Showing 671 results

George Thompson Fairchild (October 6, 1838 – March 16, 1901) was born in rural Lorain County, Ohio, and graduated with two degrees from Oberlin College. In 1865, Fairchild began his academic career as an instructor at State Agricultural College of Michigan. The following year he was made professor of English. Fairchild became vice president of Michigan State, and in 1878 he served as acting President.

In 1879, Fairchild was hired as the third President of Kansas State Agricultural College in Manhattan, Kansas. He took office on December 1. While at Kansas State, Fairchild stepped into an ongoing debate about the role of land grant colleges. While some felt that the college should be limited to agricultural and mechanical arts, Fairchild re-implemented a classical liberal arts education at Kansas State. Fairchild restored classics courses and brought in prominent professors. He also bolstered the number and caliber of students at Kansas State, lifting attendance at the young school from 207 to 734 students during his tenure. President Fairchild retained his position at Kansas State until June 30, 1897. Fairchild submitted his resignation that year in connection with a complete restructuring of the college by members of the Populist Party on the state Board of Regents, who terminated every employee of Kansas State because the Board disagreed with the University's direction.

After leaving Kansas State, Fairchild became a professor of English and vice president at Berea College in Berea, Kentucky. Fairchild’s book, Rural Wealth and Welfare: Economic Principles Illustrated and Applied in Farm Life, was published in 1900.

The Gavitt Medical Company was formed about 1868 from W. W. Gavitt's work as an agent for Dr. Perkins Medical Co. of Washington, D. C. Based in Topeka, the Gavitt company sold medical products to customers all over the United States. The most popular product was a laxative, Gavitt's System Regulator, which was sold through direct mail and by agents. The company  rose to prominence in 1889 when Harry E. Gavitt, William's son, reorganized the company. The company closed in 1967.
William Wellington Gavitt was born on 9 February 1840 in Delaware county, Ohio, the son of Rev. Ezekiel Stanton and Elizabeth (Miller) Gavitt. He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1862, moving to Topeka, Kansas in 1867 where he organized a real estate and coal business. In 1869 he commenced his banking and loan career. He married Jennie Ledie Spangle (b. 15 June 1853, d. 04 Feb 1899) on 23 June 1873. They had three children: Harry Ezekiel, Corrington Spangle, and Elizabeth (Gavitt) Brunt. William was the president of W.W. Gavitt and Company, the Gavitt Loan and Investment Company, the W. W. Gavitt Medical Company, and the W. W. Gavitt Printing and Publishing Company at the time of his death on 11 January 1922.
Harry Ezekiel Gavitt was born in Topeka, Kansas, 01 January 1875. He graduated from Washburn Law School, and took private courses in medicine, pharmacy, and chemistry from the University of Kansas. He re-organized the Gavitt Medical Co., founded by his father. In 1903, he invented the game Gavitt's Stock Exchange which became so popular by 1904 he sold partial interest in it to Parker Brothers, allowing them to refine and publish it under the name of Pit. He married Edith Snyder (1879-1936) on 17 May 1905. In 1934, Harry was manager of the W. W. Gavitt Printing and Publishing Co. and vice-president of the Topeka State Bank. He died in 1954.

The Friends of the Konza Prairie is a non-profit organization dedicated to the support of the Konza Prairie environmental education program. The origins of the Konza Prairie can be traced to 1872 when C.P. Dewey purchased 175 acres of land in what is now the northwest corner of the Konza. Dewey sold the land and his ranch in 1930, after which the land had multiple owners. Lloyd Hulbert had first proposed the idea for a prairie field station for ecological research at Kansas State University in 1956, but it wasn’t until 1971 that the Natural Conservancy was able to obtain the original Konza Prairie land for K-State. This original purchase did not include the Dewey Ranch land, as this was acquired in 1977 after several years of negotiations with the McKnight family, the last private owners of the property. Hulbert served as the first director of the Konza Prairie until his death in 1986, overseeing the addition of prairie land to the U.S. Geological Survey’s network of benchmark watersheds and the dedication of the Konza Prairie Research Natural Area Network dedicated to long-term ecological research. Bison and cattle grazing were introduced to the Konza in 1987, while from 1987 to 1989, NASA Satellite Land Surface Climatology Projects were conducted at the prairie. In 1993, the Friends of the Konza Prairie was established. Over the past few decades, the Konza’s research and maintenance facilities have continued to be improved and expanded.

Konza Prairie Directors:
Lloyd Hulbert: 1971-1986
Donald W. Kaufman (acting director): 1986-1987
Ted Barkley: 1987-1990
Donald W. Kaufman: 1990-1991
Ted Barkley: 1992-1993
Jim Reichman: 1993-1995
David Hartnett: 1995-2006
Eva Horne (interim director): 2006-2008
John Briggs: 2008-2018
John Blair: 2018-present

Friends of Konza Prairie Coordinators:
Ginny Arthur: 1994-1997
Ann Feyerharm: 1998-1999
Clint Riley: 2000-2001
Jim Guikema: 2002-2003
Charlie Given: 2004
Loren Alexander: 2005
Dan Franke: 2006
Larry Loomis: 2007-2008
Patrick Gormerly: 2009
Vickie Clegg: 2010
Mike Haddock: 2011
Greg Zolnerowich: 2012
Karen Hummel: 2013-2014
Diane Barker: 2015
Joe Gelroth: 2016
Donna McCullum: 2017
John Harrington: 2018
Cydney Alexis: 2019
Ken Stafford: 2020
Kelly Yarbrough: 2020
Jim Koelliker: 2021

Dr. Barry Flinchbaugh was a professor at Kansas State University (KSU) for over 40 years. As a Professor Emeritus, Dr. Flinchbaugh taught undergraduates and educated KSU third generation families. Originally from York, Pennsylvania, Flinchbaugh earned a bachelor's degree in animal science in 1964 and a master's degree in agricultural economics in 1967, both from Penn State. He went on to earn a doctoral degree in agricultural economics from Purdue University. Dr. Flinchbaugh joined KSU in 1971, and conducted statewide public affairs educational programs in such areas as financing state and local government, food and agricultural policy, use value appraisal of Kansas farmland, and water policy. He served for four years as special Assistant to the President of KSU. Dr. Flinchbaugh served for five years as Chairman of the Alfred M. Landon lecture series on public issues. Dr. Flinchbaugh has been Director of Board of Trade of Kansas City (KCBT), Missouri, Inc. since January 2007. He had joined the KCBT board of directors in 1997.
Flinchbaugh is known as a leading expert on agricultural policy and agricultural economics. During his early professional years, he worked with leaders of both political parties on federal farm bills. He served on a variety of boards of directors, advisory organizations, and national task forces where he provided input on domestic food and agriculture policy and served as an advisor to industry and government leaders.
Dr. Flinchbaugh’s influence went beyond Kansas to the national and international arenas. He represented the agricultural community through active participation in the development of U.S. agricultural policy. He was a trusted adviser to industry leaders, members of Congress, presidents, cabinet secretaries, and international dignitaries. His service on numerous national task forces, boards of directors and advisory groups allowed him to provide input on domestic food and agriculture policy. He served as chairman of the Commission on 21st Century Production Agriculture, which was authorized in the 1996 FAIR ACT, also known as the Freedom to Farm Act.
Flinchbaugh was been honored with Outstanding Teacher Awards three times by Kansas State University and has been recognized by the agricultural industry with several honors. He received a Distinguished Service Award from the American Farm Bureau and recently was selected as one of Farm Credit's 100 Fresh Perspectives, a national recognition for leaders making positive contributions to agriculture and rural communities. Dr. Barry Flinchbaugh died November 2, 2020.

Max Marlin Fitzwater was born in Salina, Kansas, on November 24, 1942 to Max Malcolm and Phyllis Ethel [Seaton] Fitzwater. Raised on a farm in Dickinson County, he has used his middle name since childhood to distinguish himself from his father. He worked for the Abilene Reflector-Chronicle (Kansas) in 1961 before attending K-State for a year, and then was editor of the Lindsborg News-Record (Kansas) in 1962. While continuing at K-State, Fitzwater worked for various newspapers as a salesperson or correspondent that included the K-State Collegian, Manhattan Mercury (Kansas), Topeka Capital-Journal, and Abilene Reflector-Chronicle.

After his graduation from K-State (B.A. in Journalism, 1965), Fitzwater left for the Washington, D.C., area where his fiancee, Linda Kraus, was employed. They married soon thereafter and later divorced in 1980. They had two children together. He married Melinda Andrews in 1999.

Fitzwater's career in the federal government included the following:

1965–1967: Assistant in the Public Affairs Department of the Appalachian Regional Commission
1967–1970: Served in the United States Air Force
1970–1972: Speechwriter in the Department of Transportation
1972–1980: Press Officer and eventually Director of Press Relations, Environmental Protection Agency
1981–1983: Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, Treasury Department
1983–1985: Deputy Press Secretary to the President for Domestic Policy, The White House
1985–1987: Press Secretary to the Vice President, The White House
1987–1989: Assistant to the President for Press Relations, The White House
1989–1993: Press Secretary to the President, The White House

Mr. Fitzwater received the Presidential Citizen Medal in 1992. He worked on the television show The West Wing as a consultant. In 2002, Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, New Hampshire, completed the Marlin Fitzwater Center for Communication in his honor.

He is the author or co-author of the following books:

Call The Briefing! Bush and Reagan, Sam and Helen: A Decade with Presidents and the Press. New York: Times Books, 1995.
Esther's Pillow: The Tar and Feathering of Margaret Chambers. New York: Public Affairs, 2001.
(With Woody Klein and Dee Dee Myers) All the Presidents' Spokesmen: Spinning the News, White House Press Secretaries from Franklin D. Roosevelt to George W. Bush. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2008.
Death in the Polka Dot Shoes: A Novel. Terrace, BC: CCB Publishing, 2011
Sunflowers: A Collection of Short Stories. Terrace, BC: CCB Publishing, 2011.
Oyster Music. Tallahassee, FL: Cedar Winds Publishing, 2012.
Calm Before the Storm : Desert Storm Diaries and Other Stories. Leesburg, FL: Sea Hill Press, 2019.

Doris Fenton was born January 9, 1899, and died November 3, 1993.

Marjorie L. Honstead Feldhausen was a native Kansan and U.S. Army nurse during World War 2. Feldhausen graduated from Christ Hospital School of Nursing in Topeka, Kansas in 1942, followed by an appointment to the U.S. Army Nurse Corps Reserve as a 2nd Lieutenant in 1943. In September 1943, Feldhausen was deployed to 316th Station Hospital at Camp Stover in Newton Abbot, England, before being moved to the 316th Holding Hospital in Glasgow, Scotland in 1944. In June 1945, Feldhausen served in Marseille, France for two months, after which she returned to the United States. She was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army in January 1946. Feldhausen also received a degree in Home Economics in 1950 from Kansas State College.

Norman Fedder was a playwright and well-known professor of English and Theater. Fedder earned his B.A. in Speech and Theatre from Brooklyn College in 1955, his M.A. in Dramatic Literature in 1956 from Columbia University, and his Ph.D. in 1960 from New York University. He began teaching in 1956 and taught at multiple universities over the years, including Indiana State College from 1961 to 1964, Florida Atlantic University from 1964 to 1967, and the University of Arizona from 1967 to 1970. Fedder arrived at K-State in 1970, where he was a professor until his retirement in 1999. In 1988, he was awarded the William Stamey Outstanding Teacher Award, and in 1990 he was inducted into the Kansas Theater Hall of Fame. Fedder's specializations included play writing, creative drama, drama therapy, religion and theatre, Jewish theatre, drama in Jewish education, American ethnic theatre, staging of original plays, and dramatic literature. Fedder also wrote the original play “Never Let ‘em Catch You at It: An Evening with Milburn Stone.” The play was about actor Milburn Stone, who played the role of Doc Adams on the TV show “Gunsmoke.” It was performed in Dodge City, Kansas in 1989 and again in Hutchinson in 1995.

Francis David Farrell was born March 13, 1883 in Smithfield, Utah.  He was called Dave by his friends.  He graduated from Utah State College in 1907 and then, in 1910, worked at the University of Idaho as a professor of irrigation and drainage and organized the first Agricultural Extension Service at that University.  His wife, Mildred Leona Jenson, was born September 11, 1887 in Utah, the only child of Nels and Johanna Wilhelmina (Holmgren) Jenson.  She met Francis in Logan, Utah, where she was attending preparatory school.  After receiving her degree in English from the University of Utah, she taught high school English at her alma mater, Brigham High School.  On September 16, 1913, Francis and Mildred were married.
The couple then moved to Washington, D.C., in 1911, where Francis worked with the Department of Agriculture in irrigation investigations and reclamation projects.  During their time in Washington Mildred gave birth to a daughter, Frances.  In 1918, at the request of their old friend from Utah State College, Pres. William Jardine, Farrells moved to Manhattan where Francis served as dean of agriculture and director of the Agricultural Experiment Station for KSAC.  They rented a house near the Jardines' at 1007 Houston.
In 1925 Professor Farrell became president of K-State and, in that same year, was awarded an honorary doctorate of agriculture from the University of Nebraska.  Dr. Farrell’s tenure lasted 18 years,.  His successor, Dr. James A. McCain, credited the leadership of President Farrell and administrators like him with “the vital role of the land-grant universities in the nation and the world today.”  During his administration President Farrell managed to keep the campus open and active through the Great Depression and World War II and, in times of plenty, strengthened the academic basis of KSU by supporting the arts, library, and cultural resources.  He also brought together one of the finest faculties in the nation.  The names of many of the professors and administrators under Farrell read like a list of campus buildings.  This faculty included J.T. Willard, James Ackert, Margaret Justin, Leland Call, Ray Throckmorton, A.D. Weber, Paul Weigel, Roy Seaton, and R.R. Dykstra.  As a result of his love of reading history, philosophy, poetry and fiction and in recognition of his contributions to the academic life of Kansas State the University Library was renamed in his honor in 1952.
Mildred was the only first lady to have a baby, a boy they named James, during her tenure.  Both of the Farrell children attended Eugene Field Elementary School and K-State.  She was an avid gardener, adding irises and peonies to the gardens around the president's house.  She was active in the Social Club, Domestic Science Club, AAUW, and Pi Beta Phi.  While president of the Social Club she revised the rules for a growing membership and created a Newcomers group.  She encouraged the group to purchase John Steuart Curry's "Sun Dogs" and several Birger Sandzen paintings, contributed to the Girl Scouts Little House, and purchased reading and recreational material for Fort Riley soldiers.
Farrell stayed on after leaving the presidency in his 60s, he said the university needed a younger executive, and remained a part of the faculty even after retirement.  He was a long time member of the Rotary Club, president of the Association of Land Grant Colleges and Universities, the Kansas State Historical Society, member of the agricultural Commission of the Kansas Bankers Association, and the Advisory Council of the National Broadcasting Company.
Following Mildred’s death in 1965, her husband moved to a retirement community in Topeka where he resided until his death on February 13, 1976.  Their ashes are inurned behind an inscribed plaque in the east wall of the nave at Saint Paul's Episcopal Church in Manhattan.
Created by Jordan Herman 08/10/2012

On January 27, 1928, Howard A. Cowden formed Cowden Oil Company in Columbia, Missouri.  During this year, Cowden saw a worth-while cause in the growing cooperative movement.  In late 1928, he moved the offices of Cowden Oil Company to Kansas City and made plans to establish a regional wholesale cooperative.  On January 5, 1929, Cowden Oil Company dissolved and its assets were transferred to a new corporation named Union Oil Company on February 16, 1929.  In 1931, the trade name "CO-OP" was used and in 1932 the first CO-OP tires, tubes, and batteries were produced. The first issue of the Cooperative Consumer newspaper appeared on December 10, 1933.  It provided a regular tie between the company and its patrons.
In 1935, the Union Oil Company changed its name to Consumers Cooperative Association (CCA).  At this time it served 259 local cooperatives and had $2 million in annual revenues. The growing company needed to expand its physical facilities so it purchased the property at 1500 Iron Street in Kansas City.  It was during this same year that the first Co-Op grease was produced.  The company continued to grow adding products such as paint, groceries, Co-Op tractors in 1936, Co-Op appliances, and a Consumers Insurance Agency in 1937.
A Cooperative Refinery Association was established in 1938.  In 1940,  the first CRA refinery was opened at Phillipsburg, Kansas and the first Co-Op oil well was launched at Layton, Kansas.  Additional refineries were opened at Scottsbluff, Nebraska (1941) and Coffeyville, Kansas (1944).
As the company grew it formed new divisions such as the National Cooperative Refinery Association (NCRA) and Cooperative Finance Association (CFA) in 1943, and Cooperative Farm Chemicals Association (CFCA) in 1951.  It also established feed mills, soybean plants, fertilizer plants, ammonium phosphate plants, meat packing plants, steel product plants, gas products plants, a pork plant, a battery plant, a nitrogen plant, phosphoric acid plants, and wheat products plants throughout the central plains.
The company moved headquarters to 10th & Oak, Kansas City (1944) then moved to 3315 N. Oak Trafficway (1956). In 1960, Howard A. Cowden saw the company's first $1 million sales day.  The next year, in 1961, he retired and Homer Young was named the president of the company.  In 1966, the company changed its name to Farmland Industries, Inc.  Under Young's tenure, the company expanded its headquarters building, was instrumental in the establishment of the North Kansas City industrial complex, launching of a phosphate plant in Bartow, Florida, and exceeded $300 million in sales.
Ernest Lindsey was named company president in 1967.  During his reign, the company acquired several companies such as Farmers Life Insurance Company, Des Moines, Iowa (1967), Southern Farm Supply Association, Amarillo, Texas (1968), Woodbury Chemical Company, St. Joseph, Missouri (1969).  Farmland merged with companies such as Minnesota Farm Bureau Service Company and Producers Packing Company, Garden City, Kansas in 1968 and with Far-Mar-Co, the United States largest grain co-op in 1977.
John Anderson was named the president of Farmland in 1978.  During his time the company celebrated its 50th Anniversary (1979), produced the television series "American Trail," organized Farmland World Trade Company with an export elevator located at Galveston, Texas, introduced the Co-op computer-based farm accounting system, and saw the first negative earnings for the company.
In 1983, Kenneth Nielson became president and three years later the company experienced a major loss in earnings even though it sold Terra Resources (1983), a gas plant in Lamont, Oklahoma (1984), the grain business (1985), and the steel products business (1985).
James Rainey became president in 1986 and made major expense reduction and organizational restructuring. Rainey eliminated nine divisional sales offices, and the Equipment and Supplies Division.  He sold the pork plant in Iowa Falls, Iowa, and the Texas gas plants.  He introduced the Master Commitment Agreement (1989), acquired a meat facility in San Leandro, California (1989), established a base capital plan, formed broadcast partners, and introduced the Farmland logo (1990).
In 1991, Harry D. Cleberg was named the president of Farmland.  He sold the battery and paint plants and the export elevator at Houston, Texas, and closed the Phillipsburg Refinery.  Several companies were acquired in 1993 such as Tradigrain, National Beef, Supreme Feeders, and National Carriers.  The first international office was opened in Mexico City (1993), the construction of an ammonia plant took place in Trinidad (1996), and a Farmland National Beef office opened in Tokyo (1998).  Several Limited Liabilities Companies (LLC) were formed under Cleberg's tenure such as Livestock Services of Indiana, LLC (1996), Triton Tire & Battery, LLC (1997), Agriland Technologies, LLC (1998), Agrifarm Industries, LLC (1998), Triumph Pork Group, LLC (1999), and Rocky Mountain Milling, LLC (1999).
Bob Honse became the president of Farmland Industries in 2000.  In 2001, Farmland ranked #170 on the Fortune 500 company list.  Its annual revenues were in excess of $11.8 billion.  In 2002, the company had 16,000 employees and faced a liquidity crisis resulting from fluctuations in commodity prices and increased operational and capital costs as well as the tightening of credit terms from suppliers and increased demands from its stockholders.  The company filed for Chapter 11 in May 2002.  Farmland Foods, Inc., organized in 1970, produces, sells, and exports pork products in the United States and Internationally.  In 2002,  the pork processing division was sold to Smithfield Foods for $367 million, and in 2014, it was acquired by The Smithfield Packing Company.  Farmland National Beef Packing Company was sold to U.S. Premium Beef for $232 million.  The fertilizer production division was sold to Koch Industries and the company's refinery and coke-to-nitrogen fertilizer plant were sold to a hedge fund.
On June 28, 2006, JPMorgan Bankruptcy & Settlement Services reported that all unsecured creditors were paid $1.04 for every dollar.

The Records of FAR-MAR-CO, Inc. and its predecessor organizations were donated to Kansas State University to start the Arthur Capper Cooperative Research Collection, as a resource for the study of cooperatives. FAR-MAR-CO was dissolved in 1985, prompting the directors to donate the material.

Clarence Jinks Etherington was born March 8, 1894 in Quincy, Kansas and died June 5, 1938 in Baggs, Wyoming. He attended Kansas State Agricultural College from 1912–1916.

Ernest Reuben Nichols was the fifth President of Kansas State University. Nichols was raised in northeastern Iowa. Nichols attended the State Normal School of Iowa, followed by the State University of Iowa, before being appointed an instructor of physics at Kansas State Agricultural College in 1890. In 1899, he was elected as the acting President of KSAC, becoming the official President in June of 1900. Though some on the Board of Regents criticized Nichols in his early years as President, he continued to serve until his resignation in June of 1908. In 1909, he was conferred an honorary Ph.D. degree from Kansas State along with the announcement that Nichols Gymnasium would be named in his honor. Following his leave from the Presidency, he managed the Thurston Teachers Agency and participated in various business ventures. Nichols suffered a paralyzing stroke in 1929 and died on November 26, 1938.

Andrew B. Erhart was born on November 14, 1910. He graduated from Kansas State University in 1933 and was appointed Superintendent of the Garden City Branch Experiment Station in 1948. Erhart died on January 5, 2004.

The Alpha Rho chapter of Epsilon Sigma Phi was chartered March 21, 1930 under the direction of Dean Harry Umberger. The original chapter consisted of thirty members. Their vision is to lead the Extension System in promoting and supporting professionalism in Extension.

Loren Wesley Elliott was born on July 21, 1910, to Howard and Blanche Eley Elliott at Lewis, Edwards County, Kansas. Elliott graduated from Kansas State University in 1935. On April 9, 1939, Elliott married Irene Belle Funnell at Palmer, Washington County, Kansas. Elliott died on August 7, 1992, at Clay Center, Clay County, Kansas.

Eidson was an architect who designed a number of K-State and Manhattan buildings; Patti’s career was in landscape architecture. William (K-State grad) was in private practice in Manhattan and died in January 13, 1979

Patti’s career was in landscape architecture (KSU grad). They were involved with Brent Bowman becoming part of the architecture firm. Patti went to OU in 1988 after teaching at several other universities. She died October 29, 1994.

Edwin C. Manning was born November 7, 1838, at Redford N. Y., the son of Lewis Frederick and Mary Patch Manning. In 1852 his family moved to Iowa.

In 1857, he started surveying for a short time. By 1859 surveying brought Manning to Marysville, Kansas. By December he was working in the newspaper field with R. S. Newell and Peter S. Peters in the publication of The Democratic Platform. He acquired entire control of the paper the following April, and the next month he returned to Jackson county, Iowa, to be married to Miss Delphine Pope, their wedding taking place May 22, 1860.

On July 31 a tornado swept through Marysville, and of the printing office there remained only the old Washington hand press. Having lost his business, he turned his attention to the reading of law while not otherwise employed. This he continued through the winter of 1860-1861.
Due to the Civil War in 1862 Manning enlisted in the Second Kansas, company H. In September, 1862, he was promoted to first lieutenant and transferred to an Indian regiment. With this regiment he served until the winter of 1863, when, his health failing, he resigned and returned to Marysville. There he purchased the Big Blue Union. In the summer of 1866 he moved to Manhattan and established the Kansas Radical. During 1868 he traveled through New Mexico, Colorado and western Kansas, having large contracts putting up hay for the government. In 1869 he took up a claim where Winfield now stands, and the next year organized and founded the town of Winfield. Prom 1875 to 1877 he published the Winfield Courier.

He was elected senator from Marshall, Washington, Riley and Eepublic counties in November, 1864. In 1868 he was made secretary of the senate, and in 1871 he was elected a member of the house of representatives from Cowley county, and reflected in 1878. In 1880 Mr. Manning gave up his residence in Kansas and did not return until 1896, when his affairs once more drew him to Winfield, and here he continued to reside with brief intermissions until his death. Mr. Manning was three times married, first to Delphine Pope, who died February 20, 1873. To this union were born four children, two of whom survive: Martha May, born February 6, 1868, at Manhattan, who married W. I. Goodwin at Washington, D. C., in 1894; Ernest Frederick, born at Winfield, March 18, 1871, who married Annie E. Thomas at Bridgeport, Conn., January 8, 1879. On January 3, 1874, Mr. Manning married Margaret J. Foster. To them two children were born, one of whom survives, Maggie Bell, born at Winfield, February 1, 1878, and married William F. Murphy at Kansas City, Mo., April 27, 1899. Mr. Manning's third marriage occurred November 5, 1881, when he married Miss Linnie Hall, a native of Wellfleet, Mass., born May 10, 1846. She died a short time before her husband.

Donald von Ruysdael Drenner was a writer, musician, and radio operator who also spent many years working as a librarian and an engineer. Born in 1915, Drenner first began operating an amateur radio station in 1928, and he was licensed by the Department of Commerce as a radio operator in 1931. From 1934 to 1935, while attending the University of Kansas, he began working on his first novel and his first symphony. Then, from 1935 to 1938, Drenner completed his first opera, his second symphony, and a book of poetry. Drenner continued to work in radio from 1938 to 1941 as an engineer at radio station KGGF, while remaining a prolific poetry writer. During World War 2, Drenner served in multiple military radio operations including for the BBC in London and under General Charles de Gaulle at Radio Luxembourg in France. After the war, Drenner returned to radio station KGGF from 1946 to 1949, and he also published a book on radio engineering. From 1959 to 1977, Drenner was the head librarian at the Coffeyville Carnegie Public Library during which time he helped establish the Kansas “System Libraries.” He was also a biomedical engineer consultant from 1972 to 1981 at the Coffeyville Memorial Hospital where he established the Coronary Care Unit. Drenner retired from the Library in 1977 and the Hospital in 1981. He died on April 7, 1995.

Louis H. Douglas was a political science professor at Kansas State University from 1949 to 1977 and received emeritus status after his retirement. He was a founder of the UFM Community Learning Center (UFM) and served on the board until his death in 1979. He spent much of his retirement helping UFM develop its programs. In 1980, UFM inaugurated the Lou Douglas Lecture Series in his honor and with the goal to extend understanding of public policies that can further democratize society.

The Dodge family of Kansas is a branch of the distinguished and widely-extended American Dodge family, which descends from two branches of the English Dodge family, one from Richard Dodge (1602-1671) and his brother William Dodge (c. 1604-1685), and the other from Tristram Dodge (c.1628-1683), relation unknown. The Kansan Dodge family can be traced back with reasonable certainty to Richard Dodge, who settled in Massachusetts. Major General Grenville M. Dodge, the eponym of Fort Dodge and Dodge City, Kansas, is descended of John Dodge (c. 1631-1711), son of Richard Dodge and the elder brother of Joseph Dodge (1651-1716), from whom the Kansan Dodges are descended.
The Dodge family arrived in Kansas when Orlando A. Dodge (1824-1897), originally from Ohio, left Illinois for a Blue River farm in Manhattan Township (Riley County), north of Manhattan, Kansas, which he settled with his first wife, Phebe, who died in 1872. He subsequently married Olive Pickett and sired six children in addition to his first five with Phebe. After losing the Blue River farm in a horse race bet, Orlando Dodge settled the 440-acre Springdale farm on Tuttle Creek in the Sedalia neighborhood, where he became one of the early members of the Sedalia Presbyterian Church (renamed the Sedalia Community Church in 1964). Olivia Pickett Dodge was a charter member of the Sedalia Church, and served as Sunday School Superintendent and teacher.
William Pickett Dodge (1877-1966), the eldest son of the union of Orlando & Olivia Dodge, and the sixth-born offspring of Orlando Dodge, was born and raised in Sedalia. He wed Faith Adella Cooper, daughter of Hugh McFadden and Anna Cooper of Sedalia, who were also charter members of the Sedalia Presbyterian Church. Like his father, Orlando, William Pickett was farmer in Riley County, Kansas. He was named one of the Master Farmers of Kansas in 1933.
Robert “Bob” Hugh Dodge (1906-1997), the eldest son of William Pickett Dodge, was a soil conservationist, and graduated from Kansas State University (formerly Kansas State Agricultural College) in 1930 with a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture.