Northwest Kansas
Thomas County, Kansas
Colby, Kansas ------------- HISTORY 101
Nearly a century ago, thousands of hardy, confident settlers came to Northwest Kansas to build a new home and family heritage. Many came in covered wagons, and others by train. In 1862, Congress decided that great overland railroads should be built from the Missouri River to the Pacific Coast. Also in 1862, the first Homestead Act was authorized. Lots of 160 acres were given free of charge, requiring only residence, cultivation, and improvement through timber culture. They could claim an additional quarter by promising to plant and care for ten acres of trees on that quarter for seven years. The earliest settlers arrived in 1879, finding undulating prairie with native timber limited to clumps of cottonwood trees.
In
1981,
The Union Pacific Depot was moved two miles from downtown Colby to
its present site on I-70 Frontage Road, halfway between Exit
53 & Exit 54.
In 1991,
The Union Pacific Depot became the home of Bourquin’s Farm
Market & Trading Company, Inc., better known now as
Bourquin’s RV Park & Event Center
Colby Community Profile....
General Data:
Founded:
1885, named in honor of J.R.Colby
Distance
to: Denver..........................220 miles
Distance
to: Kansas City, KS..............375 miles
Population: 5,600
Climate:
Average
January Temperature.......46 degrees
Average
April Temperature............61 degrees
Average
July Temperature.............91 degrees
Average
October Temperature........72 degrees
Average
Annual Precipitation......18.19 inches
Average
Annual snowfall..................15 inches
Elevation:
3,186
feet
Colby is just a great community! Colby has a High School, Middle School, Grade School, Catholic School, Christian School, Colby Community College, and KSU Northwest KS Research Extension Center. Colby has a Municipal Airport, Greyhound Bus Service, and Taxi Service. Colby has 2 newspapers, 3 Radio Stations, and 4 TV Stations(3 affiliate).
New for travelers built in 2004, is the new Colby Visitor's Center. And the Prairie Museum of Art and History is a stop not to be missed, just a short walk away from Bourquin’s Old Depot Event Center!
