Editing Stevens County, Kansas (section)

==History==
{{See also|History of Kansas}}

In 1886, '''Stevens County''' was established.

The first settlers came from McPherson, Kansas in 1885, originally naming their town Hugo after Victor Hugo, before changing it to [[Hugoton, Kansas|Hugoton]]. Other early towns included Lafayette, founded by Quakers in 1886, and Moscow, established in 1887.

In the late 1880s and early 1890s, a violent "[[county seat war]]" raged between Hugoton, which had been designated the temporary county seat, and [[Woodsdale, Kansas|Woodsdale]]. Incidents included arrests, kidnappings, and killings.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Stevens County, Kansas - Kansapedia - Kansas Historical Society |url=https://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/stevens-county-kansas/15349 |access-date=April 19, 2024 |website=www.kshs.org}}</ref> The conflict culminated in the July 25, 1888, murder of Sheriff Cross of Woodsdale and three of his men in the [[Hay Meadow massacre|Hay Meadow Massacre]] by Sam Robinson of Hugoton and his supporters. Robinson fled and was never tried for the murders.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Gribben |first=Brian |title=Research Guides: Kansas Heritage: Stevens County |url=https://fhsuguides.fhsu.edu/kansasheritage/stevenscounty |access-date=April 19, 2024 |website=fhsuguides.fhsu.edu |language=en}}</ref> The issue was eventually resolved in 1887 when Hugoton became the permanent county seat, though tensions remained high for several years after.<ref name=":0" />

Natural gas was discovered in Stevens County in 1927, leading to the development of the Hugoton Natural Gas Area and transforming Hugoton into a major center of the natural gas industry.<ref name=":0" />

In the 1930s, the prosperity of the area was severely affected by its location within the [[Dust Bowl]]. This catastrophe intensified the economic impact of the [[Great Depression]] in the region.