Cofachique, Kansas

Cofachique (pronounced ko-fa-chee) is a ghost town situated along the Neosho River near the present-day city of Iola in Allen County, Kansas, United States.

The town was named in honor of an Osage chief known as Cofachique, who is said to have been particularly helpful to early settlers, bringing aid to the distressed and homeless.

In the spring of 1855 a party of pro-slavery men from Fort Scott formed a town company and laid out a town on the high land east of the Neosho River, south of the mouth of Elm Creek, and about on the north line of Section 10, Township 25 south, Range 18 east.

In the summer of 1856, Joseph Ledlie, who was engaged in the survey of the standard parallels, brought a sawmill from Westport, Missouri (now a part of Kansas City), and set up in the timber near the town.

The first term of the United States District Court was held at Cofachique in 1856, Judge Sterling G. Cato presiding; J.S.

Until the summer of 1857 there was no post office nearer than Fort Scott, and all mail was brought over by a carrier employed by the citizens for the purpose.

The principal cause of the failure of Cofachique was that, being in a hilly region it was difficult of access, besides which it was almost impossible to obtain good well water.