Leavenworth County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas and is part of the Kansas City metropolitan area.[3] Its county seat and most populous city is Leavenworth.[4] As of the 2020 census, the county population was 81,881.[1] The county was named after Henry Leavenworth, a general in the Indian Wars who established Fort Leavenworth.
Leavenworth County | |
|---|---|
 Leavenworth County Courthouse in Leavenworth | |
 Location within the U.S. state of Kansas | |
 Kansas's location within the U.S. | |
| Coordinates: 39°16′07″N 95°07′32″W / 39.2686°N 95.1256°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Kansas |
| Founded | August 25, 1855 |
| Named for | Henry Leavenworth |
| Seat | Leavenworth |
| Largest city | Leavenworth |
| Area | |
• Total | 469 sq mi (1,210 km2) |
| • Land | 463 sq mi (1,200 km2) |
| • Water | 6.1 sq mi (16 km2) 1.3% |
| Population | |
• Total | 81,881 |
• Estimate (2023)[2] | 83,518  |
| • Density | 176.8/sq mi (68.3/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | 2nd |
| Website | leavenworthcounty.gov |
History
editEarly history
editFor many millennia, the Great Plains of North America was inhabited by nomadic Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the Kingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts of North America. In 1762, after the French and Indian War, France secretly ceded New France to Spain, per the Treaty of Fontainebleau.
19th century
editIn 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France, but keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, most of the land for modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile Louisiana Purchase for 2.83 cents per acre.
In 1854, the Kansas Territory was organized, then in 1861 Kansas became the 34th U.S. state. In 1855, Leavenworth County was established, and is among the first 33 counties, which were formed by the first territorial government. It was named, as was its county seat, after Henry Leavenworth, an officer in the War of 1812.[5]
Leavenworth County had the first Kansas State University extension agent in the State.
Geography
editAccording to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 469 square miles (1,210 km2), of which 463 square miles (1,200 km2) is land and 6.1 square miles (16 km2) (1.3%) is water.[6] It is the fifth-smallest county in Kansas by total area.
This county's watershed connects with both the Kansas River basin on the south via Stranger Creek and has a Missouri River port city to the east.[7][8]
Adjacent counties
edit- Platte County, Missouri (north)
- Wyandotte County (east)
- Johnson County (southeast)
- Douglas County (southwest)
- Jefferson County (west)
- Atchison County (northwest)
Demographics
edit
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | 12,606 | — | |
| 1870 | 32,444 | 157.4% | |
| 1880 | 32,355 | −0.3% | |
| 1890 | 38,485 | 18.9% | |
| 1900 | 40,940 | 6.4% | |
| 1910 | 41,207 | 0.7% | |
| 1920 | 38,402 | −6.8% | |
| 1930 | 42,673 | 11.1% | |
| 1940 | 41,112 | −3.7% | |
| 1950 | 42,361 | 3.0% | |
| 1960 | 48,524 | 14.5% | |
| 1970 | 53,340 | 9.9% | |
| 1980 | 54,809 | 2.8% | |
| 1990 | 64,371 | 17.4% | |
| 2000 | 68,691 | 6.7% | |
| 2010 | 76,227 | 11.0% | |
| 2020 | 81,881 | 7.4% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 83,518 | [9] | 2.0% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[10] 1790-1960[11] 1900-1990[12] 1990-2000[13] 2010-2020[1] | |||
The county is a part of the Kansas City, MO-KS Metropolitan Statistical Area.
As of the census of 2000, there were 68,691 people, 23,071 households, and 17,210 families residing in the county. The population density was 148 people per square mile (57 people/km2). There were 24,401 housing units at an average density of 53 per square mile (20/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 84.2% White, 10.4% Black or African American, 0.7% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.2% from other races, and 2.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.8% of the population.
There were 23,071 households, out of which 38.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.4% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.4% were non-families. 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.15.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.7% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 33.0% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 9.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 113.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 116.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $48,114, and the median income for a family was $55,805. Males had a median income of $40,047 versus $26,029 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,292. About 4.8% of families and 6.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.8% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over.
Government
editPresidential elections
edit| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2024 | 21,776 | 60.26% | 13,610 | 37.66% | 752 | 2.08% |
| 2020 | 21,610 | 59.22% | 13,886 | 38.05% | 994 | 2.72% |
| 2016 | 17,638 | 57.57% | 10,209 | 33.32% | 2,792 | 9.11% |
| 2012 | 17,059 | 58.65% | 11,357 | 39.05% | 669 | 2.30% |
| 2008 | 16,791 | 54.89% | 13,255 | 43.33% | 545 | 1.78% |
| 2004 | 15,949 | 58.35% | 11,039 | 40.39% | 343 | 1.25% |
| 2000 | 12,583 | 54.07% | 9,733 | 41.82% | 955 | 4.10% |
| 1996 | 10,778 | 47.90% | 9,098 | 40.44% | 2,624 | 11.66% |
| 1992 | 7,738 | 33.39% | 8,077 | 34.86% | 7,357 | 31.75% |
| 1988 | 9,913 | 52.53% | 8,797 | 46.62% | 160 | 0.85% |
| 1984 | 11,194 | 62.29% | 6,604 | 36.75% | 172 | 0.96% |
| 1980 | 9,157 | 54.98% | 6,354 | 38.15% | 1,145 | 6.87% |
| 1976 | 8,407 | 50.11% | 8,022 | 47.81% | 349 | 2.08% |
| 1972 | 10,762 | 67.70% | 4,727 | 29.74% | 408 | 2.57% |
| 1968 | 7,081 | 48.35% | 5,546 | 37.87% | 2,018 | 13.78% |
| 1964 | 5,544 | 42.36% | 7,479 | 57.14% | 66 | 0.50% |
| 1960 | 7,870 | 53.06% | 6,926 | 46.70% | 36 | 0.24% |
| 1956 | 8,826 | 61.55% | 5,480 | 38.22% | 33 | 0.23% |
| 1952 | 9,046 | 61.19% | 5,698 | 38.54% | 39 | 0.26% |
| 1948 | 6,474 | 48.61% | 6,740 | 50.61% | 103 | 0.77% |
| 1944 | 7,282 | 58.55% | 5,097 | 40.98% | 59 | 0.47% |
| 1940 | 8,503 | 58.25% | 6,053 | 41.46% | 42 | 0.29% |
| 1936 | 8,532 | 51.39% | 7,996 | 48.17% | 73 | 0.44% |
| 1932 | 6,484 | 40.24% | 9,507 | 59.00% | 123 | 0.76% |
| 1928 | 8,472 | 56.27% | 6,539 | 43.43% | 45 | 0.30% |
| 1924 | 9,429 | 68.05% | 2,982 | 21.52% | 1,445 | 10.43% |
| 1920 | 6,846 | 65.05% | 3,409 | 32.39% | 269 | 2.56% |
| 1916 | 5,536 | 45.46% | 6,002 | 49.29% | 640 | 5.26% |
| 1912 | 2,562 | 33.05% | 3,099 | 39.97% | 2,092 | 26.98% |
| 1908 | 4,846 | 53.87% | 3,818 | 42.44% | 332 | 3.69% |
| 1904 | 5,771 | 64.15% | 2,775 | 30.85% | 450 | 5.00% |
| 1900 | 4,162 | 49.84% | 4,109 | 49.20% | 80 | 0.96% |
| 1896 | 4,004 | 45.83% | 4,665 | 53.39% | 68 | 0.78% |
| 1892 | 3,471 | 46.96% | 0 | 0.00% | 3,921 | 53.04% |
| 1888 | 3,272 | 45.48% | 3,516 | 48.87% | 406 | 5.64% |
Laws
editLeavenworth County was a prohibition, or "dry", county until the Kansas Constitution was amended in 1986 and voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30 percent food sales requirement.[15]
The county voted "No" on the 2022 Kansas abortion referendum, an anti-abortion ballot measure, by 59% to 41% despite backing Donald Trump with 59% of the vote to Joe Biden's 38% in the 2020 presidential election.[16]
Education
editColleges and universities
edit- United States Army Command and General Staff College
- University of Saint Mary
- Leavenworth Normal School (closed)
Unified school districts
editSchool districts include:[17]
Communities
edit
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Leavenworth County.[21]
Cities
edit‡ means a community has portions in an adjacent county.
- Basehor
- Bonner Springs‡
- De Soto‡
- Easton
- Lansing
- Leavenworth (county seat)
- Linwood
- Tonganoxie
Unincorporated communities
editGhost towns
editTownships
editLeavenworth County is divided into ten townships. The cities of Lansing and Leavenworth are considered governmentally independent and are excluded from the census figures for the townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.
| Township | FIPS | Population center |
Population | Population density /km2 (/sq mi) |
Land area km2 (sq mi) |
Water area km2 (sq mi) |
Water % | Geographic coordinates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexandria | 01100 | 859 | 7 (18) | 123 (48) | 1 (0) | 0.62% | 39°16′8″N 95°7′33″W / 39.26889°N 95.12583°W | |
| Delaware | 17450 | 1,361 | 22 (57) | 62 (24) | 3 (1) | 4.19% | 39°14′50″N 94°52′40″W / 39.24722°N 94.87778°W | |
| Easton | 19625 | 1,245 | 11 (30) | 109 (42) | 0 (0) | 0.11% | 39°21′57″N 95°7′27″W / 39.36583°N 95.12417°W | |
| Fairmount | 22325 | Basehor | 6,266 | 61 (159) | 102 (39) | 0 (0) | 0.39% | 39°8′4″N 94°56′26″W / 39.13444°N 94.94056°W |
| High Prairie | 32125 | 1,768 | 14 (37) | 124 (48) | 0 (0) | 0.27% | 39°15′30″N 95°0′34″W / 39.25833°N 95.00944°W | |
| Kickapoo | 36700 | 1,760 | 15 (40) | 114 (44) | 3 (1) | 2.39% | 39°20′45″N 94°59′29″W / 39.34583°N 94.99139°W | |
| Reno | 58950 | 1,143 | 10 (27) | 111 (43) | 2 (1) | 1.56% | 39°1′8″N 95°8′8″W / 39.01889°N 95.13556°W | |
| Sherman | 65000 | 2,367 | 22 (57) | 108 (42) | 3 (1) | 2.44% | 39°0′59″N 95°0′27″W / 39.01639°N 95.00750°W | |
| Stranger | 68500 | 2,451 | 19 (50) | 127 (49) | 0 (0) | 0.17% | 39°8′16″N 95°2′2″W / 39.13778°N 95.03389°W | |
| Tonganoxie | 70825 | Tonganoxie (part) | 4,852 | 35 (91) | 137 (53) | 1 (0) | 0.66% | 39°7′0″N 95°6′35″W / 39.11667°N 95.10972°W |
| Sources: "Census 2000 U.S. Gazetteer Files". U.S. Census Bureau, Geography Division. Archived from the original on August 2, 2002. | ||||||||
Notable people
edit- Sean Malto, professional skateboarder
- Wayne Simien, professional basketball player
See also
edit
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Leavenworth County, Kansas
- Lenape & Christian Munsee
- Ernest Fox Nichols - Educator & MIT physicist
- Fort Leavenworth (Frontier Army Museum)
- Freedom's Frontier, NE Kansas National Heritage Area
- Kansas Sampler, shares insights on community character
- Community information for Kansas
References
edit- ^ a b c "QuickFacts; Leavenworth County, Kansas; Population, Census, 2020 & 2010". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on August 15, 2021. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
- ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 24, 2024.
- ^ "Population Data and Maps | MARC".
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 183.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
- ^ Big Stranger Creek Rogers, H.D., and Johnson, A. Keith. Kansas and Indian territory in The Atlas of the U.S. of North America, Canada, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Mexico, Central America, Cuba and Jamaica. London: E. Stanford, 1857 (no scale). A historical reference showing the Kansas Territory including parts of Colorado. Shows the westward trails.
- ^ Lower Kansas (Surf Your Watershed)
- ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
- ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 26, 2014.
- ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved July 26, 2014.
- ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 26, 2014.
- ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved July 26, 2014.
- ^ "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections".
- ^ "Map of Wet and Dry Counties". Alcoholic Beverage Control, Kansas Department of Revenue. November 2006. Archived from the original on October 8, 2007. Retrieved December 28, 2007.
- ^ Panetta, Grace (August 3, 2022). "14 of the 19 Kansas counties that rejected an anti-abortion amendment voted for Trump in 2020". Business Insider. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
- ^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Leavenworth County, KS" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 6, 2022. Retrieved July 5, 2022. - Text list
- ^ "Basehor-Linwood School District". www.usd458.org.
- ^ USD 449, Easton (May 21, 2023). "Easton USD 449". www.easton449.org.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Tonganoxie USD 464". www.tong464.org.
- ^ a b "General Highway Map of Leavenworth County, Kansas" (PDF). Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT). August 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 4, 2023.
Further reading
edit- History of Leavenworth County Kansas; Jesse Hall and LeRoy Hand; Historical Publishing; 684 pages; 1921.
- Standard Atlas of Leavenworth County, Kansas; Geo. A. Ogle & Co; 42 pages; 1903.
- Atlas Map of Leavenworth County, Kansas; Missouri Publishing Co; 38 pages; 1878.
External links
edit
- County
- Maps