The rock of our company The History of Teter Rock

In 1798, Jacob Teter inherited land in what is now Randolph County, West Virginia, and named the village Teter—still on the map today. His descendants, including James Wesley Teter (born 1849), eventually migrated west. By the 1880s, James and his wife Matilda settled in Kansas to raise cattle and later acquired more land.

In the 1920s, oil was discovered on the Teter land, spurring a boom and the rise of Teterville, a small but bustling town that reached a population of nearly 1,000. It included general stores, a post office, and a school—but like many oil boomtowns, it faded as quickly as it rose, and today, only remnants remain.

Long before the oil rush, James Teter built a simple rock pile as a guidepost for pioneers seeking the Cottonwood River. These rocks were later used in Teterville’s construction, but in the 1950s, James Murle, Jr. Teter placed a new limestone monument—the present-day Teter Rock—to honor the original.

Perched on the highest hill in the area, Teter Rock is now owned by Hendrickson Teter Properties, LLC (Eric and Ross Hendrickson, grandsons of James Murle Teter Jr.). They continue to welcome visitors to this iconic Flint Hills landmark and honor their family’s legacy in the Kansas prairie.