1. In 1861, just months after the outbreak of the Civil War, Kansas became the 34th state to be admitted to the Union. Its entrance as a free state helped tip the balance of power against those advocating for slavery, as it joined the ranks of other free states in the North.

2. In 1893, a major tornado tore through Emporia, Kansas, causing widespread damage and leaving 13 people dead. The storm featured multiple vortices and was one of the deadliest tornadoes to strike the state in its history.

3. In 1916, Kansas native Walter Johnson of the Washington Senators became the first baseball player to earn the American League's Most Valuable Player award. Johnson, a dominant pitcher known for his signature fastball, had a career that spanned from 1907 to 1927.

4. In 1951, the University of Kansas men's basketball team officially adopted the nickname "Jayhawks," which had long been used as a popular term for students and alumni of the school. The Jayhawks have since become one of the most successful college basketball programs of all time, winning three national championships and producing legendary players such as Wilt Chamberlain and Paul Pierce.

5. In 2018, the city of Overland Park, Kansas unveiled a new statue honoring local World War II veteran Robert J. Dole. The bronze statue depicts Dole, a former U.S. Senator and Presidential candidate, as a young Army lieutenant during his time in combat in Italy in 1945. The statue stands in the city's Veterans' Memorial Park and serves as a tribute to all the men and women who have served in the armed forces.