Barber County, Kansas

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox U.S. county

Barber County is a county located in the south-central portion of the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and most populous city is Medicine Lodge.<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref> As of the 2020 census, the county population was 4,228.<ref name="QF">Template:Cite web</ref> The county was named for Thomas Barber, an abolitionist who was killed in Douglas County in 1855 during the Wakarusa War.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

History

Template:See also

Barber County was formed in 1867 from parts of Washington County, Peketon County, and Marion County. Organized in 1873, it was named after Thomas Barber, a free-state man killed during Bleeding Kansas. The county's name was initially misspelled as “Barbour” before being officially changed to “Barber.”<ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref>

The land that would become Barber County was formerly part of the "thirty mile" and "three mile" strips, previously owned by the Osages and the Cherokees respectively. These lands were ceded to the United States Government by the treaty of July 15, 1870, and were then offered for pre-emption, but not for homesteading or timber claim entry. Early settlers noted the numerous buffalo wallows in the county.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref>

The first settler in the county, a man named Griffin, settled in the winter of 1871-72 near Sun City. Indians opposed to white settlement soon brought conflict, including an 1872 raid resulting in the death of trader E. H. Mosely. Defensive stockades were subsequently erected in Medicine Lodge and Sun City.<ref name=":0" />

Settlements such as Kiowa and Medicine Lodge were established, with rapid settlement occurring in the summer of 1873. Notable events included the county's first child born in 1873 and its first wedding in 1874.<ref name=":0" />

In the summer of 1874, an Indian raid resulted in the murder of several settlers along the Medicine Lodge River. Various accounts attribute the raid to Indian opposition to white settlement or the actions of disguised white assailants aiming to cover up their illegal activities in the county.<ref name=":0" /> To protect citizens, stockades were built, and militia groups were organized in Medicine Lodge and Sun City.<ref name=":0" />

Buffalo once roamed abundantly in the county, but by the 1880s, their numbers had significantly diminished. Their former habitat, however, made excellent range for cattle, and in 1870, Barber and Comanche county ranchers formed a cooperative known as the Comanche cattle pool. The discovery of gypsum deposits along the Medicine Lodge River led to the establishment of a plaster company in Sun City in 1891.<ref name=":1" />

The Medicine Lodge Bank was robbed in 1884 by a gang led by Henry Newton Brown, the marshal of Caldwell in nearby Sumner County. The bandits were pursued, captured, and thrown in jail. That night, a mob overpowered the Medicine Lodge sheriff, shot and killed Brown, and hanged the other men from a tree.<ref name=":0" />

Temperance advocate Carrie Nation smashed her first saloon in Kiowa, Kansas in 1900. Today, her former residence is a National Historic Landmark.<ref name=":1" />

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (0.2%) is water.<ref name="GR1">Template:Cite web</ref>

The Medicine Lodge River flows through the county.

Adjacent counties

Pratt County (north)
Kingman County (northeast)
Harper County (east)
Alfalfa County, Oklahoma (southeast)
Woods County, Oklahoma (southwest)
Comanche County (west)
Kiowa County (northwest)

Major highways

Sources: National Atlas,<ref>National Atlas Template:Webarchive</ref> U.S. Census Bureau<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Demographics

File:USA Barber County, Kansas age pyramid.svg

Population pyramid based on 2000 census age data

Template:US Census population

As of the 2000 census,<ref name="GR2">Template:Cite web</ref> there were 5,307 people, 2,235 households, and 1,510 families residing in the county. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 2,740 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the county was 97.06% White, 0.38% Black or African American, 0.58% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.89% from other races, and 1.00% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.02% of the population.

There were 2,235 households, out of which 28.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.70% were married couples living together, 6.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.40% were non-families. 29.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.00% under the age of 18, 5.80% from 18 to 24, 23.20% from 25 to 44, 24.50% from 45 to 64, and 21.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 92.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $33,407, and the median income for a family was $40,234. Males had a median income of $29,806 versus $20,046 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,627. About 7.50% of families and 10.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.60% of those under age 18 and 4.90% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Barber County is, in common with other rural Kansas counties, a Republican stronghold. The last Democrat to carry this county was Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964.

Presidential elections

Template:Hidden

Laws

Barber County allows the sale of liquor at not only liquor stores but also in restaurants.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Barber County Sheriff's Office

The Barber County Sheriff's Office provides law enforcement in the county.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> As of 2024, one officer of the Barber County Sheriff's Office has been killed in the line of duty.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Economy

RSI Corporation

Education

Unified school districts

School districts include:<ref>Template:Cite web - Text list</ref>

Communities

File:Map of Barber Co, Ks, USA.png

2005 map of Barber County<ref name="County-Map-Current"/> (legend)

List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Barber County.<ref name="County-Map-Current">Template:Cite web</ref>

Lasswell
Mingona
Pixley

Template:Div col end

Townships

Barber County is divided into eighteen 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.

Township	FIPS	Population center	Population	Population density /km² (/sq mi)	Land area km² (sq mi)	Water area km² (sq mi)	Water %	Geographic coordinates
Aetna	00400		3	0 (0)	318 (123)	0 (0)	0.13%	Template:Coord
Deerhead	17300		11	0 (0)	165 (64)	0 (0)	0.07%	Template:Coord
Eagle	19150		42	0 (0)	290 (112)	0 (0)	0.04%	Template:Coord
Elm Mills	20800		106	1 (2)	155 (60)	1 (0)	0.35%	Template:Coord
Elwood	20925	Hardtner	275	1 (3)	260 (100)	0 (0)	0.18%	Template:Coord
Hazelton	31175	Hazelton	213	1 (3)	189 (73)	1 (0)	0.33%	Template:Coord
Kiowa	37150	Kiowa	1,164	9 (24)	124 (48)	0 (0)	0.31%	Template:Coord
Lake City	37900		83	1 (2)	109 (42)	0 (0)	0.20%	Template:Coord
McAdoo	43550		29	0 (1)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.36%	Template:Coord
Medicine Lodge	45525	Medicine Lodge	2,573	8 (22)	309 (119)	1 (0)	0.33%	Template:Coord
Mingona	47050		57	0 (1)	139 (54)	0 (0)	0.10%	Template:Coord
Moore	48075		32	0 (1)	119 (46)	0 (0)	0.24%	Template:Coord
Nippawalla	50775		26	0 (0)	140 (54)	0 (0)	0.26%	Template:Coord
Ridge (defunct, merged with Sharon)	59775		4	0 (0)	93 (36)	0 (0)	0.12%	Template:Coord
Sharon	64350	Sharon	369	4 (10)	95 (37)	0 (0)	0.04%	Template:Coord
Sun City	69300	Sun City	100	1 (2)	124 (48)	0 (0)	0.09%	Template:Coord
Turkey Creek	71675		37	0 (1)	123 (47)	0 (0)	0.12%	Template:Coord
Valley	72750	Isabel	183	2 (5)	94 (36)	0 (0)	0.01%	Template:Coord
Sources: Template:Cite web

References

Template:Reflist

External links

Template:Commons category

County

Maps

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

Template:Geographic Location

Template:Barber County, Kansas Template:Kansas Template:Authority control