But for its quick growth, it also suffered a number of near fatal blows that first year. When the Smoky Hill River raged out of its banks it left the town standing in nearly four feet of water. At about the same time, a cholera epidemic broke out at Fort Harker, soon spreading to Ellsworth.  Many of the city’s earlier settlers fled in fear. Those that stayed, soon moved the town site to higher ground to the west and the town began to prosper again.

With the nearby railroad extended its line to Ellsworth, the town quickly developed into a thriving cattle market, dominating other Kansas cowtowns from 1871 to 1875. With the flood of cowboys, also came gamblers, outlaws and the inevitable "unruly” women.

Ellsworth businessmen, anticipating the shift in the cattle trade from Abilene, moved the Drovers Cottage, once owned by Joseph McCoy, to Ellsworth in 1872. It could accommodate 175 guests and stable 50 carriages and 100 horses. Numerous other businesses also sprang up, profiting immensely from the cowboys.

Like other Kansas cowtowns, Ellsworth quickly gained a reputation as a wild and wooly place, becoming the scene of numerous killings following shootouts between drunken cowboys. In its early days, the area was besieged by a gang led by two men named Craig and Johnson. Making frequent robberies and bullying the townspeople, the citizens finally organized a vigilance committee and hanged the two near the Smoky Hill River.

In 1873, Ellsworth geared up for the largest drives of Texas Longhorns to date. Expecting trouble they hired additional police officers to control the rowdy cowboys. They would be needed when a dispute arose on August 15, 1873, between Texas gambler, Ben Thompson and another player named John Sterling in Nick Lentz’s Saloon. When City Marshal, "Happy Jack" Morco sided with the other player against Texan Ben Thompson, a known gunfighter, Ben and his drunken brother Billy, moved out into the street and called out to their opponents to meet them. 

Instead of Morco, Ellsworth County Sheriff, Chauncey Whitney stepped into the street with the Thompsons and soon convinced them to have a drink with him at Joe Brennan's Saloon. However, before they could get there, marshal Morco charged down the street guns drawn. Thompson then wheeled and fired his rifle at Marco, narrowly missing him. Billy, on the other hand stumbled and discharged his shotgun mortally wounding the Sheriff Whitney.

Ellsworth maintained its wicked reputation until the shipping pens were finally closed in 1875. In its peak year of 1873, approximately 220,000 head of longhorn cattle were driven through the town. During its turbulent heydays, some of the colorful Old West characters who found their way to Ellsworth include George Armstrong Custer, Buffalo Bill Cody, Wild Bill Hickok, and Ben and Billy Thompson. One newspaper said it best: "As we go to press, hell is still in session in Ellsworth."

With the cattle trade gone, the town then settled down into a peaceful ranching and farming community, which continues to be its mainstay to this day. Ellsworth now has a population of almost 3,000, largely supported by the Kansas State Ellsworth Correctional Facility.

The area celebrates its rich history with a number of museums and attractions, including the Hodgden House Museum Complex on old South Main Street. Here, the spirit of Ellsworth's Old West days continue as visitors are invited to tour the Hodgden House, built in 1873 by Perry Hodgden, one of the Ellsworth's first settlers; the Black Wolf school built in 1912, a stone livery built in 1887, two historic churches, a rare wooden Union Pacific Caboose, the Terra Cotta Union Pacific Depot built 1900, and the oldest building in Ellsworth, its 1873 Jail.

At 210 N. Douglas, the new National Drovers Hall of Fame Museum is currently being developed in the old Signature Insurance Building. Here, visitors will be able to learn about the Great American cattle drives from interactive displays in the museum.

The Fort Harker Museum is located about five miles southeast of Ellsworth in the tiny town of Kanopolis, Kansas.

More Information:

Ellsworth Chamber of Commerce

© Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, updated March, 2010.