Murals of Ottawa, Kansas

Downtown Ottawa Kansas mural

The Martin Tractor Company was founded in Ottawa, Kansas in 1911. Over a century, the company grew to include several locations in Kansas. I don't know much more, but I love the mural. It is located on the Adamson Bros' building at 102 S. Walnut in Downtown Ottawa. As best I can make out, the artist's name is "Morton."

The mural shows the former Martin Tractor Company building at the intersection of the Missouri Pacific route (the large engine on the right)  with the Atchinson, Topeka, and Santa Fe route (the small engine approaching the viewer from the distance). This latter route is now the Prairie Spirit Rail-Trail path which runs from Ottawa to Welda, Kansas.

Note. If you know the artist's full name, I would love to have it.

Downtown Ottawa 1912

Downtown Ottawa 1912?

By 1912 when this image of downtown Ottawa, Kansas was taken, Ottawa had electric lighting, a waterworks and telephone system, several grain elevators and flour mills, furniture factories, a large creamery, brick and tile factories, several machine shops and a soap factory. Two years earlier in 1910, it recorded a population of 7,650.

There were three city parks: Forest Park, to the north of the river; College Park, on the south bank; and the court-house park occupying the city block on Main between Third and Fourth streets.