In 1867, Comanche County was established and named for the Comanche tribe. The first American settlers arrived in 1873. Initially, the land was dominated by cattlemen who took advantage of the open range, many of whom organized a cattle company known as the "Comanche Pool." A large number of homesteaders arrived to claim and farm the land in 1884, and by 1885 most of the desirable homesteads had been claimed and the fencing in of the open range had ended the dominance of the cattlemen.[5]
The town of Coldwater was founded in 1884 by a group from Harper, Kansas, who saw potential in the northern part of Comanche County. The county organized in 1885 with Coldwater serving as the county seat. The arrival of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad in 1887 boosted prosperity population growth by improving transportation in the county. The opening of the Indian Territory to homesteading led to a temporary depopulation, however, and the dry years from 1891 to 1897 brought economic hardship, reducing the population significantly.[5] The first decades of the 20th century brought economic and population recovery,[5] but the Dust Bowl of the 1930s and subsequent rural flight in the 20th and 21st centuries have significantly impacted the county's fortunes.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 790 square miles (2,000km2), of which 788 square miles (2,040km2) is land and 1.4 square miles (3.6km2) (0.2%) is water.[6]
U.S. Decennial Census[8] 1790–1960[9] 1900–1990[10] 1990–2000[11] 2010–2020[1]
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,967 people, 872 households, and 540 families residing in the county. The population density was 2 peopleper square mile (0.77 people/km2). There were 1,088 housing units at an average density of 1 per square mile (0.39/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.97% White, 0.05% Black or African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.05% Asian, 0.20% Pacific Islander, 0.61% from other races, and 0.86% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.78% of the population.
There were 872 households, out of which 24.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.40% were married couples living together, 6.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.00% were non-families. Of all households 35.90% were made up of individuals, and 21.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.18 and the average family size was 2.81.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.10% under the age of 18, 4.50% from 18 to 24, 21.00% from 25 to 44, 26.50% from 45 to 64, and 25.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females there were 93.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.50 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $29,415, and the median income for a family was $36,790. Males had a median income of $24,844 versus $18,221 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,037. About 8.50% of families and 10.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.70% of those under age 18 and 7.70% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Presidential elections
Presidential election results
United States presidential election results for Comanche County, Kansas[12]
The Kansas Constitution was amended in 1986 to allow the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with the approval of voters, either with or without a minimum of 30% of sales coming from food. Comanche County is one of 35 counties in the state that allows for the sale of liquor by the drink without the minimum food sales stipulation.[13]
Comanche County is divided into four townships. None of the cities within the county are considered "governmentally independent", and all figures for the townships include those of the cities. 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.
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United States
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