County Affairs, Norton County

Scope and content: This letter, dated September 17, 1887, is from the Notary Public, Albert Graves, and real estate owners of Norton County, Kansas regarding the county surveyor to Kansas Governor John Martin. Albert Graves enclosed an official signed petition appointing Charles E. Worthington to the recently vacant county surveyor position. Worthington's predecessor, Cirus Ramage, was removed. Norton County was founded on August 22, 1872. The organization of the county, however, was premature and fraudulent, orchestrated by H. B. Billings who falsified population statistics and then fled the county. This prompted a county seat war that did not end until 1878 when Norton became the county seat. The county gets its name from Civil War soldier Orloff Norton, who was killed at Cane Hill, Arkansas, in 1864.