I grew up on a farm 18 miles northwest of Jetmore and attended school there through 12th grade. I had 40 classmates that I graduated with; quite a few still live, work and own businesses there. My dad drove the school bus for our area so we were the first on and last off, a 36 plus mile round trip each day.
Now with 867 people, Jetmore is the county seat of Hodgeman County and home of the Jetmore Longhorns. My memories of football games were of the Longhorn scoreboard blowing steam out of its nose and mooing when a touchdown was scored.
Jetmore made newspaper headlines in 1977 for the Columbian pot plane that thought the highway was an abandoned airstrip and made a landing. I was a junior in high school and it was a pretty big deal.
One of the newest attractions to Jetmore is Horse Thief Reservoir, referred to as the “Sunset Capital of Kansas.” This is halfway between the farm I grew up on, and the town of Jetmore, west of town off Highway 156. The canyon has always been there but until recently it had not been developed. The reservoir was only 40 to 50 percent full for a long time until the spring of 2015 when the heavy rains filled it to 105 percent capacity. In other words, it flooded. Now boating, fishing, camping and the lodge have opened up recreation opportunities for area residents and travelers from outside the area and state.
If you pass through the city of Jetmore you are sure to get a friendly wave.
Barbara Rich can be reached at [email protected].
