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Office: Decatur County Emergency Management – 120 E. Hall Street, Oberlin, KS 67749 | (785) 475-8100 | Email: [email protected]; Director Jeff Burmaster.
Sheriff: Decatur County Sheriff’s Office – 120 E. Hall Street, 4th Floor, Oberlin, KS 67749 | Mailing: PO Box 89 | (785) 475-8100 | Fax (785) 475-8160; Sheriff David Wachendorfer. Sheriff’s Office maintains a 12-bed jail in the courthouse.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911. Serves roughly 3,000 residents.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-36 and US-83 serve Oberlin, the county seat, in far northwestern Kansas near the Nebraska border.
Notes: Oberlin was platted in 1878 and named for Oberlin, Ohio; it was incorporated in 1885.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Decatur County Courthouse – Oberlin, KS.
Notes: Decatur County is the site of a significant and tragic chapter of American frontier history, commemorated locally in the “Last Indian Raid in Kansas” room of the Decatur County Museum. In late September 1878, a band of Northern Cheyenne led by chiefs Little Wolf and Dull Knife (Morning Star) fled the Southern Cheyenne reservation in Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma) in an attempt to return to their homeland in Montana, following harsh conditions, food shortages caused by the U.S. Army-sanctioned destruction of bison herds, and a measles outbreak. As the band moved north through Kansas seeking supplies, foraging parties clashed with settlers who had recently homesteaded along the Sappa and Beaver Creeks near Oberlin between September 30 and October 1, 1878, resulting in the deaths of settlers on one side and Cheyenne warriors, women, and children on the other in the weeks that followed as the U.S. Army pursued the band. A monument in the town cemetery commemorates those killed in the county during this period. The broader Northern Cheyenne Exodus is understood today as part of a larger, tragic history of forced removal and resistance following the Cheyenne’s confinement to reservation lands after the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Decatur County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via dccoks.org.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Oberlin Public Library – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Sappa Park (hiking trails, campsites, and a reservable shelter house), a 9-hole grass-green golf course, Oberlin’s dog park, and the Decatur County Museum are the county’s premier outdoor and heritage attractions.
Notes: The 1878 Northern Cheyenne Exodus history is presented here with care, given the tragic loss of life on multiple sides during this period of American history.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Decatur County Appraiser’s Office – confirm current contact via dccoks.org.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
⚠️ No confirmed dedicated Decatur County animal shelter or humane society was found in current sourcing; Oberlin has a public dog park (711 W. Ash Street) but no confirmed shelter facility. Residents should contact the Decatur County Sheriff’s Office, (785) 475-8100, for current animal control arrangements.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Decatur County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via dccoks.org.
NOTES: Decatur County is the sixth county in the third Kansas Round 3 batch, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The 1878 Northern Cheyenne Exodus history is presented here with care, given the tragic loss of life on multiple sides during this period of American history. ⚠️ Animal services could not be confirmed and are flagged for follow-up rather than smoothed over. 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 Decatur County County
Decatur County is northwest Kansas’s Last Indian Raid and Prairie Dog Creek wheat country – the historic 1878 Cheyenne flight preserved at Oberlin’s museum and the flat High Plains wheat farming landscape define a remote community where Oberlin serves the county’s farming families near Nebraska.
Oberlin (the county seat, population ~1,600) is Decatur County’s governmental hub on US 36, a northwest Kansas agricultural community whose Last Indian Raid Museum, Prairie Dog Creek, and wheat economy anchor its identity.
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Decatur County Appraiser at 120 E. Hall Street, Oberlin, KS 67749, phone 785-475-8102. KS assessed at 11.5% of appraised value.
Courts & Legal
Decatur County District Court at 120 E. Hall Street, Oberlin, KS 67749, phone 785-475-8107, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections)
120 E. Hall St., Oberlin, KS 67749
(785) 475-8102
DISTRICT COURT CLERK (Court Records, Marriage Licenses)
120 E. Hall St., Oberlin, KS 67749
(785) 475-8107
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
120 E. Hall St., Oberlin, KS 67749
(785) 475-8102
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Decatur County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
The Bank of Oberlin (National Register of Historic Places, also known historically as the Decatur County Courthouse) is a significant local historical landmark.
Local societies
No dedicated Decatur 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
Decatur County District Court, 17th Judicial District 120 East Hall Street, P.O. Box 89, Oberlin, KS 67749 (785) 475-8107
Decatur County was founded March 20, 1873, named for naval hero Commodore Stephen Decatur Jr. Its seat, Oberlin, was named after Oberlin, Ohio.
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 Decatur 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
120 E. Hall St., Oberlin, KS 67749
(785) 475-3317
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections)
120 E. Hall St., Oberlin, KS 67749
(785) 475-8102
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
120 E. Hall St., Oberlin, KS 67749
(785) 475-8102
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Office: Decatur County Health Department – confirm current contact via dccoks.org.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Oberlin
Population: 2,900
Area: 894 sq mi
Established: 1873
Public Records
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