Decatur County, Kansas

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Decatur County, Kansas
Location in the state of Kansas
Kansas's location in the U.S.
Founded	March 20, 1873
Seat	Oberlin
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	894.18 sq mi (2,316 km²) 893.55 sq mi (2,314 km²) 0.63 sq mi (2 km²), 0.07%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	2,961 3.5/sq mi (1.3/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5

Decatur County (county code DC) is a county located in Northwest Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 2,961. Its county seat and most populous city is Oberlin. The county is named in honor of Commodore Stephen Decatur, Jr.

History

The county was established March 20, 1873 and organized on December 15, 1879. It is named for the Navy war hero Commodore Stephen Decatur, Jr., who served during the First Barbary War and the Second Barbary War and the War of 1812. Oberlin was the site of the last Native American (specifically the Northern Cheyenne) Raid in Kansas.

Law and government

Following amendment to the Kansas Constitution in 1986, the county remained a prohibition, or "dry", county until 2002, when voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30% food sales requirement.

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 894.18 square miles (2,315.9 km²), of which 893.55 square miles (2,314.3 km²) (or 99.93%) is land and 0.63 square miles (1.6 km²) (or 0.07%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Red Willow County, Nebraska (north)
• Furnas County, Nebraska (northeast)
• Norton County (east)
• Sheridan County (south)
• Thomas County (southwest)
• Rawlins County (west)

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1880	4,180		—
1890	8,414		101.3%
1900	9,234		9.7%
1910	8,976		−2.8%
1920	8,121		−9.5%
1930	8,866		9.2%
1940	7,434		−16.2%
1950	6,185		−16.8%
1960	5,778		−6.6%
1970	4,988		−13.7%
1980	4,509		−9.6%
1990	4,021		−10.8%
2000	3,472		−13.7%
2010	2,961		−14.7%
U.S. Decennial Census

Population pyramid

2005 KDOT Map of Decatur County (map legend)

As of the U.S. Census in 2000, there were 3,472 people, 1,494 households, and 981 families residing in the county. The population density was 4 people per square mile (2/km²). There were 1,821 housing units at an average density of 2 per square mile (1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.87% White, 0.52% Black or African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 0.37% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.98% of the population.

There were 1,494 households out of which 25.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.00% were married couples living together, 5.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.30% were non-families. 32.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.83.

In the county the population was spread out with 23.60% under the age of 18, 4.70% from 18 to 24, 22.90% from 25 to 44, 22.60% from 45 to 64, and 26.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 97.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $30,257, and the median income for a family was $34,982. Males had a median income of $25,139 versus $17,368 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,348. About 8.00% of families and 11.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.20% of those under age 18 and 6.30% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

Incorporated cities

Name and population (2004 estimate):

• Oberlin, 1,862 (county seat)
• Norcatur, 162
• Jennings, 134
• Clayton, 65
• Dresden, 49

Unincorporated places

• Allison
• Cedar Bluffs
• Kanona
• Leoville
• Lyle
• Traer

Townships

Decatur County is divided into twenty-five townships. The city of Oberlin is considered governmentally independent and is 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
Allison	01300		39	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.01%	39°35′36″N 100°12′24″W
Altory	01650		16	0 (0)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0%	39°47′22″N 100°21′15″W
Bassettville	04475		26	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0%	39°41′12″N 100°40′38″W
Beaver	05050		86	1 (2)	92 (36)	0 (0)	0.11%	39°58′42″N 100°34′2″W
Center	11650		60	1 (2)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.03%	39°47′5″N 100°27′38″W
Cook	15375		44	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.08%	39°36′16″N 100°40′32″W
Custer	16850		27	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.04%	39°41′17″N 100°26′59″W
Dresden	18625		141	2 (4)	92 (36)	0 (0)	0.01%	39°36′39″N 100°27′5″W
Finley	23425		39	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0%	39°57′42″N 100°41′20″W
Garfield	25525		41	0 (1)	92 (36)	0 (0)	0%	39°46′38″N 100°14′44″W
Grant	27600		31	0 (1)	92 (36)	0 (0)	0.07%	39°57′36″N 100°14′11″W
Harlan	30050		51	1 (1)	92 (36)	0 (0)	0.05%	39°56′50″N 100°20′56″W
Jennings	35400		173	2 (5)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.34%	39°40′35″N 100°18′56″W
Liberty	39975		48	1 (1)	91 (35)	0 (0)	0.03%	39°53′2″N 100°33′31″W
Lincoln	40600		203	2 (6)	92 (36)	0 (0)	0.02%	39°50′58″N 100°12′21″W
Logan	41825		52	1 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0%	39°52′38″N 100°42′42″W
Lyon	43450		24	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0%	39°36′52″N 100°21′8″W
Oberlin	52025		91	1 (3)	89 (34)	0 (0)	0.08%	39°47′32″N 100°34′20″W
Olive	52675		68	1 (2)	92 (35)	1 (0)	0.65%	39°51′43″N 100°28′18″W
Pleasant Valley	56525		46	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.05%	39°41′53″N 100°13′59″W
Prairie Dog	57475		50	1 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.01%	39°36′33″N 100°33′49″W
Roosevelt	61025		32	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.07%	39°53′1″N 100°21′43″W
Sappa	63050		43	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.04%	39°45′57″N 100°41′48″W
Sherman	64900		25	0 (1)	92 (36)	0 (0)	0.01%	39°57′5″N 100°28′7″W
Summit	69075		22	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.09%	39°41′27″N 100°34′37″W
Sources: "Census 2000 U.S. Gazetteer Files". U.S. Census Bureau, Geography Division. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/places2k.html.

Education

Unified school districts

• Oberlin USD 294
• Prairie Heights USD 295, dissolved as of July 1, 2006; absorbed by USD 294.

See also

Information on this and other counties in Kansas

• List of counties in Kansas
• List of Kansas county name etymologies
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Kansas
• Kansas locations by per capita income

Other information for Kansas

• List of cities in Kansas
• List of unified school districts in Kansas
• List of colleges and universities in Kansas

Further reading

• History of the State of Kansas; William G. Cutler; A.T. Andreas Publisher; 1883. (Online HTML eBook)
• Kansas : A Cyclopedia of State History, Embracing Events, Institutions, Industries, Counties, Cities, Towns, Prominent Persons, Etc; 3 Volumes; Frank W. Blackmar; Standard Publishing Co; 944 / 955 / 824 pages; 1912. (Volume1 - Download 54MB PDF eBook), (Volume2 - Download 53MB PDF eBook), (Volume3 - Download 33MB PDF eBook)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Decatur County, Kansas

• Decatur County, Blue Skyways
• Kansas Statistical Abstract

Maps

• Decatur County Map, KDOT
• Kansas Highway Map, KDOT
• Kansas Railroad Map, KDOT
• Kansas School District Boundary Map, KSDE