Otis, KS

Otis is a city in Rush County, Kansas, United States. The 2020 census counted 296 residents. Otis was founded in 1886, and named for the founder's son, Otis Modderwell. The first post office in Otis was established in August 1887. The Linde Group, based in Munich, Germany, operates the world's second largest helium production facility in Otis, producing nearly one-sixth of the global supply of the gas. The Otis facility supplies helium to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, sending nearly 400,000 cubic feet in 2008 alone. School unification consolidated Otis and Bison schools forming USD 403. A newcomer can read Otis through the overlap of its older landmarks, surrounding geography, and current places. For a newcomer, Otis comes into focus through those concrete links among its past, landscape, and current routines.