Dodge City, Kansas

Dodge City is the county seat of Ford County, Kansas. The 12.7 square-mile town in northwest Kansas has a current population of about 27,340. Popularized by the long-running television program "Gunsmoke", this "Queen of the Cowtowns" holds a prominent place in the history of the American West. Visitors to Dodge City, once home to such colorful characters as lawmen Wyatt Earp and W.B. "Bat" Masterson, can trace the city's legacy on the Dodge City Trail of Fame, at the Boot Hill Museum and along a two-mile stretch of deeply rutted track - the remains of the Santa Fe Trail. Meatpacking, healthcare, service industries and tourism comprise Dodge City's economic profile. Annual cultural events include Dodge City Days, a professional rodeo, and a month-long Christmas festival.

Dodge City had its beginnings at Fort Dodge, built in 1865 to provide a supply post and protection for travelers on the Santa Fe Trail, the main overland route from Missouri to New Mexico. Anticipating the arrival of the Santa Fe Railroad, Dodge City was founded in 1872, and quickly became a magnet for buffalo hunters, traders, soldiers - and the saloons, gambling houses and brothels that catered to them, earning Dodge City its reputation as the "Bibulous Babylon of the Frontier". From the late 1870s to about 1886, Dodge City was the main destination for longhorn cattle drives from Texas to the railroads. In 1885, a quarantine line intended to prevent the spread of splenic fever from the cattle was moved westward, and Dodge City settled down into respectability. In the 20th century, Kansas communities began forming cooperatives to provide electrical and other services to rural areas. The Dodge City Cooperation Exchange, founded in 1914, provides grain storage, fertilizer and a hardware store. Sunflower Electric Corporation established the natural gas-fired Fort Dodge Station in 1968. Today, Dodge City has several working cattle ranches, and meatpackers Cargill Meat Solutions and National Beef are top employers.

Industrial and construction activities in Dodge City have made asbestos exposure a concern over the years. We have identified several jobsites where asbestos exposure has occurred. If you were exposed to asbestos in Dodge City, you may benefit from seeking the advice of a mesothelioma attorney.

Jobsites in Dodge City where Asbestos Exposure Occurred

A number of jobsites in Dodge City, KS have been identified as harboring asbestos containing materials. These sites, at one point in their history, were known to have exposed a variety of tradesmen to asbestos. We will be documenting in more detail how asbestos exposure occurred at these sites in the future on this web site.