Napoleon Bonaparte Blanton
Early Kansas settler, legislator, captain in Union Army, farmer. Born: 1829. Died: 1913.
Napoleon Bonaparte Blanton was born in Polk County, Missouri, in 1829. In 1848, he had charge of a government wagon train on the Santa Fe Trail. He moved to Lawrence in 1854 and built a toll bridge across the Wakarusa River four miles south of town. The toll bridge was a profitable endeavor for Blanton, often netting as much as $40 a day and providing him enough income to build the first two-story log house in Lawrence. During the border war, he fought at various times with John Brown and James Lane. Prior to the Civil War Blanton and his family moved to Coffeyville and he represented the area in the territorial legislature. In 1862 he formed the Fourth Kansas Infantry, USA, and achieved the rank of captain. His assignments included duty in Washington. D.C., Georgetown, and with General Philip Sheridan at New Orleans. After the war he again represented his district in the state legislature before moving to Abbyville where he was president of a land company. In 1878 he moved to Barber County and built a two-story frame house on his farm near Hazelton. The farm included a 40 acre orchard. After his wife died, Blanton moved in with a daughter and her family in Wichita in 1903. In April 1913 he was hit by a car while crossing the street in Wichita and died soon after.
Entry: Blanton, Napoleon Bonaparte
Author: Kansas Historical Society
Author information: The Kansas Historical Society is a state agency charged with actively safeguarding and sharing the state's history.
Date Created: March 2013
Date Modified: March 2013
The author of this article is solely responsible for its content.
