Osage County, Kansas | |
|---|---|
 Osage County Courthouse inLyndon (2009) | |
| Nickname: Land of Lakes[1] | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofKansas | |
 Kansas's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:38°39′N95°44′W / 38.65°N 95.73°W /38.65; -95.73 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Kansas |
| Founded | 1859 |
| Named after | Osage Nation |
| Seat | Lyndon |
| Largest city | Osage City |
| Area | |
• Total | 720 sq mi (1,900 km2) |
| • Land | 706 sq mi (1,830 km2) |
| • Water | 14 sq mi (36 km2) 2.0% |
| Population | |
• Total | 15,766 |
• Estimate (2023)[3] | 15,824 |
| • Density | 22.3/sq mi (8.6/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | 2nd |
| Website | OsageCo.org |
Osage County (/oʊˈseɪdʒ/oh-SAYJ)[4] is acounty located in theU.S. state ofKansas. Itscounty seat isLyndon,[5] and its most populous city isOsage City. As of the2020 census, the county population was 15,766.[2] The county was originally organized in 1855 as Weller County, then renamed in 1859 after theOsage tribe.[6]
For many millennia, theGreat Plains ofNorth America was inhabited by nomadicNative Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, theKingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts of North America. In 1762, after theFrench and Indian War, France secretly cededNew France toSpain, per theTreaty of Fontainebleau.
In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France but keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, most of the land formodern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square miles (2,140,000 km2)Louisiana Purchase for 2.83cents peracre.
In 1854, theKansas Territory was organized, then in 1861Kansas became the 34thU.S. state. In 1859,Osage County was established.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 720 square miles (1,900 km2), of which 706 square miles (1,830 km2) is land and 14 square miles (36 km2) (2.0%) is water.[7]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | 1,113 | — | |
| 1870 | 7,648 | 587.2% | |
| 1880 | 19,642 | 156.8% | |
| 1890 | 25,062 | 27.6% | |
| 1900 | 23,659 | −5.6% | |
| 1910 | 19,905 | −15.9% | |
| 1920 | 18,621 | −6.5% | |
| 1930 | 17,538 | −5.8% | |
| 1940 | 15,118 | −13.8% | |
| 1950 | 12,811 | −15.3% | |
| 1960 | 12,886 | 0.6% | |
| 1970 | 13,352 | 3.6% | |
| 1980 | 15,319 | 14.7% | |
| 1990 | 15,248 | −0.5% | |
| 2000 | 16,712 | 9.6% | |
| 2010 | 16,295 | −2.5% | |
| 2020 | 15,766 | −3.2% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 15,824 | [8] | 0.4% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[9] 1790-1960[10] 1900-1990[11] 1990-2000[12] 2010-2020[2] | |||
Osage County is included in theTopeka metropolitan area.
As of the2000 census,[13] there were 16,712 people, 6,490 households, and 4,737 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 24 people per square mile (9.3 people/km2). There were 7,018 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile (3.9/km2). Theracial makeup of the county was 97.27%White, 0.22%Black orAfrican American, 0.65%Native American, 0.17%Asian, 0.10%Pacific Islander, 0.41% from other races, and 1.18% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 1.53% of the population.
There were 6,490households, out of which 33.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.00% weremarried couples living together, 8.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.00% were non-families. 23.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 27.00% under the age of 18, 6.40% from 18 to 24, 27.00% from 25 to 44, 23.70% from 45 to 64, and 15.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.30 males.
Themedian income for a household in the county was $37,928, and the median income for a family was $44,581. Males had a median income of $30,670 versus $22,981 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $17,691. About 6.40% of families and 8.40% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 8.40% of those under age 18 and 10.40% of those age 65 or over.
Osage County is strongly Republican. In only six presidential elections from 1880 to the present day has the county failed to back the Republican Party candidate, most recently inLyndon B. Johnson's national landslide of 1964.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1888 | 3,442 | 57.49% | 1,380 | 23.05% | 1,165 | 19.46% |
| 1892 | 2,604 | 43.77% | 0 | 0.00% | 3,345 | 56.23% |
| 1896 | 2,903 | 44.97% | 3,481 | 53.93% | 71 | 1.10% |
| 1900 | 3,128 | 51.16% | 2,901 | 47.45% | 85 | 1.39% |
| 1904 | 3,670 | 65.01% | 1,516 | 26.86% | 459 | 8.13% |
| 1908 | 2,671 | 50.30% | 2,288 | 43.09% | 351 | 6.61% |
| 1912 | 850 | 17.62% | 1,969 | 40.82% | 2,005 | 41.56% |
| 1916 | 3,770 | 44.69% | 4,276 | 50.69% | 390 | 4.62% |
| 1920 | 4,507 | 62.80% | 2,414 | 33.64% | 256 | 3.57% |
| 1924 | 4,957 | 63.20% | 2,050 | 26.14% | 836 | 10.66% |
| 1928 | 5,900 | 73.24% | 2,058 | 25.55% | 98 | 1.22% |
| 1932 | 3,707 | 45.40% | 4,199 | 51.43% | 259 | 3.17% |
| 1936 | 4,232 | 49.87% | 4,224 | 49.78% | 30 | 0.35% |
| 1940 | 4,991 | 60.52% | 3,186 | 38.63% | 70 | 0.85% |
| 1944 | 4,107 | 64.40% | 2,212 | 34.69% | 58 | 0.91% |
| 1948 | 3,474 | 55.55% | 2,659 | 42.52% | 121 | 1.93% |
| 1952 | 4,589 | 68.84% | 2,036 | 30.54% | 41 | 0.62% |
| 1956 | 4,136 | 67.28% | 1,979 | 32.19% | 32 | 0.52% |
| 1960 | 3,880 | 64.02% | 2,150 | 35.47% | 31 | 0.51% |
| 1964 | 2,681 | 49.10% | 2,737 | 50.13% | 42 | 0.77% |
| 1968 | 3,157 | 56.15% | 1,664 | 29.60% | 801 | 14.25% |
| 1972 | 4,073 | 71.11% | 1,522 | 26.57% | 133 | 2.32% |
| 1976 | 2,945 | 50.53% | 2,755 | 47.27% | 128 | 2.20% |
| 1980 | 3,817 | 60.36% | 2,088 | 33.02% | 419 | 6.63% |
| 1984 | 4,288 | 66.55% | 2,072 | 32.16% | 83 | 1.29% |
| 1988 | 3,496 | 54.33% | 2,840 | 44.13% | 99 | 1.54% |
| 1992 | 2,561 | 34.51% | 2,297 | 30.95% | 2,563 | 34.54% |
| 1996 | 3,487 | 48.80% | 2,502 | 35.01% | 1,157 | 16.19% |
| 2000 | 3,770 | 57.01% | 2,530 | 38.26% | 313 | 4.73% |
| 2004 | 4,800 | 64.32% | 2,537 | 33.99% | 126 | 1.69% |
| 2008 | 4,820 | 63.89% | 2,534 | 33.59% | 190 | 2.52% |
| 2012 | 4,427 | 64.10% | 2,268 | 32.84% | 211 | 3.06% |
| 2016 | 4,826 | 67.47% | 1,753 | 24.51% | 574 | 8.02% |
| 2020 | 5,705 | 71.00% | 2,136 | 26.58% | 194 | 2.41% |
| 2024 | 5,736 | 72.44% | 1,946 | 24.58% | 236 | 2.98% |
Osage County was a prohibition, or"dry", county until theKansas Constitution was amended in 1986 and voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30% food sales requirement.[15]
The county voted "No" on the2022 Kansas abortion referendum, an anti-abortion ballot measure, by 56% to 44% despite backingDonald Trump with 71% of the vote toJoe Biden's 27% in the2020 presidential election.[16]
School districts include:[17]
Osage County is served by a weekly newspaper,The Osage County Herald-Chronicle. The newspaper has a circulation of approximately 4,500, making it the 3rd largest paid weekly publication in the state of Kansas.
The Herald-Chronicle was created by the merger ofThe Osage County Herald andThe Osage County Chronicle in February 2007.
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Osage County.[18]
† means a community is designated aCensus-Designated Place (CDP) by theUnited States Census Bureau.
Osage County is divided into sixteentownships. The city ofOsage City is consideredgovernmentally 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.
Places adjacent to Osage County, Kansas | |
|---|---|
Municipalities and communities ofOsage County, Kansas,United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cities |  | |
| CDP | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Townships | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
