On This Day

Manhattan Kansas founded as New Boston Kansas

Manhattan is a city in and the county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County.

Manhattan is a city in and the county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 54,100.

The city was founded by settlers from the New England Emigrant Aid Company as a Free-State town in the 1850s, during the Bleeding Kansas era. Nicknamed "the Little Apple" as a play on New York City's moniker of the "Big Apple", the city is a college town with a significant student population, because it is home to Kansas State University (KSU).

Historical Significance

Manhattan is a city in and the county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County.

Events Before

  1. Alice Mary Robertson is born

    Alice Mary Robertson, American politician, known for american politician, was born on 1854-01-02.

  2. Presbyterian minister John Miller Dickey and his wife, Sarah Emlen Cresson, found Ashmun Institute, a historically Black

    Presbyterian minister John Miller Dickey and his wife, Sarah Emlen Cresson, found Ashmun Institute, a historically Black college later known as Lincoln University, in Hinsonville, Pennsylvania

  3. Republican Party is formally organized in Ripon, Wisconsin

    The Republican Party, also known as the Grand Old Party (GOP), is one of the two major political parties in the United States.

  4. Great Britain and France declare war on Russia, expanding the Crimean War

    The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of…

  5. Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria (23) weds Elisabeth, Duchess of Bavaria (16) at the Augustinerkirche, Vienna

    Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria (23) weds Elisabeth, Duchess of Bavaria (16) at the Augustinerkirche, Vienna

Events After

  1. Colonial Tasmanian Parliament passes the first piece of legislation, the Electoral Act of 1856, anywhere in the world pr

    Colonial Tasmanian Parliament passes the first piece of legislation, the Electoral Act of 1856, anywhere in the world providing for elections by way of a secret ballot

  2. Republican Party holds its first national meeting in Pittsburgh

    Republican Party holds its first national meeting in Pittsburgh

  3. The Russian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, Great Britain, France and the Kingdom of Sardinia sign the Treaty of Paris endin

    The Russian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, Great Britain, France and the Kingdom of Sardinia sign the Treaty of Paris ending the Crimean War

  4. American industrialist and firearms manufacturer Samuel Colt (41) weds American philanthropist Elizabeth Hart Jarvis (29

    American industrialist and firearms manufacturer Samuel Colt (41) weds American philanthropist Elizabeth Hart Jarvis (29) at Christ Episcopal Church in Middleton, Connecticut, until his death in 1862

  5. Mormons leave Iowa City, Iowa, and head west for Salt Lake City, Utah, carrying all their possessions in two-wheeled han

    Mormons leave Iowa City, Iowa, and head west for Salt Lake City, Utah, carrying all their possessions in two-wheeled handcarts

More from the 1850s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on March 24, 1855?
Manhattan is a city in and the county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 54,100.
Why is Manhattan Kansas founded as New Boston Kansas significant?
Manhattan is a city in and the county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County.

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