Leona, KS

Leona was laid out in 1873 along the Wolf River in northwestern Doniphan County. The town was named for Leona Shock, the first baby born there, and its early promoters offered land and money to secure a railroad depot. That rail connection made Leona a shipping point for surrounding farms, while the river supplied the town’s geographic setting. Today Leona’s school connection runs through Doniphan West USD 111, linking it to the county’s smaller communities. Leona’s story joins a river townsite, a railroad bargain, and a family name.