Butler County, Kansas

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Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox U.S. county

Butler County is a county in the U.S. state of Kansas and is the largest county in the state by total area.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Its county seat is El Dorado and its most populous city is Andover.<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref> As of the 2020 census, the county population was 67,380.<ref name="QF">Template:Cite web</ref> The county was named for Andrew Butler, a U.S. Senator from South Carolina who coauthored the Kansas–Nebraska Act.

History

Early history

Template:See also For 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. 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 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 1848, after the Mexican–American War, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo with Spain brought into the United States all or part of land for ten future states, including southwest Kansas. In 1854, the Kansas Territory was organized, then in 1861 Kansas became the 34th U.S. state.

19th century

In 1855, Butler County was founded. It was named in honor of a U.S. Senator from South Carolina, Andrew Butler (1796-1857), who was one of the authors of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 and a strong advocate of Kansas becoming a slave state.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In 1877, the Florence, El Dorado, and Walnut Valley Railroad Company built a branch line from Florence to El Dorado, in 1881 it was extended to Douglass, and later to Arkansas City.<ref name="MarionCountyBook">Marion County Kansas : Past and Present; Sondra Van Meter; MB Publishing House; LCCN 72-92041; 344 pages; 1972.</ref> The line was leased and operated by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. The line from Florence to El Dorado was abandoned in 1942.<ref name="Abandon Railway 1942">Railway Abandonment 1942</ref> The original branch line connected Florence, Burns, De Graff, El Dorado, Augusta, Douglass, Rock, Akron, Winfield, Arkansas City.

In 1887, the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway built a branch line north–south from Herington to Caldwell.<ref name="Rock Island Rail History">Template:Cite web</ref> This branch line connected Herington, Lost Springs, Lincolnville, Antelope, Marion, Aulne, Peabody, Elbing, Whitewater, Furley, Kechi, Wichita, Peck, Corbin, Wellington, Caldwell. By 1893, this branch line was incrementally built to Fort Worth, Texas. This line is called the "OKT". The Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway was foreclosed in 1891 and was taken over by Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway, which shut down in 1980 and reorganized as Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas Railroad, merged in 1988 with Missouri Pacific Railroad, and finally merged in 1997 with Union Pacific Railroad. Most locals still refer to this railroad as the "Rock Island".

21st century

In 2010, the Keystone-Cushing Pipeline (Phase II) was constructed north to south through Butler County (near Potwin, Towanda, Augusta, Douglass), with much controversy over tax exemption and environmental concerns (if a leak ever occurs).<ref>Keystone Pipeline - Marion County Commission calls out Legislative Leadership on Pipeline Deal; April 18, 2010. Template:Webarchive</ref><ref>Keystone Pipeline - TransCanada inspecting pipeline; December 10, 2010.</ref> A pumping station named Burns was built two miles north of Potwin, and new power lines were built from a high-voltage line 0.3 mile east of De Graff.<ref>Keystone Pipeline - Burns Pumping Station - New Powerline Map; Trow Engineering Consultants and TransCanda; 2010.</ref>

In an unusual technical glitch, a farmstead approximately four miles northeast of Potwin became the default site of 600 million IP addresses (due to their lack of fine granularity) when the Massachusetts-based digital mapping company MaxMind changed the putative geographic center of the contiguous United States from 39.8333333,-98.585522 to 38.0000,-97.0000.<ref name="Potwin, Kansas">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Kansas couple sues over internet glitch targeting their home; The Wichita Eagle; August 8, 2016.</ref>

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has an area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (1.2%) is water.<ref name="GR1">Template:Cite web</ref> It is the largest county by area in Kansas.<ref>Kansas Land Area County Rank</ref>

Adjacent counties

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Major highways

Sources: National Atlas,<ref>National Atlas Template:Webarchive</ref> U.S. Census Bureau<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Demographics

Population pyramid based on 2000 census age data

Template:US Census population Butler County is part of the Wichita, KS Metropolitan Statistical Area.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, 59,482 people, 21,527 households, and 16,059 families resided in the county. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 23,176 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The county's racial makeup was 94.94% White, 1.38% Black or African American, 0.91% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.66% from other races, and 1.69% two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.25% of the population.

There were 21,527 households, of which 37.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.60% were married couples living together, 8.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.40% were non-families. 21.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.13.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.60% under the age of 18, 8.30% from 18 to 24, 28.80% from 25 to 44, 21.70% from 45 to 64, and 12.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.80 males.

The county's median household income was $45,474, and the median family income was $53,632. Males had a median income of $38,675 versus $26,109 for females. The county's per capita income was $20,150. About 5.40% of families and 7.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.00% of those under age 18 and 6.40% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Presidential elections

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Like of most of Kansas’ counties, Butler County is solidly Republican. In 2008, John McCain carried the county by a nearly two-to-one margin over Barack Obama. Since 1992, no Democratic candidate has received so much as forty percent of the county's vote.<ref>The New York Times Electoral Map (Zoom in on Kansas)</ref> The last Democratic candidate to carry the county was Jimmy Carter in 1976.

Laws

Butler 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% food sales requirement.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Education

College

Unified school districts

School districts include:<ref name=CensusSDMap2020>Template:Cite map - Text list</ref>

School districts with offices in neighboring counties<ref name=CensusSDMap2020/>

Private schools

Communities

2005 map of Butler County<ref name="County-Map-Current"/> (map legend)

List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Butler County.<ref name="County-Map-Current">Template:Cite web</ref>

Cities

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Unincorporated communities

† means a community is designated a Census-Designated Place (CDP) by the United States Census Bureau. Template:Div col

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Ghost towns

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  • Aikman
  • Alki
  • Amador
  • Browntown
  • Chelsea (now under El Dorado Lake)
  • Dixon
  • Durachen
  • Edgecomb
  • Frazier
  • Indianola
  • Little Walnut
  • Magna City
  • Oil Hill
  • Nellans
  • Numa
  • Oil Valley
  • Ophir
  • Palmyra
  • Pine Grove
  • Plum Grove
  • Providence
  • Quito
  • Ramsey
  • Salter
  • Sycamore Springs
  • Vanora
  • Wingate

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Townships

Butler County is divided into twenty-nine townships. The cities of Augusta and El Dorado 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
Augusta 03325 1,405 17 (43) 84 (32) 1 (0) 0.68% Template:Coord
Benton 06200 Benton 2,211 24 (61) 93 (36) 0 (0) 0% Template:Coord
Bloomington 07500 544 6 (15) 93 (36) 0 (0) 0% Template:Coord
Bruno 08825 Andover 9,744 107 (278) 91 (35) 0 (0) 0.10% Template:Coord
Chelsea 12750 190 1 (2) 261 (101) 17 (7) 6.15% Template:Coord
Clay 13575 83 1 (2) 94 (36) 0 (0) 0.22% Template:Coord
Clifford 14175 259 2 (6) 108 (42) 0 (0) 0.18% Template:Coord
Douglass 18425 Douglass 2,306 25 (64) 93 (36) 0 (0) 0.32% Template:Coord
El Dorado 20100 1,700 12 (32) 140 (54) 2 (1) 1.46% Template:Coord
Fairmount 22275 Elbing 511 5 (14) 94 (36) 0 (0) 0.14% Template:Coord
Fairview 22450 491 5 (14) 92 (36) 0 (0) 0.14% Template:Coord
Glencoe 26400 239 1 (4) 161 (62) 1 (0) 0.60% Template:Coord
Hickory 31750 90 1 (1) 162 (62) 1 (0) 0.67% Template:Coord
Lincoln 40500 317 1 (3) 257 (99) 2 (1) 0.64% Template:Coord
Little Walnut 41625 Leon 1,002 11 (28) 94 (36) 0 (0) 0.44% Template:Coord
Logan 41775 154 2 (4) 94 (36) 0 (0) 0.16% Template:Coord
Milton 46875 Whitewater 1,136 12 (31) 94 (36) 0 (0) 0.15% Template:Coord
Murdock 49225 378 4 (10) 93 (36) 0 (0) 0% Template:Coord
Pleasant 56200 Rose Hill (part) 4,649 50 (129) 93 (36) 0 (0) 0.11% Template:Coord
Plum Grove 56850 Potwin 661 7 (19) 92 (36) 1 (0) 0.58% Template:Coord
Prospect 57775 2,033 10 (26) 203 (78) 16 (6) 7.20% Template:Coord
Richland 59250 Rose Hill (part) 2,399 26 (66) 94 (36) 0 (0) 0.02% Template:Coord
Rock Creek 60475 299 3 (8) 94 (36) 0 (0) 0% Template:Coord
Rosalia 61125 589 4 (9) 162 (63) 1 (0) 0.58% Template:Coord
Spring 67275 1,566 17 (43) 94 (36) 0 (0) 0.13% Template:Coord
Sycamore 69700 Cassoday 333 1 (3) 295 (114) 2 (1) 0.76% Template:Coord
Towanda 71150 Towanda 2,727 29 (76) 93 (36) 0 (0) 0.14% Template:Coord
Union 72050 Latham 226 1 (4) 161 (62) 1 (0) 0.72% Template:Coord
Walnut 74900 760 8 (21) 92 (36) 1 (0) 0.77% Template:Coord
Sources: Template:Cite web

See also

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References

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Further reading

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County
Historical
Maps

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Template:Butler County, Kansas Template:Kansas Template:Authority control

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