History of the Quivira Chapter
The Quivira Chapter of the Santa Fe Trail
Association covers approximately 90 miles of the portion
of the Santa Fe Trail that traveled through McPherson, Rice,
and Barton counties in Kansas. The chapter was organized
in 1992. The name Quivira was adopted from the Quivira Indians,
one of the Native American tribes to inhabit the central
plains. The Quivira Chapter marks the beginning of the short-grass
prairie and the area of the Buffalo. 
Location and Directions
The major cities within the Quivira Chapter are McPherson, Lyons, and Great Bend. U.S. Highway 56 closely follows the Trail east to west through the chapter area. You can reach U.S. Highway 56 from Interstate 70 by traveling south from Salina on I-35 to exit 60 at McPherson. From Wichita, go north on I-35 to the same exit.
An Auto Tour of the Trail
Download
a brochure with maps to follow the Santa Fe Trail through
the Quivira Chapter.
Our Latest Projects for 2007 -
The major project for the chapter in 2007 will be completion of the Quivira Auto Tour project to mark the Trail through the chapter. Funding has been approved through the National Park Service to mark the Trail through all three counties in our chapter. We are in the process of finalizing the plans. The SFTA has adopted a standardized sign format for use in the project. We will be scheduling workdays throughout the summer to work on the project and we will need all available help. The final designs of the signs were approved for our use at the March board of directors meeting in LaJunta.
Two of the other goals of the Quivira Chapter for 2007 are to increase landowner involvement in chapter activities, and to increase overall membership. We encourage all landowners along the Trail in our chapter to become involved in chapter activities. In addition, we would like to get more sites in our chapter certified. The certification process is not nearly as complicated as it used to be!
Another of Our Latest Trail Projects - 1825 Peace Treaty Interpretive Center
The Chapter is also working with the SFTA and the National Park Service to develop an interpretive display near the actual site of the 1825 Peace Treaty with the Kaw Indians. The treaty site was approximately five and one-half miles south of present downtown McPherson in the NE4, Section 28, T20S, R3W, on the west side of the present location of the creek and south of the road. According to the journal account, the delegates met “under a very large, spreading oak in a small grove of trees on the creek.” The treaty was conducted during the "Sibley Survey" which was carried out by three commissioners appointed by President John Quincy Adams. They were George C. Sibley, Benjamin H. Reeves, and Thomas Mather. Joseph C. Brown was the surveyor. On August 16, 1825, they met with chiefs and warriors Shone-ge-ne-gare, Ke-hea-bash- ee, Ne-a-ke-shall, and Hah-ee-see-she as representatives of the Kansa, or Kaw Indians.
In exchange for $300.00 in trade goods and a $500.00 order for goods on Curtis & Eley, who were traders in their area, the Indians agreed to allow the survey and marking of the Santa Fe Trail through their land and the free use of it “forever.” Six days earlier, a similar treaty was made with the Osage Indians at Council Grove. Congress had authorized a total of $20,000.00 to be spent on treaties with the Indians.
At the present time, on Old 81 Highway at the southeast edge of the town of Elyria stands a sign placed by the Kansas State Historical Society at a roadside park. It reads, “In 1825 President James Monroe approved a bill providing for a survey of the Santa Fe Trail from Missouri to New Mexico and the making of treaties to insure friendly relations with Indians along the route.” A small monument on Dry Turkey Creek, a mile west of this sign, marks the approximate site.
Recent Chapter Activities
 |
Clive even showed us how to fit a whole
buffalo into a lawn & leaf bag!
|
The Quivira Chapter of the Santa Fe Trail Association hosted a meeting in Lyons, Kansas on March 11, 2006. The meeting was a joint meeting with the SFTA’s Cottonwood Chapter. The groups toured the Coronado Quivira Museum in Lyons, and had dinner at nearby Schirer's Restaurant. The meeting then moved to the Lyons Celebration Centre, and each chapter conducted a short business meeting.
The program for the evening was presented by Clive Siegle, SFTA Association Manager. Over 60 people attended the program. Clive spoke on "Nimrods and Ciboleros: The Santa Fe Trail and the Great Buffalo Hunt.” His talk focused on the fact that throughout the nineteenth century, Hispanic, Indian, and Anglo hunters cooperated or clashed over the West’s most iconic animal, the American bison, for sport, survival, and commerce. One of the least known of these groups was the New Mexican cibolero, who combined techniques borrowed from Medieval Europe and the New World in dashing and dangerous buffalo hunting melees that made them legendary among their communities. The route of the Santa Fe Trail took it through the very heart of buffalo country, and was one of the few places where a traveler could observe so many buffalo hunting cultures and techniques on one trip. Anglo and cibolero hunters on opposite ends of the Trail had very different ideas about “huntin’ shaggies,” which eventually fueled the epic clash of cultures over an ever-diminishing resource.
Membership
Anyone interested in the Santa Fe Trail is welcome to join. Membership in the Quivira Chapter is just $10 per year for individuals or families. Membership in the Santa Fe Trail Association is $25 per year for individuals and $30 for families. Make it easy! Let the Quivira Chapter take care of everything. Make one payment of $35 for individuals and $40 for a family and cover both memberships!
To
download the membership form, click here.
Art Source: The painting featured at the top of this page was done by artist and SFTA member Doug Holdread. Visit Doug's Website
|
