Xenia is an unincorporated community in Franklin Township, Bourbon County, Kansas, United States.[1][2]

Xenia, Kansas
Unincorporated community
KDOT map of Bourbon County (legend)
Coordinates: 37°59′43″N 94°59′11″W[1]
Country	United States
State	Kansas
County	Bourbon
Founded	1858
Elevation [1]	1,047 ft (319 m)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
Area code	620
FIPS code	20-80600 [1]
GNIS ID	474541 [1]

History

Settling in the Xenia area in 1856, the year after Bourbon County was organized in 1855, were John Van Syckle, Samuel Stephenson and Charles Anderson.[3]

John Van Syckle and his father laid out Xenia's village plat in 1858.[4] The community was named after Xenia, Ohio.[5] The younger Van Syckle opened the village's first store, offering general merchandise.[3]

Xenia gained a post office on November 29, 1858, when the Peru (Linn County) post office was moved to Xenia. Peru, which is now a ghost town, had a post office from August 5 to November 29, 1858.[6] As well as being Xenia's first merchant, John Van Syckle became Xenia's first postmaster.[7]

The first church building was built in 1876 by the Methodists.[3]

In 1878, Franklin township was Bourbon County's fourth-most populous, at 1,474. The county seat of Fort Scott had 5,081 residents. Scott Township had 2,036. Marion Township, just south of Franklin in the county's west end, had 1,676.[3]

In 1910, Xenia had a money-order post office and population of 115.[8] Xenia Post Office closed Aug. 31, 1926.[9]

Geography

Located at an altitude of 1,047 feet (317 m),[1] it lies in Bourbon County's northwest corner, along K-65, west of the confluence of the Little Osage River and Limestone Creek, about 18 miles northwest of Fort Scott.[2]

References

Further reading

External links

• Grand Lodge of Kansas A.F.&A.M.
• Xenia Baptist Church
• Xenia history in 1912
• Bourbon County Maps: Current, Historic - KDOT