Tonganoxie, which sometimes is referred to as “Tongie” by its residents, is located in northeast Kansas along U.S. Highway 24-40. It is within a short drive to Lawrence, the home of the University of Kansas, as well as the Kansas City metropolitan area.

The 1999 population estimate was 3,400, up from 2,347 in 1990, 1,1819 in 1980, 1,717 in 1970 and 1,354 in 1960.

Tonganoxie is only 30 miles from Kansas City International Airport and 12 miles from Lawrence Municipal Airport.

This city was named after an American Indian who was a member of the Delaware tribe. Tonganoxie’s lodge was a stopping place on the trail into Kansas. The Chief Tonganoxie Lodge, which was built in 1835, was a stopover for mail and passengers traveling through the area. Eventually the government took over the land and sold it to the Union Pacific Railroad.

The Tonganoxie area is located along the route from Lawrence to Fort Leavenworth. The town was established in 1866 after Magdalena Bury bought 40 acres from the Union Pacific and had it platted. Several of the town’s early settlers wanted to name the city Buryville, but Mrs. Bury convinced them to use Tonganoxie’s name. According to Leavenworth County Courthouse records, the city officially was established on July 26, 1866.

For more information about Tonganoxie, check out the city’s web site: http://www.tongie.org. Or get in touch with the Tonganoxie Chamber of Commerce by writing to P.O. Box 838, Tonganoxie, 66086, or by calling (913) 845-9244.