Kansas

Kansas
State of Kansas
Flag of Kansas State seal of Kansas
Flag Seal
Nickname(s): The Sunflower State (official);
The Wheat State
Motto(s): Ad astra per aspera
Map of the United States with Kansas highlighted
Official language(s) English[1]
Demonym Kansan
Capital Topeka
Largest city Wichita
Largest metro area Kansas portion of Kansas City, MO-KS Metro Area
Area  Ranked 15th in the U.S.
 - Total 82,277 sq mi
(213,096 km2)
 - Width 417 miles (645 km)
 - Length 211 miles (340 km)
 - % water 0.56
 - Latitude 37° N to 40° N
 - Longitude 94° 35′ W to 102° 3′ W
Population  Ranked 33rd in the U.S.
 - Total 2,853,116 (2010 Census)[2]
Density 34.9/sq mi  (12.7/km2)
Ranked 40th in the U.S.
 - Median income  $50,177 (25th)
Elevation  
 - Highest point Mount Sunflower[3][4]
4,041 ft (1232 m)
 - Mean 2,000 ft  (610 m)
 - Lowest point Verdigris River at Oklahoma border[3][4]
679 ft (207 m)
Before statehood Kansas Territory
Admission to Union  January 29, 1861 (34th)
Governor Sam Brownback (R)
Lieutenant Governor Jeff Colyer (R)
Legislature Kansas Legislature
 - Upper house Senate
 - Lower house House of Representatives
U.S. Senators Pat Roberts (R)
Jerry Moran (R)
U.S. House delegation Tim Huelskamp (R)
Lynn Jenkins (R)
Kevin Yoder (R)
Mike Pompeo (R) (list)
Time zones  
 - most of state Central: UTC-6/-5
 - 4 western counties Mountain: UTC-7/-6
Abbreviations KS US-KS
Website kansas.gov

Kansas Listeni/ˈkænzəs/ is a US state located in the Midwestern United States.[5] It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area.[6] The tribe's name (natively kką:ze) is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south wind," although this was probably not the term's original meaning.[7][8] Residents of Kansas are called "Kansans."

For thousands of years what is now Kansas was home to numerous and diverse Native American tribes. Tribes in the Eastern part of the state generally lived in villages along the river valleys. Tribes in the Western part of the state were semi-nomadic and hunted large herds of bison. Kansas was first settled by European Americans in the 1830s, but the pace of settlement accelerated in the 1850s, in the midst of political wars over the slavery issue. When officially opened to settlement by the U.S. government in 1854, abolitionist Free-Staters from New England and pro-slavery settlers from neighboring Missouri rushed to the territory to determine if Kansas would become a free state or a slave state. Thus, the area was a hotbed of violence and chaos in its early days as these forces collided, and was known as Bleeding Kansas. The abolitionists eventually prevailed and on January 29, 1861,[9][10] Kansas entered the Union as a free state. After the Civil War, the population of Kansas grew rapidly, when waves of immigrants turned the prairie into farmland. Today, Kansas is one of the most productive agricultural states, producing high yields of wheat, sorghum and sunflowers.[11]

Contents

History

For millennia, the land that is currently Kansas was inhabited by Native Americans. The first European to set foot in present-day Kansas was Francisco Vásquez de Coronado, who explored the area in 1541.

In 1803, most of modern Kansas was secured by the United States as part of the Louisiana Purchase. Southwest Kansas, however, was still a part of Spain, Mexico, and the Republic of Texas until the conclusion of the Mexican-American War in 1848. From 1812 to 1821, Kansas was part of the Missouri Territory. The Santa Fe Trail traversed Kansas from 1821 to 1880, transporting manufactured goods from Missouri and silver and furs from Santa Fe, New Mexico. Wagon ruts from the trail are still visible in the prairie today.

In 1827, Fort Leavenworth became the first permanent settlement of white Americans in the future state. The Kansas-Nebraska Act became law on May 30, 1854, establishing the U.S. territories of Nebraska and Kansas, and opening the area to broader settlement by whites. Kansas Territory stretched all the way to the Continental Divide and included the sites of present-day Denver, Colorado Springs, and Pueblo.

Missouri and Arkansas sent settlers into Kansas all along its eastern border. These settlers attempted to sway votes in favor of slavery. The secondary settlement of Americans in Kansas Territory were abolitionists from Massachusetts and other Free-Staters, who attempted to stop the spread of slavery from neighboring Missouri. Directly presaging the American Civil War, these forces collided, entering into skirmishes that earned the territory the name of Bleeding Kansas. Kansas was admitted to the United States as a slave-free state on January 29, 1861, making it the 34th state to enter the Union. By that time the violence in Kansas had largely subsided. However, during the Civil War, on August 21, 1863, William Quantrill led several hundred men on a raid into Lawrence, destroying much of the city and killing nearly two hundred people. He was roundly condemned by both the conventional confederate military and the partisan rangers commissioned by the Missouri legislature. His application to that body for a commission was flatly rejected due to his pre war criminal record.[12]

After the Civil War, many veterans constructed homesteads in Kansas. Many African Americans also looked to Kansas as the land of "John Brown", and led by men like Benjamin "Pap" Singleton began establishing black colonies in the state. At the same time, the Chisholm Trail was opened and the Wild West era commenced in Kansas. Wild Bill Hickok was a deputy marshal at Fort Riley and a marshal at Hays and Abilene. Dodge City was another wild cowboy town, and both Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp worked as lawmen in the town. In one year alone, 8 million head of cattle from Texas boarded trains in Dodge City bound for the East, earning Dodge the nickname "Queen of the Cowtowns."

In part as a response to the violence perpetrated by cowboys, on February 19, 1881 Kansas became the first U.S. state to adopt a Constitutional amendment prohibiting all alcoholic beverages.

Geography

Kansas is bordered by Nebraska on the north; Missouri on the east; Oklahoma on the south; and Colorado on the west. The state is divided into 105 counties with 628 cities, and is located equidistant from the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The geographic center of the 48 contiguous states is located in Smith County near Lebanon. The geodetic center of North America was located in Meades Ranch, Kansas, Osborne County until 1983. This spot was used until that date as the central reference point for all maps of North America produced by the U.S. government. The geographic center of Kansas is located in Barton County.

Geology

Kansas is underlain by a sequence of horizontal to gently westward dipping sedimentary rocks. A sequence of Mississippian, Pennsylvanian and Permian rocks underlie the eastern and southern part of the state. The western half of the state consists of Cretaceous through Tertiary sediments derived from the erosion of the uplifted Rocky Mountains to the west. The northeastern corner of the state was subjected to glaciation in the Pleistocene and is covered by glacial drift and loess.

Topography

The western two-thirds of the state, lying in the great central plain of the United States, has a generally flat or undulating surface, while the eastern third has many hills and forests. The land gradually rises from east to west; its altitude ranges from 684 ft (208 m) along the Verdigris River at Coffeyville in Montgomery County, to 4,039 ft (1,231 m) at Mount Sunflower, one half mile from the Colorado border, in Wallace County. It is a popular belief that Kansas is the flattest state in the nation, reinforced by a well-known 2003 study[13] stating that Kansas was indeed "flatter than a pancake".[14] This has since been called into question, with most scientists ranking Kansas somewhere between 20th and 30th flattest state, depending on measurement method. Its average elevation is 2,000 feet, higher than 36 states.[15]

Rivers

Spring River, Kansas

The Missouri River forms nearly 75 mi (121 km) of the state's northeastern boundary. The Kansas River (locally known as the Kaw), formed by the junction of the Smoky Hill and Republican rivers at appropriately-named Junction City, joins the Missouri at Kansas City, after a course of 170 mi (270 km) across the northeastern part of the state. The Arkansas River (pronunciation varies), rising in Colorado, flows with a bending course for nearly 500 mi (800 km) across the western and southern parts of the state. It forms, with its tributaries (the Little Arkansas, Ninnescah, Walnut, Cow Creek, Cimarron, Verdigris, and the Neosho), the southern drainage system of the state. Other important rivers are the Saline and Solomon Rivers, tributaries of the Smoky Hill River; the Big Blue, Delaware, and Wakarusa, which flow into the Kansas River; and the Marais des Cygnes, a tributary of the Missouri River. Spring River is located between Riverton (Fuglies), Kansas and Baxter Springs, Kansas.

National parks and historic sites

Areas under the protection of the National Park Service include:[16]

Climate

Clouds in northeastern Kansas

Kansas contains three climatic types, according to the Köppen climate classification: it has humid continental, semi-arid steppe, and humid subtropical. The eastern two-thirds of the state (especially the northeastern portion) has a humid continental climate, with cool to cold winters and hot, often humid summers. Most of the precipitation falls in the summer and spring. The western third of the state – from about the U.S. Route 183 corridor westward – has a semiarid steppe climate. Summers are hot, often very hot, and generally less humid. Winters are highly changeable between warm and very cold. The western region receives an average of about 16 inches (410 mm) of precipitation per year. Chinook winds in the winter can warm western Kansas all the way into the 80 °F (27 °C) range. The far south-central and southeastern reaches of the state have a humid subtropical climate with hot, humid summers, milder winters and more precipitation than the rest of the state. Although not strictly falling in all of the zones, some features of all three climates can be found in most of the state, with droughts and changeable weather between dry and humid not uncommon, and both warm and cold spells in the winter.

Precipitation ranges from about 47 inches (1200 mm) annually in the southeast of the state, to about 16 inches (400 mm) in the southwest. Snowfall ranges from around 5 inches (130 mm) in the fringes of the south, to 35 inches (900 mm) in the far northwest. Frost-free days range from more than 200 days in the south, to 130 days in the northwest. Thus, Kansas is the 9th or 10th sunniest state in the country, depending on the source. Western Kansas is as sunny as California and Arizona.

In spite of the frequent sunshine throughout much of the state, due to its location at a climatic boundary prone to multiple air masses, the state is also vulnerable to strong thunderstorms, especially in the spring months. Many of these storms become Supercell thunderstorms. These can spawn tornadoes, often of EF3 strength or higher. According to statistics from the National Climatic Data Center, Kansas has reported more tornadoes (for the period January 1, 1950 through October 31, 2006) than any state except for Texas – marginally even more than Oklahoma. It has also – along with Alabama – reported more F5 or EF5 tornadoes than any other state. These are the most powerful of all tornadoes. Kansas averages over 50 tornadoes annually.[17]

According to NOAA, the all-time highest temperature recorded in Kansas is 121 °F (49.4 °C) on July 24, 1936, near Alton, and the all-time low is −40 °F (−40 °C) on February 13, 1905, near Lebanon.

Kansas's record high of 121 °F (49.4 °C) ties with North Dakota for the fifth-highest record high in an American state, behind California (134 °F/56.7 °C), Arizona (128 °F/53.3 °C), Nevada (125 °F/51.7 °C), and New Mexico (122 °F/50 °C).

Monthly Normal High and Low Temperatures For Various Kansas Cities
City Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Concordia 36/17 43/22 54/31 64/41 74/52 85/62 91/67 88/66 80/56 68/44 51/30 40/21
Dodge City 41/19 48/24 57/31 67/41 76/52 87/62 93/67 91/66 82/56 70/44 55/30 44/22
Goodland 39/16 45/20 53/26 63/35 72/46 84/56 89/61 87/60 78/50 66/38 50/25 41/18
Topeka 37/17 44/23 55/33 66/43 75/53 84/63 89/68 88/65 80/56 69/44 53/32 41/22
Wichita 40/20 47/25 57/34 67/44 76/54 87/64 93/69 92/68 82/59 70/47 55/34 43/24
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

Demographics

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1860 107,206
1870 364,399 239.9%
1880 996,096 173.4%
1890 1,428,108 43.4%
1900 1,470,495 3.0%
1910 1,690,949 15.0%
1920 1,769,257 4.6%
1930 1,880,999 6.3%
1940 1,801,028 −4.3%
1950 1,905,299 5.8%
1960 2,178,611 14.3%
1970 2,246,578 3.1%
1980 2,363,679 5.2%
1990 2,477,574 4.8%
2000 2,688,418 8.5%
2010 2,853,116 6.1%
Source: 1910–2010[18]

As of 2007, Kansas has an estimated population of 2,775,997, which is an increase of 20,180, or 0.7%, from the prior year and an increase of 87,579, or 3.3%, since the year 2000.[19] This includes a natural increase since the last census of 93,899 people (that is 246,484 births minus 152,585 deaths) and a decrease due to net migration of 20,742 people out of the state. Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 44,847 people, and migration within the country produced a net loss of 65,589 people.[20] The population density of the state is 52.9 people per square mile.[21] The center of population of Kansas is located in Chase County, at 38°27′N 96°32′W / 38.45°N 96.533°W / 38.45; -96.533, approximately three miles north of the community of Strong City.[22]

Demographics of Kansas (csv)
By race White Black AIAN* Asian NHPI*
2000 (total population) 91.19% 6.41% 1.78% 2.10% 0.12%
2000 (Hispanic only) 6.63% 0.23% 0.19% 0.05% 0.02%
2005 (total population) 90.87% 6.60% 1.67% 2.45% 0.12%
2005 (Hispanic only) 7.89% 0.28% 0.20% 0.06% 0.02%
Growth 2000–05 (total population) 1.74% 5.04% -4.13% 19.15% 3.43%
Growth 2000–05 (non-Hispanic only) 0.19% 4.28% -5.09% 19.19% 2.86%
Growth 2000–05 (Hispanic only) 21.51% 25.88% 3.71% 17.69% 5.86%
* AIAN is American Indian or Alaskan Native; NHPI is Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

As of 2004, the population included 149,800 foreign-born (5.5% of the state population). The ten largest reported ancestry groups, which account for over 85% of the population, in the state are: German (33.75%), Irish (14.4%), English (14.1%), American (7.5%), French (4.4%), Scottish (4.2%), Dutch (2.5%), Swedish (2.4%), Italian (1.8%), and Polish (1.5%).[23] People of German ancestry are especially strong in the northwest, while those of English ancestry and descendants of white Americans from other states are especially strong in the southeast. Mexicans are present in the southwest and make up nearly half the population in certain counties. Many African Americans in Kansas are descended from the Exodusters, newly freed blacks who fled the South for land in Kansas following the Civil War.

Religion

The religious makeup of Kansas was as follows:

Christian 86%

Non-religious 9%

Jewish 2%

Other 2%

As of the year 2000, the RCMS[24] reported that the three largest denominational groups in Kansas are Mainline Protestant, Evangelical Protestant, and Catholic. The Catholic Church has the highest number of adherents in Kansas (at 405,844), followed by the United Methodist Church with 206,187 members reported and the Southern Baptist Convention, reporting 101,696 adherents.

Though small, the Kansas Baha'i community has the distinction of being the second in the western hemisphere, founded in 1897 in Enterprise, Kansas.[25]

Urban and rural populations

Rural flight

Kansas is one of the slowest-growing states in the nation. Known as a rural flight, the last few decades have been marked by a migratory pattern out of the countryside into cities.

Out of all the cities in these Midwestern states, 89% have fewer than 3,000 people, and hundreds of those have fewer than 1,000. In Kansas alone, there are more than 6,000 ghost towns and dwindling communities,[26] according to one Kansas historian, Daniel C. Fitzgerald.

At the same time, some of the communities in Johnson County (metropolitan Kansas City) are among the fastest-growing in the country.

Economy

The Bureau of Economic Analysis estimates that the total GDP in 2008 was $122.7 billion, making its United States's 32nd highest state by GDP.[27] Per capita personal income in 2008 was $35,013. As of January 2010, the states unemployment rate is 6.4%.[28]

The agricultural outputs of the state are cattle, sheep, wheat, sorghum, soybeans, cotton, hogs, corn, and salt. Eastern Kansas is part of the Grain Belt, an area of major grain production in the central United States. The industrial outputs are transportation equipment, commercial and private aircraft, food processing, publishing, chemical products, machinery, apparel, petroleum and mining.

Largest Employers (as of 2007)[29]
Rank Business Employees Location Industry
No. 1 Sprint Nextel 12,000 Overland Park Telecommunications
No. 2 Cessna 11,300 Wichita Aviation
No. 3 Spirit AeroSystems 10,900 Wichita Aviation
No. 4 Hawker Beechcraft 6,767 Wichita Aviation
No. 5 Embarq 3,800 Overland Park Telecommunications
No. 6 Black & Veatch 3,800 Overland Park Engineering
No. 7 Boeing 3,005 Wichita Aviation
No. 8 Farmers Insurance 3,000 Olathe Insurance
No. 9 YRC Worldwide 2,600 Overland Park Trucking
No. 10 Garmin 2,500 Olathe GPS Technology
No. 11 Learjet 2,250 Wichita Aviation
No. 12 Koch Industries 2,000 Wichita Chemicals/Materials
No. 13 Schwan Food Company 2,000 Salina Food
No. 14 Collective Brands 1,700 Topeka Apparel
No. 15 Blue Cross and Blue Shield 1,603 Topeka Insurance

Kansas ranks 8th in U.S. oil production. Production has experienced a steady, natural decline as it becomes increasingly difficult to extract oil over time. Since oil prices bottomed in 1999, oil production in Kansas has remained fairly constant, with an average monthly rate of about 2.8 million barrels (450,000 m3) in 2004. The recent higher prices have made carbon dioxide sequestration and other oil recovery techniques more economical.

Kansas ranks 8th in U.S. natural gas production. Production has steadily declined since the mid-1990s with the gradual depletion of the Hugoton Natural Gas Field—the state's largest field which extends into Oklahoma and Texas. In 2004, slower declines in the Hugoton gas fields and increased coalbed methane production contributed to a smaller overall decline. Average monthly production was over 32 billion cubic feet (0.9 km³).

The Kansas economy is also heavily influenced by the aerospace industry. Several large aircraft corporations have manufacturing facilities in Wichita and Kansas City, including Spirit AeroSystems, Boeing, Cessna, Learjet, and Hawker Beechcraft (formerly Raytheon).

Major company headquarters in Kansas include the Sprint Nextel Corporation (with world headquarters in Overland Park), Embarq (with national headquarters in Overland Park), YRC Worldwide (Overland Park), Garmin (Olathe), Payless Shoes (national headquarters and major distribution facilities in Topeka), and Koch Industries (with national headquarters in Wichita).

Taxes

Kansas has three income brackets for income tax calculation, ranging from 3.5% to 6.45%. The state sales tax in Kansas is 6.3%. Various cities and counties in Kansas have an additional local sales tax. Except during the 2001 recession (March–November 2001) when monthly sales tax collections were flat, collections have trended higher as the economy has grown and two rate increases have been enacted. Total sales tax collections for 2003 amounted to $1.63 billion, compared to $805.3 million in 1990.

Revenue shortfalls resulting from lower than expected tax collections and slower growth in personal income following a 1998 permanent tax reduction has contributed to the substantial growth in the state's debt level as bonded debt increased from $1.16 billion in 1998 to $3.83 billion in 2006. Some increase in debt was expected as the state continues with its 10-year Comprehensive Transportation Program enacted in 1999. As of June 2004, Moody's Investors Service ranked the state 14th for net tax-supported debt per capita. As a percentage of personal income, it was at 3.8%—above the median value of 2.5% for all rated states and having risen from a value of less than 1% in 1992. The state has a statutory requirement to maintain cash reserves of at least 7.5% of expenses at the end of each fiscal year, however, lawmakers can vote to override the rule, and did so during the most recent budget agreement.

Transportation

The current state license plate design, introduced in April 2007.
Interstate 35 as it enters Kansas in Rosedale.

Kansas is served by two Interstate highways with one beltway, two spur routes, and three bypasses, with over a total of 874 miles (1,407 km) in all. The first section of Interstate in the nation was opened on I-70 just west of Topeka on November 14, 1956. I-70 is a major east/west route connecting to St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri, in the east and Denver, Colorado, in the west. Cities along this route (from east to west) include Kansas City, Lawrence, Topeka, Junction City, Salina, Hays, and Colby. I-35 is a major north/south route connecting to Des Moines, Iowa, in the north and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, in the south. Cities along this route (from north to south) include Kansas City (and suburbs), Ottawa, Emporia, El Dorado, and Wichita.

Spur routes serve as connections between the two major routes. I-135, a north/south route, connects I-70 at Salina to I-35 at Wichita. I-335, a northeast/southwest route, connects I-70 at Topeka to I-35 at Emporia. I-335 and portions of I-35 and I-70 make up the Kansas Turnpike. Bypasses include I-470 around Topeka and I-235 around Wichita. I-435 is a beltway around the Kansas City Metropolitan Area while I-635 bypasses through Kansas City, Kansas.

US Route 69 runs north and south, from Minnesota to Texas. The highway passes through the eastern section of Kansas, from the Kansas City area, through Louisburg, Fort Scott, Frontenac, Pittsburg, and Baxter Springs before entering Oklahoma.

Map of the Kansas road system.

Kansas also has the second largest state highway system in the country after California. This is because of the high number of counties and county seats (105) and the intertwining of them all.

In January 2004, the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) announced the new Kansas 511 traveler information service.[30] By dialing 511, callers will get access to information about road conditions, construction, closures, detours and weather conditions for the state highway system. Weather and road condition information is updated every 15 minutes.

The state's only major commercial (Class C) airport is Wichita Mid-Continent Airport, located along US-54 on the western edge of the city. Manhattan Regional Airport in Manhattan offers daily flights to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, making it the second-largest commercial airport in the state.[31] Most air travelers in northeastern Kansas fly out of Kansas City International Airport, located in Platte County, Missouri. For those in the far western part of the state, Denver International Airport is a popular option. Connecting flights are also available from smaller Kansas airports in Dodge City, Garden City, Great Bend, Hays, Hutchinson, and Salina. Forbes Field in Topeka sustained commercial flights on Allegiant Air for short period of time until that service was terminated in 2007.

Law and government

State and local politics

Kathleen Sebelius accepting her nomination by President Barack Obama as Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Executive Branch: The executive branch consists of six elected officers. The Governor and Lt Governor are elected on the same slate, the Attorney General, Secretary of State, State Treasurer, and State Insurance Commissioner are elected separately. The six top executive offices of Kansas are all Republican. Governor Sam Brownback and Lieutenant Governor Jeff Colyer were elected in 2010 on the same ticket to a maximum of two consecutive four-year terms. Also elected in 2010 were the Attorney General Derek Schmidt of Independence; the Secretary of State Kris Kobach, of Piper; the State Treasurer Ron Estes, of Wichita; and the Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger, of Topeka.

Legislative Branch: The bicameral Kansas Legislatureconsists of the Kansas House of Representatives, with 125 members serving two-year terms, and the Kansas Senate, with 40 members serving four-year terms. Currently 32 of the 40 Senators are Republican and 92 of the 125 Representatives are Republican.

Judicial Branch: The Judicial branch of the state government is headed by the Kansas Supreme Court. The court has seven judges. A vacancy is filled by the Governor picking one of three nominees selected by a 9-member judicial selection board. The board consists of five Kansas lawyers elected by other Kansas lawyers and four members selected by the Governor.

State symbols

Kansas has a reputation as a progressive state with many firsts in legislative initiatives—it was the first state to institute a system of workers' compensation (1910) and to regulate the securities industry (1911). Kansas also permitted women's suffrage in 1912, almost a decade before the federal constitution was amended to require it. Suffrage in all states would not be guaranteed until ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1920. The council-manager government was adopted by many larger Kansas cities in the years following World War I while many American cities were being run by political machines or organized crime, notably the Pendergast Machine in neighboring Kansas City, Missouri. Kansas was also at the center of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, a 1954 Supreme Court decision that banned racially segregated schools throughout the U.S.

Kansas was one of the few states in which Franklin D. Roosevelt had limited political support, winning Kansas only twice in his four campaigns, although he won the state over Kansas governor Alfred M. Landon during the landslide of 1936. The state backed Republicans Wendell Willkie and Thomas E. Dewey in 1940 and 1944, respectively. Kansas also supported Dewey in 1948 despite the presence of incumbent president Harry S. Truman, who hailed from Independence, Missouri, approximately 15 miles east of the Kansas-Missouri state line. Since FDR carried Kansas in 1932 and 1936, only one Democrat has won Kansas' electoral votes, Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964.

Over the past four decades, Kansas has remained more socially conservative than many parts of the nation. The 1990s brought new restrictions on abortion, the defeat of prominent Democrats, including Dan Glickman, and the Kansas State Board of Education's 1999 decision to eliminate evolution from the state teaching standards, a decision that was later reversed.[32] In 2005, voters accepted a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. The next year, the state passed a law setting a minimum age for marriage at 15 years.[33] In 2008, Governor Sebelius vetoed permits for the construction of new coal-fired energy plants in Kansas, saying: "We know that greenhouse gases contribute to climate change. As an agricultural state, Kansas is particularly vulnerable. Therefore, reducing pollutants benefits our state not only in the short term – but also for generations of Kansans to come."[34] However, shortly after Mark Parkinson became governor in 2009 upon Sebelius's resignation, Parkinson announced a compromise plan to allow construction of a coal-fired plant.

In 2010, Sam Brownback was elected governor with 63 percent of the state vote. He was sworn in as governor in 2011, Kansas' first Republican governor in eight years. Brownback campaigned on a five-point Road Map for Kansas, which consisted of five quantifiable objectives:
1. Increase in net personal income.
2. Increase in private sector employment.
3. Increase in the percentage of 4th graders reading at grade level.
4. Increase in the percentage of high school graduates who are college or career ready.
5. Decrease in the percentage of Kansas’ children who live in poverty.
For the 2012 legislative session Brownback has identified five major objectives:
1. Major reform of the taxation system as a way to reduce Kansas' unemployment.
2. Reduction in the ever-increasing amounts paid for Medicaid.
3. Revision of the school finance formula , which has become outdated and ineffective.
4. Structural government reform to reduce the cost of government to keep the budget in balance.
5. Elimination of over $8 billion in unfunded liabilities of the state employee pension program (KPERS), which is one of the most financial unstable in the nation.

Brownback had established himself as a very conservative member of the U.S. Senate in years prior, but since becoming governor has made several controversial decisions. In May 2011, much to the opposition of art leaders and enthusiasts in the state, Brownback eliminated the Kansas Arts Commission, making Kansas the first state without an arts agency.[35] In July 2011, Brownback announced plans to close the Lawrence branch of the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services as a cost-saving measure. Hundreds rallied against the decision.[36] Lawrence City Commission later voted to provide the funding needed to keep the branch open.[37]

Federal politics

The state's current delegation to the Congress of the United States includes Republican Senators Pat Roberts of Dodge City and Jerry Moran of Hays; and Republican Representatives Tim Huelskamp of Fowler (District 1), Lynn Jenkins of Topeka (District 2), Kevin Yoder of Overland Park (District 3), and Mike Pompeo of Wichita (District 4).

Historically, Kansas has been strongly Republican, dating from the Antebellum age when the Republican Party was created out of the movement opposing the extension of slavery into Kansas Territory. Kansas has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since the 1932 election, when Franklin D. Roosevelt won his first term as President in the wake of the Great Depression. This is the longest Senate losing streak for either party in a single state. Senator Sam Brownback was a candidate for the Republican party nomination for President in 2008. Brownback was not a candidate for re-election to a third full term in 2010, but he was elected Governor in that year's general election. Moran defeated Tiahrt for the Republican nomination for Brownback's seat in the August 2010 primary, then won a landslide general election victory over Democrat Lisa Johnston.

The only non-Republican presidential candidates Kansas has given its electoral vote to are Populist James Weaver and Democrats Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt (twice), and Lyndon Johnson. In 2004, George W. Bush won the state's six electoral votes by an overwhelming margin of 25 percentage points with 62% of the vote. The only two counties to support Democrat John Kerry in that election were Wyandotte, which contains Kansas City, and Douglas, home to the University of Kansas, located in Lawrence. The 2008 election brought similar results as John McCain won the state with 57% of the votes. Douglas, Wyandotte, and Crawford County were the only counties in support of President Barack Obama.[38]

In 1996, when Kansas Republican Senator Bob Dole failed in his bid to become President on the party's national ticket, the state became the second in the nation (following Minnesota and preceding Arizona by identical twelve-year intervals) to produce two losing major-party presidential candidates, and the first in which the said candidates ran on the GOP ticket (following Alfred Landon's loss to FDR in 1936).

State law

The legal drinking age in Kansas is 21. In lieu of the state retail sales tax, a 10% Liquor Drink Tax is collected for liquor consumed on the licensed premises and an 8% Liquor Enforcement Tax is collected on retail purchases. Although the sale of cereal malt beverage (also known as 3.2 beer) was legalized in 1937, the first post-Prohibition legalization of alcoholic liquor did not occur until the state's constitution was amended in 1948. The following year the Legislature enacted the Liquor Control Act which created a system of regulating, licensing, and taxing, and the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) was created to enforce the act. The power to regulate cereal malt beverage remains with the cities and counties. Liquor-by-the-drink did not become legal until passage of an amendment to the state's constitution in 1986 and additional legislation the following year. As of November 2006, Kansas still has 29 dry counties and only 17 counties have passed liquor-by-the-drink with no food sales requirement.[39] Today there are more than 2600 liquor and 4000 cereal malt beverage licensees in the state.[40]

Important cities and towns

Cities with population of at least 15,000
City Population* Growth rate** Metro area
1 Wichita 382,368 11.1% Wichita
2 Overland Park 173,372 16.3% Kansas City, MO-KS
3 Kansas City 145,786 -0.7% Kansas City
4 Topeka 127,473 4.2% Topeka
5 Olathe 125,872 35.4% Kansas City
6 Lawrence 87,643 9.4% Lawrence
7 Shawnee 62,209 29.6% Kansas City
8 Manhattan 52,281 16.6% Manhattan
9 Lenexa 48,190 19.8% Kansas City
10 Salina 47,707 4.4%
11 Hutchinson 42,080 3.2%
12 Leavenworth 35,251 -0.5% Kansas City
13 Leawood 31,867 15.2% Kansas City
14 Dodge City 27,340 8.6%
15 Garden City 26,658 -6.3%
16 Emporia 24,916 -6.9%
17 Junction City 23,353 13.0% Manhattan
18 Derby 22,158 24.4% Wichita
19 Prairie Village 21,447 -2.8% Kansas City
20 Liberal 20,525 4.4%
21 Hays 20,510 2.5%
22 Pittsburg 20,233 5.1%
23 Newton 19,132 11.3% Wichita
24 Gardner 19,123 103.5% Kansas City
25 Great Bend 15,995 4.2%
*2010 Census[41]
**Growth rate 2000–2010
‡Defined as a micropolitan area

Kansas has 627 incorporated cities. By state statute, cities are divided into three classes as determined by the population obtained "by any census of enumeration." A city of the third class has a population of less than 5,000, but cities reaching a population of more than 2,000 may be certified as a city of the second class. The second class is limited to cities with a population of less than 25,000, and upon reaching a population of more than 15,000, they may be certified as a city of the first class. First and second class cities are independent of any township and are not included within the township's territory.

Northeast Kansas

The northeastern portion of the state, extending from the Eastern border to Junction City and from the Nebraska border to south of Johnson County is home to more than 1.5 million people in the Kansas City (Kansas portion), Manhattan, Lawrence,and Topeka metropolitan areas. Overland Park, a young city incorporated in 1960, has the largest population and the largest land area in the county. It is home to Johnson County Community College, the state's largest community college, and the corporate campus of Sprint Nextel, the largest private employer in the metro area. In 2006 the city was ranked as the 6th best place to live in America; the neighboring city of Olathe was 13th.[42] Olathe is the county seat and home to Johnson County Executive Airport. The cities of Olathe, Shawnee, and Gardner have some of the state's fastest growing populations. The cities of Overland Park, Lenexa, Olathe, and Gardner are also notable because they lie along the former route of the Santa Fe Trail. Among cities with at least one thousand residents, Mission Hills has the highest median income in the state.

Several institutions of higher education are located in Northeast Kansas including Baker University (the oldest university in the state, founded in 1858 and affiliated with the United Methodist Church) in Baldwin City, Benedictine College (sponsored by St. Benedict's Abbey and Mount St. Scholastica Monastery and formed from the merger of St. Benedict's College (1858) and Mount St. Scholastica College (1923)) in Atchison, MidAmerica Nazarene University in Olathe, Ottawa University in Ottawa and Overland Park, Kansas City Kansas Community College and KU Medical Center in Kansas City, and KU Edwards Campus in Overland Park. Less than an hour's drive to the west, Lawrence is home to the University of Kansas, the largest public university in the state, and Haskell Indian Nations University.

To the north, Kansas City, Kansas, with the second largest land area in the state, contains a number of diverse ethnic neighborhoods. Its attractions include the Kansas Speedway, Kansas City T-Bones and The Legends at Village West retail and entertainment center. Further up the Missouri River, the city of Lansing is the home of the state's first maximum-security prison. Historic Leavenworth, founded in 1854, was the first incorporated city in Kansas. North of the city, Fort Leavenworth is the oldest active Army post west of the Mississippi River. The city of Atchison was an early commercial center in the state and is well known as the birthplace of Amelia Earhart.

To the west, nearly a quarter million people reside in the Topeka metropolitan area. Topeka is the state capital and home to Washburn University. Built at a Kansas River crossing along the old Oregon Trail, this historic city has several nationally registered historic places. Further westward along Interstate 70 and the Kansas River is Junction City with its historic limestone and brick buildings and nearby Fort Riley, well known as the home to the U.S. Army's 1st Infantry Division, also known as the "Big Red One". A short distance away, the city of Manhattan is home to Kansas State University, the second largest public university in the state and the nation's oldest land-grant university, dating back to 1863. South of the campus, Aggieville dates back to 1889 and is the state's oldest shopping district of its kind.

Wichita

Wichita, Kansas, the largest city in the state of Kansas

In south-central Kansas, the Wichita metropolitan area is home to over 600,000 people. Wichita is the largest city in the state in terms of both land area and population. 'The Air Capital' is a major manufacturing center for the aircraft industry and the home of Wichita State University. With a number of nationally registered historic places, museums, and other entertainment destinations, it has a desire to become a cultural mecca in the Midwest. Wichita's population growth has grown by double digits and the surrounding suburbs are among the fastest growing cities in the state. The population of Goddard has grown by more than 11% per year since 2000.[43] Other fast-growing cities include Andover, Maize, Park City, Derby, and Haysville.

Up river (the Arkansas River) from Wichita is the city of Hutchinson. The city was built on one of the world's largest salt deposits, and it has the world's largest and longest wheat elevator. It is also the home of Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center, Prairie Dunes Country Club and the Kansas State Fair. North of Wichita along Interstate 135 is the city of Newton, the former western terminal of the Santa Fe Railroad and trailhead for the famed Chisholm Trail. To the southeast of Wichita are the cities of Winfield and Arkansas City with historic architecture and the Cherokee Strip Museum (in Ark City). The city of Udall was the site of the deadliest tornado in Kansas on May 25, 1955; it killed 80 people in and near the city.[44] To the southwest of Wichita is Freeport, the state's smallest incorporated city (population 5).

Around the state

Kansas Population Density Map

Located midway between Kansas City, Topeka, and Wichita in the heart of the Bluestem Region of the Flint Hills, the city of Emporia has several nationally registered historic places and is the home of Emporia State University, well known for its Teachers College. It was also the home of newspaper man William Allen White.

Southeast Kansas

Southeast Kansas has a unique history with a number of nationally registered historic places in this coal-mining region. Located in Crawford County (dubbed the Fried Chicken Capital of Kansas), Pittsburg is the largest city in the region and the home of Pittsburg State University. The neighboring city of Frontenac in 1888 was the site of the worst mine disaster in the state in which an underground explosion killed 47 miners. "Big Brutus" is located a mile and a half outside the city of West Mineral. Along with the restored fort, historic Fort Scott has a national cemetery designated by President Lincoln in 1862.

Central and North-Central Kansas

Salina is the largest city in central and north-central Kansas. South of Salina is the small city of Lindsborg with its numerous Dala horses. Much of the architecture and decor of this town has a distinctly Swedish style. To the east along Interstate 70, the historic city of Abilene was formerly a trailhead for the Chisholm Trail and was the boyhood home of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. To the west is Lucas, the Grassroots Art Capital of Kansas.

Northwest Kansas

Westward along the Interstate, the city of Russell, traditionally the beginning of sparsely-populated northwest Kansas, is the home of former U.S. Senator Bob Dole and the boyhood home of U.S. Senator Arlen Specter. The city of Hays is home to Fort Hays State University and the Sternberg Museum of Natural History, and is the largest city in the northwest with a population of around 20,000. Two other landmarks are located in smaller towns in Ellis County: the "Cathedral of the Plains" is located 10 miles (16 km) east of Hays in Victoria, and the boyhood home of Walter Chrysler is 15 miles (24 km) west of Hays in Ellis. West of Hays, population drops dramatically, even in areas along I-70, and only two towns containing populations of more than 4,000: Colby and Goodland, which are located 35 miles apart along I-70.

Southwest Kansas

Dodge City, famously known for the cattle drive days of the late 19th century, was built along the old Santa Fe Trail route. The city of Liberal is located along the southern Santa Fe Trail route. The first wind farm in the state was built east of Montezuma. Garden City has the Lee Richardson Zoo.

Education

Education in Kansas is governed at the primary and secondary school level by the Kansas State Board of Education. The state's public colleges and universities are supervised by the Kansas Board of Regents.

Twice since 1999 the Board of Education has approved changes in the state science curriculum standards that encouraged the teaching of intelligent design. Both times, the standards were reversed after changes in the composition of the board in the next election.

Sports

Professional

Club Sport League City
Sporting Kansas City Soccer Major League Soccer Kansas City
Kansas City T-Bones Baseball American Association Kansas City
Kansas Koyotes Indoor Football American Professional Football League Topeka
Topeka Golden Giants Baseball National Baseball Congress Topeka
Topeka Mudcats Football Women's Spring Football League Topeka
Topeka Roadrunners Ice hockey North American Hockey League Topeka
Wichita Thunder Ice hockey Central Hockey League Wichita
Wichita Wild Indoor Football Indoor Football League Park City
Wichita Wings Indoor Soccer Major Indoor Soccer League Park City
Wichita Wingnuts Baseball American Association Wichita

Sporting Kansas City, who have played their home games at CommunityAmerica Ballpark since 2008, are the first top-tier professional sports league and first Major League Soccer team to be located within Kansas. From the start of the 2011 season, the team will move to Livestrong Sporting Park, a brand new $165m soccer specific stadium.

Historically, many Kansans have supported the major league sports teams of Kansas City, Missouri, including the Kansas City Royals (MLB), the Kansas City Chiefs (NFL) and the Kansas City Brigade (AFL) – in part because the home stadiums for these teams are just miles from the Kansas border. The Chiefs and the Royals play at the Truman Sports Complex, located about 10 miles (16 km) from the Kansas-Missouri state line. The Kansas City Brigade play in the newly opened Sprint Center, which is even closer to the state line. Additionally, from 1973 to 1997 the flagship radio station for the Royals was WIBW in Topeka, Kansas.[45]

Western Kansans sometimes also support the major league teams from Denver, while those who live close to the Oklahoma state line may support the Dallas Cowboys. All Chiefs games are televised throughout Kansas by television stations in Topeka and Wichita.

Two major auto racing facilities are located in Kansas. The Kansas Speedway located in Kansas City hosts races of the NASCAR, IRL, and ARCA circuits. Also, the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) holds drag racing events at Heartland Park Topeka. The Sports Car Club of America has its national headquarters in Topeka.

History

The history of professional sports in Kansas probably dates from the establishment of the minor league Topeka Capitals and Leavenworth Soldiers in 1886 in the Western League.[46][47] The African-American Bud Fowler played on the Topeka team that season, one year before the "color line" descended in professional baseball.[47]

In 1887, the Western League was dominated by a reorganized Topeka team called the Golden Giants – a high-priced collection of major leaguer players, including Bug Holliday, Jim Conway, Dan Stearns, Perry Werden and Jimmy Macullar, which won the league by 15½ games.[47] On April 10, 1887, the Golden Giants also won an exhibition game from the defending World Series champions, the St. Louis Browns (the present-day Cardinals), by a score of 12–9. However, Topeka was unable to support the team, and it disbanded after one year.

College

See List of college athletic programs in Kansas

The governing body for intercollegiate sports in the United States, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), opened its first office in Overland Park, Kansas, in 1952 and remained based in the state until moving to Indianapolis in 1999.

NCAA Division I schools

While there are no franchises of the four major professional sports within the state, many Kansans are fans of the state's major college sports teams, especially the Jayhawks of the University of Kansas, commonly referred to as "KU", and the Wildcats of Kansas State University, known as "KSU" or "K-State". Wichita State University, which also fields teams (called the Shockers) in Division I of the NCAA, is best known for its baseball program, winning the College World Series in 1989.

Both KU and K-State have tradition-rich programs in men's basketball. The Jayhawks are a perennial national power, ranking second in all-time victories among NCAA programs, behind Kentucky. In 2008, the Jayhawks won their fifth national crown (third NCAA tournament title). K-State also had a long stretch of success on the hardwood, lasting from the 1940s to the 1980s. After a 12-year absence, the Wildcats returned to the NCAA tournament in 2008 and made it into the Elite Eight in 2010. KU is fifth all-time with 13 Final Four appearances, while K-State is tied for 17th with four appearances. Wichita State has also made one Final Four appearance.

Success on the football field has been more infrequent for KSU and KU. When the two teams met in 1987, KU's record was 1–7 and K-State's was 0–8. Fittingly, the Governor's Cup that year, dubbed the "Toilet Bowl" by the media, ended in a 17–17 tie when the Jayhawks blocked a last-second K-State field goal attempt. However, there have been recent breakthroughs for both schools. KU won the Orange Bowl for the first time in three tries in 2008, capping a 12–1 season, the best in school history. And when Bill Snyder arrived to coach the Kansas State in 1989, he turned the school from one of the worst college football programs into a national force for most of the 1990s and early 2000s. The team won the Fiesta Bowl in 1997, achieved an undefeated (11–0) regular season and No. 1 ranking in 1998, and took the Big 12 Conference championship in 2003.

Smaller colleges

Notable success has also been achieved by the state's smaller schools in football. Pittsburg State University, a NCAA Division II participant, has claimed three national titles in football, two in the NAIA and most recently the 1991 NCAA Division II national title. Pittsburg State became the winningest NCAA Division II football program in 1995. PSU passed Hillsdale College at the top of the all-time victories list in the 1995 season on its march to the national runner-up finish. The Gorillas, in 96 seasons of intercollegiate competition, have accumulated 579 victories – posting a 579–301–48 overall mark.

Washburn University, in Topeka, won the NAIA Men's Basketball Championship in 1987. The Fort Hays State University men won the 1996 NCAA Division II title with a 34–0 record, and the Washburn women won the 2005 NCAA Division II crown. St. Benedict's College (now Benedictine College), in Atchison, won the 1954 and 1967 Men's NAIA Basketball Championships.

The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference has its roots as one of the oldest college sport conferences in existence and participates in the NAIA and all ten member schools are in the state of Kansas. Other smaller school conference that have some members in Kansas are the Heartland Conference, the Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference, the Midwest Christian College Conference, and the Heart of America Athletic Conference. Many junior colleges also have active athletic programs.

High school

The Kansas State High School Activities Association (KSHSAA) is the organization which oversees interscholastic competition in the state of Kansas at the high school level. It oversees both athletic and non-athletic competition, and sponsors championships in several sports and activities.

Notable residents

Landmarks

See also

References

  1. ^ "Governor’s Signature Makes English the Official Language of Kansas". Us-english.org. 2007-05-11. http://www.us-english.org/inc/news/preleases/viewRelease.asp?ID=252. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  2. ^ "2010 Census Data". United States Census Bureau. http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/index.php. Retrieved 2010-12-22. 
  3. ^ a b "Elevations and Distances in the United States". United States Geological Survey. 2001. http://egsc.usgs.gov/isb/pubs/booklets/elvadist/elvadist.html. Retrieved October 21, 2011. 
  4. ^ a b Elevation adjusted to North American Vertical Datum of 1988.
  5. ^ "Census.gov" (PDF). http://www.census.gov/geo/www/us_regdiv.pdf. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
  6. ^ John Koontz, p.c.
  7. ^ Rankin, Robert. 2005. "Quapaw." In Native Languages of the Southeastern United States, eds. Heather K. Hardy and Janine Scancarelli. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, pg. 492
  8. ^ Connelley, William E. 1918. Indians. A Standard History of Kansas and Kansans, ch. 10, vol. 1
  9. ^ "Today in History: January 29". Memory.loc.gov. http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/jan29.html. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
  10. ^ "Kansas Quick Facts". governor.ks.gov. https://governor.ks.gov/about-kansas/quickfacts. Retrieved December 30, 2010. 
  11. ^ "FAQ". Kansas Department of Agriculture. http://www.ksda.gov/kansas_agriculture/faq/id/56. Retrieved January 3, 2011. 
  12. ^ Jones, Gray Ghosts and Rebel Riders Holt & Co. 1956, p. 76
  13. ^ "Kansas Is Flatter Than a Pancake". Improbable.com. http://improbable.com/airchives/paperair/volume9/v9i3/kansas.html. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
  14. ^ Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center 785-843-9192 (2003-07-27). "Study finds Kansas Flatter Than Pancake". .ljworld.com. http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2003/jul/27/holy_hotcakes_study/. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
  15. ^ "Fracas over Kansas pancake flap". Geotimes.org. http://www.geotimes.org/oct03/NN_pancake.html. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
  16. ^ "Kansas". National Park Service. http://www.nps.gov/state/ks. Retrieved 2008-07-15. 
  17. ^ NOAA National Climatic Data Center. Retrieved October 25, 2006.
  18. ^ Resident Population Data. "Resident Population Data - 2010 Census". 2010.census.gov. http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/apportionment-pop-text.php. Retrieved October 12, 2011. 
  19. ^ State Population Estimates. Annual Estimates of the Population for the United States, Regions, and States and for Puerto Rico: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2007 (NST-EST2007-01). U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division. Released 2007-12-22. Six year change is from 2000-07-01 to 2007-07-01.
  20. ^ State Population Estimates. Kansas population has increased at a decreasing rate; reducing the number of congressmen from 5 to 4 in 1992 (Congressional Redistricting Act, eff. 1992). Cumulative Estimates of the Components of Population Change for the United States, Regions and States: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2006 (NST-EST2006-04). U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division. Released 2006-12-22.
  21. ^ edited by John W. Wright (2007). The New York Times 2008 Almanac. p. 178. 
  22. ^ "Population and Population Centers by State – 2000". United States Census Bureau. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/cenpop/statecenters.txt. Retrieved 2008-12-05. 
  23. ^ American Community Survey Office. "Kansas – Social demographics 2006". Census.gov. Archived from the original on March 31, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080331102738/http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/Profiles/Single/2003/ACS/Tabular/040/04000US202.htm. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
  24. ^ "State Membership Reports". thearda.com. http://www.thearda.com/mapsReports/reports/state/20_2000.asp. Retrieved 2010-06-15. 
  25. ^ Garlington, William. The Baha'i Faith in America. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2005. 78–79.
  26. ^ http://www.danielcfitzgerald.com/kansasextinctlocations.html
  27. ^ Bea.gov; U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA)
  28. ^ Bls.gov; Local Area Unemployment Statistics
  29. ^ "Kansas Data Book". http://www.kansascommerce.com/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=Shi9fz2NWS0%3d&tabid=72. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
  30. ^ "KDOT Launches New Traveler Information Service" (Press release). Kansas Department of Transportation. 2004-01-22. http://www.ksdot.org/archive/offtransinfo/News04/511_Release.htm. Retrieved 2006-07-14. 
  31. ^ "Manhattan Airport Official Site". http://www.flymhk.com/. Retrieved 2010-07-14. 
  32. ^ Los Angeles Times. Vote by Kansas School Board Favors Evolution's Doubters
  33. ^ Azcentral.com
  34. ^ staff (2008-03-21). "Kansas Governor Rejects Two Coal-Fired Power Plants". Ens-newswire.com. http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2008/2008-03-21-01.asp. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
  35. ^ May 31, 2011  (May 31, 2011). "Kansas governor eliminates state's art funding". Latimesblogs.latimes.com. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2011/05/kansas-governor-eliminates-states-arts-funding.html. Retrieved October 12, 2011. 
  36. ^ Hittle, Shaun (July 16, 2011). "Hundreds rally against closing SRS office". .ljworld.com. http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2011/jul/16/hundreds-rally-against-closing-srs-office/. Retrieved October 12, 2011. 
  37. ^ "Lawrence City Commission approves funding for SRS office". .ljworld.com. August 9, 2011. http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2011/aug/09/lawrence-city-commission-approves-funding-srs-offi/. Retrieved October 12, 2011. 
  38. ^ "2008 Election Results – Kansas". CNN. http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/results/individual/#mapPKS. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
  39. ^ "Liquor Licensee and Supplier Information". Alcoholic Beverage Control, Kansas Department of Revenue. http://www.ksrevenue.org/abcsupplierinfo.htm. Retrieved 2007-01-18. 
  40. ^ "History of Alcoholic Beverages in Kansas". Alcoholic Beverage Control, Kansas Department of Revenue. 2000. http://www.ksrevenue.org/abchistory.htm. Retrieved 2007-01-18. 
  41. ^ "2010 US Census Population Estimates". http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_PL_GCTPL2.ST13&prodType=table. Retrieved 2011-03-29. 
  42. ^ "Best places to live 2006". MONEY Magazine. http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2006/top100/. Retrieved 2006-12-09. 
  43. ^ "Population Estimates". U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division. http://www.census.gov/popest/estimates.php.  Annual estimates of the population through 2006-07-01. Released 2007-06-28.
  44. ^ "The Blackwell Tornado of 25 May 1955". NWS Norman, Oklahoma. June 13, 2006. Archived from the original on 2006-10-08. http://web.archive.org/web/20061008140031/http://www.srh.noaa.gov/oun/wxevents/19550525/. Retrieved 2007-01-28. 
  45. ^ "Making Airwaves Through History". Findarticles.com. 2002-12-02. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4179/is_20021202/ai_n11792020/pg_3/. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
  46. ^ Evans, Harold (1940). "Baseball in Kansas, 1867–1940". Kansas Historical Quarterly. http://www.kancoll.org/khq/1940/40_2_evans.htm. Retrieved 2008-02-18. 
  47. ^ a b c Madden, W.C.; Stewart, Patrick (2002). The Western League: A Baseball History, 1885 through 1999. ISBN 0786410035. 

Further reading

External links

Maps
Preceded by
Oregon
List of U.S. states by date of statehood
Admitted on January 29, 1861 (34th)
Succeeded by
West Virginia

Coordinates: 38°30′N 98°00′W / 38.5°N 98°W / 38.5; -98


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Kansas — (Details) (Details) …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Kansas — • One of the United States of America, is the central state of the Union, to which it was admitted 29 January, 1861 Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Kansas     Kansas      …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • KANSAS — KANSAS, midwestern state in the central United States. The population in 2001 numbered 2,692,000, with a Jewish population of 14,000, the bulk of the Jews living in the greater Kansas City area. Wichita has some 1,300 Jews. The first Jewish… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Kansas — Основная информация …   Википедия

  • Kansas — Kansas, AL U.S. town in Alabama Population (2000): 260 Housing Units (2000): 128 Land area (2000): 0.999915 sq. miles (2.589767 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 0.999915 sq. miles (2.589767 sq.… …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Kansas [1] — Kansas (abgekürzt Kau. oder Kans.), einer der Präriestaaten der nordamerikan. Union (s. Karte »Vereinigte Staaten«, westlicher Teil), zwischen 37 bis 40° nördl. Br. und 94°38 –102° westl. L., grenzt östlich an Missouri, südlich an Oklahoma und… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Kansas — Kansas, es un vocablo sioux que significa gente del viento del sur y es uno de los estados que conforman los Estados Unidos. * * * Río de E.U.A., en el estado homónimo, afluente del Missouri; 272 km. Estado del centro NE de E.U.A., limítrofe con… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Kansas — (Kanzas, Konzas), 1) Indianerstamm in Nordamerika, zur Gruppe der Sioux Völkerschaften gehörig, westlich über den Mississippi zurückgedrängt, jetzt namentlich an den Ufern des gleichnamigen Flusses; ungefähr noch 1600 Köpfe stark; 2) (K. River),… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Kansas — état du centre des È. U., à l O. du Missouri; 213 063 km²; 2 478 000 hab.; cap. Topeka. Rég. de plaines au climat continental contrasté, le Kansas cultive le blé d hiver. Il possède d import. gisements de pétrole (Wichita) et de gaz naturel. Cédé …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Kansas, AL — U.S. town in Alabama Population (2000): 260 Housing Units (2000): 128 Land area (2000): 0.999915 sq. miles (2.589767 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 0.999915 sq. miles (2.589767 sq. km) FIPS code …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Kansas, IL — U.S. village in Illinois Population (2000): 842 Housing Units (2000): 378 Land area (2000): 1.028196 sq. miles (2.663016 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 1.028196 sq. miles (2.663016 sq. km) FIPS… …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”