Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
Kansas County
Pawnee County, Kansas
Fort Larned National Historic Site and the Santa Fe Trail - from Fort Larned National Historic Site (one of the best-preserved frontier forts in the United States - nine original stone buildings from the 1860s-70s still stand on the Arkansas River, providing the most complete surviving example of a plains frontier military post - Fort Larned protected Santa Fe Trail travelers and was a key base for campaigns against the Cheyenne and Arapaho) to the Santa Fe Trail's Pawnee County corridor (the wagon ruts of the Santa Fe Trail are still visible in Pawnee County's grasslands - one of the most tangible connections to the great overland trading route that linked Missouri to Santa Fe from 1821-1880).
Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
What do you need to do?
Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Pawnee County Emergency Management – 715 Broadway Street, Larned, KS 67550 | (620) 285-3276; Director Joel Davis.
Sheriff: Pawnee County Sheriff’s Office – 116 W. 8th Street, Larned, KS 67550 | (620) 285-2211; Sheriff Larry Atteberry. Serves 755 square miles including Larned, Garfield, Rozel, and Burdett; jail capacity 16 beds.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-56 and K-19 serve Larned, the county seat, in central Kansas.
Notes: Pawnee County was established February 26, 1867, named for the Pawnee tribe.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Pawnee County Courthouse – Larned, KS.
Notes: Pawnee County is home to Fort Larned National Historic Site, one of the best-preserved frontier military posts on the Santa Fe Trail. Originally established as the Camp on Pawnee Fork in October 1859 to protect trail traffic, the post was renamed Camp Alert in 1860 for its small garrison’s need for constant vigilance against Native American resistance, then relocated and renamed Fort Larned by the end of that year. The fort administered the Central Plains tribes under the 1861 Fort Wise Treaty and later served as a base for Major General Winfield Scott Hancock’s campaign against the Plains tribes. In January 1863, a wagon train near the fort was attacked by a starving band of Cheyenne and Arapaho after refusing their request for supplies, killing all but one teamster, who found refuge at the fort. Fort Larned operated until 1878; today the National Park Service preserves nine original stone buildings on 718 acres, designated a National Historic Site in 1964 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966, drawing nearly 22,000 visitors in 2020 alone.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Pawnee County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via pawneecountykansas.com.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Larned Public Library (Larned) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Fort Larned National Historic Site, roughly 5.5 miles west of Larned, is the county’s premier and most nationally significant heritage attraction.
Notes: The genuine, well-preserved frontier history of Fort Larned – one of the National Park Service’s finest surviving Santa Fe Trail military posts – is among the most historically significant sites covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Pawnee County Appraiser’s Office – confirm current contact via pawneecountykansas.com.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Pawnee County Humane Society, Inc. – 1406 M5 Road, Larned, KS 67550 | (620) 285-8510 | Email: [email protected]. Established 2005, shelter facility opened August 2011; serves Pawnee County residents only. Hours: Mon-Fri 11 AM-1 PM (Tue evenings 6-8 PM also listed), closed Sat-Sun.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Pawnee County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via pawneecountykansas.com.
NOTES: Pawnee County is the third county in the twelfth Kansas Round 3 batch, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The genuine, well-preserved frontier history of Fort Larned – one of the National Park Service’s finest surviving Santa Fe Trail military posts – is among the most historically significant 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 Pawnee County
Pawnee County is south-central Kansas’s Santa Fe Trail and frontier fort county – Fort Larned’s nine original stone buildings are the finest surviving example of a plains frontier military post in the United States.
Fort Larned National Historic Site – nine original 1860s stone buildings – is one of the most completely preserved frontier military installations in America. The fort protected Santa Fe Trail travelers and served as a base for Indian Wars campaigns. Visible wagon ruts of the Santa Fe Trail remain in the surrounding grasslands.
Larned (the county seat, population ~3,600) is an Arkansas River community serving the surrounding agricultural region.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Pawnee County Appraiser at 715 Broadway Street, Suite 3, Larned, KS 67550, phone 620-285-6937. KS residential assessed at 11.5% of appraised value.
Courts & Legal
Pawnee County District Court at 715 Broadway Street, Larned, KS 67550, phone 620-285-3721, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections)
715 Broadway, Larned, KS 67550
(620) 285-6937
DISTRICT COURT CLERK (Court Records, Marriage Licenses)
715 Broadway, Larned, KS 67550
(620) 285-6937
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
715 Broadway, Larned, KS 67550
(620) 285-6937
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Pawnee County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Fort Larned National Historic Site is a significant local historical resource, including for military and frontier-era family records.
Local societies
No dedicated Pawnee 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
Pawnee County District Court, 24th Judicial District 715 Broadway Street, P.O. Box 270, Larned, KS 67550 (620) 285-6937
Pawnee County was founded February 26, 1867, named for the Pawnee tribe. Its seat, Larned, is named for nearby Fort Larned National Historic Site.
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 Pawnee 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
715 Broadway, Larned, KS 67550
(620) 285-3717
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections)
715 Broadway, Larned, KS 67550
(620) 285-6937
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
715 Broadway, Larned, KS 67550
(620) 285-6937
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Pawnee County Health Dept
(620) 285-3185
KS DCF — South Central Region
(620) 792-3071
KS Medicaid (KanCare)
(800) 792-4884
Larned State Hospital
lsh.org (state psychiatric hospital — major regional facility)
Office: Pawnee County Health Department – confirm current contact via pawneecountykansas.com.
Editorial independence: CountyOffices maintains strict editorial independence from our affiliate partners. Our content is researched from official government sources. Affiliate relationships do not influence our recommendations or the information we publish.
Editorial Trust
5 official sources cited
Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Larned
Population: 6,600
Area: 754 sq mi
Established: 1872
Tier: 3
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Pawnee County residents.
