1937. The cottonwood is the largest of the poplar family, often reaching heights of 200 feet or 80m. It is famous for its annual profusion of downy, cottonlike seeds which are carried miles by the wind.
Before white settlers arrived, the Kansa, Osage, Pawnee, and Wichita Indians probably lived in Kansas. Other tribes arrived during the early 1600's.
In the late 1600's, French explorers claimed the region for France. France sold the whole region to the United States in 1803. The Plains Indians in the west battled against incoming white settlers. Eventually the tribes were moved to Oklahoma.
In the 1850's, fighting over the slavery issue gave the territory the nickname Bleeding Kansas. Kansas became a U.S. state in 1861. From the late 1860's to the mid-1880's, cattle drives took place from Texas to Kansas rail towns. The drives ended when railways reached Texas.
In the 1870's, Mennonite immigrants from Russia took Turkey Red winter wheat to Kansas. It grew well despite summer heat and insects, and wheat-growing increased.
Western Kansas suffered a severe drought with damaging dust storms during the 1930's. Irrigation with ground water, a major development of the 1960's, allowed farmers to grow crops in dry areas. Agriculture is still important, but the population of Kansas is now largely urban.
Bird:
Western Meadowlark, designated 1937.
Economy:
Agriculture: Cattle, wheat, sorghum, soybeans, hogs, corn.
Industry: Transportation equipment, food processing, printing and publishing, chemical products, machinery, apparel, petroleum, mining.
Flower:
Wild Native Sunflower, adopted 1903.
Nickname:
Sunflower State, Wheat State, Jayhawker State and Midway.
Origin of state's name:
Named after the Indians that the Sioux called the Konza, meaning "people of the south wind".
Seal:
Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution of the State of Kansas provides that "there shall be kept by the governor, and used by him officially, and which shall be the great seal of Kansas. All commissions shall be issued in the name of the state of Kansas; and shall be signed by the governor, countersigned by the Secretary of State, and sealed with the great seal." The First Session of the Kansas Legislature in 1861 provided for the creation of the Great Seal, described as follows: "The East is represented by a rising sun, in the right hand corner of the seal; to the left of it, Commerce is represented by a river and a steamboat; in the foreground, agriculture is represented as the basis of the future prosperity of the state, by a settler's cabin and a man plowing with a pair of horses; beyond this is a train of ox-wagons, going west; in the background is seen a heard of buffalo, retreating, pursued by two indians on horseback; around the top is the motto: ‘Ad astra per aspera,' beneath a cluster of thirty-four stars. The circle is surrounded by the words: Great Seal of the State of Kansas. January 29, 1861." The motto which appears on the Great Seal, "Ad astra per aspera," is Latin for "To the stars through difficulties." The thirty-four stars represent the fact that Kansas was the thirty-fourth state admitted to the Union.
Tree:
Cottonwood, adopted 1937. The cottonwood is the largest of the poplar family, often reaching heights of 200 feet or 80m. It is famous for its annual profusion of downy, cottonlike seeds which are carried miles by the wind.