A Good Town in a Good Locality, With Fine Homes and Good Farms.

Cheney is perhaps the largest town in the county outside of Wichita. Its population is approximately 750 and everyone of them is a booster. The thriving little city is located on the Santa Fe, Wichita & Western branch, twenty-seven miles west of Wichita, and is the last town on that road in that part of the county. The progressiveness of the county is demonstrated in the fact that a short time ago the Milling Company organized and formulated plans for an electric light plant that has become a success in every way. The plant has been in existence for about seven weeks and since its beginning nine are lights have been placed on the streets in different parts of the city, besides the company has over 600 smaller lights scattered throughout the city in residences and stores. The plant is equipped with a 100-horse power Monarch Corliss engine and a 50-kilowat dynamo. The lighting of Cheney is operated on the same scale as it is in other small towns throughout the United States, that of a moonlight schedule. The city council will probably have several more arc lights of 500 candlepower placed around on other streets in the near future. The location of Cheney is ideal and the land lying around it for several miles is all owned by prosperous farmers who raise everything that can be raised in the temperate zone. Wheat is the principal product however, and this year's crop was far better than for the past three seasons. A great quantity of fruit is also raised in the vicinity of Cheney and although the late frost of last spring hurt the fruit crop, yet it did not so affect it that it was utterly ruined. Many fine apple orchards are seen throughout that section of the county. A great deal of corn is also raised and will yield a far better per cent in bushels per acre this year than last despite that fact that rains were scarce during the hot months. Cheney has stores of every description, all of them substantial buildings.

Cheney has two banks, four general stores, two large hardware stores, two livery barns, one drug store, two hotels, two blacksmith shops, one weekly paper, one grocery store, two ele-vators, four churches and one large school with an enrollment of nearly 275, two restaurants, one grain and feed store, several doctors and one dentist, one large mill and electric power plant, three real estate agents who do a large business, one exclusive furniture store, two photographers, two lumber yards , one gents' furnishing store, one shoe store, two barber shops, one harness shop, one coal yard, one undertaker and several miles of cement sidewalks. The combined deposits of both banks are placed at 'a little over $250,000 and the wealth of the officers, directors and stockholders will greatly exceed $1,500,000. Both banks show a decided increase in deposits on their last statements over the ones previous. The most influential businessmen and farm-ers in that vicinity are the stockholders. They are men who have spent the greater part of their lives in Sedgwick county and have been instrumental in making this county what it is today the greatest county in the state. And it is without one exception.

Cheney's greatest need is more people. Although there are not over three vacant houses in the city today, yet the business men of the city would be glad to see new houses going up. Another thing that the city needs and which would be of great advantage to it, is more store rooms. While some, and in fact most of the business concerns are located in substantial build-ings, there are a few that are not. It would be necessary for @them to move into some hastily erected building during the erection of a new business block, were they to have one built. Several new residences have been built in the city during the past ,year-and all of them were rented or sold before the foundation was laid, so therefore it is absolutely essential that new build-ings be built soon. The freight receipts have more than doubled during the past six months, which is a good indication of a city's growth. There has been at least a 20 per cent increase in the postal receipts too during the last quarter. Another illustration that Cheney is growing and forging to the front. It is expected by the older residents and some of the newer ones that the popu-lation will be 1,500 within the next year.

One thing that the businessmen and residents of the city would like to see is an interurban road from Wichita to their city. "The Santa Fe only operates one passenger train a day over their road, leaving Wichita in the evening and returning the follow-ing morning. It is necessary for the people of that section of the county to remain in Wichita thirty-one hours if they go there with the intention of visiting any of the theaters. The train reaches Wichita at 10:30 in the morning and leaves for Cheney and other points along the line at 5:20 in the evening, which is rather an inconvenience. An interurban road would operate cars at least once every three hours over the road and while the fare would not be any less than it is at present, it would be a great help to shoppers and theater goers of the towns along its line. It has been hinted by people who know that if an inter-urban is projected the businessmen and farmers of Cheney and vicinity would help further it to the entire satisfaction of the promoters. Their one cry continually is better train service and more of it. If the Santa Fe would operate two trains each way every day it would satisfy them to some extent, for there is plenty of travel along the lines, in fact, too much for the present serv-ice, for about three days out of every week the train from Pratt for Wichita is packed by the time it reaches Cheney and people coming to Wichita would be compelled to stand up all the way during their trip. Something should and must be done shortly to satisfy them, for not only the residents of Cheney but of all the towns along the line have the same complaint. Cheney is one -of the best towns in central west Kansas and is the best town in Sedgwick, outside of Wichita, of course, which is saying a great deal for Cheney. Tom Grace, Nate Hern, D. M. Main, Joe, Goode, Ode Northcutt and Wm. O'Brien are familiar names in Morton township, where Cheney is located upon section No. & of that township.

 

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