Kiowa County, Kansas

Kiowa County (standard abbreviation: KW) is a county in the U.S. state of Kansas. In 2020, 2,460 people lived there. The largest city and county seat is Greensburg.

Kiowa County
County
Renovated County Courthouse in Greensburg (2009) after a tornado damaged it in 2007. Construction of the building started in 1920.
Location within the U.S. state of Kansas
Kansas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 37°34′00″N 99°17′00″W
Country	United States
State	Kansas
Founded	February 26, 1867
Named for	Kiowa tribe
Seat	Greensburg
Largest city	Greensburg
Area
• Total	723 sq mi (1,870 km2)
• Land	723 sq mi (1,870 km2)
• Water	0.2 sq mi (0.5 km2)  0.03%
Population  (2020)
• Total	2,460
• Density	3.4/sq mi (1.3/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	4th
Website	kiowacountyks.org

History

19th century

In 1867, Kiowa County was created. It was named after the Kiowa tribe.

21st century

On May 4, 2007, Greensburg was destroyed by an EF5 tornado during the May 2007 tornado outbreak.

Geography

Tthe U.S. Census Bureau says that the county has a total area of 723 square miles (1,870 km²). Of that, 723 square miles (1,870 km²) is land and 0.2 square miles (0.52 km²) (0.03%) is water.

Kiowa County has a lot of iron-rich meteorites in its soil. This is due to the Brenham meteor fall over 10 thousand years ago.

People

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1890	2,873		—
1900	2,365		−17.7%
1910	6,174		161.1%
1920	6,164		−0.2%
1930	6,035		−2.1%
1940	5,112		−15.3%
1950	4,743		−7.2%
1960	4,626		−2.5%
1970	4,088		−11.6%
1980	4,046		−1.0%
1990	3,660		−9.5%
2000	3,278		−10.4%
2010	2,553		−22.1%
2020	2,460		−3.6%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010-2020

Age pyramid

Government

Presidential elections

Presidential Elections Results

Presidential Elections Results

Year	Republican	Democratic	Third Parties
2020	84.1% 980	13.4% 156	2.5% 29
2016	82.4% 900	10.4% 114	7.1% 78
2012	85.3% 976	14.3% 163	0.4% 5
2008	80.4% 912	17.6% 200	2.0% 23
2004	81.5% 1,275	16.4% 256	2.2% 34
2000	78.5% 1,262	18.3% 294	3.2% 52
1996	71.0% 1,264	18.6% 331	10.5% 186
1992	55.9% 1,057	18.8% 355	25.3% 479
1988	71.1% 1,276	27.0% 485	1.9% 34
1984	79.5% 1,537	18.7% 361	1.8% 35
1980	72.2% 1,433	22.1% 438	5.8% 115
1976	59.5% 1,180	38.5% 764	2.0% 40
1972	76.4% 1,559	19.9% 406	3.8% 77
1968	70.9% 1,484	23.0% 481	6.2% 129
1964	53.3% 1,135	45.5% 970	1.2% 25
1960	74.6% 1,662	24.9% 555	0.5% 12
1956	76.2% 1,717	22.9% 517	0.9% 20
1952	78.6% 1,838	18.5% 432	2.9% 68
1948	59.8% 1,258	34.3% 722	5.9% 124
1944	69.6% 1,479	29.1% 618	1.3% 28
1940	64.1% 1,571	34.4% 844	1.5% 36
1936	47.3% 1,280	52.4% 1,417	0.3% 8
1932	52.2% 1,306	46.4% 1,159	1.4% 35
1928	82.1% 1,929	17.3% 406	0.6% 15
1924	70.1% 1,541	22.7% 498	7.3% 160
1920	69.5% 1,411	28.9% 587	1.6% 32
1916	41.0% 901	43.5% 956	15.6% 342
1912	19.6% 276	35.9% 506	44.5% 627
1908	59.5% 699	34.8% 409	5.7% 67
1904	59.2% 494	30.1% 251	10.7% 89
1900	51.5% 322	46.9% 293	1.6% 10
1896	49.8% 250	48.8% 245	1.4% 7
1892	50.4% 398		49.6% 391
1888	50.3% 525	36.5% 381	13.1% 137

Kiowa County is very Republican. The only Democrat to ever win the county was been Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936.

Education

Unified school districts

• Kiowa County USD 422
• Haviland USD 474

Colleges

• Barclay College, Haviland

Communities

2005 KDOT Map of Kiowa County (map legend)

Incorporated cities

• Greensburg
• Haviland
• Mullinville

References

Notes

More reading

• Standard Atlas of Kiowa County, Kansas; Geo. A. Ogle & Co; 53 pages; 1906.

Other websites

County

• Kiowa County - Official
• Kiowa County - Directory of Public Officials

Historical

• Kiowa County Archived 2020-09-24 at the Wayback Machine from American History and Genealogy Project (AHGP)

Maps

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