Excerpt from the South Wichita Haysville Area Plan…
The early settlements in the area were centered on access to the railroads serving the area. The town of Haysville was established by W.W. Hays in 1891 via a plat of 161.5 acres. Haysville prospered after the opening of its train depot in 1903 and rail service remained an important part of its economy for quite sometime as it allowed for produce shipment as far away as New York City. During the First World War, Haysville became a shipping point to Kansas City and Chicago for all kinds of farm grown products. With the development of better and cheaper transportation facilities in other parts of the United States, it became possible for major cities to be supplied with fresh farm products from the major farm produce areas -Florida, Georgia, Arizona, and California -and the Haysville supply was left to local markets only, mostly via US Highway 81 constructed after the First World War. The surpluses contributed to depressed prices and eventually the Haysville truck farming industry declined. Most of the surrounding countryside at that time was devoted to agriculture with a number of small schools in the area. However, the development and character of the area was dominated by agriculture and dependent on this rail access for connection to other communities in the area, primarily Wichita to the north and Wellington to the south.