History

The area now known as Shawnee County was inhabited by American Indians, mainly of the Kansas and Pottowatomie tribes, until the mid-1800s. Westward expansion brought the country its first white settler in 1830 when Frederick Choteau opened a trading post on American Chief (now Mission) Creek. In 1855, Shawnee became one of the first counties established by the Kansas territorial legislature with a population of 250. That year also saw the first ever meeting of the Shawnee County Board of Commissioners. Tecumseh was the first county seat, and the first county courthouse was opened there in 1856. The building was 40x50 feet but was never finished. Topeka was made the county seat by popular vote in 1858, and a new courthouse was built at 4th Street and Kansas Avenue in 1867. In 1896, a new larger courthouse was constructed at 5th and Van Buren, with more than 50,000 residents then living in the county. That building remained in use until the current courthouse at 7th and Quincy opened in 1965.

Townships:

Shawnee County is comprised of 12 townships. The townships are governed by three-member elected boards consisting of a trustee, a treasurer and a clerk. The Townships in Shawnee County are Auburn, Dover, Grove, Menoken, Mission, Monmouth, Rossville, Silver Lake, Soldier, Tecumseh, Topeka and Williamsport.

Facts

You can find excellent information from the US Census Bureau in their State and County QuickFacts pages about both Shawnee County and Topeka.