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Kansas County
Atchison County, Kansas
Amelia Earhart's Atchison birthplace and the Missouri River bluffs - from Atchison's Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum (the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean - born in Atchison on July 24, 1897 - is commemorated in her childhood home overlooking the Missouri River, and the annual Amelia Earhart Festival celebrates her legacy with air shows and aviation events) to Atchison's Missouri River bluff setting (one of the most dramatic natural settings of any Kansas city - perched on the bluffs above the Missouri River, Atchison's Victorian architecture and river overlooks create a distinctive community that served as a major outfitting point for westward emigration) and Benedictine College's Atchison campus.
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Office: Atchison County Emergency Management (Sheriff’s Office Emergency Management Division) – 518 Parallel Street, Atchison, KS 66002 | (913) 804-6080; residents can sign up for CodeRED alerts via the county website.
Roads: US-73 and US-59 serve Atchison, the county seat, on the Missouri River in northeastern Kansas.
Notes: Atchison County was one of Kansas’s original territorial counties, formed in 1855.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Atchison County Courthouse – Atchison, KS.
Notes: Atchison is the genuine birthplace of pioneering aviator Amelia Earhart, born July 24, 1897 in her maternal grandparents’ Gothic Revival home overlooking the Missouri River. The Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum, at 223 N. Terrace Street, has occupied the 1861 house (National Register of Historic Places since 1971) since 1984, when the Ninety-Nines – the international women pilots’ organization Earhart helped found and first led as elected president – purchased and restored it with the help of a $100,000 donation from local physician Dr. Eugene J. Bribach. Earhart lived in the home on and off through the 8th grade and always considered Atchison her hometown; the museum today displays period furnishings, personal artifacts, and film memorabilia related to her life and disappearance.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Atchison County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via atchisoncountyks.org.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Atchison Public Library (Atchison) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum, Amelia Earhart Hangar Museum, Amelia Earhart Earthwork, and International Forest of Friendship are the county’s premier heritage and tourism attractions, alongside Riverfront and Independence Parks.
Notes: The genuine Amelia Earhart birthplace and museum are among the most historically significant aviation-heritage sites covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Atchison County Appraiser’s Office – confirm current contact via atchisoncountyks.org.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Atchison Animal Control (City) – 1801 Main Street, Atchison, KS 66002 | (913) 367-5530 | Email: [email protected]. No-kill, dogs only; mobile unit – leave a message for callback. Hours: Mon-Fri 9 AM-4:30 PM.
Humane Society of Atchison – 125 N. 21st Street, Atchison, KS 66002 | (913) 367-3647 | Email: [email protected]. Separate no-kill nonprofit serving Atchison, Doniphan, Jefferson, and Leavenworth counties; not government-funded. Adoption fees $105-150 for dogs (includes spay/neuter, vaccinations, microchip, heartworm test, food). Hours: Mon-Fri 10 AM-5:30 PM, Sat 10 AM-2 PM, closed Sunday.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Atchison County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via atchisoncountyks.org.
NOTES: Atchison County is the third county in the new Kansas Round 3 series, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The genuine Amelia Earhart birthplace and museum are among the most historically significant aviation-heritage sites covered anywhere in this project. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Atchison County
Atchison County is northeastern Kansas’s aviation pioneer and Missouri River bluff county – Amelia Earhart’s birthplace and Atchison’s dramatic river setting define a community with outsized historical significance.
Atchison (the county seat, population ~10,000) on the Missouri River bluffs was one of the most important outfitting and departure points for westward emigration on the Oregon and Santa Fe Trails. The city’s Victorian commercial architecture reflects the prosperity of its river trade era.
Benedictine College (enrollment ~2,000, Catholic Benedictine-affiliated) provides higher education and cultural resources.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Atchison County Appraiser at 423 N. 5th Street, Atchison, KS 66002, phone 913-367-1184. KS residential assessed at 11.5% of appraised value.
Courts & Legal
Atchison County District Court at 423 N. 5th Street, Atchison, KS 66002, phone 913-367-7400, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections)
423 N. 5th St., Atchison, KS 66002
(913) 367-1653
DISTRICT COURT CLERK (Court Records, Marriage Licenses)
423 N. 5th St., Atchison, KS 66002
(913) 367-7400
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
423 N. 5th St., Atchison, KS 66002
(913) 367-1653
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Atchison County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
The Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum in Atchison is a significant local historical landmark.
Local societies
No dedicated Atchison County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Atchison County District Court 423 North 5th Street, P.O. Box 408, Atchison, KS 66002 (913) 804-6066
Atchison County sits on the Missouri River in northeastern Kansas; its seat, Atchison, is the birthplace of aviator Amelia Earhart.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Kansas has NOT adopted the Uniform Probate Code, maintaining its own statutory framework under the Kansas Probate Code (K.S.A. Chapter 59). Kansas offers several tracks depending on estate size and complexity:
Small Estate Affidavit – for estates where the total value of probate property, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $75,000 (raised from $40,000 effective July 1, 2023), available under K.S.A. 59-1507b. This transfers personal property only. If the decedent left a will, it must still be filed with the probate court even though it isn’t being formally probated.
Simplified Administration – under the Kansas Simplified Estates Act (K.S.A. 59-3201 et seq.), the most common route for straightforward estates.
Formal Probate – supervised or unsupervised administration through the District Court for larger or more complex estates.
A will must be filed for probate within 6 months of death, or it may not be admitted, forcing the estate into intestate distribution.
Step 2: filing for formal probate
File a Petition for Probate of Will and Appointment of Executor (if there’s a will) or a Petition for Administration (if intestate) with the Atchison County District Court.
The court admits the will (if any) and appoints the personal representative.
Notice to creditors is published per court order; creditors have a defined window to file claims.
The personal representative inventories assets, pays valid debts and expenses, and – under unsupervised administration – acts with reduced court check-ins.
Without a surviving spouse or children, Kansas intestate succession law (K.S.A. 59-501 et seq.) determines which blood relatives inherit.
After debts are paid, the personal representative distributes assets and files a final accounting; the court closes the estate upon approval.
What it costs
Court costs may be remitted for small estates under recent statutory changes.
Executor/administrator and attorney fees are generally reasonable-fee based rather than a fixed statutory percentage.
Typical timelines: Small Estate Affidavit can proceed relatively quickly; formal probate commonly takes several months to over a year.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
701 Kansas Ave., Atchison, KS 66002
(913) 367-4323
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections)
423 N. 5th St., Atchison, KS 66002
(913) 367-1653
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
423 N. 5th St., Atchison, KS 66002
(913) 367-1653
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Atchison County Health Dept
(913) 367-4458
KS DCF — Northeast Region
(913) 367-6400
KS Medicaid (KanCare)
(800) 792-4884
Atchison Hospital
atchisonhospital.org (quality community hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Atchison County Health Department – confirm current contact via atchisoncountyks.org.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Atchison
Population: 16,000
Area: 432 sq mi
Established: 1855
Tier: 3
Public Records
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