Do you know these places in Kansas?
Fragrant Hill, Voltaire, Achilles, Llanos, Crooked Creek, Paw Paw, Dor.
They're all townships... units of local government found within Kansas counties. Laws about Kansas townships are scattered throughout the Kansas Statutes with Chapter 80 devoted specifically to their governance, status and powers. Chapter 80 starts out: "Each organized township in this state shall be a body politic and corporate, and in its proper name sue and be sued, and may appoint all necessary agents and attorneys in that behalf, purchase and hold real and personal property for the use of the township, sell, convey and dispose of real and personal property owned by the township, and may make all contracts that may be necessary and convenient for the exercise of its corporate powers."
So, if you live in Kansas, do you know the names of all the townships in your county? No? Well, here's your opportunity to learn them!
Several years ago Rita Troxel here at the State Library of Kansas compiled an alphabetical list of all the townships in the state based on the 1980 U.S. Federal Census.
The list begins with numerically named townships and then proceeds from A to W. Sadly, X, Y, and Z got left out in the township name game! To find out the townships within each county do a search by county and see the townships within your county.
So what is the most common township name in Kansas? It's a tie between "Center" and "Lincoln."
You can view this list in the State Library's KGI Online Library here:
Kansas Townships: an Alphabetical Listing