MORRIS COUNTY, KANSAS

'Morris County' (standard abbreviation: 'MR') is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of 2000, the population is 6,104. The largest city and county seat is Council Grove.

Contents

Geography

Adjacent counties

History

Demographics

Cities and towns

Incorporated cities

Townships

Education

Unified school districts

See also

External links

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,820 km² (703 mi²). 1,806 km² (697 mi²) of it is land and 14 km² (5 mi²) of it (0.78%) is water.

Adjacent counties

★ Geary County (north)

★ Wabaunse County (northeast)

★ Lyon County (southeast)

★ Chase County (south)

★ Marion County (southwest)

★ Dickinson County (west)

History

Council Grove, established in 1825, was an important supply station on the Santa Fe Trail. The town was also the site of an encampment by John C. Fremont in 1845 and in 1849 the Overland Mail established a supply headquarters there.
The county was originally organized as Wise County in 1855. The county was named for Virginia Governor Henry A. Wise. When Wise presided over the hanging of Abolitionist John Brown at Harpers Ferry in 1859, the county was renamed Morris, in honor of Thomas Morris, a former United States Senator from Ohio who was as an opponent of slavery.
In 1851 the Methodist Church established an Indian Mission at Morris County where thirty Kaw boys lived and studied until 1854 when they removed to Oklahoma.
Between 1877 and 1879 Benjamin "Pap" Singleton staked out a settlement in Morris County for African-American's, known as "Exodusters," migrating from the post-Reconstruction south.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 6,104 people, 2,539 households, and 1,777 families residing in the county. The population density was 3/km² (9/mi²). There were 3,160 housing units at an average density of 2/km² (4/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.49% White, 0.34% Black or African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.23% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.70% from other races, and 0.88% from two or more races. 2.23% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,539 households out of which 30.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.70% were married couples living together, 6.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.00% were non-families. 28.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.90.
In the county the population was spread out with 25.20% under the age of 18, 5.60% from 18 to 24, 23.90% from 25 to 44, 24.30% from 45 to 64, and 21.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 97.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $32,163, and the median income for a family was $39,717. Males had a median income of $28,912 versus $21,239 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,491. About 6.70% of families and 9.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.40% of those under age 18 and 13.30% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

Incorporated cities

Name and population (2004 estimate):

★ Council Grove, 2,253

★ White City, 492

★ Dwight, 328

★ Wilsey, 189

★ Dunlap, 81

★ Parkerville, 72

★ Latimer, 21
Less than 1 km² of Herington (pop. 2,469) is within the county border with the majority of the city in Dickinson County. The unincorporated hamlet of Skiddy lies less than one mile south of the Geary County line in north central Morris County.

Townships

Morris County is divided into eleven townships. The cities of Council Grove and Herington are considered ''governmentally independent'' and are excluded from the census figures for the 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	Population center	Population	Population density /km² (/mi²)	Land area km² (mi²)	Water area km² (mi²)	Water %	Geographic coordinates
Highland	31975		94	1 (3)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.03%
Overland	53750		60	1 (2)	88 (34)	0 (0)	0.01%
Township No. 1	71202		551	2 (4)	356 (138)	1 (0)	0.28%
Township No. 2	71206		688	3 (7)	270 (104)	12 (5)	4.37%
Township No. 3	71210		503	5 (12)	109 (42)	0 (0)	0.06%
Township No. 4	71214		252	2 (4)	155 (60)	0 (0)	0.02%
Township No. 5	71218		686	7 (19)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.02%
Township No. 6	71222		111	1 (4)	78 (30)	0 (0)	0.18%
Township No. 7	71227		258	2 (4)	170 (66)	0 (0)	0.10%
Township No. 8	71232		212	1 (3)	186 (72)	0 (0)	0.08%
Township No. 9	71237		368	2 (5)	202 (78)	0 (0)	0.08%

Education

Unified school districts

★ Morris County USD 417

See also

External links

;General county information
:
★ Blue Skyways - Morris County
;County Level Data
:
★ Kansas Statistical Abstract