Olathe

Olathe (/oʊˈleɪθə/ oh-LAY-tha) is the county seat of Johnson County, Kansas, United States.[1] It is the fourth-most populous city in both the Kansas City metropolitan area and the state of Kansas, with a 2020 population of 141,290.[4][5] Olathe was founded by John T. Barton in the spring of 1857. He rode to the center of Johnson County, and staked two quarter sections of land as the town site.[citation needed] He later described his ride to friends: "...the prairie was covered with verbena and other wild flowers. I kept thinking the land was beautiful and that I should name the town Beautiful."[citation needed] Purportedly, Barton asked a Shawnee interpreter how to say "Beautiful" in his native language. The interpreter responded, "Olathe."[7] Olathe was incorporated in 1857,[8] and while not the first city in Johnson County, its rapid growth led to it being named the county seat in October 1859.[7] Rising tensions across the nation over the issue of slavery led to numerous clashes between abolitionist settlers and neighboring slave state Missouri. These clashes further escalated and become a part of the greater conflict known as Bleeding Kansas. With the admission of Kansas into the Union as a free state in 1861, violence began to dissipate. Peace continued to elude Olathe for many years to come, however. In 1861, Union officials and local military forces created a military post in the city. It housed one company of troops along with the local militia.