“ When the first white settlers came to what is now Anderson county in the spring of 1854 they found some of the fields which the Indians had cultivated. They were Valentine Gerth and Francis Meyer, who came from Missouri and settled on the Pottawatomie near the present site of Greeley. These men were without families but planted and cultivated the old Indian fields the first summer. Henry Harmon came with his family and settled near the junction of the branches of the Pottawatomie. ”

“ Coal has been found in several places and there are natural gas wells near Greeley. The trees native to this section are walnut, cottonwood, oak, hickory, hackberry, elm, sycamore, and hard and soft maples. Corn, wheat, oats and Kafir corn are the leading agricultural products. Live stock raising is a productive industry, and there are more than 100,000 bearing fruit trees in the county. There are 130.25 miles of main track railroad within the limits of the county. The Missouri Pacific has three lines—one crossing the county diagonally from the northwest to southeast passing through Garnett ”

“ The decisions of the court were generally satisfactory to the settlers, and enforced by Maj. Abbott and a minister named Stewart, known as the fighting preacher. Several town sites were laid out, but with two exceptions the towns failed to become important. Garnett and Greeley were both surveyed in 1856 and became flourishing communities. In Dec., 1856, a party of 80 men was formed in Lawrence for the purpose of settling in Anderson county. ”