Cheney, KS

Cheney is a city in Sedgwick County, about 22 miles west of Wichita, with roots in the Santa Fe railroad and the open farm country west of the metro. The city was founded in 1883 and named for Benjamin P. Cheney, a stockholder in the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. A post office opened that September, and Cheney became a station and shipping point on the railroad's Wichita-Pratt division. The 2020 census counted 2,181 residents.

The Souders Historical Farm Museum, about half a mile west of town, recreates a small Kansas community with a Main Street, school, church, businesses, and two train depots. Cheney State Park and Cheney Reservoir add a big stretch of water and recreation west of the city, with marinas, boat ramps, campsites, and trails. Back in town, Cheney USD 268 keeps the school calendar central. Cheney has the classic shape of a prairie rail town: a compact center, a long agricultural horizon, and a reservoir that gives the surrounding landscape a second life.