Hiawatha was created in 1857. This makes it one of the oldest towns in Kansas. John M. Coe, John P. Wheller, and Thomas J. Drummond were important in creating the city, and the place was found on February 17, 1857. B.L. Rider was responsible for naming Hiawatha. It was named after Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, "The Song of Hiawatha". Hiawatha became the Brown County Seat in 1858. The first school opened in 1870.