Humans of the High Plains

On September 30 Ruthie Hull turned 102 years old. On that day, she was able to return to the family homestead at Mount Sunflower just over the Colorado-Kansas border.

Mount Sunflower, although not a true mountain, is the highest natural point in the U.S. state of Kansas.[1] At 4,039 feet (1,231 m), it is 3,300 feet (1,010 m) above the state’s topographic low point, which lies on the opposite side of the state. Located in Wallace County, it is less than half a mile (0.8 km) from the state border with Colorado and is close to the lowest point in Colorado.

Mount Sunflower is located on private land owned by Ed and Cindy Harold, who encourage visitors to the site. Amenities include a picnic table, a little free library, a sunflower sculpture made from railroad spikes, and a plaque on the site stating, “On this site in 1897, nothing happened.” (As of 2015, however, this sign is missing, evidently stolen.) Additionally, there is a mailbox on site with a registration book inside where visitors can write their names, where they are from, and how many members are in their party.

There’s also a metal sign with the following message at the display: “Edward and Elizabeth (Fortin) Harold Homesteaded in Wallace County in 1906. In loving memory your children: Arthur, Ralph, Clarence, Irene, Russell, Raymond, Edith, Ruth, Warren, Pauline.”