Editing Independence, Kansas (section)

==History==
{{See also|History of Kansas}}
The Osage Indians had settled much of southeast Kansas over the course of the 1830s and 40s and sold land claims over the course of the 1860s to incoming American homesteaders and moved into [[Indian Territory]] (present-day Oklahoma) where they became settled farmers, selling their whole remaining claim to the United States government in 1870 for $1.25 an acre.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tindle |first=Lela |title=Wilson County Kansas: People of the South Wind. |publisher=Curtis Media Corporation |year=1988 |isbn=0-88107-110-2 |location=Dallas, Texas |language=English}}</ref>

Independence was settled on land that was purchased from the [[Osage Nation]] in September 1869 by George A. Brown for the price of $50.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Duncan |first=L. Wallace |url=https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/008652623 |title=History of Montgomery county, Kansas |date=1903 |publisher=L. Wallace Duncan; Press of Iola Register |location=Iola, Kan. |pages=85–129}}</ref> Brown originally called the townsite '''Colfax''' after [[Schuyler Colfax]], vice president under President [[Ulysses S. Grant]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Rydjord|first=John|title=Kansas Place-Names|year=1972|publisher=University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, Oklahoma|page=349|isbn=0-8061-0994-7}}</ref> On August 21, 1869 a group of [[Oswego, Kansas]] men led by R. W. Wright settled there with the intent to make Independence the county seat.<ref>Sherwood, Leon (1970). ''Official Centennial History of Independence, KS'', p. 6. Independence Centennial Inc.</ref>  E. E. Wilson and F D. Irwin opened the first store in October 1869, naming it Wilson & Irwin Groceries.<ref>Sherwood, Leon (1970). ''Official Centennial History of Independence, KS'', p. 7. Independence Centennial Inc.</ref> Independence was designated county seat in 1870.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_o8X5krq3fP8C | title=Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History, Embracing Events, Institutions, Industries, Counties, Cities, Towns, Prominent Persons, Etc. | publisher=Standard Publishing Company | author=Blackmar, Frank Wilson | year=1912 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_o8X5krq3fP8C/page/n895 899]}}</ref>

On April 17, 1930 the city was the first to use a permanent lighting system for an exhibition baseball game: it was held between the [[Independence Producers]] and [[House of David (commune)#Baseball teams|House of David]] semi-professional baseball team of [[Benton Harbor, Michigan]]. The Independence team won with a score of 9 to 1 before a crowd of 1,700 spectators.<ref name="Bowman">{{cite web |last=Bowman |first=Larry G. |date=Winter 1995–1996 |title=I Think It Is Pretty Ritzy Myself: Kansas Minor League Teams and Night Baseball |url=https://www.kshs.org/publicat/history/1995winter_bowman.pdf |work=Kansas History |publisher=Kansas Historical Society |pages=248&ndash;257}}</ref>

Miss Able, a [[rhesus macaque|rhesus]] monkey, was born at Ralph Mitchell Zoo. Miss Able along with [[Miss Baker]], a [[squirrel monkey]], became the first monkeys that the United States used in its space program to fly in space; they returned alive on May 28, 1959.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.kansas.com/2010/03/22/1236075/kansan-among-first-to-go-to-space.html |title=Kansan among first to go to space &#124; Wichita Eagle |access-date=2013-02-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131015203456/http://www.kansas.com/2010/03/22/1236075/kansan-among-first-to-go-to-space.html |archive-date=2013-10-15 |url-status=dead }}</ref>