Editing Atchison, Kansas (section)

===Founding===
[[File:Atchison1860.jpg|thumb|right|Commercial Street, 1860]]
[[File:Atchison, Kansas (circa 1880-1900).jpg|thumb|right|Looking north at the rail yard beneath the lower Sixth Street viaduct, circa 1880-1900]]

Atchison was founded in 1854 and named in honor of Missouri senator [[David Rice Atchison]], who, when Kansas was opened for settlement, interested some of his friends in the scheme of forming a city in the new territory.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia| editor=Frank W. Blackmar| editor-link=Frank W. Blackmar| title=Atchison| url=http://www.skyways.org/genweb/archives/1912/a/atchison.html| encyclopedia=Kansas: a cyclopedia of state history, embracing events, institutions, industries, counties, cities, towns, prominent persons, etc ...| volume=I|  publisher=Standard Pub Co| location=Chicago| year=1912| pages=108–111}} The primary source for this history.</ref> Senator Atchison was interested in ensuring that the population of the new Kansas Territory would be majority [[Slavery in the United States|pro-slavery]], as he had been a prominent promoter of both slavery and the idea of popular sovereignty over the issue in the new lands. However, not everyone agreed upon the location he had selected, and on July 20, 1854, Dr. [[John H. Stringfellow]], Ira Norris, Leonidas Oldham, James B. Martin, and Neal Owens left [[Platte City]], [[Missouri]], to decide definitely upon a site.  They found a site that was the natural outlet of a remarkably rich agricultural region just open to settlement.  George M. Million and Samuel Dickson had staked claims near the river; Dr. Stringfellow staked a tract north of Million's.  Million sold his claim for $1,000—an exorbitant price. Eighteen persons were present when the town company was formally organized by electing Peter T. Abell, president; James Burns, treasurer; and Dr. Stringfellow, secretary. The site was divided into 100 shares by the company, of which each member retained five shares, the remainder being reserved for common benefit of all.  By September 20, 1854, Henry Kuhn had surveyed the {{nowrap|480 acres (1.9 km<sup>2</sup>)}} and made a plat, and the next day was fixed for the sale of lots, an event of great importance as it had become understood that Senator Atchison would make a speech upon the political question of the day, hence the sale would be of political as well as business significance.  At his meeting on the 21st, two public institutions of vital interest to a new community were planned for—a hotel and a newspaper.  Each share of stock in the town company was assessed $25, the proceeds to be used to build the National Hotel, which was completed in the spring of 1855, and $400 was donated to Dr. Stringfellow and Robert S. Kelley to erect a printing office.{{Citation needed|date=March 2011}}

The ''[[Squatter Sovereign]]'', a paper with strong pro-slavery sentiments, was first issued on February 3, 1855.  It had formerly been published at [[Liberty, Missouri]], under the name of the ''Democratic Platform''.  In the spring of 1857 it was purchased by [[Samuel C. Pomeroy]], Robert McBratney and F.G. Adams, who changed its policy and published it as a free-state paper until the fall of the same year, when Pomeroy became the sole owner.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia| editor=Frank W. Blackmar| title=Newspapers| url=http://www.skyways.org/genweb/archives/1912/n/newspapers.html| encyclopedia=Kansas: a cyclopedia of state history, embracing events, institutions, industries, counties, cities, towns, prominent persons, etc ...| volume=II|  publisher=Standard Pub Co| location=Chicago| year=1912| pages=358–367}}</ref>

The first [[post office]] in Atchison was established April 10, 1855, with Kelley as postmaster.  It was opened in a small building in the block later occupied by the Otis house.  In July 1883, the free-delivery system was inaugurated.{{Citation needed|date=March 2011}}

For years there had been considerable trade up and down the Missouri River, which had naturally centered at [[Leavenworth, Kansas|Leavenworth]], but in June 1855, several overland freighters, such as Livingston, Kinkead & Co., and Hooper & Williams were induced to select Atchison as their outfitting point and formed the basis that established Atchison as a commercial center.  Early merchants to establish businesses in the new town were George Challis, Burns Bros., Stephen Johnston and Samuel Dickson.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o8X5krq3fP8C&q=George+Challis%2C+Burns+Bros.%2C+Stephen+Johnston+and+Samuel+Dickson&pg=PA109 |title=Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History, Embracing Events, Institutions ... - Google Books |isbn=9780722249055 |access-date=2019-12-27|last1=Blackmar |first1=Frank Wilson |year=1912 }}</ref>

On August 30, 1855, Atchison was incorporated.<ref>{{cite book|title=History of the State of Kansas: Containing a Full Account of Its Growth from an Uninhabited Territory to a Wealthy and Important State|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5t09AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA375|year=1883|publisher=A. T. Andreas|page=375}}</ref>  Dr. Stringfellow had North Atchison surveyed and platted in the fall of 1857.  This started a fever of additions.  In February 1858, West Atchison was laid out by John Roberts, and in May Samuel Dickson had his property surveyed as South Atchison.  Still another addition was made by John Challis.{{Citation needed|date=March 2011}}

Until 1858, the city was a pro-slavery bastion, but by that year, the anti-slavery forces took control of the city. On February 12, 1858, the legislature issued a charter to the city of Atchison, which was approved by the people on March 2 at a special election.  The first city officers were elected at a second special election on March 13, 1858, and Republican Samuel C. Pomeroy was elected mayor.  The German element, largely Catholic, opposed the Sunday closing laws of the new city government, but a satisfactory compromise was reached that allowed the sale of beer on Sundays after church services.<ref>Turk, 1979, p 154</ref>