Grant County, Kansas: History
In 1873, the part of Kansas west of Range 25 was divided into 25 new counties. The new counties were Decatur, Rawlins, Cheyenne, Sheridan, Thomas, Sherman, Lane, Buffalo, Foote, Meade, Scott, Sequoyah, Arapahoe, Seward, Wichita, Kearny, Greeley, Hamilton, Stanton, Kansas, Stevens, and Grant.
Grant County, Kansas was named after Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th President of the United States (1869–1877), and incumbent president at the time of the county's formation. The initial survey establishing county boundaries was in the summer of 1874.
In 1883, Kearny, Sequoyah, Arapahoe, Kansas, Stevens, Stanton, Meade, Clark and Grant counties disappeared. Hamilton, Ford, Seward, and Hodgeman counties enlarged and Finney County was created. Grant County was split with the western portion becoming a part of Hamilton County and the eastern portion becoming a part of the newly created Finney County.
On June 9, 1888, Grant County was again established as a Kansas county, with original county boundaries, with the first officers of the new Grant County being sworn in on June 18, 1888.
In October 1888, the county seat election for Grant County resulted in victory for Ulysses, Kansas, election results were:.
In the 1930s, the prosperity of the area was severely affected by its location within the Dust Bowl. This catastrophe intensified the economic impact of the Great Depression in the region.
"Old" Ulysses, subsequently moved to New Ulysses in 1909
Surprise-Tilden
Cincinnati-Appomattox
Shockey (Shockeyville)
Golden
Zionville
Lawson
Waterford
Gognac
Spurgeon