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Kansas County
Bourbon County, Kansas
Fort Scott National Historic Site and Bleeding Kansas violence - from Fort Scott National Historic Site (established 1842, Fort Scott was a significant military post on the Military Road connecting Fort Leavenworth to Fort Gibson - the fort's 20 restored buildings provide one of the finest examples of antebellum military architecture in the United States, and the site's role in Bleeding Kansas violence and the Civil War makes it one of Kansas's most significant historic sites) to Fort Scott's Battle of Fort Scott in 1861 and the Marais des Cygnes River corridor.
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Office: Bourbon County Emergency Management – 210 S. National Avenue, Fort Scott, KS 66701 | (620) 215-6316 or (620) 223-3800 ext. 279 | Email: [email protected]; Director Lou Howard. Hours: Mon-Fri 8:30 AM-4:30 PM. Fort Scott/Bourbon County Dispatch: (620) 223-1700.
Sheriff: Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office – 293 E. 20th Street, Fort Scott, KS 66701 | (620) 223-1440 (24-hour non-emergency).
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911. The Sheriff’s Office is not staffed 24 hours a day at the physical office.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-54 and US-69 intersect at Fort Scott, the county seat, in southeastern Kansas.
Notes: Bourbon County was one of Kansas’s original territorial counties.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Bourbon County Courthouse – Fort Scott, KS.
Notes: Fort Scott is home to the genuinely significant Fort Scott National Historic Site, a National Park Service-managed 19th-century military post established in 1842 on the “Permanent Indian Frontier” military road between Fort Leavenworth and Fort Gibson, named for General Winfield Scott. Preserving 20 historic structures and five acres of restored tallgrass prairie, the site tells the story of frontier expansion, the turbulent “Bleeding Kansas” era, and the Civil War. During the war, a reestablished Union post at Fort Scott served as a major supply depot and the training/recruitment site for the First Kansas Colored Infantry – the first African American unit from a northern state to see combat in the Civil War – along with Indian Home Guard companies and the 6th Kansas Cavalry. The site draws roughly 26,000 visitors annually and is open most days of the year.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Bourbon County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via bourboncountyks.org.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Fort Scott Public Library – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Fort Scott National Historic Site is the county’s premier heritage attraction and a genuinely significant piece of American frontier and Civil War history.
Notes: The genuine historical significance of Fort Scott – including its First Kansas Colored Infantry connection – is one of the most notable Civil War-era sites covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Bourbon County Appraiser’s Office – confirm current contact via bourboncountyks.org.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
City of Fort Scott Animal Control/Municipal Animal Pound – Animal Control Officer Adam Miles; contact via City of Fort Scott, (620) 223-1700. Hours: Mon-Fri 8 AM-5 PM.
Fort Scott Paws and Claws (formerly Lee’s Paws and Claws) – 8 N. Judson Street, Fort Scott, KS | Mailing: PO Box 667 | (620) 223-2888 | Email: [email protected]. A 501(c)3 no-kill nonprofit operated by the Shirley Yeager Animal Friends Foundation, serving Fort Scott and Bourbon County; houses cats on-site, dogs in foster homes; also runs a pet food pantry and TNR program. Hours: Mon-Sat 10 AM-4 PM.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Bourbon County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via bourboncountyks.org.
NOTES: Bourbon County is the sixth county in the new Kansas Round 3 series, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The genuine historical significance of Fort Scott – including its First Kansas Colored Infantry connection – is one of the most notable Civil War-era 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 Bourbon County
Bourbon County is southeastern Kansas’s frontier fort and Bleeding Kansas heritage county – Fort Scott’s 20 restored antebellum military buildings and its role in the Civil War border conflict make it one of Kansas’s finest historic destinations.
Fort Scott National Historic Site – 20 restored buildings from an 1842-1873 military installation – is one of the best-preserved examples of antebellum US Army architecture anywhere in America. The fort served as a flashpoint during Bleeding Kansas and saw significant Civil War action.
Fort Scott (the county seat, population ~7,500) has preserved its Victorian downtown and maintains strong connections to its military and Civil War heritage.
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Bourbon County Appraiser at 210 S. National Avenue, Fort Scott, KS 66701, phone 620-223-3800. KS residential assessed at 11.5% of appraised value.
Courts & Legal
Bourbon County District Court at 210 S. National Avenue, Fort Scott, KS 66701, phone 620-223-3800, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections)
210 S. National Ave., Fort Scott, KS 66701
(620) 223-3800
DISTRICT COURT CLERK (Court Records, Marriage Licenses)
210 S. National Ave., Fort Scott, KS 66701
(620) 223-0780
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
210 S. National Ave., Fort Scott, KS 66701
(620) 223-3800
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Bourbon County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
The Fort Scott National Historic Site is a significant local historical and genealogical resource for military and settlement-era records.
Local societies
No dedicated Bourbon 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
Bourbon County District Court 210 South National Avenue, P.O. Box 868, Fort Scott, KS 66701 (620) 223-0780
Bourbon County is in southeastern Kansas, seated in Fort Scott, home to the Fort Scott National Historic Site, a significant 19th-century military post.
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 Bourbon 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
210 S. National Ave., Fort Scott, KS 66701
(620) 223-5600
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections)
210 S. National Ave., Fort Scott, KS 66701
(620) 223-3800
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
210 S. National Ave., Fort Scott, KS 66701
(620) 223-3800
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Bourbon County Health Dept
(620) 223-4464
KS DCF — Southeast Region
(620) 223-5300
KS Medicaid (KanCare)
(800) 792-4884
Ascension Via Christi (Fort Scott)
ascension.org (quality community hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Bourbon County Health Department – confirm current contact via bourboncountyks.org.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Fort Scott
Population: 14,000
Area: 637 sq mi
Established: 1855
Tier: 3
Public Records
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