Santa Fe Trail Marker #8, Trail Park Baldwin City, Ks.

This small park in Baldwin City, Ks. was created in 1907 to showcase the eighth of 96 markers placed by the Kansas chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution to mark the route of the Santa Fe Trail through the State of Kansas. The marker was installed on Oct 11, 1907 on land donated to the city. The Santa Fe trail ran along the southern border of the park, which is N. 400 rd today. The occasion was marked by a reunion of the original settlers of the town of Palmyra, the precursor to Baldwin City and an important stop on the trail. Members of the DAR's Baldwin City, Ottawa and Lawrence chapters were on hand to dedicate the stone and tell the crowd of the DAR's efforts to mark the route of the trail. The stone originally had a bronze plaque identical to the trail monuments in Olathe and Gardner. However, vandals stole the plague in 1968. The local chapter of the Santa Fe Historical Society replaced it with a marble copy in 1969.

One of the tenets of the Daughters of the American Revolution is “To perpetuate the memory of the spirit of men and women who achieved American Independence, by the acquisition and protection of historical spots, and the erection of monuments.” However, there being no sites even remotely associated with the American Revolution in the State of Kansas, the four Kansas chapters of the D.A.R. had long pondered how they would follow this mission. They had made some modest contributions to some local projects such as the Zebulon Pike monument in Republic County, Ks. but hadn’t spearheaded a project of their own. At the state conference in 1902, it was proposed that they mark the route of the Santa Fe Trail through Kansas, a project made official in 1903. Since its abandonment in 1872, much of the route had been forgotten or covered up by modern roads, farms, and towns. With much of the former trail lost, the Daughters of the American Revolution worked to rediscover its route, a task made even more difficult by the fact that travelers along the trail often took slightly different paths.

Over the next few years, a committee of D.A.R. volunteers consulted old maps and interviewed original settlers to ascertain the original route of the trail. As soon as people heard of the project, they received many letters from locals offering to help. Their assistance was invaluable, especially in the western sections, where the trail split into northern and southern branches. From their research, they commissioned their own map detailing the route through each county. By 1904, the D.A.R. was ready to petition the state legislature for funding. They consulted the “women clubs” in all the communities through which the trail passed to determine the best locations for markers. They determined the size and format for the markers, a bronze plaque on a red granite boulder sourced from Oklahoma. Their inspiration was the Santa Fe Trail marker in Kansas City, Missouri’s Penn Valley Park. In the end, due to cost constraints, they opted to chisel a similar inscription on the face of each monument.

In the end, the state appropriation of $1000 would prove to be far too little for the 96 markers they planned. They budgeted $20 per marker for construction, freight charges, concrete foundations and installment costs. So the D.A.R. appealed to Kansas school children and asked that they each donate a penny to the cause. This raised another $700. A few private individuals also sponsored the stones in their communities and Douglas County paid for its five stones. The markers were constructed and delivered throughout 1907 and early 1908. A team of workers was arranged ahead of time in each community to receive and install the stone at the prescribed location. Each dedication was a cause for celebration for the various communities. In all, the D.A.R. had successfully delivered and had installed 96 stone trail markers across the entire length of the Santa Fe Trail in Kansas.

This stone was installed on Oct 11, 1907 on a small triangle piece of land donated to the city for the purpose of a park. The Santa Fe Trail borders the park to the southwest, along what is now N. 400 Rd. The dedication was a cause for celebration for the city, which schedule a day of festivities including a reunion of surviving settlers from the original town of Palmyra, founded in 1856. Speeches were made in the town church by the Mayor of Baldwin City, George Martin, Secretary of the Kansas State Historical Society, and Miss Grace Meeker, State Secretary for the Kansas DAR. Afterwards, everyone processed the few blocks north to the new Trail Park, where the members of the Kansas DAR formally presented the marker to the city.

This marker was financed by the Douglas County government in differed from many of the other monuments in that it had a bronze plaque, identical to the monuments in Olathe and Gardner. However, vandals stole the plaque in 1968. The local chapter of the Santa Fe Trail Historical Society replaced the plaque with a marble replica in 1969. The metal interpretive sign was installed by the county in 1983 thanks to the efforts of local Baker University alumni and trail enthusiasts Amelia Betts and Katharine Kelley. A National Parks Service sign indicates a drivable section of the original trail to the south of the park along N. 400 Rd.

"Big Gathering." Jefferson Gazette (Lawrence) October 16th, 1907. .7.

"A Large Crowd." Baldwin Republican (Baldwin City) October 18th, 1907. .1.

Simmons, Mark. Following the Santa Fe Trail, A Guide For Modern Travelers. Santa Fe, New Mexico. Ancient City Press, 1984.

Kansas Society Daughters of the American Revolution. The Century Survey of the Kansas Santa Fe Trail DAR Markers Placed by the Kansas Society Daughters of the American Revolution in 1906. Topeka, Ks. Kansas Society Daughters of the American Revolution, 2010.

Kelley, Katherine B.. Along the Santa Fe Trail in Douglas County, Kansas: A Brief History of the Seven D.A.R. Marker Sites and Town Sites Along the Route of the Trail in Douglas County, Kansas. Self Published, 1987.

Kansas Chapters Daughters of the American Revolution. Ninetieth Anniversary Survey of the Santa Fe Trail DAR Markers in Kansas. Topeka, Ks. Kansas Society Daughters of the American Revolution, 1997.