Stevens County, Kansas

Stevens County
County
Stevens County Courthouse in Hugoton (2009)
Location within the U.S. state of Kansas
Kansas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 37°12′N101°18′W / 37.200°N 101.300°W / 37.200; -101.300
Country	United States
State	Kansas
Founded	August 3, 1886
Named for	Thaddeus Stevens [1]
Seat	Hugoton
Largest city	Hugoton
Area
• Total	727 sq mi (1,880 km2)
• Land	727 sq mi (1,880 km2)
• Water	0.2 sq mi (0.5 km2)  0.02%
Population  (2020) [2]
• Total	5,250
• Density	7.2/sq mi (2.8/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Area code	620
Congressional district	1st
Website	StevensCoKS.org

Stevens County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat is Hugoton. ^[3] As of the 2020 census, the county population was 5,250. ^[2] The county is named for Thaddeus Stevens, a Reconstruction era Pennsylvania politician. ^[1]

History

See also: History of Kansas

In 1886, Stevens County was established.

The first settlers came from McPherson, Kansas in 1885, originally naming their town Hugo after Victor Hugo, before changing it to Hugoton. Other early towns included Lafayette, founded by Quakers in 1886, and Moscow, established in 1887.

In the late 1880s and early 1890s, a violent "county seat war" raged between Hugoton, which had been designated the temporary county seat, and Woodsdale. Incidents included arrests, kidnappings, and killings. ^[4] The conflict culminated in the July 25, 1888, murder of Sheriff Cross of Woodsdale and three of his men in the Hay Meadow Massacre by Sam Robinson of Hugoton and his supporters. Robinson fled and was never tried for the murders. ^{[4] [5]} The issue was eventually resolved in 1887 when Hugoton became the permanent county seat, though tensions remained high for several years after. ^[4]

Natural gas was discovered in Stevens County in 1927, leading to the development of the Hugoton Natural Gas Area and transforming Hugoton into a major center of the natural gas industry. ^[4]

In the 1930s, the prosperity of the area was severely affected by its location within the Dust Bowl. This catastrophe intensified the economic impact of the Great Depression in the region.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 727 square miles (1,880 km²), of which 727 square miles (1,880 km²) is land and 0.2 square miles (0.52 km²) (0.02%) is water. ^[6]

Major highways

• Kansas Highway 25
• Kansas Highway 51
• U.S. Highway 56

Adjacent counties

• Grant County (north)
• Haskell County (northeast)
• Seward County (east)
• Texas County, Oklahoma (south)
• Morton County (west)
• Stanton County (northwest)

National protected area

• Cimarron National Grassland (part)

Demographics

Population pyramid based on 2000 census age data

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	12		—
1890	1,418		11,716.7%
1900	620		−56.3%
1910	2,453		295.6%
1920	3,943		60.7%
1930	4,655		18.1%
1940	3,193		−31.4%
1950	4,516		41.4%
1960	4,400		−2.6%
1970	4,198		−4.6%
1980	4,736		12.8%
1990	5,048		6.6%
2000	5,463		8.2%
2010	5,724		4.8%
2020	5,250		−8.3%
2023 (est.)	5,077	[7]	−3.3%
U.S. Decennial Census [8] 1790-1960 [9] 1900-1990 [10] 1990-2000 [11] 2010-2020 [2]

As of the census ^[12] of 2000, there were 5,463 people, 1,988 households, and 1,457 families residing in the county. The population density was 8 people per square mile (3.1 people/km²). There were 2,265 housing units at an average density of 3 per square mile (1.2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 83.01% White, 0.93% Black or African American, 0.93% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 13.25% from other races, and 1.61% from two or more races. 21.73% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 1,988 households, out of which 38.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.10% were married couples living together, 7.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.70% were non-families. 24.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.27.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 31.20% under the age of 18, 8.30% from 18 to 24, 27.80% from 25 to 44, 19.40% from 45 to 64, and 13.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 95.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $41,830, and the median income for a family was $49,063. Males had a median income of $36,525 versus $22,803 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,814. About 8.30% of families and 10.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.10% of those under age 18 and 4.70% of those age 65 or over.

Government

County

Stevens County is governed by the Stevens County Commissioners. The current members are Joe D. Thompson, Tron Stegman, and Pat Hall.

Presidential elections

Presidential election results

United States presidential election results for Stevens County, Kansas ^[13]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	1,595	86.92%	210	11.44%	30	1.63%
2020	1,760	86.66%	237	11.67%	34	1.67%
2016	1,599	84.56%	220	11.63%	72	3.81%
2012	1,749	85.99%	252	12.39%	33	1.62%
2008	1,815	85.33%	283	13.31%	29	1.36%
2004	1,936	85.47%	310	13.69%	19	0.84%
2000	1,714	81.19%	345	16.34%	52	2.46%
1996	1,548	70.88%	405	18.54%	231	10.58%
1992	1,408	56.84%	390	15.74%	679	27.41%
1988	1,642	71.17%	612	26.53%	53	2.30%
1984	1,863	82.03%	386	17.00%	22	0.97%
1980	1,502	72.04%	478	22.93%	105	5.04%
1976	1,262	57.23%	901	40.86%	42	1.90%
1972	1,392	74.48%	408	21.83%	69	3.69%
1968	1,157	58.38%	528	26.64%	297	14.98%
1964	992	49.11%	1,006	49.80%	22	1.09%
1960	1,405	68.74%	630	30.82%	9	0.44%
1956	1,273	69.00%	565	30.62%	7	0.38%
1952	1,480	77.16%	423	22.05%	15	0.78%
1948	822	54.04%	666	43.79%	33	2.17%
1944	760	64.63%	414	35.20%	2	0.17%
1940	851	55.05%	674	43.60%	21	1.36%
1936	701	40.52%	1,023	59.13%	6	0.35%
1932	578	31.08%	1,225	65.86%	57	3.06%
1928	1,133	78.52%	300	20.79%	10	0.69%
1924	913	66.55%	302	22.01%	157	11.44%
1920	876	69.47%	346	27.44%	39	3.09%
1916	391	33.48%	646	55.31%	131	11.22%
1912	117	19.34%	237	39.17%	251	41.49%
1908	258	48.22%	215	40.19%	62	11.59%
1904	122	64.21%	40	21.05%	28	14.74%
1900	66	42.31%	89	57.05%	1	0.64%
1896	48	32.21%	101	67.79%	0	0.00%
1892	85	31.48%	0	0.00%	185	68.52%
1888	307	40.99%	268	35.78%	174	23.23%

Stevens County is overwhelmingly Republican. It has not been won by a Democrat at Presidential level since Lyndon Johnson won by fourteen votes in 1964. In fact, the last Democrat to crack thirty percent of the county's vote was Jimmy Carter in 1976, and since Carter only Michael Dukakis during the drought and farm crisis-influenced 1988 election has received so much as twenty percent.

Laws

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. Stevens 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. ^[14]

Education

Unified school districts

• Moscow USD 209
• Hugoton USD 210

Communities

2005 map of Stevens County (map legend)

List of current townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Stevens County. ^[15]

Cities

• Hugoton (county seat)
• Moscow

Ghost towns

• Feterita
• Woodsdale

Townships

Area affected by 1930s Dust Bowl

Stevens County is divided into six 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.

Sources: 2000 U.S. Gazetteer from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Township	FIPS	Population center	Population	Population density /km2 (/sq mi)	Land area km2 (sq mi)	Water area km2 (sq mi)	Water %	Geographic coordinates
Banner	04125		164	1 (2)	277 (107)	0 (0)	0%	37°3′41″N101°11′37″W / 37.06139°N 101.19361°W / 37.06139; -101.19361
Center	12200		4,131	15 (38)	280 (108)	0 (0)	0.02%	37°10′38″N101°19′7″W / 37.17722°N 101.31861°W / 37.17722; -101.31861
Harmony	30150		143	1 (1)	280 (108)	0 (0)	0%	37°19′22″N101°26′55″W / 37.32278°N 101.44861°W / 37.32278; -101.44861
Moscow	48625		711	2 (4)	442 (171)	0 (0)	0.09%	37°18′28″N101°12′12″W / 37.30778°N 101.20333°W / 37.30778; -101.20333
Voorhees	74200		145	0 (1)	349 (135)	0 (0)	0%	37°3′26″N101°23′16″W / 37.05722°N 101.38778°W / 37.05722; -101.38778
West Center	76800		169	1 (2)	257 (99)	0 (0)	0%	37°11′30″N101°26′19″W / 37.19167°N 101.43861°W / 37.19167; -101.43861

See also

• Kansas portal

Community information for Kansas

• Kansas locations by per capita income
• List of counties in Kansas
• List of townships in Kansas
• List of cities in Kansas
• List of unincorporated communities in Kansas
• List of ghost towns in Kansas

References

1. Knapp, Tom (April 3, 2009). "Stevens to honor Stevens, Town was named for famous legislator, who got it a post office". Intelligencer Journal . Archived from the original on December 8, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2009.
2. "QuickFacts; Stevens County, Kansas; Population, Census, 2020 & 2010". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on August 20, 2021. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
3. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
4. "Stevens County, Kansas - Kansapedia - Kansas Historical Society". www.kshs.org. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
5. Gribben, Brian. "Research Guides: Kansas Heritage: Stevens County". fhsuguides.fhsu.edu. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
6. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
7. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
8. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
9. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
10. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
11. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
12. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
13. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections".
14. "Map of Wet and Dry Counties" (PDF). Kansas Department of Revenue Alcoholic Beverage Control. December 30, 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 4, 2020. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
15. "General Highway Map of Stevens County, Kansas" (PDF). Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT). April 2009. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 7, 2023.

Notes

Further reading

See also: List of books about Kansas, including historical information about its counties and cities

External links

County

• Stevens County - Official Website
• Stevens County - Directory of Public Officials

Other

• Hugoton Schools

Maps

• Stevens County Maps: Current, Historic, KDOT
• Kansas Highway Maps: Current, Historic, KDOT
• Kansas Railroad Maps: Current, 1996, 1915, KDOT and Kansas Historical Society