How Rossville Came To Be

From the Rossville Centennial Book, 1971 

The early village was known as “Cross Creek,” taking its name from the nearby creek. In January,
1862, James Dahoney applied for a post office in the name of “Rossville,” honoring Wm. W. Ross,
Indian Agent. When the request was granted by the United States Government he received the
appointment as the first postmaster. James Dahoney lived in a log cabin on Walnut Street (where
Mrs. Ora Pelfrey now lives) and this was Rossville’s first post office.

From Kansas Daily Commonwealth, 19 May, 1870, Topeka, Kansas.
A New Town
Edna is a new town recently laid out on the K.P.R.R., 18 miles west of Topeka. This
town has a most beautiful and attractive site on Cross Creek, near its junction with the
Kaw River.
No part of the Kaw Valley presents a finer location for an active business place. The
surrounding country for miles is of the most fertile character, and is being rapidly settled
by an industrious and intelligent class of citizens. We are informed by one of the
proprietors, Mr. Harvey H. Wilcox, that the town is now platted and everything ready for
business. Messrs. James and Line of Topeka have established themselves here and
are doing a thriving trade in dry goods, groceries, tinware, etc.
There are several other business houses in the course of erection, and many live men
are procuring locations for trade and residences. The liberality of the citizens has
already erected a comfortable school house in which the day school is maintained; also
Sabbath school and regular preaching.
A generous policy has been adopted by the proprietors toward settlers. To those who
will erect substantial buildings and engage in any legitimate business, lots will be given
them sufficient to place their buildings on; but lots will neither be given nor sold to those
contemplating a traffic in whiskey.
It is the design of the proprietors to render Edna, in all respects, an attractive and
profitable point to engage in any respectable business, but they will spare no pains to
prevent the sale of intoxicating liquors, believing that to be suicidal to the interests of
any town.
All those desiring to avail themselves of the opportunity there presented, will do well to
call on Wilcox, Adams & Co., opposite court house, Topeka.

From the above article in the Kansas Daily Commonwealth we learn that the city now known as
Rossville was originally called Edna. The village of Edna was conceived by a group of four men, A.C. Sherman,
Colonel George W. Veale, H.H. Wilcox and Fielding Johnson. These four original
proprietors purchased in 1870 100 acres of land on the east side of Cross Creek, from Anthony
Navarre and So-na-ne-que, his wife. The townsite was surveyed and platted by J.B. Whittaker,
County Surveyor, Topeka.
Of course there was already a rather haphazard village on the west side of Cross Creek, dating back
to the first settlements made in 1848 when the Pottawatomi Indians were moved to this area. In 1862
this village was granted a United States Post Office in the name of Rossville. There was no formal
city government in Rossville and things were probably rather wild and woolly, judging from
 Dr. Robert Gabbey’s account of the early days.

The founders of the new village of Edna saw an opportunity to purchase some land, promote a new
town and in turn benefit financially. This entire area was opening up to settlers and was bound to
grow. It is difficult to promote a new town in an entire new region, but they tried to make Edna spring
up like a mushroom beside a village with another name already established. The settlers already here
simply would not accept the town of Edna. With all the grandiose plans of the promoters, Edna was
not a success. The railroad stopped on the west side of the creek at the village of Rossville. There
was a small water tank filled by a pump, operated by one horse, pumping water from the creek to
service the engines. There was not a depot building as we think of depots today but there was a rude
shelter for the use of the passengers.
Colonel Veale and A.C. Sherman realized that where the depot was located would determine the
success of their town, so after much haggling and some pretty hot arguments a compromise was
reached; they would abandon the name of Edna and accept the name of Rossville; and they paid
$1,000 to build a depot in their town. This first depot stood in the area where Mrs. Andricks now lives.
Early in 1871 the town of Rossville became a reality and a success for the townsite promoters.