The City of Winchester is located in north-east Jefferson County, Kansas, and has a population of 550 residents. The city was settled in June of 1854, by William M. Gardiner, and the first government was elected in 1858, three years before Kansas became a state.
Named after Winchester, Virginia, the city was situated on the Military Trail between Fort Leavenworth and Fort Riley, which aided the economy as Army convoys paused for water, supplies, and rest. The Kansas Central Railroad laid tracks through the town in 1872, jumpstarting the town’s population. In February of 1956, the Jefferson County Memorial Hospital was dedicated in Winchester, and continues to serve the community as F.W. Huston Medical Center.
Images from kansasmemory.org Kansas Historical Society
John Steuart Curry (1897-1946) was a Regionalist painter who became famous for his depictions of Kansas and agricultural life. Born near Dunavent, to the southwest of Winchester, Curry has paintings or murals in the Kansas State Capitol, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Departments of Justice and Agriculture buildings in Washington D.C.
Doctor Francis Wyatt Huston (1907-1997) faithfully served the community and county as a medical professional for 57 years and galvanized the community to build a hospital in the city.
Allen Reynolds (1938) was a member of the Kansas City Chiefs team that played in the very first NFL Super Bowl in 1966 vs. Green Bay. Reynolds graduated from Winchester Rural High School in 1956, and attended Tarkio College. From 1960-62 he played guard for the AFL Dallas Texans, and then from 1963-67, for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Jerry Robertson (1943-1996) was a professional baseball player who pitched for the Montreal Expos and Detroit Tigers during the 1969 and 1970 seasons.