Sherman County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat is Goodland. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 5,927. Sherman County was created by the Legislature of 1873, and named after general William Sherman, a general during the American Civil War.William G. Cutler's History of the State of Kansas, published 1883 by A. T. Andreas, Chicago, Il., http://www.kancoll.org/books/cutler/unorganized/unorganized-co-p1.html

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 1886, Sherman County was established.

Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.02%) is water.

Sherman County is one of only four Kansas counties to observe Mountain Time. Since Sherman County is part of the Wichita media market and the local broadcast stations are repeat signals of Wichita affiliates, prime-time programming in the county is aired from 6 to 9 p.m. local time, rather than 7 to 10 p.m. as is normal in the Central and Mountain time zones. However, cable providers carry the ABC and NBC affiliates from both Wichita and Denver, affording viewers the opportunity to view programs on those networks at the normal prime-time hours.

Adjacent counties Cheyenne County (north/Central Time border) Rawlins County (northeast/Central Time border) Thomas County (east/Central Time border) Logan County (southeast/Central Time border) Wallace County (south) Kit Carson County, Colorado (west)

Major highways

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 5,927. The median age was 38.4 years. 24.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 19.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.0 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 84.8% White, 1.7% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 5.5% from some other race, and 7.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 13.0% of the population.

74.9% of residents lived in urban areas, while 25.1% lived in rural areas.

There were 2,447 households in the county, of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 25.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 33.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 2,934 housing units, of which 16.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 68.7% were owner-occupied and 31.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 16.3%.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 6,760 people, 2,758 households, and 1,781 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 3,184 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.83% White, 0.36% Black or African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.16% Pacific Islander, 4.14% from other races, and 0.99% from two or more races. 8.45% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,758 households, out of which 29.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.80% were married couples living together, 6.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.40% were non-families. 29.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.60% under the age of 18, 11.80% from 18 to 24, 23.90% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64, and 17.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 104.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $32,684, and the median income for a family was $38,824. Males had a median income of $28,012 versus $20,927 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,761. About 9.70% of families and 12.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.90% of those under age 18 and 7.30% of those age 65 or over.

Government Sherman County has been predominantly carried by Republican candidates at the presidential level for a century, as is the case with the majority of rural counties. However, Lyndon B. Johnson narrowly carried the county in 1964, the only Democrat to do so since 1936.

Presidential elections

Laws Sherman 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 percent food sales requirement.

Education

Colleges Northwest Kansas Technical College

Unified school districts Brewster USD 314 Goodland USD 352

Communities

List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Sherman County. † means a community is designated a Census-Designated Place (CDP) by the United States Census Bureau.

Cities Goodland (county seat) Kanorado

Unincorporated communities Caruso Edson† Ruleton

Townships Sherman County is divided into thirteen townships. The city of Goodland is considered governmentally independent and is excluded from the census figures for the townships. Geographically, Goodland is located at the juncture of Voltaire, Itasca, and Logan 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.

Sources: 2000 U.S. Gazetteer from the U.S. Census Bureau. Township FIPS Populationcenter Population Populationdensity/km2 (/sq mi) Land areakm2 (sq mi) Water areakm2 (sq mi) Water % Geographic coordinates Grant 28150 115 0 (1) 355 (137) 0 (0) 0.02% Iowa 34450 44 0 (0) 279 (108) 0 (0) 0% Itasca 34600 321 4 (10) 87 (34) 0 (0) 0% Lincoln 41175 95 1 (1) 186 (72) 0 (0) 0.03% Llanos 41650 43 0 (1) 185 (71) 0 (0) 0% Logan 42250 246 2 (5) 138 (53) 0 (0) 0% McPherson 44025 52 0 (1) 174 (67) 0 (0) 0% Shermanville 65175 51 0 (1) 185 (71) 0 (0) 0% Smoky 65950 87 0 (1) 280 (108) 0 (0) 0.12% Stateline 68150 Kanorado 344 2 (5) 165 (64) 0 (0) 0.03% Union 72425 56 0 (1) 140 (54) 0 (0) 0% Voltaire 74175 252 1 (2) 411 (159) 0 (0) 0% Washington 75750 106 1 (2) 139 (54) 0 (0) 0%

See also

References

Further reading

Standard Atlas of Sherman County, Kansas; Geo. A. Ogle & Co; 61 pages; 1907.

External links

County

Sherman County - Directory of Public Officials Maps Historic County Township Boundary Maps - Kansas Department of Transportation Historic County Road Maps - Kansas Department of Transportation Historic State Highway Maps - Kansas Department of Transportation Historic State Railroad Maps: 1996, 1929, 1915, 1907 - Kansas Historical Society