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
Pottawatomie County, Kansas
Wamego's Oz Museum and the Kansas River corridor - from Wamego's Oz Museum (one of America's most dedicated museums to a single cultural phenomenon - the Oz Museum in Wamego houses one of the world's largest collections of Wizard of Oz memorabilia, celebrating the L. Frank Baum creation that is inseparably associated with Kansas) to Pottawatomie County's position between Kansas State University's Manhattan and Topeka - absorbing residential growth from both the Flint Hills and the capitol corridor - and the Kansas River's scenic valley.
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: Pottawatomie County Emergency Management – coordinated through the Sheriff’s Office, Westmoreland, KS. Countywide Communications Division handles 911 intake, dispatch, and mutual aid coordination.
Roads: US-24 and K-99 serve Westmoreland, the county seat, in the Flint Hills of northeastern Kansas; Manhattan (partially within the county) is the largest city.
Notes: Pottawatomie County was established by the Kansas Territorial legislature February 20, 1857, from land formerly part of Riley County, named for the Potawatomi tribe. Westmoreland was platted in 1871 and named for Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Pottawatomie County Courthouse – Westmoreland, KS.
Notes: The town of Wamego, in Pottawatomie County, is home to the genuinely world-record-holding Oz Museum, which the World Record Academy recognizes as housing the World’s Largest Collection of Oz Memorabilia. Founded around the private collection of Wamego native Tod Machin – who began collecting while attending Kansas State University in the early 1980s – the museum opened in 2000 with community grassroots funding and a major grant from the State of Kansas, and today displays more than 2,000 items across four galleries and 20 display cabinets, including first-edition copies of L. Frank Baum’s 1900 novel, original 1939 MGM production notes, actor Ray Bolger’s passport, and props from the Broadway musical “Wicked.” The museum draws on the novel’s famous opening reference to Dorothy’s Kansas home, and downtown Wamego embraces the Oz theme community-wide, from an Oz-themed local winery to nearby dining named for the story’s characters.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Pottawatomie County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via pottcounty.org.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Wamego Public Library (Wamego); Westmoreland Public Library (Westmoreland) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Oz Museum, the historic Columbian Theatre, and the Pottawatomie County Historical Museum (Wamego Historical Society) are the county’s premier heritage attractions.
Notes: The genuine, world-record status of the Oz Museum’s collection is among the most delightful pop-culture facts covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Pottawatomie County Appraiser’s Office – confirm current contact via pottcounty.org.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Pottawatomie County Caring Hearts Humane Society (operates the Wamego Animal Shelter) – Mailing: PO Box 161, Westmoreland, KS 66549; no landline at the shelter facility, volunteers carry cell phones – contact via website or email for current numbers. Founded June 2005.
Westmoreland Animal Control – 15785 Hartwich Road, Westmoreland, KS.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Pottawatomie County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via pottcounty.org.
NOTES: Pottawatomie County is the fifth county in the twelfth Kansas Round 3 batch, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The genuine, world-record status of the Oz Museum’s collection is among the most delightful pop-culture facts 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 Pottawatomie County
Pottawatomie County is north-central Kansas’s Wizard of Oz and Kansas River corridor county – Wamego’s Oz Museum and the county’s position between Manhattan and Topeka create a community with both cultural whimsy and suburban growth momentum.
Wamego (population ~5,000) has built a significant tourism identity around The Wonderful Wizard of Oz – the museum’s collection of Baum memorabilia, Oz-themed shops, and the annual OztoberFest draw visitors from across the region to a small Kansas River community.
Westmoreland (the county seat, population ~800) is one of Kansas’s smaller county seats – a quiet Flint Hills community serving the surrounding agricultural county.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Pottawatomie County Appraiser at 207 N. 1st Street, Westmoreland, KS 66549, phone 785-457-3500. KS residential assessed at 11.5% of appraised value.
Courts & Legal
Pottawatomie County District Court at 207 N. 1st Street, Westmoreland, KS 66549, phone 785-457-3391, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections)
207 N. 1st St., Westmoreland, KS 66549
(785) 457-3314
DISTRICT COURT CLERK (Court Records, Marriage Licenses)
207 N. 1st St., Westmoreland, KS 66549
(785) 457-3371
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
207 N. 1st St., Westmoreland, KS 66549
(785) 457-3314
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Pottawatomie County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Pottawatomie 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
Pottawatomie County District Court 108 North 1st Street, 2nd Floor, P.O. Box 129, Westmoreland, KS 66549 (785) 457-3392
Pottawatomie County is in northeastern Kansas, seated in Westmoreland, named for the Potawatomi people.
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 Pottawatomie 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
207 N. 1st St., Westmoreland, KS 66549
(785) 457-3353
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Records, Elections)
207 N. 1st St., Westmoreland, KS 66549
(785) 457-3314
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
207 N. 1st St., Westmoreland, KS 66549
(785) 457-3314
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Pottawatomie County Health Dept
(785) 457-3651
KS DCF — Northeast Region
(785) 537-6300
KS Medicaid (KanCare)
(800) 792-4884
Stormont Vail Health (Topeka)
stormontvail.org (adjacent Shawnee County)
Mercy Manhattan Medical Center
mercy.net/manhattan (adjacent Riley County)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Pottawatomie County Health Department – confirm current contact via pottcounty.org.
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: Westmoreland
Population: 24,000
Area: 841 sq mi
Established: 1857
Tier: 3
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Pottawatomie County residents.
