Bonner Springs, Kansas

Among the rolling hills on the edge of the Kansas River just before it joins the Missouri River, Bonner Springs is one of the oldest cities in the state of Kansas. For years, the area around Bonner Springs, Kansas was inhabited by the Kansa (Kanza/Kaw) tribe of Native Americans. The tribe had settled the area because of the mineral springs and abundant fish and game.

Coronado Springs

The first contact of the Kansa tribe with Europeans probably came when the Spanish explorer Francisco Vȧzquez de Coronado spent the winter of 1541-1542 there. The diary of Father Juan Padilla records that the expedition reached the 40th degree and came to a great river (the Missouri). An inscription found on a stone near Atchison has been translated as, "Thus far came Francisco de Coronado, General of an Expedition." The explorers traveled downstream to the mouth of another great river, the Kansas, and preceded upstream 16 leagues to camp in what is now Bonner Springs before returning to Mexico. Due to the mineral springs, this legend gave the area its first recorded name, "Coronado Springs".

French Traders

In 1812, two French fur traders, the Chouteau brothers, made their way from St. Louis, Missouri and settled in the area. They built four log cabins near what is now Front and Second street in Bonner Springs and operating a ferry across the Kansas River. They starting a trading post named Four Houses.

This makes the site of Bonner Springs the first settlement in what would become the State of Kansas. The location allowed easy access to trade items, and ferry to cross the Kansas River was added.

Tiblow Landing

In 1830, Henry Tiblow, a Delaware Indian, took charge of the ferry. He also worked as an interpreter for the government. He lived in a small cabin on the west side of the city. At that time, the settlement became known as “Tiblow Landing.” Although he worked the ferry for years, he ended up in Oklahoma with the rest of his tribe. His grave may be found near Nowata, Oklahoma.

The Americans

John McDanield, or "Red John" due to hair color, is known as the founder of Bonner Springs as we know it today. As the owner of a vast majority of land that is now Bonner Springs, McDaniel renamed the town Tiblow, after his friend, Henry Tiblow. He began developing the town of Tiblow around 1866. It remained as Tiblow until Philo Clark platted the area in the 1880’s.

In 1885, Philo Clark purchased 300 acres from McDanield, this plans to capitalize on the mineral springs, then he changed the name of the town to Bonner Springs. The latter portion of the name comes from many natural springs in the area said to have medicinal qualities. The town was also named after Robert E. Bonner, a publisher of the New York Ledger, who was a trotting-horse breeder of note, and Clark believed would help fund the proposed racetrack. However, there is no record this occurred. Philo Clark became the first Mayor of Bonner Springs when the city incorporated in 1898.

Mineral Springs

Springs at Bonner Springs ctsy kgs.ku.edu

Several of the springs in the area were analysed for their mineral content, and the results indicated benefits that would attract visitors. The Bonner Springs Improvement Club, in 1907, created a promotional brochure touting the city as the “Kansas Karlsbad” and listing the contents of five springs near Lake of the Woods: Big Chief, Little Chief, Papoose, Old Squaw and Minnehaha. They listed “grains per gallon” of things like potassium sulphate, carbonate of iron, and chloride of sodium for each.

Big Chief was noted to be “splendid water for anemics, supplying the necessary properties for good red blood and driving out the dead and impure corpuscles.”

Old Squaw was reportedly so named because “the old women of Indian tribes once living in Kansas found relief from their intense dyspepsia caused by their heavy meat diet and little or no exercise.”

Bonner Springs Lake ctsy kgs.ku.edu

To promote the springs, a special train brought investors to the area and cited its proximity to Kansas City, the springs themselves, the fine parks and native trees, the site of a racetrack, and the beautiful residential sites as advantages that would assure the success of the mineral spring venture. 

Today, Bonner Springs is part of the greater Kansas City, Kansas area.

Charlie’s Choice

Although the name Bonner Springs did not exist at the time my story, Charlie’s Choice, takes place, I set my trading post owned by the American, Owen Jones, in that locality. It was also the boyhood home of his son, Charlie. At the time Owen would have married Charlie’s Kansa mother, the tribe was still in the region, and no doubt made good use of the mineral springs that brought the area fame in coming years.

Please CLICK HERE to find the book description and purchase information for Charlie’s Choice, the prequel to my Atwell Kin series.

Sources:

Wikipedia

https://www.triposo.com/loc/Bonner_Springs2C_Kansas/history/background

https://www.bonnersprings.org/774/History

http://www.basehorinfo.com/news/2008/may/15/former_and_current_bonner_residents_find_henry_tib/

http://www.bonnersprings.com/news/2014/mar/10/five-things-you-might-not-know-about-bonner-spring/

The Meaning Behind “Fool Chief”

Sometimes it is interesting – pathetic, even – how language can change the connotation of things, especially when the Americans get involved with translating from Native American languages to English. We who speak English may consider a “Fool Chief” to be something entirely different than the original intent behind the title given to one of the chiefs of the three primary camps or villages of the Kansa Indians, also known as the Kaw. Thankfully, we have an explanation of the true meaning, thanks to a letter written by a long-time resident of Morris County, Kansas.

Here is his short biography:

George P. Morehouse was born July 28, 1859, in Decatur, Illinois. In 1871 the elder Morehouse drove overland in covered lumber wagons to Diamond Springs, Morris County, Kansas, and opened a stock ranch, where his family settled. The stock farm gained a reputation for quality.

George Morehouse became an expert hunter and horseman, driving herds to other ranches. At a young age he was active in politics and early railroad matters, and was a frequent speaker and debater. He attended Albion (New York) Academy, and graduated in 1884. He also graduated from the University of New York, where he was elected president and orator of his class. He studied law, but returned to Council Grove to manage the cattle ranch. He finished his legal education in Kansas and was admitted to the bar in 1889. He was appointed city attorney of Council Grove, serving about six years. Morehouse was also elected county attorney of Morris County, the county which included the Kaw Reservation at Council Grove between 1848 and 1872.

Here is the letter addressed to George W. Martin (emphasis in bold added):

Council Grove, Kansas, April 16th 1904

The Honorable George W. Moreland,

Topeka, Kansas.

My dear sir and friend:-

Your letter will with inquiry relative to the matter of the “Fool Chiefs” of the Kaw Indians received and I should have answered it sooner, but the duties in our spring term of Court have prevented. There will be no discrepancies in the Indian stories of Capt. McClure and the writer.

There were two Fool Chiefs, who at different times were well-known head chiefs of the Kaw Indians,- father and son.

The Fool Chief the First, "Ca-ega-tan-nin-ga," was prominent as a great chief away back as early as 1819, when Major Long's exploring expedition held a council with the Kaws on the Missouri River and when a part of the Expedition visited their large village near the mouth of the Blue [River].

The Kaws had three villages on the Kansas River, the largest one governed by the Fool Chief and the other two presided over by Hard Chief and American Chief. It may here be mentioned that the Kaws governed and usually operated in all things by threes.

Fool Chief's Village - Courtesy Kansapedia

They were always divided into three villages or tribal divisions and when they lived on their reservation near this place, kept up the three village scheme. Fool Chief the first, came here with the Kaws in 1847 and during the year of 1848 while on a visit and to Missouri was killed in a difficulty in Johnson County, in the manner you relate in your address.

"Kah-he-ga-wa-ti-an-gah" or Fool Chief the second, was a son of the former and seemed to inherit the rank from his father. He was “Fool Chief” during the residence of the tribe here and went with the Kaws in 1873 to their present home in the Indian Territory, where he died a very old man a few years ago.

During most of his life he was a great and wise councilor and in his younger days a brave warrior, but once, a few years before the tribe went to the Territory, he became crazed by liquor and in a quarrel killed a Kaw brave with little or no excuse.

It caused a grand council of the tribe to be convened and after full investigation, he was only allowed to save his life by paying a great fine, which took a large number of ponies, robes and many valuable relics. He was also required to surrender his chiefship for a time and was considered in disgrace.

"Kah-he-ga-wa-ti-an-gah" was a peculiar hereditary title and had historical and important significance. Some claim that there was always a “Fool Chief” or a Kah-he-ga-wa-ti-an-gah in the tribe. At different times and by different writers it was spelled Ca-ega-wa-tan-nin-ga, Ka-he-ga-wa-ta-ning-ga, and Kah-he-ga-wa-ti-an-gah the latter being the authorized way by those who lived with the Kaws here and according to our mutual friend Judge Huffaker is the most expressive. Kah-he-ga means chief and wa-ti-an-gah means brave and courageous even to rashness. The term “Fool Chief” was a high and honorable distinction and became hereditary, but could only be maintained by brave and warlike qualities along with good conduct and wisdom in counsel. Originally it was obtained by some remarkable act of personal bravery, daring, Indian prowess which brought advantage and renowned not only to the individual but to the tribe.

The spelling of Indian names varies and is not very important, but that which gives best representation of the pronunciation should be used. Having no written language, this is manifestly so.

The later day fool chiefs in Kansas are in no wise followers of the methods of those dusky worthies of long ago, but now as then all dynasties in Kansas, whether of the fool character or otherwise come to an end and so must this letter.

Have you sent those last pamphlets relative to the State Seal, etc.? I return the leavee of the address you sent.

I think this will harmonize and the discrepancies you mentioned, for there were at least two "Fool Chiefs" among the leading historical characters of the Kaws.

Very truly, Geo. P. Morehouse

Unfortunately, I was not able to locate an image of either "Fool Chief." I find it interesting that “fool” is part of the name or a title for other tribes besides the Kaw. What we today think of as a fool had an entirely different meaning, at least among some Native American tribes.

In my latest book, Charlie's Choice, I placed Charlie's Kansa uncle in the Fool Chief's camp as it existed in 1856. 

PLEASE CLICK HERE to reach the full book description and purchase link for Charlie's Choice. Charlie's Choice is also available on Kindle Unlimited.

Sources:

https://www.kansasmemory.org/item/219522

https://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/george-pierson-morehouse/18207

A Writer's Life-Lemons to Lemonade by Zina Abbott

In the past I have written blog posts with the theme of “true confessions—I needed to make major changes on this book.” In a way, this is one of those posts.

I, along with eight other authors, wrote and prepared for publication our books in the Lockets & Lace series scheduled to be released the last two weeks of January, 2018. The December holiday season was a busy time for most of us, myself included. Perhaps it was because I also wrote the prequel for this series, but I found myself pushed for time to finish my full book for Lockets & Lace, Otto’s Offer. The main plot I have had in mind to write for years. However, the fine details, like some of my characters’ names, I did not choose until right down to the last minute.

I needed my female protagonist (we used to just call that person the heroine) to be hiding behind an assumed name. I considered some of the more common surnames of English origin—Smith, Johnson, Jones and Brown—and settled on Jones. I felt Smith was so common a surname, sometimes people in certain circumstances using that surname can be suspect. At all costs, my heroine, Libby, could not afford to be viewed as suspect. I chose the name Jones, one I know is of Welsh origin and very common in the United States.

And, so, the process of getting our Lockets & Lace books published and promoted progressed. We had cover reveals. We had preorders with book descriptions. We offered snippets. The names of my main characters were out there in public view.

I was almost finished writing this book when it hit me. I have used the surname Jones before. I have used it not in just any book, but in my Kizzie’s Kisses which was part of the Grandma’s Wedding Quilts series (GWQ), also by Sweet Americana Sweethearts authors. Kizzie ended up married to Leander JONES. If that was not enough, Otto in my current book is Kizzie’s cousin. 

Next complication: the Sidney and Jemima Atwell children belong to the GWQ series and Kizzie’s siblings belong to other authors. However, the cousins, the children of Jefferson and Carlotte Atwell which I offered up and no one seemed interested in, were solely my creation. Just as a couple other GWQ authors wrote books that belonged to two series’—GWQ and one of their own—I decided to do my own series, Atwell Kin, involving MY characters. Kizzie’s Kisses is book 2 in both Grandma’s Wedding Quilts and Atwell Kin. Otto’s Offer is book 3 in both Lockets & Lace and Atwell Kin. (And, yes, I have started the prequel, book 0, Charlie’s Choice and have planned book 1, Virginia’s Vocation.)

How could I have done that?

All well and good, except I managed to write myself in a corner by coming up with two totally unrelated characters in two separate books, both having the surname of Jones.

Not good.

Somewhere from the time I was young I was taught if I was handed a lemon to make lemonade. Take something that was sour and inedible, and sweeten it up until it is a tasty treat. A few rewrites later, that is exactly what I did with the surname Jones in Otto’s book. I added a chapter with details that had not been part of my original plot. I reintroduced one of my favorite secondary characters from Kizzie’s Kisses. I used it to solidify the growing relationship between Libby Jones and the Atwell family and their connected kin.

All's well that ends well, right?

How did I do it exactly? Since revealing the details would be big spoilers for both Kizzie’s Kisses and Otto’s Offer for those who have not read either or one of those two books, I won’t say exactly how I wrote it. All I will say is this: once Libby realized the misunderstanding regarding the name of Jones she had assumed as an alias, she tendered this thought:

I should have chosen the last name Smith.

That was actually my thought until I found a way to take that writing lemon of my own doing, and I turned it into what I felt was some excellent storyline lemonade.

Zina Abbott wrote for both the Grandma’s Wedding Quilts series and the Lockets & Lace series.

To find the book description and purchase link for Kizzie’s Kisses, please CLICK HERE.

To find the book description and purchase link for Otto’s Offer, please CLICK HERE.