Leavenworth County, Kansas facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Leavenworth County
County
Leavenworth County Courthouse in Leavenworth
Location within the U.S. state of Kansas
Kansas's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Kansas
Founded	August 25, 1855
Named for	Henry Leavenworth
Seat	Leavenworth
Largest city	Leavenworth
Area
• Total	469 sq mi (1,210 km2)
• Land	463 sq mi (1,200 km2)
• Water	6.1 sq mi (16 km2)  1.3%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	81,881
• Density	176.8/sq mi (68.3/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	2nd

Leavenworth County (county code LV) is located in the U.S. state of Kansas and is part of the Kansas City metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 81,881. Its county seat and most populous city is Leavenworth.

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. In 1855, Leavenworth County was established, and is among the first 33 counties, which were formed by the first territorial government. It was named, as was its county seat, after Henry Leavenworth, an officer in the War of 1812.

Leavenworth County had the first Kansas State University extension agent in the State.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 469 square miles (1,210 km²), of which 463 square miles (1,200 km²) is land and 6.1 square miles (16 km²) (1.3%) is water. It is the fifth-smallest county in Kansas by total area.

This county's watershed connects with both the Kansas River basin on the south via Stranger Creek and has a Missouri River port city to the east.

Adjacent counties

• Platte County, Missouri (north)
• Wyandotte County (east)
• Johnson County (southeast)
• Douglas County (southwest)
• Jefferson County (west)
• Atchison County (northwest)

Demographics

Population pyramid

The county is a part of the Kansas City, MO-KS Metropolitan Statistical Area.

As of the U.S. Census in 2000, there were 68,691 people, 23,071 households, and 17,210 families residing in the county. The population density was 148 people per square mile (57/km²). There were 24,401 housing units at an average density of 53 per square mile (20/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 84.2% White, 10.4% Black or African American, 0.7% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.2% from other races, and 2.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.8% of the population.

There were 23,071 households, out of which 38.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.4% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.4% were non-families. 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.15.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.7% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 33.0% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 9.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 113.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 116.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $48,114, and the median income for a family was $55,805. Males had a median income of $40,047 versus $26,029 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,292. About 4.8% of families and 6.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.8% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Unincorporated communities

Townships

Leavenworth County is divided into ten townships. The cities of Lansing and Leavenworth 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.

Education

Colleges and universities

• United States Army Command and General Staff College
• University of Saint Mary
• Leavenworth Normal School (closed)

Unified school districts

• Fort Leavenworth USD 207
• Leavenworth USD 453
• Lansing USD 469

Notable people

• Sean Malto, professional skateboarder
• Wayne Simien, professional basketball player

Images for kids

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See also

In Spanish: Condado de Leavenworth para niños