As settlers expanded westward to California and Oregon by way of the Oregon trail, support communities began to form in strategic places, providing much needed help along the way for settlers. Crossing the streams and rivers was a difficult task for those in a covered wagon. With this in mind Louis Vieux, an early day entrepreneur, began to charge settlers to ferry their wagons across the deep-banked Vermillion River north of Wamego. Near the designated crossing stood the Louis Vieux Elm, proclaimed in 1978 as the largest American Elm in the United States. It was this type of pioneering spirit that lead to the settlement of Wamego.

In 1879 a Dutch pioneer built and operated the historic Old Dutch Mill which now has Wamego City Park as its permanent home. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and remains as the only one of its kind in Kansas. Since its recent renovation, it now can use the old stone to grind wheat to flour.

The Leach House was built sometime around 1890 by Louis B. Leach, a prominent early-day businessman. It served as a resting place for performers in a former Opera Hall located nearby. Today, the Leach-Ditto house stands fully restored and open for tours by appointment.

The community was highlighted by rich bottom ground on which could be grown some of the finest crops in Kansas. Just south of Wamego is the farm where Albert Keintz grew the first soybeans in Kansas. This fertile valley provided soil suitable for growing many popular garden vegetables, some of which are still grown here today.

To either the south or the north the land quickly changed from fertile river bottom ground to flint hills, known for their native grasses. These hills, while not suitable for farming, have remained extremely productive as a rich source of livestock grazing. Many large parcels of native pasture land still remain as they were hundreds of years ago.

One of its most famous citizens was Walter P.Chrysler, who was born and spent some childhood years in Wamego. His birthplace home still stands as a monument to this great entrepreneurial American that went on to found the Chrysler Corporation.

The spirit of cooperation and development continued to grow and make Wamego known for its ability to produce anything from agricultural products to heavy equipment attachments. Balderson Incorporated, a family owned business for over 50 years, continues to provide blade and bucket attachments for Caterpillar equipment and is now owned by Caterpillar, Inc. This remarkable company has grown and prospered because of the people who have worked so hard to make it successful.

With the proximity of Manhattan and Kansas State University,Wamego has often benefited from the cultural and major college sports activities that are a part of Kansas State. It has become a popular place in which to rear your children, yet enjoy the benefits of a larger metropolitan area a few miles away. Of course there are die-hard KU fans and alumni, for them Kansas University.

Theater in Wamego has always been popular. The newly renovated Columbian Theater now stands as a center for cultural and civic activity for the Wamego area. Within the theater hangs the original murals from the Chicago 1893 Worlds Fair. Their size and beauty add to the overall grand spectacle of the theater, which features live performances throughout the year.

With its eye on the future and its values molded by the past, Wamego offers the unique blend of progressive spirit and hometown tradition. A growing community of over 4,000, Wamego is steeped in history and filled with recreational activities.