The History of CunninghamA history of Cunningham must begin with a history of Ninnescah. The Ninnescah Post Office opened August 20, 1885. The earliest existing copy of the Ninnescah Herald is dated August 12, 1886, being Volume 1, Number 20. This would place Volume 1, Number 1 at April 1, 1886, assuming that the paper was a weekly as it has been since. The editors and publishers of the Ninnescah Herald were C.L. Severy and J. Geo. Smith. These two names figure prominently in the history of both Ninnescah and Cunningham.
Communities developed for a number of reasons. Some started with one family, joined by friends or relatives. Many grew around a church. A trading post, fort, or a way station gave birth to others. In western Kansas, many towns were started by capitalists hoping to turn a profit. An evening spent with one of Fitzgerald’s Ghost Town’s of Kansas books verifies that fortunes were made and lost in the business of town-building.
In the 1870’s and 1880’s, the arrival of a railroad often determined which towns survived and which faded into history. While more research is needed, the relationship of C.L. Severy and J. Geo. Smith and their involvement in the development of Ninnescah, Kansas can be gleaned from the early newspapers and books available. C.L. Severy was the son of Luther Severy, an Emporia cattleman with vast holdings in land who was also a director of the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe railroad. He invested in several town companies, including one named for him in Greenwood County. C.L. Severy was the secretary of the Ninnescah Town Company, a real estate agent and loan agent, and owner of the first hotel in Ninnescah. J. Geo.Smith was Severy’s partner in the Ninnescah Herald. He was also involved in real estate and loans. It appears that the two were partners in several ventures centering on promoting the town of Ninnescah.
On September 2, 1886, the partners sold the Herald to W. M. Bacheller, who published the paper until October 28, 1886, when J. Geo. Smith reappears as editor and publisher. During this time, Mr. Severy returned to Emporia and Mr. Smith became partners with T.N. Price in the “land, loan, and insurance company of Price, Smith & Co.” Mr. Price was also a farmer, implement dealer, and owner of a hardware store in Ninnescah.
The first mention of Col. J. D. Cunningham in the Ninnescah Herald is on October 7, 1886. W.M. Bacheller writes: “Col. J.D. Cunningham of Chapin, Illinois, who has been in Ninnescah several weeks, has fallen in love completely with the west. He is largely interested in Kingman County and is one of the most sociable and pleasant gentlemen to be met anywhere and has met a host of friends who would gladly welcome him as a citizen. In behalf of our town we extend him the right hand of fellowship and tender him the welcome of all its citizens.”
In this same edition of the Herald Mr. Bacheller lists and describes many of the businesses in Ninnescah at the time. The town was prospering. The role of the Kingman, Pratt, and Western railroad was often mentioned along with the town’s prosperity. For a short time Ninnescah was its western terminus due to a delay brought on by a feud between Pratt Center and Saratoga.
These were boom times, with much happening in the area over a period of a few months. By February 3, 1887, Mr. Price had moved to Greensburg. Mr. Smith was in partnership with Mr. Clark in real estate.
The following is reprinted from an advertisement for Clark & Smith: “Hurrah! Hurrah! Now is Your Time to Buy Town Lots in Ninnescah. This rapidly growing little city is situated on the new extension of the Wichita & Western under the name of the Kingman, Pratt & Western. It has a beautiful location twenty miles to the west of Kingman and eighteen miles to the east of Pratt Center. The water is excellent and the large scope of the country tributary is rich and productive. Town lots are going up at a lively rate. Now is your opportunity. If you decide to build, three and five years will be given. It is bound to make a good town.”
On June 30, 1887, the following notice appeared in the Ninnescah Herald: “The books for the subscription of stock in the new town of Cunningham, will be closed Saturday, July 9th, 1887, and we respectfully request all those wishing an interest or add to their already acquired interest in the new “Farmer’s Town,” a mutual town with bright prospects in a highly cultivated country, should avail themselves before it is too late. A thorough explanation of the conditions, aims, and objects of the town will be given with the pleasure of application. One and all interested in this section of the country should not fail to investigate its advantages and invest. Shares, $10 each. Only a limited number left. COMMITTEE Headquarters: HERALD OFFICE”
Three items from the August 4, 1887, Ninnescah Herald show that while Cunningham was being born on the north side of the tracks, Ninnescah refused to yield on the south: “Col. J. D. Cunningham of Winsboro, Texas, is in the city for the purpose of transferring the new town site to the Town Company, and also to invest largely in the stock. The Col. is no stranger in our midst, having paid our city several visits in the past. Whole souled, jolly, and generous to a fault, his name will be a credit to the new town.”
“L. Severy, a prominent capitalist of Emporia, went east on the W & W on Friday. He had been at Ninnescah, where he has large property interests, seeing what there is to the Cunningham move…While the Leader has no desire to take part in the controversy over our western neighbors, it has no hopes of Mr. Severy ever doing the town any good.” (Kingman Leader quoted in the Ninnescah Herald).
“Mr. L. Severy had a streak of generosity and presented the Presbyterian church with an 800 lb. bell. It is already placed in position in the belfry and its ringing notes can be heard by all the community ‘round.”
Mr. Smith began using the name The Cunningham Herald for his paper on October 27, 1887. He provided his readers with several arguments for the new town of Cunningham, although his real estate company listed lots and buildings for sale in Ninnescah at the same time. Some buildings were physically moved from Ninnescah to Cunningham. While the move and change seemed popular, there are several names mentioned as being opposed to the move.
We end this account of Cunningham’s early days with a promise to continue as time and space permit. The tornado which struck Ninnescah on March 24th, 1888, seems to have been the death blow for the town, although many businesses and residences had moved prior to that date. It appears likely that Cunningham would have succeeded and Ninnescah faded without this disaster. Tornado of March 24, 1888 By the time the tornado devastated Ninnescah in 1888, the town of Cunningham was well established. Many businesses and residences had moved to the new town. The post office was still in Ninnescah and a handful of businesses and residents held onto the old name, but the new town company had been successful in its efforts to form a town north of the railroad tracks.