About Us :

The Kansas Pacific Railroad established a water station on the tracks at the site of present-day Ellis in 1867, and later purchased the site for $1200 through the Homestead Act. An officially recognized post office was established on June 27, 1870. The first church came to Ellis in 1874. The year 1873 saw the establishment of the first school. Beginning in 1875, Ellis became a shipping point for cattle herds, driven up from the south, for nearly five years. On January 10 1888, the City of Ellis was incorporated by law as a Third Class City. In 1896, the women's "Law and Order Committee" slate won the local election, and Ellis' all-woman council and a lady mayor became one of the first such groups in the United States.

In the late 1800's Wyatt Earp and Buffalo Bill Cody were seen often in town. John Henry, an UP train dispatcher in Ellis, invented the electric streetcar in 1882. Early Ellis residents Walter and Roy Cross developed the "Cross Process," a method of converting kerosene, natural gas, oil or fuel oil into gasoline that was used widely across the U.S. Walter P. Chrysler, who grew up in Ellis and learned about mechanical repair and machinery in the Ellis UP shop, used this knowledge to found the automotive giant, the Chrysler Corporation. Walt Disney, the late producer-animator and founder of the Walt Disney Studios, also had connections to Ellis.

Now a Second Class City, Ellis has several churches, a new post office, a new high school, a new library, new city hall, and new sewer plant. There are three museums--Walter P. Chrysler Boyhood Home, Railroad Museum and Bukovina Museum. There is a nine-hole grass green golf course and clubhouse. A campground nestles along the banks of Big Creek Lake. Shady Parks, a large swimming pool, several fenced ball diamonds, sand volleyball pits, horseshoe pits, outdoor basketball courts, new tennis courts and a Frisbee golf course provide lots of recreation opportunities. Several fishing piers/boat docks dot the banks of Big Creek.