Atchison: Amelia Earhart's Birthplace on the Missouri River
Atchison was founded in 1854 and named after U.S. Senator David Rice Atchison of Missouri, who supported the expansion of slavery into Kansas Territory. The city occupies bluffs above the Missouri River in northeast Kansas and was one of the most important river towns in the territory before railroads shifted commercial traffic. Amelia Earhart was born in Atchison on July 24, 1897, in her grandparents' home overlooking the river.
The Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum, maintained by The Ninety-Nines (an international organization of women pilots), preserves the house where Earhart was born. Benedictine College, a Catholic institution formed from the 1971 merger of St. Benedict's College and Mount St. Scholastica College, enrolls about 2,200 students on a campus above the town. The city's population is approximately 10,700.
Atchison's downtown commercial district features nineteenth-century brick buildings along Commercial Street. The Atchison Rail Museum documents the city's railroad heritage. The town also markets itself as one of the most haunted cities in Kansas, running ghost tours through its historic homes and buildings during October.
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Atchison was founded in 1854 and named after U.S. Senator David Rice Atchison of Missouri, who supported the expansion of slavery into Kansas Territory. The city occupies bluffs above the Missouri River in northeast Kansas and was one of the most important river towns in the territory before railroads shifted commercial traffic. Amelia Earhart was born in Atchison on July 24, 1897, in her grandparents' home overlooking the river.
The Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum, maintained by The Ninety-Nines (an international organization of women pilots), preserves the house where Earhart was born. Benedictine College, a Catholic institution formed from the 1971 merger of St. Benedict's College and Mount St. Scholastica College, enrolls about 2,200 students on a campus above the town. The city's population is approximately 10,700.
Atchison's downtown commercial district features nineteenth-century brick buildings along Commercial Street. The Atchison Rail Museum documents the city's railroad heritage. The town also markets itself as one of the most haunted cities in Kansas, running ghost tours through its historic homes and buildings during October.
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