Melvin Shafer standing with one of the many Chisholm Trail Markers thoughout Sumner County. 

How many people have noticed the new, white cement posts along many of the roads in Sumner and Sedgwick counties that mark the route of the Chisholm Trail? They are not large, but they are the result of a large and quite worthy undertaking by many volunteers. Karen Sturm of Caldwell provides some of the background information:

About seven years ago, Bob Klemme of Enid, OK began marking the Chisholm Trail along section lines in Oklahoma. He has placed over 400 concrete posts throughout Oklahoma, as well as one at the Trail's beginning in Kingston, Texas and at the Trail's end in Abilene, Ks. The Kansas Cattletown Coalition in Kansas is the sponsoring organization in Kansas to mark the trail. Tom Frazee of Wichita is chairman of the project. Currently the trail has been marked from the Oklahoma line south of Caldwell to just South of Wichita. Frazee uses historic maps & surveys to transpose the Trail onto modern landscapes. Ritchie construction of Wichita is making & donating all of the posts. Volunteers from Caldwell placed the posts from Caldwell to just east of the Mayfield cemetery. In April a group of women painted the posts. The Caldwell Historical Society provided the paint, cement & supplies for the project.

A group from Clearwater and others from areas along the way have continued, and are continuing the work. We can be justly proud of all these people for promoting this important historical aspect of Kansas and of Sumner County.

Article by Della Shafer