HUTCHINSON

city, seat (1872) of Reno county, south-central Kansas, U.S., on the Arkansas River. It was founded by C.C. Hutchinson, an Indian agent, in 1872 upon the arrival of the Santa Fe Railroad. Salt beds discovered there in 1887 became the basis of a major industry. Hutchinson is also a principal hard-wheat market and is the centre of one of the Midwest's richest oil fields. Its economy is based chiefly on these local resources. It is the site of the annual Kansas State Fair. Hutchinson Community College was founded in 1928. Inc. 1872. Pop. (1990) 39,308.