Junction City, Kansas facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Junction City, Kansas
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City and County seat
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Geary County Courthouse (1979)
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Location within Geary County and Kansas
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| Country | United States |
| State | Kansas |
| County | Geary |
| Area | |
| • Total | 11.21 sq mi (29.02 km2) |
| • Land | 11.11 sq mi (28.77 km2) |
| • Water | 0.10 sq mi (0.25 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,106 ft (337 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 22,932 |
| • Density | 2,045.7/sq mi (790.21/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (CST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP codes |
66441-66442
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| Area code | 785 |
| FIPS code | 20-35750 |
| GNIS ID | 476555 |
Junction City is a city in and the county seat of Geary County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 22,932. Fort Riley, a major U.S. Army post, is nearby.
Contents
History
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Junction City is so named from its position at the confluence of the Smoky Hill and Republican rivers, which forms the Kansas River.
In 1854, Andrew J. Mead of New York of the Cincinnati-Manhattan Company, Free Staters connected to the Massachusetts Emigrant Aid Company planned a community there called Manhattan (there was also a discussion to call it New Cincinnati). When the steamship Hartford delivering the immigrants could not reach the community because of low water on the Kansas River, the Free Staters settled 20 miles east in what today is Manhattan, Kansas. The community was renamed Millard City for Captain Millard of the Hartford on October 3, 1855. It was renamed briefly Humboldt in 1857 by local farmers and renamed again later that year to Junction City. It was formally incorporated in 1859.
In 1923, John R. Brinkley established radio station KFKB (which adopted the slogan Kansas First, Kansas Best) in nearby Milford, Kansas, using a 1 kW transmitter. It was one of the first radio stations in Kansas.
Among Junction City's residents is film director Kevin Wilmott, whose movies, including Ninth Street, are set in Junction City.
Timothy McVeigh rented the Ryder truck he used in the Oklahoma City bombing from an auto body shop in Junction City.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.22 square miles (31.65 km2), of which 12.15 square miles (31.47 km2) is land and 0.07 square miles (0.18 km2) is water.
Climate
The maximum temperature reaches 90 °F (32 °C) an average of 45.9 days per year and reaches 100 °F (38 °C) an average of 6.4 days per year. The minimum temperature falls below the freezing point 32 °F (0 °C) an average of 121.8 days per year.
| Climate data for Junction City, Kansas (Milford Dam) (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1944–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 76 (24) |
79 (26) |
90 (32) |
96 (36) |
100 (38) |
108 (42) |
110 (43) |
112 (44) |
109 (43) |
94 (34) |
84 (29) |
75 (24) |
112 (44) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 62.8 (17.1) |
68.6 (20.3) |
78.9 (26.1) |
86.1 (30.1) |
90.3 (32.4) |
96.0 (35.6) |
101.4 (38.6) |
100.3 (37.9) |
94.7 (34.8) |
87.6 (30.9) |
74.4 (23.6) |
64.8 (18.2) |
103.0 (39.4) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 39.2 (4.0) |
43.8 (6.6) |
55.1 (12.8) |
65.1 (18.4) |
74.3 (23.5) |
84.2 (29.0) |
89.2 (31.8) |
87.6 (30.9) |
80.1 (26.7) |
68.1 (20.1) |
54.0 (12.2) |
42.4 (5.8) |
65.3 (18.5) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 29.2 (−1.6) |
33.1 (0.6) |
43.9 (6.6) |
53.6 (12.0) |
64.1 (17.8) |
74.2 (23.4) |
79.0 (26.1) |
77.0 (25.0) |
69.0 (20.6) |
56.6 (13.7) |
43.4 (6.3) |
32.8 (0.4) |
54.7 (12.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 19.3 (−7.1) |
22.5 (−5.3) |
32.7 (0.4) |
42.1 (5.6) |
53.8 (12.1) |
64.1 (17.8) |
68.9 (20.5) |
66.5 (19.2) |
58.0 (14.4) |
45.2 (7.3) |
32.7 (0.4) |
23.1 (−4.9) |
44.1 (6.7) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −0.1 (−17.8) |
4.6 (−15.2) |
13.1 (−10.5) |
27.1 (−2.7) |
38.7 (3.7) |
52.3 (11.3) |
59.4 (15.2) |
56.6 (13.7) |
42.5 (5.8) |
28.2 (−2.1) |
16.7 (−8.5) |
7.0 (−13.9) |
−3.3 (−19.6) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −17 (−27) |
−18 (−28) |
−9 (−23) |
8 (−13) |
29 (−2) |
41 (5) |
47 (8) |
46 (8) |
28 (−2) |
15 (−9) |
−1 (−18) |
−21 (−29) |
−21 (−29) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.66 (17) |
1.09 (28) |
1.95 (50) |
3.13 (80) |
5.16 (131) |
4.80 (122) |
4.15 (105) |
4.19 (106) |
2.84 (72) |
2.27 (58) |
1.40 (36) |
1.26 (32) |
32.90 (836) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 3.7 | 4.2 | 6.3 | 8.7 | 11.1 | 9.3 | 9.3 | 9.3 | 7.9 | 6.9 | 4.3 | 3.9 | 85.2 |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1860 | 217 | — | |
| 1870 | 2,778 | 1,180.2% | |
| 1880 | 2,684 | −3.4% | |
| 1890 | 4,502 | 67.7% | |
| 1900 | 4,695 | 4.3% | |
| 1910 | 5,598 | 19.2% | |
| 1920 | 7,533 | 34.6% | |
| 1930 | 7,407 | −1.7% | |
| 1940 | 8,507 | 14.9% | |
| 1950 | 13,462 | 58.2% | |
| 1960 | 18,700 | 38.9% | |
| 1970 | 19,018 | 1.7% | |
| 1980 | 19,305 | 1.5% | |
| 1990 | 20,604 | 6.7% | |
| 2000 | 20,671 | 0.3% | |
| 2010 | 23,353 | 13.0% | |
| 2020 | 22,932 | −1.8% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census 2010-2020 |
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2020 census
The 2020 United States census counted 22,932 people, 9,104 households, and 5,851 families in Junction City. The population density was 1,986.3 per square mile (766.9/km2). There were 10,920 housing units at an average density of 945.9 per square mile (365.2/km2). The racial makeup was 54.91% (12,593) white or European American (50.07% non-Hispanic white), 20.25% (4,643) black or African-American, 0.92% (211) Native American or Alaska Native, 3.8% (872) Asian, 1.19% (274) Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian, 5.07% (1,162) from other races, and 13.85% (3,177) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race was 15.76% (3,615) of the population.
Of the 9,104 households, 34.8% had children under the age of 18; 45.5% were married couples living together; 27.3% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 29.2% of households consisted of individuals and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.4 and the average family size was 2.9. The percent of those with a bachelor’s degree or higher was estimated to be 12.8% of the population.
26.5% of the population was under the age of 18, 11.8% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.1 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 105.3 males.
The 2016-2020 5-year American Community Survey estimates show that the median household income was $52,159 (with a margin of error of +/- $4,413) and the median family income was $60,134 (+/- $4,847). Males had a median income of $37,361 (+/- $3,548) versus $23,329 (+/- $2,488) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $30,514 (+/- $2,011). Approximately, 15.4% of families and 14.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.5% of those under the age of 18 and 9.9% of those ages 65 or over.
Government
Junction City has a Commission form of government. The City Manager is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the City and serves at the discretion of the Commission. The City Commission consists of five members who are elected by the registered voters of the City. Each Commissioner serves for either two or four years, depending on the number of votes they received. The mayor is a Commissioner that is "elected" by the other members of the Commission and serves for a minimum two-year term.
Education
The community is served by Geary County USD 475 public school district. There is one public high school in the city, Junction City High School.
There were over 678 new students in the 2009–2010 school year, breaking all records for enrollment in the school district.
Media
The Junction City Daily Union is the local newspaper, published five days a week.
Three radio stations are licensed to and broadcast from Junction City. KJCK (AM) broadcasts on 1420 AM, playing a News/Talk format; its sister station, KJCK-FM, broadcasts on 97.5 FM, playing a Top 40 format. K222AX is a translator station that rebroadcasts the signal of KJIL, a Christian Contemporary station in Meade, Kansas, on 92.3 FM.
Junction City is in the Topeka, Kansas television market.
Transportation
Greyhound Lines has a bus stop in Junction City. Local transit services are provided by ATA Bus.
Fiction
In Sidney Sheldon's New York Times bestseller Windmills of the Gods, the heroine of the novel is from Junction City. In both the stage and film version of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, the character of Hedwig moves to Junction City after leaving East Germany.
The 13th mission of the video game Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel takes place in a location based on Junction City.
Notable people
Notable individuals who were born in and/or have lived in Junction City include U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Adna R. Chaffee, Jr., inventor Amanda Jones, playwright Velina Hasu Houston, and wrestler Bobby Lashley.
See also
In Spanish: Junction City (Kansas) para niños
- St. Xavier High School
- Operation Junction City
- Milford Lake
- Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad
