Council Grove: Museums, Exhibitions & Discounts

Council Grove is a historic city located in Morris County, Kansas, that played a significant role in American frontier history. The town was a crucial stop on the Santa Fe Trail, serving as a rendezvous point and supply station for wagon trains heading west in the mid-1800s. Its name originates from an 1825 treaty between U.S. commissioners and Osage Nation leaders, who met in the grove of trees to negotiate safe passage for traders along the trail.

The city preserves much of its frontier heritage through various historic sites and buildings, including the Kaw Mission State Historic Site, which was established in 1851 as a school for Indigenous Kaw (Kanza) children. The community maintains strong connections to its past while serving as a cultural center in the Flint Hills region of Kansas, offering visitors insights into the development of the American West and the intersection of Native American and European American histories.