Editing Moundridge, Kansas (section)

===19th century===
In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France, keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, most of the land that comprises modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile [[Louisiana Purchase]].

In 1854, the [[Kansas Territory]] was organized under the provisions of the [[Kansas–Nebraska Act]], then in 1861 [[Kansas]] became the 34th US state. In 1867, [[McPherson County, Kansas|McPherson County]] was established, which included the land for modern day Moundridge.

In 1876, the community was founded with the name '''Christian'''.<ref name="CityWebsite-History" /> In 1887, it was renamed and incorporated as '''Moundridge''' on account of the elevation of the town site.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5zdAAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA232 |title=Biennial Report of the Board of Directors of the Kansas State Historical Society |publisher=Kansas State Printing Plant |author=Kansas State Historical Society |year=1916 |pages=232}}</ref><ref name="CityWebsite-History">[https://web.archive.org/web/20170430054336/http://www.moundridge.com/community/history.html History of Moundridge; City of Moundridge.]</ref>

Between 1874 and 1880, of the approximately 45,000 Mennonites who had been living in South Russia, 10,000 departed for the United States and 8,000 for [[Manitoba]]. Available cropland in the central United States was similar to that in their homelands in the [[Crimea|Crimean Peninsula]]. Since the central part of the state was settled, Kansas has enjoyed the reputation as the top wheat-producing state. Settlers in central Kansas, experienced in Russian methods of dryland farming and flour milling, introduced winter wheat in 1873 and quickly saw their industry become dominant.{{citation needed|date=January 2011}} The museums in nearby [[Hillsboro, Kansas|Hillsboro]] and [[Goessel, Kansas|Goessel]] demonstrate the lives and times of these early settlers.{{citation needed|date=January 2011}}

Almost all of the original settlers of McPherson County spoke German, many exclusively. With the coming of the automobile and the importance of commercial participation with the English-speaking citizens, the use of German diminished in importance. The participation of the United States in [[World War I|World Wars I]] and [[World War II|II]] dramatically increased the use of English and by the early 1940s, ministers rarely preached in German. As of the year 2000, a very small number of German religious publications are available, primarily for use by elderly congregants.{{citation needed|date=January 2011}}