Editing Edwards County, Kansas (section)

==History==
{{See also|History of Kansas}}
In 1873, '''Edwards County''' was established, and named for W. C. Edwards, of Hutchinson, a pioneer settler who owned much land in the area and built the first brick building in Kinsley.<ref>[https://www.kshs.org/geog/geog_counties/view/county:ED Edwards County, Kansas; Kansas Historical Society.]</ref>

N.C. Boles became the first postmaster in the county with the opening of the Peters post office at Kinsley, then known as Petersboro, in 1873. Kinsley's present name honors E.W. Kinsley, a Bostonian who generously funded the construction of the first church edifice, a Congregationalist building completed in 1875.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Cutler |first=William G. |url=https://kancoll.org/books/cutler/edwards/edwards-co-p1.html |title=History of the State of Kansas: With Biographical Sketches and Portraits |publisher=Library Reprints, Incorporated |isbn=978-0-7222-4875-1 |language=en}}</ref>

The infamous grasshopper raid of 1874 decimated crops, leaving many residents without means to sustain themselves. The county commissioners petitioned Governor Osborn for aid, emphasizing the plight of families and advocating for work programs over handouts.<ref name=":0" />

In its first decade, Kinsley suffered two planned train robberies, as well as a bank robbery on December 9, 1882. The County Treasurer, J. W. Crawford, was implicated in the bank robbery and removed from office.<ref name=":0" />