Parsons is a city in Labette County,

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 9,600. It is the most populous city of Labette County, and the second-most populous city in the southeastern region of Kansas. It is home to

Labette Community College Labette Community College (LCC) is a public community college in Parsons, Kansas, United States. LCC's main campus is situated in Parsons and satellite campuses are located in Cherokee, Oswego and Pittsburg. The mascot of the school is Chris th ...

and the Parsons State Hospital & Training Center.

History

Parsons was named after Levi Parsons, president of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas (Katy) Railroad. The town was founded in 1870 and incorporated the following year by the railroad. The location for the town was chosen because it was on a flat ridge between the Labette Creek and Little Labette Creek and provided an ideal site for where the two branches of the railroad being built from

Junction City, Kansas Junction City is a city in and the county seat of Geary County, Kansas, Geary County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 22,932. Fort Riley, a major United States Army, U.S. ...

and

Sedalia, Missouri Sedalia is a city located approximately south of the Missouri River and, as the county seat of Pettis County, Missouri, Pettis County, Missouri, United States, it is the principal city of the Sedalia Micropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 ...

would meet. The creeks were soon dammed to provide a water source. The railroad commenced building a massive rail yard, foundry, and locomotive shop at Parsons; for many years this was the third largest railroad facility west of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

, with only

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

and

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

being larger. Settlers from nearby towns uprooted and moved to Parsons, and new settlers arrived on every incoming train. Parsons soon became a major hub for several railroads, including the

Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad The Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad was a Class I railroad company in the United States, with its last headquarters in Dallas, Texas. Established in 1865 under the name Union Pacific Railroad (UP), Southern Branch, it came to serve an exten ...

, the Parsons and Pacific Railroad, the

Kansas City and Pacific Railroad The Kansas City and Pacific Railroad (“KC&PR”) was created in 1886 to provide a freight access route from Kansas City south through what was then Oklahoma Territory, now the State of Oklahoma. The line grew to 130 miles of trackage before th ...

, and the Memphis, Kansas & Colorado Railroad. In the early part of the twentieth century, Parsons operated its own street car system, and also had an interurban electric railroad connecting it to the nearby cities of Cherryvale,

Independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

, Coffeyville, and

Nowata Nowata (Lenape: ', ' ) is a city in and the county seat of Nowata County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,731 at the 2010 United States census, a 6.0 percent decline from the figure of 3,971 recorded in 2000. The area where it was ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

it was home to the Kansas Ordnance Plant, which later operated for some years as the Kansas Army Ammunition Plant. In Spring of 2005, the munitions plant was placed on the BRAC list for closure. The community has rallied behind the current plant operator, Day & Zimmerman, to keep the company on the grounds after closure and to keep those jobs and more in the Parsons area. (See link to "Great Plains Industrial Park" in "External Links", below)

Hospitals

Parsons is also home to the Parsons State Hospital & Training Center, which has been in operation since 1903 when it was opened as the Kansas State Hospital for Epileptics. In 1957 the hospital was renamed Parsons State Hospital and Training Center. At that time it began providing programs for individuals with

developmental disabilities Developmental disability is a diverse group of chronic conditions, comprising mental or physical impairments that arise before adulthood. Developmental disabilities cause individuals living with them many difficulties in certain areas of life, espe ...

. The Hospital occupies 43 buildings on . The hospital also includes residential services, the University Center on Developmental Disabilities and the Parsons Research Center for the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...

, the Special Purpose School of the Southeast Regional Education Service Center. The Southeast Kansas Agricultural Research Center of

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...

is also located on the grounds, as is the

Alzheimer's Association The Alzheimer's Association is a nonprofit voluntary health organization that focuses on Alzheimer's disease care, support and research. History Jerome H. Stone founded the Alzheimer's Association with the help of several family support groups ...

, Heart of America Chapter, Southeast Kansas Regional Office. Parsons is also home to Labette County Medical Center.

Library

The first library began as a subscription library in 1904 and was located in city hall. Parsons Public Library, a Carnegie library, opened on May 18, 1909. A new library opened on April 18, 1977, and the former library has since been renovated to become a visual and performing arts center.

Industry

The sale of

Katy Industries American Plastics, formerly Katy Industries, Inc., is a holding company for a group of businesses which produce and distribute maintenance products and electrical products. The first manufactures and distributes commercial cleaning products, and ...

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad is a Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United States after BNSF, ...

, in 1988, eventually saw the loss of scores of railroad jobs and, in effect, severed a major part of Parsons' city history which stretched back to its 1871 incorporation. While, in return, the city received a million dollars to help it recover (and so that it would not file lengthy paperwork opposing the sale and thus delaying it), that money is kept in a fund by the city government, which uses the accrued interest on economic development projects. The only reminder of the

Katy Railroad Katy or KATY may refer to: People and Characters * Katy, a short form of the name Katherine * Katy (given name) * Katy (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a fictional character * Katy Perry * Katie Perry, Australian fashion designer * Katy Perry (prison ...

is now found in the local historical society's museum, the annual Katy Days Festival and of course the tracks, over which trains now speed through Parsons. The Kansas Army Ammunition Plant also was down scaled in the 1980s.

2000-2020

On April 19, 2000, an F3 tornado cut a devastating path of destruction through the center of Parsons. About 700 homes were damaged and about 100 destroyed, about 60 businesses were damaged and 11 destroyed. On June 5, 2006 the

National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 ...

named Parsons a 2006 Great American Main Street Award winner for its successful efforts in revitalizing its downtown area through historic preservation. The award was presented during the 2006 National Main Streets Conference in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

. Parsons was one of only five cities receiving the 2006 award. Parsons is the home of Dwayne's Photo, which became the last processor of K-14

Kodachrome Kodachrome is the brand name for a color reversal film introduced by Eastman Kodak in 1935. It was one of the first successful color materials and was used for both cinematography and still photography. For many years, Kodachrome was widely used ...

film in the world and was the location of the final frame taken on the final roll of Kodachrome film produced. Parsons is featured prominently in the plot of the 2017

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

movie ''

'' about a man who takes a

road trip A road trip, sometimes spelled roadtrip, is a long-distance Travel, journey traveled by a car or a motorcycle. History First road trips by automobile The world's first recorded long-distance road trip by the automobile took place in German Em ...

to develop a roll of Kodachrome film.

Film

The motion picture ''

ZombieGeddon ''Zombiegeddon'' is a 2003 American Comedy horror, horror comedy film directed by Chris Watson. It stars Ari Bavel, Paul Darrigo, Felissa Rose, Edwin Neal, Linnea Quigley, Tom Savini, and Uwe Boll. It was distributed by Troma Entertainment, It wa ...

'' (2003) was filmed in Parsons in July 2002.

Newspaper

The ''Parsons Sun'' is a twice-weekly newspaper published in Parsons since 1871. At different times it was owned by Henry J. Allen and Clyde M. Reed, who would both go on to serve as

governor of Kansas A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

Geography

Parsons is located at (37.339070, -95.269747). The city is at the junction of

U.S. Route 59 U.S. Route 59 (US 59) is a north–south U.S. highway (though it was signed east–west in parts of Texas). A latecomer to the U.S. Highway System, US 59 is now a border-to-border route, part of the NAFTA Corridor Highway System. It par ...

and U.S. Route 400. Along US-59, the city of

Erie Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 ...

(the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Neosho County) is to the north and Oswego (the county seat of Labette County) is south and east. Big Hill Lake is several miles to the west of the city, and

Lake Parsons Lake Parsons is a lake in the state of Kansas. Located north on highway 59 and west on 20th road from the city of Parsons, Kansas, United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a ...

is situated northwest of the city. The Kansas Army Ammunition Plant (KSAAP) is located southeast of the city. The facility was completed in 1942 to support

operations and consists of 21 separate facilities over . The installation is actively used as a munitions loading, assembly, and packing facility. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

Climate

Demographics

2020 census

The 2020 United States census counted 9,600 people, 4,015 households, and 2,251 families in Parsons. The population density was 903.0 per square mile (348.7/km). There were 4,776 housing units at an average density of 449.3 per square mile (173.5/km). The racial makeup was 75.28% (7,227)

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

European American European Americans are Americans of European ancestry. This term includes both people who descend from the first European settlers in the area of the present-day United States and people who descend from more recent European arrivals. Since th ...

(72.51%

non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...

), 8.0% (768)

black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

, 1.67% (160) Native American or

Alaska Native Alaska Natives (also known as Native Alaskans, Alaskan Indians, or Indigenous Alaskans) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of Alaska that encompass a diverse arena of cultural and linguistic groups, including the I ...

, 0.74% (71) Asian, 0.02% (2)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, Indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was set ...

, 2.15% (206) from other races, and 12.15% (1,166) from

two or more races Multiracial Americans, also known as mixed-race Americans, are Americans who have mixed ancestry of two or more races. The term may also include Americans of mixed-race ancestry who self-identify with just one group culturally and socially (cf. t ...

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race was 7.05% (677) of the population. Of the 4,015 households, 29.3% had children under the age of 18; 33.1% were married couples living together; 33.7% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 36.6% of households consisted of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.2 and the average family size was 3.0. The percent of those with a bachelor’s degree or higher was estimated to be 15.6% of the population. 24.9% of the population was under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 18.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.2 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 108.7 males. The 2016-2020 5-year

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...

estimates show that the median household income was $41,091 (with a margin of error of +/- $6,793) and the median family income was $54,735 (+/- $6,393). Males had a median income of $30,510 (+/- $3,819) versus $24,658 (+/- $2,536) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $27,206 (+/- $1,968). Approximately, 13.5% of families and 20.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 24.3% of those under the age of 18 and 16.8% of those ages 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 10,500 people, 4,351 households, and 2,586 families living in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 5,034 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 81.3%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 18.6%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 1.4% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.8% from other races, and 4.3% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 16.7% of the population. There were 4,351 households, of which 30.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 15.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 40.6% were non-families. 34.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.95. The median age in the city was 37.8 years. 24.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.1% were from 25 to 44; 26.4% were from 45 to 64; and 15.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.5% male and 51.5% female.

2000 census

As of the U.S. Census in 2000, there were 11,514 people, 4,738 households, and 2,909 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 5,359 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 85.54%

, 8.17%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

, 1.12% Native American, 0.42% Asian, 0.01%

, 1.90% from other races, and 2.84% from

Hispanic or Latino ''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While many use the terms interchangeably, for example, the United States Census Bureau ...

of any race were 4.64% of the population. There were 4,738

household A household consists of one or more persons who live in the same dwelling. It may be of a single family or another type of person group. The household is the basic unit of analysis in many social, microeconomic and government models, and is im ...

s, out of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.3% were

living together, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.6% were non-families. 33.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.96. In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.2% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 17.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.1 males. The median income for a household in the city was $28,345, and the median income for a family was $36,557. Males had a median income of $28,667 versus $21,558 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $15,763. About 9.9% of families and 14.6% of the population were below the

, including 16.3% of those under age 18 and 11.5% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Events

Katy Days is an annual festival held

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. It is observed on the last Monday of May. It i ...

weekend to celebrate the

, also known as "the Katy" railroad. The founders of the festival are Mary and Pete Hughes. Activities are held in Forest Park, the largest community park in Parsons, and typically include live music,

food truck A food truck is a large motorized vehicle (such as a van or multi-stop truck) or trailer equipped to store, transport, cook, prepare, serve and/or sell food. Some food trucks, such as ice cream trucks, sell frozen or prepackaged food, but m ...

s, and a

parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually some variety ...

Education

College

Public

Parsons USD 503 public school district serves most of the city of Parsons: *

Parsons Senior High School Parsons Senior High School is a public secondary school in Parsons, Kansas, United States. It is operated by Parsons USD 503 school district, and serves students of grades 9 to 12. It is the sole high school in the school district. The sch ...

(9-12) * Parsons Middle School (6-8) * Guthridge Elementary (4-5) * Garfield Elementary (2-3) * Lincoln Elementary (PreK-1)

Labette County USD 506 Labette County USD 506 is a public unified school district headquartered in Altamont, Kansas, United States. The district includes the communities of Altamont, Angola, Bartlett, Dennis, Edna, Labette, Mound Valley, western and southern P ...

public school district serves southern and western parts of the city of Parsons: * Meadow View Elementary (K-8) Erie-Galesburg USD 101 public school district serves north of Parsons.

Private

* St. Patrick Catholic School (PreK-8)

Library

The first public library building in Parsons was the Carnegie Library, established in 1909. The Parsons Public Library moved to a modern facility in 1977.

Points of interest

* Parsons Arboretum * Tri-City Airport * Big Hill Lake *

Neosho State Fishing Lake Neosho State Fishing Lake, also known as Lake McKinley is located in the state of Kansas. Located in Neosho County north on highway 59 and east on 40th Rd from the city of Parsons, Kansas, United States. Construction of this lake was completed ...

* Oakwood Cemetery * Parsons Historical Society Museum * Forest Park

Notable people

* Gilbert Baker, civil rights activist and creator of the pride flag *

Fred Bradley Frederick Bradley may refer to: * Frederick Henry Bradley (1876–1943), English recipient of the Victoria Cross * Frederick Gordon Bradley (1886–1966), Canadian and Dominion of Newfoundland politician * Frederick Van Ness Bradley (1898–1947), A ...

, Major League Baseball pitcher * Gil Britton, Major League Baseball player * Jamie Anne (Brown) Allman, actress *

Buck Clayton Wilbur Dorsey "Buck" Clayton (November 12, 1911 – December 8, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter who was a member of Count Basie's orchestra. His principal influence was Louis Armstrong, first hearing the record " Confessin' that I Love You" ...

aka Wilbur Dorsey Clayton, jazz musician *

William Coffin Coleman William Coffin Coleman (May 21, 1870 – November 2, 1957) was a businessman, the American founder of the Coleman Company, a maker of camping equipment, and a politician. He served as the Mayor of Wichita, Kansas, from 1923 to 1924. Biograph ...

, founder of the

Coleman Company The Coleman Company, Inc. is an American brand of outdoor recreation products, especially camping gear, now owned by Newell Brands. The company's new headquarters are in Chicago, and it has facilities in Wichita, Kansas, and in Texas. There are ...

, and mayor of

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the List of cities in Kansas, most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397, ...

* William W. Cranston, civil war soldier and

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

recipient * Walter Davidson, Sr., co-founder of Harley-Davidson Motor Company * Pintip Dunn, author of young adult fiction * Alfred B. Fairfax, Kansas politician and pastor * Fletcher Flora, author * Myron V. George, U.S. congressman * Derrel Gofourth, NFL offensive lineman *

Bill Guthridge William Wallace Guthridge (July 27, 1937 – May 12, 2015) was an American college basketball coach. Guthridge initially gained recognition after serving for thirty years as Dean Smith's assistant at the University of North Carolina and summin ...

, college basketball coach * George Harvey, professional football player *

Clancy Hayes Clarence Leonard Hayes (November 14, 1908 – March 13, 1972) was an American jazz vocalist and banjo player. His regular banjo was a six string one, which is tuned as a guitar. Early life Hayes was born in Caney, Kansas, on November 14, 1908. As ...

, jazz musician *

Shaun Hill Shaun Christopher Hill (born January 9, 1980) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for 15 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Maryland Terrapins. Hill was signed ...

, NFL quarterback *

Ward Kimball Ward Walrath Kimball (March 4, 1914 – July 8, 2002) was an American animator employed by Walt Disney Animation Studios. He was part of Walt Disney's main team of animators, known collectively as Disney's Nine Old Men. His films have been honor ...

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

winning

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

animator An animator is an artist who creates images, known as frames, which give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, and video games. Animat ...

Jeff Kready Jeff Kready (born in Parsons, Kansas, United States) is an American stage performer and has been featured in Broadway musicals. Raised in Topeka, Kansas, Kready made his Broadway debut in the 2006 revival of ''Les Misérables'' in the role of Ba ...

, Broadway and television actor * Roland Lakes, Wichita State and NFL lineman *

David J. Leland David J. Leland (born September 18, 1953) is a judge of the Ohio District Courts of Appeals, Ohio District Court of Appeals for the 10th District (Franklin County, Ohio, Franklin County), elected in 2022. He was formerly a member of the Ohio Hous ...

, politician and jurist *

Deb Miller Debra L. "Deb" Miller was the vice chair of the Surface Transportation Board. She previously served as the Kansas Secretary of Transportation under three successive Governors of Kansas between 2003 and 2011. She is Kansas' first female and longes ...

, Kansas Secretary of Transportation (2003–2012) *

Ajit Pai Ajit Varadaraj Pai (; born January 10, 1973) is an American lawyer who served as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from 2017 to 2021. He became a partner at the private-equity firm Searchlight Capital in April 2021. He bec ...

, former FCC Chairman *

George Pepperdine George Pepperdine (; June 20, 1886 – July 31, 1962) was an American entrepreneur and Christian philanthropist who was the founder of Pepperdine University in California. Biography Early life George Pepperdine was born on June 20, 1886, on a fa ...

, founder of

Western Auto Western Auto Supply Company—known more widely as Western Auto—was a Chain store, specialty retail chain of stores that supplied auto part, automobile parts and accessories operating approximately 1,200 stores across the United States ...

and

Pepperdine University Pepperdine University () is a private university, private Christianity, Christian research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ, with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pepperdine's main campus consists ...

ZaSu Pitts ZaSu Pitts (; January 3, 1894 – June 7, 1963) was an American actress who, in a career spanning nearly five decades, starred in many silent film drama film, dramas, such as Erich von Stroheim's 1924 epic ''Greed (1924 film), Greed'', along wi ...

, film and television actress and comedian * Payne Harry Ratner, Kansas Governor * Clyde M. Reed, Kansas Governor and U.S. Senator * Nell Donnelly Reed, businesswoman * T. Claude Ryan, aviator, aerospace engineer * Dan Smith, major league baseball player *

Joe Tinker Joseph Bert Tinker (July 27, 1880 – July 27, 1948) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played from 1902 through 1916 for the Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Chicago Whales of th ...

, major league baseball player and

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...

inductee *

Clark Tippet Clark Tippet (October 5, 1954, in Parsons, Kansas – January 28, 1992) was an American ballet dancer and choreographer. He was a member of the American Ballet Theatre company in New York City. Among other roles, he was the male Spanish dancer ...

, ballet dancer and choreographer * Levi Watkins, heart surgeon and civil rights activist * Ella B. Ensor Wilson, social reformer

References

External links

Parsons - Official

Parsons - Directory of Public Officials

Parsons Chamber of Commerce

''The Parsons Sun''
local newspaper
Parsons city map
KDOT {{Authority control Cities in Kansas Cities in Labette County, Kansas Populated places established in 1870 1870 establishments in Kansas

History

Hospitals

Library

Industry

2000-2020

Film

Newspaper

Geography

Climate

Demographics

2020 census

2010 census

2000 census

Arts and culture

Events

Education

College

Public

Private

Library

Points of interest

Notable people

References

Further reading

External links