Edward Smith, William Taylor, and Oliver P. DeWolfe of Cedarvale, Kansas, laid out this community in 1908. Hundreds of homesteaders arrived on immigrant trains. Most farmed pinto beans and shipped their crops to distant markets. In 1917, the community successfully petitioned to build a large schoolhouse. The WPA added classrooms and a gym in 1935-1936. In the 1930's, drought and depression substantially reduced the population.