You’ll find Votaw’s remnants near Coffeyville, Kansas, where in 1881 Quaker humanitarian Daniel Votaw purchased 160 acres along the Verdigris River for African American settlers. The colony emerged during the Exoduster movement when Paul Davis led 25 families from Shelby County, Texas to establish a self-sufficient farming community. Though the settlement later declined due to flooding, economic hardships, and limited opportunities, Votaw’s pioneering spirit lives on as a powerful chapter in Kansas’s African American history.
Key Takeaways
- Votaw Colony, established in 1881 near Coffeyville, Kansas, transformed from a hopeful African American settlement into an abandoned ghost town.
- Economic hardships, limited infrastructure, and recurring floods from the Verdigris River contributed to the colony’s eventual decline and abandonment.
- Only 25 African American families initially secured land in Votaw, with others dispersing to nearby towns due to land scarcity.
- The absence of essential facilities like schools and medical centers accelerated the community’s transformation into a ghost town.
- Today, few physical remnants of Votaw remain, though its history represents a significant chapter in African American settlement in Kansas.
The Birth of an Exoduster Settlement
As thousands of African Americans fled oppressive conditions in the South during the Exoduster movement of the late 1870s, the Votaw Colony emerged in 1881 as a beacon of hope near Coffeyville, Kansas.
Located two miles north of Coffeyville along the Verdigris River, this settlement offered an escape from the harsh realities of sharecropping that had replaced slavery.
Through the efforts of Daniel Votaw, a Quaker humanitarian and attorney working with the Kansas Freedmen’s Relief Association, 160 acres were purchased from E.P. Allen.
Daniel Votaw’s compassionate work with the Kansas Freedmen’s Relief Association secured vital land for African American settlers seeking new beginnings.
The land was divided into affordable 8-acre lots, priced at $100 each with interest-free payment plans. The earliest land buyers included Susan Sanders and Henry Hill.
Led by Paul Davis, about 25 families seized this opportunity for land ownership, establishing a self-sustaining African American community that represented freedom from southern oppression. Like other settlements during the Great Exodus, approximately 60,000 African Americans sought refuge in Kansas between 1879 and 1881.
Paul Davis: Leading the Way North
When oppressive sharecropping conditions in Shelby County, Texas became unbearable, Paul Davis organized a determined exodus of 25 families and his own 16 children northward to Kansas in 1879.
As leader of this Exoduster migration, he guided his community through the challenging journey using ox-drawn wagons, horses, and on foot.
You’ll find Davis’s most significant achievement came after reaching Burlington, Kansas, where he connected with humanitarian Daniel Votaw.
Their partnership led to establishing the Votaw Colony near Coffeyville in Montgomery County.
Like his later namesake who would become a Kansas House Representative in 2002, Davis coordinated the purchase of eight-acre lots from a 160-acre parcel, helping families secure $100 payment plans.
His community leadership transformed the dream of independence into reality, creating a self-sustaining African American settlement that symbolized freedom from Southern oppression.
Daniel Votaw’s Vision and Support
Daniel Votaw, a Quaker social worker and attorney for the Kansas Freedmen’s Relief Association, played a pivotal role in establishing the colony that would bear his name near Coffeyville, Kansas.
In his vision for community empowerment, Votaw purchased 160 acres and divided them into affordable 8-acre lots, which he sold for $100 each.
You’ll find that his interest-free payment plans made land access possible for about 25 African American families fleeing oppression in Texas. He worked closely with Paul Davis to help these Exodusters establish farms and build independent lives.
Though environmental challenges and small plot sizes eventually led to the colony’s decline by 1895, Votaw’s humanitarian principles created essential opportunities for African American land ownership during the post-Reconstruction era. The families attempted to grow cotton crops but struggled due to the limited acreage available to them.
Life Along the Verdigris River
You’ll find that early settlers along the Verdigris River maximized the fertile bottomlands for corn and wheat cultivation, while using the river’s abundant water supply for livestock and household needs.
In seasons of heavy rainfall, the river’s floodwaters would spread across the valley floor, depositing rich silt that enhanced soil fertility but sometimes destroyed crops and homesteads. This was particularly devastating to the Votaw Colony when major floods in 1895 and 1900 forced many residents to relocate to Coffeyville.
The agricultural rhythm of life centered on managing these flood cycles, with farmers adapting their planting schedules and building practices to work within the river’s natural patterns. The completion of a wrought iron bridge in 1871 helped farmers transport their agricultural goods across the river more efficiently.
Riverside Agriculture Practices
Along the fertile banks of the Verdigris River, farmers in Votaw implemented extensive soil conservation practices to protect both their agricultural interests and the river’s ecosystem.
You’ll find evidence of their sustainable farming methods in the carefully designed grassed waterways and strategic buffer zones that prevented soil erosion. These heritage practices included installing grade stabilization structures and stone centers to manage water flow while maintaining ecological balance.
Local farmers embraced agricultural innovations like contour plowing and reduced tillage to preserve soil health.
They’ve planted native grasses along waterways, avoiding invasive species to protect water conservation efforts. You can still see remnants of their carefully planned riparian buffers, which filtered agricultural runoff and supported local wildlife while protecting the Verdigris watershed’s delicate balance.
Settlement Water Usage
While the Verdigris River served as Votaw’s primary water source, settlers also relied on abundant springs and shallow wells dug to depths of 25 feet.
You’d find families making daily trips to the riverbank for water collection, carrying their precious cargo back to homesteads for drinking, cooking, and washing. Buffalo and Sandy creeks provided additional water access points throughout the settlement.
Your daily life would’ve centered around water management, with communal wells and shared access points becoming social gathering spaces.
While the river’s proximity offered advantages, you’d have faced significant challenges from flooding, which often contaminated drinking supplies. The fertile bottomland soil width averaged one mile along the river’s edge.
The settlement’s 25 families developed cooperative water management strategies, establishing shared sanitation practices at schools, churches, and trading posts to maintain community health despite limited technology.
Seasonal Flooding Impacts
Living near the Verdigris River meant adapting to its seasonal flooding patterns, which peaked during late spring and early summer when heavy precipitation swelled the waterway.
You’d quickly learn that flood damage and agricultural losses were inevitable parts of life, requiring constant community preparedness and river management strategies.
The flooding’s impact on Votaw’s daily existence was profound:
- Floodwaters regularly destroyed crops and washed away valuable topsoil, forcing farmers to delay planting and invest in flood mitigation.
- Sediment distribution reshaped the landscape, altering flood risks and requiring updated infrastructure repair plans.
- Economic recovery often stretched across multiple seasons, straining local resources.
- Storm drainage systems and levees needed constant maintenance to protect homes and businesses.
The implementation of daily river forecasts in 2016 would have greatly benefited the community’s flood preparation efforts.
The Arkansas-Red Basin watershed influenced flood severity and frequency throughout the region, making flood prediction crucial for survival.
These challenges ultimately influenced Votaw’s fate as residents weighed the costs of staying against nature’s persistent threats.
Building a Free Community
As Paul Davis led African American Exodusters from Texas to Kansas in 1881, they partnered with Quaker humanitarian Daniel Votaw to establish a self-sufficient colony on 160 acres near Coffeyville.
You’ll find that these determined settlers demonstrated remarkable community resilience as they divided the land into eight-acre lots, priced at $100 each without interest. The flexible payment terms helped about 25 families achieve economic independence, freeing them from the oppressive sharecropping system they’d left behind in Texas.
The colony’s organization centered on family-owned plots and mutual cooperation, with settlers sharing farming duties, childcare, and protection responsibilities. Though they faced grueling journeys by ox-drawn wagons and on foot, these freed slaves built a distinctive African American settlement focused on self-determination and asset ownership. Like the early settlers of Columbia in Lyon County, they faced uncertainty about their land claims until surveys were completed.
Daily Struggles and Triumphs
You’d find the Votaw settlers engaged in constant physical labor, constructing basic shelters and preparing farmland near the Verdigris River with limited tools and resources.
Through mutual aid and shared farming efforts, the growing colony managed to sustain itself despite restricted access to established markets and the harsh Kansas climate.
The settlers’ determination manifested in their collective spirit, as families pooled their skills and labor to build homes, share food, and overcome daily hardships in their pursuit of independence.
Building Through Hard Labor
Through backbreaking labor and determination, Votaw’s settlers transformed their eight-acre plots into a functioning community in 1881.
You’ll find evidence of their resilience building in every structure they raised, using locally sourced materials and manual construction methods. Despite limited tools and harsh conditions, community labor prevailed as settlers worked together to establish their independence from sharecropping.
Their daily efforts included:
- Constructing log houses by hand while battling environmental challenges
- Building essential farming outbuildings for livestock and equipment
- Hauling water from the Verdigris River or digging wells for survival
- Maintaining homes, fences, and shared spaces through cooperative effort
This physical investment in their future represented more than just construction – it was their path to freedom and self-sufficiency.
Feeding the Growing Colony
While establishing their independence in Votaw Colony, settlers faced the daily challenge of feeding their growing families through a combination of subsistence farming, hunting, and foraging.
You’d find them working the variable soil near the Verdigris River, adapting their familiar Texas crops like corn and beans to Kansas’s different growing conditions. When harvests fell short, they’d turn to the river and woodlands for fish, small game, berries, and nuts.
Food preservation became vital to survival, with families building root cellars and using traditional techniques of drying, smoking, and salting to guarantee winter supplies.
They’d often create informal trading networks, bartering with neighbors and nearby Coffeyville merchants for essential supplies they couldn’t produce themselves.
Through crop adaptation and resourcefulness, these determined settlers sustained their dream of freedom.
Community Spirit Persists
The settlers of Votaw Colony faced more than just the daily quest for sustenance – they confronted the immense challenge of building a self-sufficient community from scratch.
Their community resilience emerged through shared experiences and collective determination, as families worked together to overcome economic hardships and establish new lives on Kansas soil.
Key aspects of Votaw’s cultural continuity included:
- Strong bonds between migrating families who supported each other during the difficult journey from Texas
- Cooperative land purchases that helped families secure $100 lots through interest-free payment plans
- Close-knit neighborhood arrangements that fostered daily collaboration and mutual aid
- Preservation of cultural traditions and family support systems that maintained community stability
Despite the colony’s eventual dissolution, the settlers’ spirit of determination proved that freedom and self-sufficiency were possible through unity and perseverance.
From Texas to Kansas: The Journey
In 1879, freed slave Paul Davis led approximately 25 families away from Shelby County, Texas’s oppressive sharecropping system toward the promise of Kansas.
The journey showcased remarkable cultural resilience as families traveled northward in ox-drawn covered wagons, on horseback, or by foot. Their migration narratives tell of harsh conditions and physical challenges along the rough terrain, yet they persevered with mutual support and unwavering determination.
Most travelers aimed for Burlington in Coffey County before ultimately settling in what would become the Votaw Colony.
Working with Daniel Votaw, a sympathetic Quaker attorney, and drawing inspiration from “Pap” Singleton’s Exoduster movement, these families sought more than just new land – they pursued true freedom from systems that still resembled slavery.
Located two miles north of Coffeyville near the Verdigris River, Votaw Colony emerged in 1881 as a sanctuary from Texas’s oppressive sharecropping system.
Daniel Votaw, a compassionate Quaker agent, purchased 160 acres and established fair payment terms that helped formerly enslaved families achieve land ownership and independence.
A Quaker’s compassion opened doors to freedom, as Daniel Votaw created paths to land ownership for those escaping slavery’s shadow.
The colony demonstrated remarkable community resilience despite agricultural challenges, offering:
- Eight-acre lots priced at $100 with interest-free payment plans
- Religious worship as a cornerstone of daily life
- Close-knit family networks supporting one another
- Freedom from the exploitative labor practices of the South
You’ll find that while settlers faced difficulties with cotton cultivation on small parcels, their determination to build a self-sufficient community represented a powerful step toward economic autonomy and dignity in post-slavery America.
The Disappearing Dream
You’ll find the story of Votaw’s decline written in the abandoned fields where African American settlers once dreamed of building lasting prosperity through farming and community solidarity.
Despite the initial promise of affordable land from Quaker Daniel Votaw and the determination of Paul and Martha Davis’s group who fled Texas sharecropping in 1881, the settlement couldn’t overcome the combined pressures of limited economic opportunities, harsh environmental conditions, and persistent racial barriers.
The younger generation’s exodus to urban areas for better prospects, coupled with the isolation from markets and infrastructure, gradually transformed this hopeful haven into another Kansas ghost town, leaving only memories of a courageous experiment in black self-determination.
Dreams Fade Like Dust
Hope slowly evaporated from Votaw Colony as the Exodusters’ dream of building a thriving, autonomous African American community confronted harsh realities.
You can trace the disillusioned settlers’ struggles through the isolation of their location two miles north of Coffeyville, where limited access to markets and resources stunted growth. Their fading aspirations collided with systemic barriers and economic hardships that proved insurmountable.
The community’s decline manifested in several ways:
- Financial difficulties prevented many families from purchasing land, forcing them to settle in nearby towns
- Lack of major industries and railroad connections inhibited economic development
- Agricultural mechanization reduced local labor needs and population
- Social institutions struggled to survive amid racism, discrimination, and dwindling numbers
Broken Hopes and Hardships
Despite the initial promise of affordable eight-acre lots at $100 each, the Votaw Colony’s settlers faced crushing economic barriers that shattered their dreams of independence.
The remote location near Coffeyville left you isolated, with limited access to markets and essential services. You’d struggle to convert wild prairie into farmland while battling harsh Kansas winters and summer droughts that devastated crops.
Agricultural challenges multiplied as the small plot sizes restricted your farming potential, and you’d lack proper tools and seeds.
Community resilience suffered as only 25 families managed to secure land, forcing others to disperse to nearby towns. You’d face discrimination from surrounding areas while coping with inadequate infrastructure, no schools, and no medical facilities.
The Verdigris River’s flooding threats and complicated land ownership arrangements through intermediaries left you vulnerable to losing everything you’d worked for.
Remembering Votaw’s Legacy
While the physical remnants of Votaw Colony have largely disappeared from Montgomery County’s landscape, its enduring legacy represents a pivotal chapter in Kansas’s African American history.
You’ll find its story woven into the broader narrative of community resilience and agricultural innovation during the post-Civil War era.
The colony’s significance lives on through:
Votaw Colony’s legacy endures as a testament to African American resilience, agricultural innovation, and the power of community building.
- The pioneering spirit of Paul Davis and 25 families who escaped Texas sharecropping to establish their own farms
- Daniel Votaw’s groundbreaking land ownership program offering interest-free payments on eight-acre lots
- The successful shift of former slaves into independent landowners near Coffeyville
- The collaborative relationship between African American settlers and Quaker humanitarians
Today, historians and local heritage projects keep Votaw’s memory alive, reminding us of the determination that drove the Exoduster movement in Southeast Kansas.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Happened to the Descendants of Votaw Colony’s Original Settlers?
You’ll find these family legacies scattered, as descendants migrated to Kansas cities like Coffeyville and Independence, following broader African American rural-to-urban migration patterns throughout the late 19th and 20th centuries.
Were There Any Churches or Schools Established Within Votaw Colony?
You won’t find church history or education facilities documented within Votaw Colony itself. Your ancestors likely attended services and schools in nearby Coffeyville, located two miles south of the settlement.
What Crops Did the Votaw Colony Settlers Primarily Grow?
You’ll find they grew a diverse mix of crops: cotton initially for market sales, corn and wheat as staple crops, plus vegetables for sustenance, though agricultural techniques were challenged by small plot sizes.
Did Votaw Colony Residents Maintain Connections With Other Kansas Exoduster Settlements?
Through shared dreams of liberty, you’d find they maintained vibrant community networks with nearby Exoduster settlements in Coffeyville and Independence, following established migration patterns while exchanging resources and information across southeastern Kansas.
How Did Severe Weather and Natural Disasters Affect the Votaw Settlement?
You’ll find severe storms and natural disasters near the Verdigris River challenged Votaw’s survival, with flooding threats damaging agriculture, while regional tornadoes and harsh weather strained the settlement’s economic stability.
References
- https://legendsofkansas.com/votaw-colony-kansas/
- https://dianastaresinicdeane.wordpress.com/2012/01/29/columbia-a-kansas-ghost-town-story/
- https://esirc.emporia.edu/bitstream/handle/123456789/1577/McQuin Vol 8 Num 3.pdf
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyBXD18P_j4
- https://legendsofkansas.com/kansas-ghost-town-list/
- https://www.soulofamerica.com/black-towns/kansas/
- https://esirc.emporia.edu/bitstream/handle/123456789/2140/Weller Vol 38 Num 2.pdf?sequence=1
- https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains
- https://www.nps.gov/home/learn/historyculture/exodusters.htm
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Davis_(Kansas_politician)
