Parsons

History

Parsons was named after Levi Parsons, president of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas (Katy) Railroad. The town was founded in 1870 and incorporated the following year by the railroad. The location for the town was chosen because it was on a flat ridge between the Labette Creek and Little Labette Creek and provided an ideal site for where the two branches of the railroad being built from Junction City, Kansas and Sedalia, Missouri would meet. The creeks were soon dammed to provide a water source. The railroad commenced building a massive rail yard, foundry, and locomotive shop at Parsons; for many years this was the third largest railroad facility west of the Mississippi River, with only Kansas City and Los Angeles being larger. Settlers from nearby towns uprooted and moved to Parsons, and new settlers arrived on every incoming train. Parsons soon became a major hub for several railroads, including the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad, the Parsons and Pacific Railroad, the Kansas City and Pacific Railroad, and the Memphis, Kansas & Colorado Railroad. In the early part of the twentieth century, Parsons operated its own street car system, and also had an interurban electric railroad connecting it to the nearby cities of Cherryvale, Independence, Coffeyville, and Nowata. During World War II it was home to the Kansas Ordnance Plant, which later operated for some years as the Kansas Army Ammunition Plant. In Spring of 2005, the munitions plant was placed on the BRAC list for closure. The community has rallied behind the current plant operator, Day & Zimmerman, to keep the company on the grounds after closure and to keep those jobs and more in the Parsons area. (See link to "Great Plains Industrial Park" in "External Links", below) Parsons is also home to the Parsons State Hospital…

Geography

Parsons is located at (37.339070, -95.269747). The city is at the junction of U.S. Route 59 and U.S. Route 400. Along US-59, the city of Erie (the county seat of Neosho County) is to the north and Oswego (the county seat of Labette County) is south and east. Big Hill Lake is several miles to the west of the city, and Lake Parsons is situated northwest of the city. The Kansas Army Ammunition Plant (KSAAP) is located southeast of the city. The facility was completed in 1942 to support World War II operations and consists of 21 separate facilities over . The installation is actively used as a munitions loading, assembly, and packing facility. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Labette County High School
  High · Altamont · 534 students · 17.8:1 ratio
• Parsons Sr High
  High · Parsons · 394 students · 14.1:1 ratio
• Meadowview Elem
  Elementary · Parsons · 342 students · 14.9:1 ratio
• Parsons Middle School
  Middle · Parsons · 295 students · 11.8:1 ratio
• Lincoln School
  Elementary · Parsons · 283 students · 16.6:1 ratio
• Altamont Elem
  Elementary · Altamont · 218 students · 18.2:1 ratio
• Garfield School
  Elementary · Parsons · 190 students · 11.9:1 ratio
• Guthridge School
  Elementary · Parsons · 186 students · 12.4:1 ratio