Turner, Kansas
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Turner is a neighborhood within
Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...
,
Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...
, United States. It was formerly an
unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
of
Wyandotte County Wyandotte County () is a county in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and most populous city is Kansas City, with which it shares a unified government. As of the 2020 census, the population was 169,245, making it Kansas's fourth-m ...
, similar to Piper, Kansas. Turner has its own school district, Turner USD #202.


History

The Prophet (Tenskwatawa; literally, "''the door opener''"), brother of
Tecumseh Tecumseh ( ; (March 9, 1768October 5, 1813) was a Shawnee chief and warrior who promoted resistance to the Territorial evolution of the United States, expansion of the United States onto Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...
, created Shawneetown in the area (near what today is Woodend and Shawnee Drive at 35th street). He made his final home near Turner in
Argentine, Kansas Argentine is a community of Kansas City, Kansas, located in the southern part of Wyandotte County, Kansas, Wyandotte County. It is bordered on the west by the Turner, Kansas, Turner community, on the east by the Rosedale, Kansas, Rosedale communi ...
(the property is today owned by Jack Beemont).
Blue Jacket Blue Jacket, or Weyapiersenwah (c. 1743 – 1810), was a war chief of the Shawnee people, known for his militant defense of Shawnee lands in the Ohio Country. Perhaps the preeminent American Indian leader in the Northwest Indian War, ...
(Weyapiersenwah), who was Tecumseh's adoptive brother, was known to the early European settlers in this area. According to legend, one of the Shawnee chiefs, Fish, died and was buried in the Shawnee Township Cemetery (which is located in the heart of modern-day Turner).


19th century

In 1828, Cyprian Chouteau established the first trading post in this locale. It was the American Fur Company trading house (located near 55th and Speaker Road). The original
Shawnee Methodist Mission Shawnee Methodist Mission, also known as the Shawnee Mission, which later became the Shawnee Indian Manual Labor School, is located in Fairway, Kansas, United States. Designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1968, the Shawnee Methodist Missi ...
was built in 1830 near Chouteau's old trading post (near the heart of the Turner community).
Reverend The Reverend (abbreviated as The Revd, The Rev'd or The Rev) is an honorific style (form of address), style given to certain (primarily Western Christian, Western) Christian clergy and Christian minister, ministers. There are sometimes differen ...
Thomas Johnson built the mission for the Shawnee. It was located at what would b
5100 block of Edgehill Drive
This mission was open until 1839, when the Mission School was built at the current location in Johnson County. Around 1837, Charles Lovelace established a
saw mill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...
(today it would be located at 55th and Speaker Road, but has been long ago torn down). There was also a
grist mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that h ...
in close proximity. In 1838, the mighty steamboat, "
The Antelope ''The Antelope'', 23 U.S. (10 Wheat.) 66 (1825), was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States considered, for the first time, the legitimacy of the international slave trade, and determined "that possession on board of a vessel was ...
" docked in the area. It had several scientists and pioneers heading west. They stayed over in the area on their journey to Fort Pierre in
South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...
.Betty S. Gibson, "Pride of the Golden Bear". Kendall Hunt Pub Co., June 1981. The '' Delaware Crossing'' (or "''Military Crossing''"; sometimes "''the
Secondine Grinter Place is a house on the National Register of Historic Places above the Kansas River in the Muncie neighborhood of Kansas City, Kansas. History The house was constructed by Moses Grinter where he and his half-Lenape (Delaware) wife li ...
''") was where the old Indian trail met the waters of the
Kaw River The Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, is a meandering river in northeastern Kansas in the United States. It is potentially the southwestern most part of the Missouri River drainage, which is sometimes in turn the northwesternmost portion of ...
. Around 1831,
Moses Grinter Grinter Place is a house on the National Register of Historic Places above the Kansas River in the Muncie neighborhood of Kansas City, Kansas. History The house was constructed by Moses Grinter where he and his half-Lenape (Delaware) wife li ...
(one of the earliest permanent white settler in the area) set up the
Grinter Ferry Grinter Place is a house on the National Register of Historic Places above the Kansas River in the Muncie neighborhood of Kansas City, Kansas. History The house was constructed by Moses Grinter where he and his half-Lenape (Delaware) wife liv ...
on the
Kansas River The Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, is a meandering river in northeastern Kansas in the United States. It is potentially the southwestern most part of the Missouri River drainage, which is sometimes in turn the northwesternmost portion of ...
here. His house, the
Grinter Place Grinter Place is a house on the National Register of Historic Places above the Kansas River in the Muncie neighborhood of Kansas City, Kansas. History The house was constructed by Moses Grinter where he and his half-Lenape (Delaware) wife li ...
, still stands a
1420 South 78th Street
The ferry was used by individuals (such as traders, freighters, and soldiers) traveling between
Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas, Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., an ...
and Fort Scott on the military road. Other would cross this area on their way to Santa Fe. Various farmers took up residence around Turner by the fall of 1854. Turner as a community was known as early as 1856 (and no later than 1859). The community, then named "Farmer, Kansas", tried to incorporate itself on October 8, 1859. The attempt failed because the community never had enough population to achieve the statute requirements. Members of the old
Quantrill's Raiders Quantrill's Raiders were the best-known of the pro- Confederate partisan guerrillas (also known as " bushwhackers") who fought in the American Civil War. Their leader was William Quantrill and they included Jesse James and his brother Frank. ...
sacked a few homes and killed some of the inhabitants of the area around July 1863. Various families (living in the area that today is between Swartz Road from 51st to 53rd Street) suffered in the attacks. They were fended off from but a few homes. In 1859, the community had been referred to as the "Farmer" community (when the first post office was established). Twenty years later, the community took the name "Turner". Farmer post office name was switched to the "Turner" post office on September 23, 1879; by Robert M. Hester.


20th century

The Flood of 1903 hit Turner. The 1910 population was around 200 people. In 1912, Turner had a few general stores, a school, money order post office, telegraph and express facilities. Historically, the
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the largest Class 1 railroads in the United States between 1859 and 1996. The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight transport; at vario ...
went through Argentine, Turner, and Kaw Valley. From the railroad yard in the Argentine, the railroad cars would be turned around at the Farmer train platform. The Farmer train station's circular platform stood at 55th street (which is Turner’s main downtown area). Parts of Turner were hit in the
Great Flood of 1951 In mid-July 1951, heavy rains led to a great rise of water in the Kansas River, Missouri River, and other surrounding areas of the Central United States. Flooding occurred in the Kansas, Neosho, Marais Des Cygnes, and Verdigris river basins. ...
and the flood resulted in the "Highland" community being built (for displaced individuals from Argentine and Armourdale). Between late 1965 and early 1966, Kansas City, Kansas, annexed the community of Turner. Although now a part of Kansas City, Kansas, the community still retains its own distinct flavor and personality. The Turner post office was discontinued in 1958.


Education


Primary and secondary education

The community is served by Turner USD 202 public school district. The
Golden Bear The Golden Bear () is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival and is, along with the Palme d'Or and the Golden Lion, the most important international film festival award. The bear is the heraldic an ...
mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, sports team, university society, society, military unit, or brand, brand name. Mascots are als ...
was adopted for the school and community in 1886. Two members of the community, Warren Hewitt and Jule Gaignet, submitted the icon and it won the majority of support in a contest. Reportedly, the two youths had heard of the bear from stories told by their grandparents. This icon is based on legends of a golden bear that live in the area. According to John Gardiner in 1831, the great golden bear that lived in the area was feared and admired by the local native population. The bear lived south of the river in the hills west of the Methodist Mission. According to legend, it was the largest bear that any of the natives had ever seen. It would raid the settlements of the area folks and feasted on the animals owned by the local population (the Shawnee tribe). Many of the Indians wanted to kill the bear for the pride of such a feat and the capture of its hide (the fur was most sought after). The golden bear was seen several times by the ferry crew on the Old Grinter Ferry during the 1830s and 1840s. Both the Shawnee and the Wyandot gathered a hunting party, but were unsuccessful in tracking the bear down. Turner USD 202 consolidated the five old school districts of Turner, Junction, Oak Grove, Morris, and Muncie in 1961 and currently consists of: * Turner High School *Turner Middle School *Turner Primary *Junction Primary *Oak Grove Primary *Midland Trail Primary *Sixth Grade Academy


Infrastructure


Roads

*
Interstate 435 Interstate 435 (I-435) is an Interstate Highway beltway that encircles much of the Kansas City metropolitan area within the states of Kansas and Missouri in the United States. Route description I-435, a loop route of I-35, is long and i ...
* Turner Diagonal * K-132


Street names

The road overseers were Peter Partonnar, John Gibbs, and H. L. Swinggley. Peter Partonnar (sometimes misspelled as Par''turner'') has been rumored to be the origin of the name for Turner (but this is doubtful as the Partonnar family lived in Shawnee for many years and did not come to live in Turner till the name was already acquired). ;New and old * 55th Street (Portion) was known as "Lovelace Mill Road" and later it was named " Ambrose Key Road" after the saw mill was closed down. Still later it was renamed "Turner Avenue" until annexation. (55th leads Douglas and then into Key lane which goes to Gibbs Road) * 56th Street was "Central Avenue" * 57th Street was "Ore Avenue" * Gibbs Road was named in honor of John Gibbs Jr. * Metropolitan Avenue was "Hester Road"; Albert Hester had a farm, Hester Farm, on this route (it also crossed the road from Fort Scott and
Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas, Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., an ...
). * Swartz Road was "Silver Avenue" * Miami was "Smelter Avenue" * Osage was "Cable Avenue" * Key Lane was for a time called "Ridgeview Road"


Further reading

* ''Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas - Historical and Biographical''; Goodspeed Publishing Co; 932 pages; 1890.''Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas - Historical and Biographical''; Goodspeed Publishing Co; 932 pages; 1890.
/ref> * Cutler, William G. "History of the State of Kansas"

'. 1883. * J. C. McConnell (of Turner),
Kansas City Star ''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and a ...
. May 12, 1935. * Wyandot Herald, May 22, 1879


References


External links


History of the Public Schools of Wyandotte County, Kansas


Includes the Shawnee Township / Turner burial grounds (Located at South 55th & Edgehill Street almost across from the old Turner High School; It contains about 30 gravesites)
Hydrograph of Kansas River at Turner Bridge
NOAA * "Centennial History of Argentine", Kansas City, Kansas 1880-1980



skyways.lib.ks.us. * Ol
Wyandotte map
skyways.lib.ks.us * Wyandotte County Maps
Current1950
{{Authority control Populated places established in 1828 Neighborhoods in Kansas City, Kansas Populated places in Wyandotte County, Kansas