Ellis County, Kansas facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ellis County
County
Ellis County Courthouse in Hays (1979)
Location within the U.S. state of Kansas
Kansas's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Kansas
Founded	1867
Named for	George Ellis
Seat	Hays
Largest city	Hays
Area
• Total	900 sq mi (2,000 km2)
• Land	899 sq mi (2,330 km2)
• Water	0.5 sq mi (1 km2)  0.05%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	28,934
• Density	32.2/sq mi (12.4/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Area code	785
Congressional district	1st

Ellis County (county code EL) is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 28,934. Its county seat and most populous city is Hays.

Ellis County is the official German Capital of Kansas. German immigrants settled in Hays, Ellis, Victoria, and nearby villages in the 1870s and 1880s.

History

Early history

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.

19th century

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 1854, the Kansas Territory was organized, then in 1861 Kansas became the 34th U.S. state. Ellis County was founded on February 26, 1867. It is named for George Ellis, first lieutenant of the Twelfth Kansas Infantry.

20th century

In 1942, the Walker Army Airfield was built northwest of Walker. Thousands were stationed at the airfield for training of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress during World War II. The airfield was abandoned and most of it razed.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 900 square miles (2,300 km²), of which 900 square miles (2,300 km²) is land and 0.5 square miles (1.3 km²) (0.05%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Rooks County (north)
• Osborne County (northeast)
• Russell County (east)
• Rush County (south)
• Ness County (southwest)
• Trego County (west)

Major highways

• Interstate 70
• US-183

Demographics

Population pyramid

The Hays Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Ellis County.

As of the 2000, there were 27,507 people, 11,193 households, and 6,771 families residing in the county. The population density was 31 people per square mile (12/km²). There were 12,078 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile (5/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.10% White, 0.67% Black or African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.82% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.31% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.37% of the population.

There were 11,193 households, out of which 28.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.00% were married couples living together, 7.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.50% were non-families. 30.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.40% under the age of 18, 18.40% from 18 to 24, 25.20% from 25 to 44, 19.60% from 45 to 64, and 14.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 95.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $32,339, and the median income for a family was $44,498. Males had a median income of $29,885 versus $21,269 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,259. About 6.50% of families and 12.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.20% of those under age 18 and 10.00% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

2005 Kansas Department of Transportation Map of Ellis County (map legend)

Cities

• Ellis
• Hays
• Schoenchen
• Victoria

Census-designated places

• Catharine
• Munjor

Other unincorporated places

The town of Antonino

Defunct settlements

• Chetolah
• Smoky Hill City

Townships

Ellis County is divided into nine townships. The cities of Ellis and Hays 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.

Gallery

Education

Unified school districts

• • western third of county; small portion in extreme eastern Trego County
  • eastern third of county to Russell county line
• Hays USD 489
  • extends to Rooks and Rush county lines and approximately five miles each way on I-70 from city center

Private schools

Universities and Colleges

• Fort Hays State University

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Ellis (Kansas) para niños