Oakley, KS

Oakley, the county seat of Logan [LG] county, began as a way-station on the Union Pacific Railroad line built between Denver and Kansas City in the 1860's. The Oakley townsite was laid out by David Hoag in 1884 and named after his mother, Elizabeth Oakley Gardner-Hoag. William Cody and William Comstock competed in a buffalo shooting contest near here - Cody won, earning the name "Buffalo Bill". Although not named after Annie Oakley she performed with the "Wild West Show" in this area.

An integral part of our history can be found in the Fick Fossil and History Museum, listed among the 25 Great Museums in the U.S. Fossils dug by the renowned paleontologist George F. Sternberg are among the many displays.

Rising majestically from the seemingly flat prairie, just 25 miles south of Oakley are the Monument Rocks, the first national natural landmark in Kansas. These wind-carved, water-eroded chalk formations are sediment remains of ancient marine life up to 200 million years old. Many of the sharks teeth and fossils in the Fick Museum were found around this area.

Southwest of Oakley is Russell Springs, the "Cow Chip Capital" and home to the Butterfield Trail Museum located in the historical former Logan County Court House.