LABETTE COUNTY.

BOUNDARIES AND NATURAL FEATURES.

LABETTE County is in the southeastern part of Kansas, in the second tier of counties from Missouri. It is bounded on the north by Neosho County, on the East by Crawford and Cherokee counties, on the south by the Indian Territory, and on the west by Montgomery County.

The general surface of the county is undulating, sloping gently toward the south in the direction of the flow of the streams. Along the water courses, are broad level bottom lands, comprising in the aggregate about one-fifth of the entire area of the county. That particularly along the Neosho is remarkable for its extent, beauty and fertility. Rising gracefully from these, are the undulating and picturesque divides. The soil generally is of superior fertility, all of which is susceptible of cultivation, there being no waste land to speak of in the county.

The county is well watered, being traversed by the Neosho River from north to south, with which numerous creeks become confluent, the most important of these being Big and Little Labette, Hackberry, Snow, Big Hill and Pumpkin creeks and others of less size.

The Neosho River, famed for its unsurpassed beauty, is a stream of considerable magnitude on which small steamboats are run on pleasure excursions.

About ten per cent of the area of the county is timbered, which is confined to belts along the streams, and which vary in width from a half to three-quarters of a mile along the smaller streams, and to two miles along the Neosho River. The principal varieties are black walnut, hickory, pecan, sycamore, hackberry, red and white elm, red, burr, barren and Spanish oak, mulberry, willow, cottonwood and maple. The walnut timber is of the best variety and the trees of large size. The largest tree of this kind, in the county, was felled some time since, measuring nine feet in diameter. The hickory timber is considered of the best quality, and of finer grain than that found in the timbered States in the East, and is valued for its excellence in manufacturing. Much attention is given to the growth of artificial timber, and it is only a question of short time when the county will abound with cultivated forests.

Flag, sand and lime stone are abundant and of the best grades, valuable for building and paving purposes.

Coal is found in various parts of the county, but in such limited quantities, as not to justify extensive mining operations, there being only one or two places where mining is carried on in a small way.

POPULATION.

              POPULATION (FEDERAL CENSUS).
===============================================================
                                               | 1870. |  1880.
-----------------------------------------------|-------|-------
(a) Canada Township .......................... |   480 |    675
(b) Elm Grove Township ....................... |   ... |  1,096
    Fair View Township ....................... |   464 |    852
(c) Hackberry Township ....................... |   637 |  1,104
(d) Howard Township .......................... |   ... |    752
    Labette Township ......................... |   282 |    626
    Liberty Township ......................... |   720 |    906
    Montana Township ......................... |   783 |    871
    Mound Valley Township .................... |   975 |  1,408
    Mount Pleasant Township .................. |   249 |    657
    Neosho Township .......................... |   515 |    728
    North Township ........................... |   581 |    895
    Osage Township ........................... |   930 |  1,394
    Oswego City .............................. | 1,196 |  2,351
    Oswego Township .......................... |   640 |    942
    Parsons City ............................. |   ... |  4,199
    Richland Township, including Chetopa City  | 1,744 |  2,585
    Walton Township .......................... |   477 |    694
-----------------------------------------------|-------|-------
                                               | 9,973 | 22,735
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    Chetopa City ............................. |   960 |  1,305
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(a) In 1872, part detached to form Howard.
(b) Organized in 1870, from part of Hackberry.
(c) In 1870, part detached to form Elm Grove.
(d) Organized in 1872, from part of Canada.