Wichita, Kansas


Wichita is located in the south-central part and is the largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas. Wichita is also known as the Air Capital of America.



To See And To Do In Wichita


  • Wichita Art Museum
  • Sedgwick County Zoo
  • The Mid-America All-Indian Center
  • Exploration Place Science Museum
  • Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum
  • The Great Plains Transportation Museum
  • Sedgwick County Extension Arboretum
  • Sand Creek Station Golf Course
  • Downtown


History Of Wichita - Timeline


The Wichita area was visited by the Spanish explorer Francisco Vásquez de Coronado in 1541. He encountered a group of Indians who have been identified by archeological and historical studies as Wichita Indians. The first white settlers came to the area around 1850. They hunted and traded with the native population. In 1864, J. R. Mead became the first settler to open a trading post on the site of Wichita. In 1867, the native people were removed and more white settlers now arrived.

In 1870, Wichita was officially incorporated as a village. In 1872, the railroad arrived and the daily newspaper "The Wichita Eagle" was published. In 1875, Wyatt Earp joined the Wichita marshal's office. In 1886, Wichita was incorporated as a city. In 1887, the Carey House (Eaton Hotel) was built. In 1888, the original City Hall building was completed. (Today's Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum). Also in 1888, the twenty-eight room "castle" B. H. Campbell House was built. In 1894, the Governor L. D. Lewelling House was built. In 1895, Wichita State University in was founded as Fairmount College.

Wichita reached national fame in 1900 when Woman's Christian Temperance Union member Carrie Nation decided to carry her crusade against alcohol to Wichita. In 1910, the Arkansas Valley Lodge No. 21, Prince Hall Masons was built. In 1911, the Bitting Building was completed. In 1914, oil was discovered and Wichita became a major oil center. In 1915, the Allen House was built for Governor Henry Justin Allen and his wife, and the Wichita City Carnegie Library Building was completed. In 1917, the first plane, the Cessna Comet, was manufactured in Wichita. In the 1920s and early 1930s, the aircraft corporations Stearman, Cessna, Mooney and Beech were founded in Wichita.

In 1941, the Dunbar Theatre opened. In 1951, the actress and comedian Kirstie Alley was born in the city. In 1958, Pizza Hut was founded in the city by the Carney brothers, Dan and Frank. In 1971, the Sedgwick County Zoo opened. In 1974, the Keeper of the Plains sculpture was completed. In 1975, the two-story shopping mall "Towne East Square" opened. In 1989, the Epic Center building was completed. In 2010, the 15,004-seat multi-purpose arena "Intrust Bank Arena" opened.