Abilene, Kansas

Abilene, Kansas was the first of the Kansas Trail towns to make an impact on the imagination. In 1867, it consisted of  little more than a dozen log dwellings and the inevitable saloon, but the following year it was wide open lawless cattle-shipping center. A combination combination of circumstances made this possible: An Illinois stock dealer named Joseph McCoy wanted to buy cattle from the Texans; there was water (the Smokey Hill River) and good grazing land in the vicinity of Abilene; nearby Fort Riley ensured the unlikelihood of Indian attacks; and the Kansas Pacific's iron was crawling west from Kansas city. McCoy threw up business premises and a hotel named The Drover's Cottage, and let it be known that he was in business. The hotel was still unfinished when the railroad and first trail herd reached Abilene, and for the next 4 1/2 years the town was the main cattle center of Kansas. During its heyday, twenty or more saloons operated around the clock. It was not until 1870 that Tom Smith was made marshal and brought a modicum of law and order to the town.