EMPORIA, KANSAS

'Emporia' is a city in Lyon County, Kansas, USA. The population was 26,760 at the 2000 census. Emporia is located at the intersection of US-50, Interstate 335 and Interstate 35 on the Kansas Turnpike. It is the county seat of Lyon County.

Contents

History

Geography and climate

Demographics

Industry

Transportation

Notable natives

References

External links

History

Emporia was founded in February 1857, drawing its name from ancient Carthaginian Africa.
Emporia is particularly known for its newspaper, the ''Emporia Gazette'', published in the first half of the twentieth century by the legendary newspaperman William Allen White. The paper became the widely perceived model of excellence in small-town journalism.
In 1953, Emporia was the site of the first Veterans Day observance in the United States. At the urging of local shoe cobbler Alvin J. King, US Representative Ed Rees introduced legislation in The United States Congress to rename Armistice Day as Veterans Day. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the bill into law on October 8, 1954.^[1]
On June 8, 1974, an F4 tornado struck Emporia, killing six people, injuring 200 people, and causing $25 million in damages.^[2]

Geography and climate

Emporia is located at (38.408148, -96.187054) in east-central Kansas.
It lies along the Kansas Turnpike at its intersection with Interstate 35 and U.S. Highway 50, 108 miles southwest of Kansas City, 58 miles southwest of Topeka, and 87 miles northeast of Wichita on the eastern edge of the Flint Hills.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 25.8 km² (10.0 mi²). 25.6 km² (9.9 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (0.60%) is water.
The Neosho River flows along the northern side of the city. The Cottonwood River, one of its tributaries, flows along the city's southern edge and two large city parks, Peter Pan and Soden's Grove; the two rivers meet near the eastern boundary of Emporia and flow southeast to join the Arkansas River in Oklahoma.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 26,760 people, 10,253 households, and 6,039 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,043.6/km² (2,703.0/mi²). There were 11,019 housing units at an average density of 429.7/km² (1,113.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 78.63% White, 2.96% African American, 0.48% Native American, 2.66% Asian, 12.75% from other races, and 2.52% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 21.49% of the population.
There were 10,253 households out of which 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.4% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.1% were non-families. 31.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.15.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 19.4% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 17.0% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $30,809, and the median income for a family was $41,571. Males had a median income of $27,915 versus $20,946 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,157. About 12.4% of families and 17.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.6% of those under age 18 and 10.1% of those age 65 or over.

Industry

In addition to Emporia State University, Emporia has several large employers. Private Sector Employees
The Tyson Foods plant slaughters and packs approximately 4000 head of beef per day and employs more than 2,000 workers. Private Sector Employees
Dolly Madison has a bakery in Emporia.
Hopkins Manufacturing Corporation was founded in Emporia in 1953. In 2003, it was recognized as Emporia's Large Employer of the Year by the Emporia Human Relations Commission and the Human Resource Professionals Association of Greater Emporia.^[3]
In 1952, Bill Braum started the Peter Pan ice cream store chain in Emporia. After he sold the chain and moved to Oklahoma in 1968, he developed the Braum's Dairy stores.^[4]
Menu Foods operates a multi-acre facility in Emporia that manufactures wet dog food.^[5]

Transportation

The city is served by the Emporia Municipal Airport.

Notable natives

★ William Allen White, author and newspaper editor

★ Jim Barnett, 2006 Republican candidate for Governor of Kansas

★ Clint Bowyer, NASCAR Driver

★ Melora Creager, frontwoman of Rasputina

★ R. Lee Ermey, Marine and actor

★ Jim Everett, NFL quarterback

★ Chad S. Johnson, attorney and political activist

★ Dean Smith, basketball coach

References

1. Declaring Emporia, Kansas, to Be the Founding City of the Veterans Day Holiday -- (Senate -- October 31, 2003)
2. 1974 Emporia Tornado
3. Emporia's 2003 Employer of the Year
4. Our History
5. Facilities

External links

★ City of Emporia (official website)

★ Emporia.com

★ The ''Emporia Gazette''

★ Emporia Area Chamber of Commerce

★ Emporia Zoo

★ Emporia State University

★ Emporia Public Schools

★ Flint Hills Technical College