Our Past Is Present May 28, 2018

May 28, 2018

            This is “Our Past Is Present” from the Geary County Historical Society.

            Today’s story comes from an article written about Logan Grove for the Junction City Daily Union newspaper by Gaylynn Childs, retired Executive Director of the Geary County Historical Society.  Gaylynn wrote that “although Logan Grove is no longer directly accessible, it was a 20 acre tract of walnut trees across the Smoky Hill River south of Junction City.  A bridge at the south end of Washington Street connected the area to the growing community until the 1950s.  Logan Grove was named for Civil War General John A. Logan, founder of the G.A.R. and a personal friend of the owner Robert Henderson.  Robert Henderson and his wife Elizabeth had the distinction of being the first family to live in Junction City.   

            When the Civil War started, Henderson offered his service to his adopted country again and was made a captain in the Kansas Volunteer Cavalry and served through the war under General Jonathan Logan. After the war, Henderson returned to his home and began settling on his acreage. 

            As homes and farms were established in the area, Henderson designated the grove as a community picnic spot in 1888 and named it after his leader in the Civil War.  Logan Grove was the site of many Geary County celebrations and gatherings through the years.  In fact, the first picnic held there was in honor of Charles A. Reynolds, an Episcopal Chaplain at Fort Riley, who later became the rector of the Episcopal Church in Junction City.

            Also in 1888, there was a moonlight picnic and gathering of 100 young people who brought with them baskets of good things to eat. In 1902, Henderson erected a granite obelisk on the site, which was a monument to Coronado and the ancient village of Quivera, supposedly reached by Coronado.    In 1937, the Henderson farm was sold and the historic Logan Grove was acquired by the American Legion. 

            The flood of 1951 washed out the bridge, which had given Junction Citians access to the spot for nearly 100 years.  In the mid-1970s the granite obelisk was removed from the site and placed in Coronado Park on South Washington Street.  This monument can still be seen at the Coronado Park.

            Well… that’s today’s story on “Our Past Is Present” from the Geary County Historical Society.