Kansas State Board of Health

Illustration of a yellow flower with a brown center that has white text on it and black text around its outer edge. The flower petals have black text on them. All on a black background

The image of the sunflower on this button directly correlates with Kansas being known as the “Sunflower State”. The Kansas State Board of Health was created in 1885 and was the predecessor agency to the Kansas State Department of Health. When the Board was first established it consisted of nine physicians, each a graduate of a medical college who had at least seven years of continuous practice in their profession. The physicians were appointed by the governor from all parts of the state for three-year terms and in 1908, a non-medical member was added. The use of the name Board of Health was abolished in 1974 when the Department of Health was renamed to the current Department of Health and Environment. The text on the petals of the sunflower represents the different areas of health for which the Board provided care and advice.