Cherokee County, Kansas | |
|---|---|
 Tri-State Marker (2006) | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofKansas | |
 Kansas's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:37°10′N94°51′W / 37.167°N 94.850°W /37.167; -94.850 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Kansas |
| Founded | February 18, 1860 |
| Named after | Cherokee Native Americans |
| Seat | Columbus |
| Largest city | Baxter Springs |
| Area | |
• Total | 591 sq mi (1,530 km2) |
| • Land | 588 sq mi (1,520 km2) |
| • Water | 3.5 sq mi (9.1 km2) 0.6% |
| Population | |
• Total | 19,362 |
• Estimate (2023) | 19,054 |
| • Density | 32.9/sq mi (12.7/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Area code | 620 |
| Congressional district | 2nd |
| Website | cherokeecountyks.gov |
Cherokee County is a U.S.county located inSoutheast Kansas. Itscounty seat isColumbus,[2] and its most populous city isBaxter Springs. As of the2020 census, the county population was 19,362.[1] The county was named for theCherokee tribe.
In 1803, United States acquired from France the 828,000-square mileLouisiana Purchase, the former French lands west of the Mississippi River, for 2.83cents peracre. This territory included most of the land formodern-day Kansas.
In the 1830s, the United States conductedIndian Removal of theFive Civilized Tribes from the Southeast region, to extinguish their land claims and allow European-American settlement in the area. They were given lands in what was calledIndian Territory west of the Mississippi River, mostly in present-day Oklahoma. This part of Kansas was included at the time in theCherokee Neutral Lands, and the county was named after this tribe.
In 1854, the U.S. organized theKansas Territory. Settlers began to move into the territory, with violence breaking out between supporters of slavery and those who wanted to abolish it. In 1861,Kansas was admitted as the 34thU.S. state; its constitution prohibited slavery. It was first founded in 1855, and in 1860, it was renamedCherokee County.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 591 square miles (1,530 km2), of which 588 square miles (1,520 km2) is land and 3.5 square miles (9.1 km2) (0.6%) is water.[3]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | 1,501 | — | |
| 1870 | 11,038 | 635.4% | |
| 1880 | 21,905 | 98.5% | |
| 1890 | 27,770 | 26.8% | |
| 1900 | 42,694 | 53.7% | |
| 1910 | 38,162 | −10.6% | |
| 1920 | 33,609 | −11.9% | |
| 1930 | 31,457 | −6.4% | |
| 1940 | 29,817 | −5.2% | |
| 1950 | 25,144 | −15.7% | |
| 1960 | 22,279 | −11.4% | |
| 1970 | 21,549 | −3.3% | |
| 1980 | 22,304 | 3.5% | |
| 1990 | 21,374 | −4.2% | |
| 2000 | 22,605 | 5.8% | |
| 2010 | 21,603 | −4.4% | |
| 2020 | 19,362 | −10.4% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 19,054 | [4] | −1.6% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[5] 1790-1960[6] 1900-1990[7] 1990-2000[8] 2010-2020[1] | |||
As of the2000 census,[9] there were 22,605 people, 8,875 households, and 6,239 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 38 people per square mile (15 people/km2). There were 10,031 housing units at an average density of 17 per square mile (6.6/km2). Theracial makeup of the county was 92.27%White, 0.61%Black orAfrican American, 3.45%Native American, 0.23%Asian, 0.04%Pacific Islander, 0.50% from other races, and 2.90% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 1.29% of the population.
There were 8,875households, out of which 32.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.60% weremarried couples living together, 9.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.70% were non-families. 26.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.02.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.50% under the age of 18, 8.40% from 18 to 24, 26.90% from 25 to 44, 23.10% from 45 to 64, and 15.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 94.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.70 males.
Themedian income for a household in the county was $30,505, and the median income for a family was $37,284. Males had a median income of $29,045 versus $19,675 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $14,710. About 11.40% of families and 14.30% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 19.40% of those under age 18 and 10.60% of those age 65 or over.
For most of its history, Cherokee County had more of a Democratic lean in presidential elections than the rest of the state, particularly before 1968. Since then, it has only voted for Democratic candidates twice. In 1976 & 1992, it was their second and fourth best county in the state, respectively. From 1996 on, the county has swung powerfully Republican similar to the rest of Southeast Kansas.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1888 | 2,935 | 45.62% | 2,038 | 31.68% | 1,461 | 22.71% |
| 1892 | 2,696 | 41.43% | 0 | 0.00% | 3,812 | 58.57% |
| 1896 | 3,505 | 40.20% | 5,108 | 58.58% | 106 | 1.22% |
| 1900 | 4,478 | 45.18% | 5,302 | 53.50% | 131 | 1.32% |
| 1904 | 4,586 | 55.81% | 2,253 | 27.42% | 1,378 | 16.77% |
| 1908 | 3,893 | 44.26% | 3,819 | 43.42% | 1,083 | 12.31% |
| 1912 | 1,994 | 26.54% | 2,641 | 35.15% | 2,878 | 38.31% |
| 1916 | 4,350 | 37.55% | 6,188 | 53.41% | 1,047 | 9.04% |
| 1920 | 5,466 | 55.83% | 3,832 | 39.14% | 492 | 5.03% |
| 1924 | 5,437 | 52.90% | 3,071 | 29.88% | 1,770 | 17.22% |
| 1928 | 7,478 | 66.20% | 3,442 | 30.47% | 376 | 3.33% |
| 1932 | 4,045 | 34.05% | 7,442 | 62.64% | 393 | 3.31% |
| 1936 | 5,445 | 40.61% | 7,894 | 58.88% | 69 | 0.51% |
| 1940 | 6,600 | 49.27% | 6,670 | 49.79% | 126 | 0.94% |
| 1944 | 5,458 | 54.65% | 4,468 | 44.73% | 62 | 0.62% |
| 1948 | 4,616 | 47.77% | 4,854 | 50.23% | 193 | 2.00% |
| 1952 | 6,261 | 57.37% | 4,597 | 42.12% | 56 | 0.51% |
| 1956 | 5,824 | 58.39% | 4,112 | 41.22% | 39 | 0.39% |
| 1960 | 5,753 | 56.45% | 4,366 | 42.84% | 73 | 0.72% |
| 1964 | 3,730 | 39.28% | 5,720 | 60.23% | 47 | 0.49% |
| 1968 | 4,211 | 47.46% | 3,597 | 40.54% | 1,064 | 11.99% |
| 1972 | 6,019 | 67.03% | 2,806 | 31.25% | 155 | 1.73% |
| 1976 | 3,957 | 42.93% | 5,154 | 55.91% | 107 | 1.16% |
| 1980 | 5,296 | 54.81% | 3,969 | 41.08% | 397 | 4.11% |
| 1984 | 5,801 | 60.72% | 3,663 | 38.34% | 89 | 0.93% |
| 1988 | 4,281 | 50.95% | 4,069 | 48.43% | 52 | 0.62% |
| 1992 | 3,589 | 36.78% | 4,083 | 41.85% | 2,085 | 21.37% |
| 1996 | 4,138 | 45.76% | 3,771 | 41.70% | 1,134 | 12.54% |
| 2000 | 5,014 | 54.92% | 3,783 | 41.43% | 333 | 3.65% |
| 2004 | 6,083 | 61.36% | 3,726 | 37.59% | 104 | 1.05% |
| 2008 | 5,886 | 60.90% | 3,594 | 37.19% | 185 | 1.91% |
| 2012 | 5,456 | 63.66% | 2,930 | 34.19% | 185 | 2.16% |
| 2016 | 6,182 | 70.91% | 2,005 | 23.00% | 531 | 6.09% |
| 2020 | 6,766 | 73.94% | 2,194 | 23.98% | 191 | 2.09% |
| 2024 | 6,584 | 75.33% | 1,970 | 22.54% | 186 | 2.13% |
Although theKansas Constitution was amended in 1986 to allow the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with the approval of voters, Cherokee County voters chose to remain a prohibition, or"dry", county on Sunday until 2012.[11]
School districts based in the county include:[12]
Other school districts include:[12]
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Cherokee County.[13]
‡ means a community has portions in an adjacent county.† means a community is designated aCensus-Designated Place (CDP) by theUnited States Census Bureau.
Cherokee County is divided into fourteentownships. The cities ofBaxter Springs,Columbus,Galena,Scammon, andWeir are consideredgovernmentally 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.
Places adjacent to Cherokee County, Kansas | |
|---|---|
Municipalities and communities ofCherokee County, Kansas,United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cities |  | |
| CDPs | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Ghost towns | ||
| Townships | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This community also has portions in an adjacent county or counties. | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
