Paola is a city in and the county seat of Miami County, Kansas, United States.
History
thumb|Paola City Hall
thumb|right|upright|Miami County Courthouse
Native Americans, then Spanish explorers such as Francisco Vásquez de Coronado in 1541, and French missionary explorers in 1673 lived and traveled throughout the area of what is now Paola. Despite these early European incursions at the start of the 19th century, the area was largely controlled by the Osage people.
Settlement of the area primarily occurred, however, when Kaskaskia, Peoria, Wea, and Piankeshaw tribes were forced to move to the area between 1827 and 1832. These formed the Confederated Allied Tribe, which was led by Baptiste Peoria, who was of both French and Indian ethnicity. They called their settlement Peoria Village.
By the 1840s, Euro-American settlers were moving into the area, and several missionaries lived in and near "Peoria Village". One of those missionaries was an Italian priest who moved to the area in 1852. The priest, Father Paul D. Ponziglione, was credited with renaming Peoria Village to Paola, after a small town on the coast of Calabria, Italy. The Peoria Indians of the area continued to call it Paola, because they had great respect for Father Ponziglione.
Following Kansas' admission to the Union in 1861, Civil War pressure to move the Native American tribes increased, and they were exiled to Oklahoma by 1868. Some individuals stayed and became citizens of the United States, however, their leader Baptiste Peoria left Paola with the tribe. From the late 1860s and through the 1870s, Paola grew and progressed, building its first school, jail, and bank.
The railroad came to serve Paola in 1870, which also aided its progress through this time.
Paola Park Square
thumb|right|Paola Park Square's gazebo
Paola's town began with the Indian tribes who once lived in the area and used it as their primary gathering place.
Climate
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool dry winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Paola has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.