WWW arkcity.net

By FOSS FARRAR
Traveler Staff Writer

A spirit of "cooperative rivalry" between Arkansas City and Winfield has existed since the towns were founded around 1870.

Today, the two towns are striving to cooperate in economic development, as is evidenced by organizations such as Cowley First. The establishment of Strother Field in the 1940s also represents a major cooperative effort of Ark City and Winfield.

But historically, the rivalry between the towns has been intense.

"That's (the Strother Field venture) the only one I can remember where they seemed to work together," said Ark City historian Wilbur Killblane. "Well, they might have been on the Interurban, too."

The Interurban was an electric rail service between Winfield and Arkansas City. It was finally established as a successful operation in June 1909, after years of planning.

"With the intermingling made possible and brought about by the Interurban, the last vestige of the old-time jealousies between the two cities will disappear," theTraveler said in its June 23, 1909, edition.

The Interurban continued to run for more than a decade. It ceased operation by March 1926, according to a history of the line that was printed in theTraveler in August 1957.

Meanwhile, intense rivalry between the towns continued and was particularly shown in athletic contests.

Killblane remembers, for instance, being a member of the Kansas National Guard in the 1940s assigned to patrol Curry Field during a Winfield-Ark City football game.

"It was in 1947, '48 or '49, just a few months after the National Guard was reactivated in Kansas after World War II," Killblane said. The action prevented any fights at the game that night.

"There was several arguments, but (rowdies on both sides) saw the whole company down there and decided there were too many of us and they'd better not start anything," he said.

The Winfield-Arkansas City rivalry dates back to when the towns were being founded. Both towns battled over primacy and which would become the county seat.

Each of the rival cities went so far as to set up a smaller town in Cowley County to thwart its rival's goals.

TheTraveler in a May 4, 1947, article describes the county seat fight.

"Winfield is the county seat by virtue of a hotly contested dispute in the summer of 1871, a year after the county was organized," the article states.

A bill organizing Cowley County had been introduced in 1870 into the state Legislature, and "from then on the fight for the county seat raged," it states.

Cresswell, later known as Arkansas City, was made the temporary county seat by the Legislature allegedly because of the influence of the Emporia founder of Cresswell who was in the Legislature, the article states. It does not give his name.

Another story that Killblane said he has seen -- but now can't find -- says that a group from Winfield came down to Ark City and stole the county books.

"I had it, but I don't know where it is," he said.

At any rate, Winfield made plans to head off the action to make Cresswell the county seat, according to the 1947Traveler story. It eventually was supported by Gov. Crawford, who issued an order proclaiming Winfield as the county seat.

"But the matter was not settled. Arkansas City claimed to be the county seat on the grounds that it was nearer to the center of the county," the article says. A survey showed, however, that that was not the case.

"Founders of Arkansas City were not discouraged. They formed a town company with a charter bearing the name of the Tisdale Town Company, which laid claim to all the land in the vicinity of the geographical center of the county."

Then the article becomes vague: The Winfield association was on hand with many claimants and loads of lumber. During the night the lumber would disappear, and the Winfield group gave up those tactics.

"Settlers laid out the town of Tisdale, erected buildings, started a store, blacksmith shop and hotel and circulated a petition for an election to relocate the county seat. At the election on Aug. 22, 1871, Winfield won."

Though it wasn't the county seat, Arkansas City flourished, and -- the story goes -- Winfield capitalists took action to thwart that growth, by forming the now long-extinct town of Cale. It was located on the Frisco railroad, 4 1/2 miles southwest of Ark City.

Later, business owner John Ranney purchased a portion of the land where Cale was, and built a residence and kept livestock on the property, according to a 1946Traveler story.

"According to old timers here the town was promoted by a group in Winfield to cut off Arkansas City from the then unopened Oklahoma territory which the citizens of this town were banking on so heavily as a source of future prosperity," the May 23, 1946, article states.

"The Cale Township company, a corporation, was organized by the Winfield citizens and by the Kansas City and Southwestern railroad, which later became the Frisco.

It consisted of two quarter sections set aside for the new community, and town building started.

"But the efforts of the builders proved in vain. A large wooden hotel was built, lots were sold, small residences and shack business houses were put up, but the efforts went for nothing. The settlement was never able to cope with the vitality of Arkansas City, and by the end of five years the town had taken its losses and moved out."