Ottawa County, Kansas | |
|---|---|
 DowntownMinneapolis (2009) | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofKansas | |
 Kansas's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:39°08′00″N97°40′00″W / 39.1333°N 97.6667°W /39.1333; -97.6667 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Kansas |
| Founded | February 27, 1860 |
| Named after | Odawa tribe |
| Seat | Minneapolis |
| Largest city | Minneapolis |
| Area | |
• Total | 721 sq mi (1,870 km2) |
| • Land | 721 sq mi (1,870 km2) |
| • Water | 0.6 sq mi (1.6 km2) 0.08% |
| Population | |
• Total | 5,735 |
• Estimate (2023)[2] | 5,818 |
| • Density | 8/sq mi (3.1/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | 1st |
| Website | ottawacounty.org |
Ottawa County is acounty located in theU.S. state ofKansas. Itscounty seat and largest city isMinneapolis.[3] As of the2020 census, the county population was 5,735.[1] The county was named after theOdawa tribe.
For manymillennia, theGreat Plains ofNorth America was inhabited bynomadicNative Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, theKingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts ofNorth 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 mileLouisiana Purchase for 2.83cents peracre.
In 1854, theKansas Territory was organized, then in 1861Kansas became the 34thU.S. state. In 1860,Ottawa County was established.
Following amendment to theKansas Constitution in 1986, Ottawa County remained a prohibition, ordry county until 2006, when voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30% food sales requirement.[4]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 721 square miles (1,870 km2), of which 721 square miles (1,870 km2) is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km2) (0.08%) is water.[5]
TheSolomon River is the longest river in the county, entering fromCloud County to the northwest and exiting toSaline County to the southeast. TheSaline River traverses the southwestern portion of the county, going fromLincoln County toSaline County.
The largest lake is Ottawa State Fishing Lake, a 111-acre (0.45 km2)reservoir to the east of Minneapolis.[6] It is managed by theKansas Department of Wildlife and Parks.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 2,127 | — | |
| 1880 | 10,307 | 384.6% | |
| 1890 | 12,581 | 22.1% | |
| 1900 | 11,182 | −11.1% | |
| 1910 | 11,811 | 5.6% | |
| 1920 | 10,714 | −9.3% | |
| 1930 | 9,819 | −8.4% | |
| 1940 | 9,224 | −6.1% | |
| 1950 | 7,265 | −21.2% | |
| 1960 | 6,779 | −6.7% | |
| 1970 | 6,183 | −8.8% | |
| 1980 | 5,971 | −3.4% | |
| 1990 | 5,634 | −5.6% | |
| 2000 | 6,163 | 9.4% | |
| 2010 | 6,091 | −1.2% | |
| 2020 | 5,735 | −5.8% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 5,818 | [7] | 1.4% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[8] 1790-1960[9] 1900-1990[10] 1990-2000[11] 2010-2020[1] | |||
Ottawa County is part of theSalina, KSMicropolitan Statistical Area.
As of thecensus[12] of 2000, there were 6,163 people, 2,430 households, and 1,718 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 8 people per square mile (3.1 people/km2). There were 2,755 housing units at an average density of 4 per square mile (1.5/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.53%White, 0.54%Black orAfrican American, 0.37%Native American, 0.13%Asian, 0.02%Pacific Islander, 0.32% fromother races, and 1.09% from two or more races. 1.30% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race.
There were 2,430 households, out of which 31.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.40% weremarried couples living together, 6.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.30% were non-families. 25.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.96.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.70% under the age of 18, 5.80% from 18 to 24, 26.70% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 17.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $38,009, and the median income for a family was $46,033. Males had a median income of $30,761 versus $21,380 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $17,663. About 5.10% of families and 8.60% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 8.80% of those under age 18 and 11.70% of those age 65 or over.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1888 | 1,569 | 56.08% | 769 | 27.48% | 460 | 16.44% |
| 1892 | 1,444 | 47.48% | 0 | 0.00% | 1,597 | 52.52% |
| 1896 | 1,256 | 45.29% | 1,486 | 53.59% | 31 | 1.12% |
| 1900 | 1,509 | 51.61% | 1,367 | 46.75% | 48 | 1.64% |
| 1904 | 1,682 | 66.27% | 477 | 18.79% | 379 | 14.93% |
| 1908 | 1,444 | 50.54% | 1,265 | 44.28% | 148 | 5.18% |
| 1912 | 517 | 18.28% | 1,264 | 44.68% | 1,048 | 37.04% |
| 1916 | 2,013 | 40.55% | 2,711 | 54.61% | 240 | 4.83% |
| 1920 | 2,512 | 62.94% | 1,358 | 34.03% | 121 | 3.03% |
| 1924 | 2,475 | 60.25% | 854 | 20.79% | 779 | 18.96% |
| 1928 | 3,158 | 72.53% | 1,131 | 25.98% | 65 | 1.49% |
| 1932 | 1,884 | 41.32% | 2,505 | 54.95% | 170 | 3.73% |
| 1936 | 2,230 | 44.31% | 2,785 | 55.33% | 18 | 0.36% |
| 1940 | 2,810 | 57.06% | 2,065 | 41.93% | 50 | 1.02% |
| 1944 | 2,428 | 63.11% | 1,378 | 35.82% | 41 | 1.07% |
| 1948 | 2,203 | 59.00% | 1,424 | 38.14% | 107 | 2.87% |
| 1952 | 2,916 | 77.66% | 801 | 21.33% | 38 | 1.01% |
| 1956 | 2,329 | 68.80% | 1,037 | 30.64% | 19 | 0.56% |
| 1960 | 2,190 | 66.81% | 1,072 | 32.70% | 16 | 0.49% |
| 1964 | 1,491 | 48.85% | 1,535 | 50.29% | 26 | 0.85% |
| 1968 | 1,740 | 62.66% | 777 | 27.98% | 260 | 9.36% |
| 1972 | 2,065 | 72.94% | 705 | 24.90% | 61 | 2.15% |
| 1976 | 1,629 | 52.86% | 1,393 | 45.20% | 60 | 1.95% |
| 1980 | 2,118 | 71.87% | 630 | 21.38% | 199 | 6.75% |
| 1984 | 2,345 | 75.74% | 699 | 22.58% | 52 | 1.68% |
| 1988 | 1,836 | 64.78% | 953 | 33.63% | 45 | 1.59% |
| 1992 | 1,284 | 45.53% | 764 | 27.09% | 772 | 27.38% |
| 1996 | 1,846 | 63.88% | 752 | 26.02% | 292 | 10.10% |
| 2000 | 1,977 | 70.83% | 631 | 22.61% | 183 | 6.56% |
| 2004 | 2,333 | 78.53% | 595 | 20.03% | 43 | 1.45% |
| 2008 | 2,323 | 75.28% | 704 | 22.81% | 59 | 1.91% |
| 2012 | 2,295 | 78.25% | 558 | 19.02% | 80 | 2.73% |
| 2016 | 2,283 | 78.08% | 424 | 14.50% | 217 | 7.42% |
| 2020 | 2,610 | 81.79% | 506 | 15.86% | 75 | 2.35% |
| 2024 | 2,475 | 82.42% | 476 | 15.85% | 52 | 1.73% |
Like all of Kansas outside the eastern cities, Ottawa County is overwhelmingly Republican. No Democratic presidential candidate has won Ottawa County sinceLyndon Johnson in 1964, and the last to reach thirty percent of the county's vote wasMichael Dukakis in 1988 duringa major Great Plains drought.
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Ottawa County.[14]
† means a community is designated aCensus-Designated Place (CDP) by theUnited States Census Bureau.
Ottawa County is divided into twentytownships. The city ofMinneapolis 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.
Places adjacent to Ottawa County, Kansas | ||||||||||||||||
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Municipalities and communities ofOttawa County, Kansas,United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
| CDPs | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Ghost town | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
