Altamont, KS

Altamont began with the railroad in 1879 and was incorporated as a city in 1884. The Huston family was among its first settler families, and the town’s early growth followed the new rail connection through Labette County. In 1893, the county high school was established in Altamont, giving the city an educational role that continues in its present-day layout.

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Labette County USD 506 now places its district office, Labette County High School, and Altamont Grade School in the city. The grade school serves preschool through eighth grade before students move on to the high school, so school campuses account for a substantial part of the local civic map. The district office and both campuses keep school administration, teaching, and student life within the city limits. Altamont also houses the Labette County Conservation District at the USDA Service Center. The district was formed in 1938 as Kansas’s first soil conservation district, linking the city’s school-centered routines with the farm and land-management work that surrounds it.