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Seward County, Kansas facts for kids

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Seward County
Seward County Courthouse in Liberal (2010)
Seward County Courthouse in Liberal (2010)
Map of Kansas highlighting Seward County
Location within the U.S. state of Kansas
Map of the United States highlighting Kansas
Kansas's location within the U.S.
Country  United States
State  Kansas
Founded March 20, 1873
Named for William H. Seward
Seat Liberal
Largest city Liberal
Area
 • Total 640 sq mi (1,700 km2)
 • Land 639 sq mi (1,660 km2)
 • Water 1.0 sq mi (3 km2)  0.2%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 21,964
 • Density 34.4/sq mi (13.3/km2)
Time zone UTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−5 (CDT)
Area code 620
Congressional district 1st

Seward County is a county in the state of Kansas, USA. Its main city and government center is Liberal. In 2020, about 21,964 people lived here. The county was created on March 20, 1873. It was named after William Seward, an important politician who worked with Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson.

History of Seward County

For thousands of years, the wide-open Great Plains of North America were home to nomadic Native American groups. They moved from place to place, following animal herds and seasons.

In 1854, the area became the Kansas Territory. Then, in 1861, Kansas officially joined the United States as the 34th U.S. state.

How Seward County Was Formed

Seward County was set up in 1873. For a while, other nearby counties helped manage it. On June 10, 1885, Finney County officially organized Seward County as a part of its own area. They chose Sunset City as a temporary government center.

There was a big competition between two towns, Fargo Springs and Springfield, to become the county seat (the main city where the government offices are). This rivalry was so strong that people from each town tried to stop voters from the other town from reaching the polls during an election in 1885!

The argument over the county seat finally ended when new railroads were built. These railroads went through the southern part of Seward County, which helped the town of Liberal grow very quickly. Liberal won the final election for the county seat on December 8, 1892, by 125 votes.

The Dust Bowl Years

In the 1930s, the area faced a very tough time known as the Dust Bowl. This was a period when severe droughts and strong winds caused huge dust storms. These storms blew away the topsoil, making it very hard to farm. This natural disaster made the economic problems of the Great Depression even worse for the people living in Seward County.

Geography of Seward County

Seward County covers about 640 square miles (1,658 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, with only a small part being water. The county shares its southern border with the state of Oklahoma.

Neighboring Counties

Seward County is surrounded by several other counties:

People of Seward County (Demographics)

USA Seward County, Kansas age pyramid
This chart shows the age groups of people in Seward County based on the 2000 census.
Historical population
Census Pop.
1880 5
1890 1,503 29,960.0%
1900 822 −45.3%
1910 4,091 397.7%
1920 6,220 52.0%
1930 8,075 29.8%
1940 6,540 −19.0%
1950 9,972 52.5%
1960 15,930 59.7%
1970 15,744 −1.2%
1980 17,071 8.4%
1990 18,743 9.8%
2000 22,510 20.1%
2010 22,952 2.0%
2020 21,964 −4.3%
2023 (est.) 21,067 −8.2%
U.S. Decennial Census
1790-1960 1900-1990
1990-2000 2010-2020

The city of Liberal and all of Seward County make up the Liberal, KS Micropolitan Statistical Area. This means it's a smaller city area with strong economic ties.

In 2000, there were 22,510 people living in the county. The population density was about 35 people per square mile. About 65% of the people were White, and about 42% were Hispanic or Latino.

Many households had children under 18 living with them (43.5%). The average household had about 3 people. The population was quite young, with 32% of people being under 18 years old. The average age in the county was 29 years.

Education in Seward County

Seward County has two main school districts that serve its communities:

  • Liberal USD 480
  • Kismet-Plains USD 483

Communities in Seward County

Map of Seward Co, Ks, USA
2005 map of Seward County.

Here are the different types of communities you can find in Seward County:

Cities

  • Kismet
  • Liberal (This is the county seat, where the main government offices are.)

Unincorporated Communities

These are smaller communities that are not officially organized as cities:

Ghost Towns

These are former communities that are now mostly deserted:

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Condado de Seward (Kansas) para niños

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