Kiowa is a city in Barber County,

Kansas Kansas () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its Capital city, capital is Topeka, Kansas, Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita, Kansas, Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebras ...

, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 902. It is located 1 mile north of the Kansas / Oklahoma state border.

History

19th century

Kiowa was founded in 1872. It was named for the

Kiowa people Kiowa () people are a Native American tribe and an indigenous people of the Great Plains of the United States. They migrated southward from western Montana into the Rocky Mountains in Colorado in the 17th and 18th centuries,Pritzker 326 and e ...

20th century

On June 7, 1900, anti-saloon advocate Carrie Nation vandalized her first saloon in Kiowa. In 1905, the Denver, Enid and Gulf Railroad was built from

Enid, Oklahoma Enid ( ) is the ninth-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It is the county seat of Garfield County. As of the 2020 census, the population was 51,308. Enid was founded during the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the Land Run of 1893, a ...

to Kiowa. In 1907, it was sold to the

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison and Topeka, Kansas, and ...

. In 1996, the line from Kiowa to

Blanton, Oklahoma Blanton is an unincorporated community in Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States. It was a rail stop for two rail lines,

was abandoned.

Geography

Kiowa is located at (37.017520, -98.484721). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...

, the city has a total area of , all of it land.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

of 2010, there were 1,026 people, 466 households, and 273 families living in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was . There were 578 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.3%

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

, 0.2%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 1.2% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 1.8% from other races, and 1.4% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 4.1% of the population. There were 466 households, of which 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.1% were

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

living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.4% were non-families. 36.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.79. The median age in the city was 46.9 years. 21.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 18.5% were from 25 to 44; 28.5% were from 45 to 64; and 23.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.0% male and 51.0% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,055 people, 467 households, and 292 families living in the city. The

was 995.3 people per square mile (384.3/km). There were 569 housing units at an average density of 536.8 per square mile (207.3/km). The racial makeup of the city was 95.83%

, 0.28%

, 1.23% Native American, 1.71% from other races, and 0.95% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 4.27% of the population. There were 467 households, out of which 25.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.6% were

living together, 5.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.3% were non-families. 36.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 24.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.87. In the city, the population was spread out, with 23.6% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 21.3% from 25 to 44, 24.4% from 45 to 64, and 26.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $31,141, and the median income for a family was $41,806. Males had a median income of $31,667 versus $21,083 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $16,670. About 9.7% of families and 14.2% 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 23.1% of those under age 18 and 6.5% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The community is served by South Barber USD 255 public school district. The Kiowa Chieftains won the Kansas State High School class B Track & Field championship in 1940.

Media

Kiowa is served by a weekly newspaper, ''The Kiowa News''.

Infrastructure

K-2 and K-8 highways, and the

Southern Transcon The Southern Transcon is a main line of BNSF Railway comprising 11 subdivisions between Southern California and Chicago, Illinois. Completed in its current alignment in 1908 by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, when it opened the Belen C ...

main line of

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is one of the largest freight railroads in North America. One of seven North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 35,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and nearly 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that ...

pass through Kiowa.

Notable people

Marcellus Boss Marcellus Graeme Boss (January 21, 1901 – March 21, 1967) was an interim Governor of Guam from November 14, 1959, until his resignation on August 22, 1960. Boss first entered Guamanian administration with a 1957 appointment by President Dwigh ...

, the 5th

Civilian Governor of Guam The governor of Guam ( ch, I Maga'låhen / ) is the head of government of Guam and the commander-in-chief of the Guam National Guard, whose responsibilities also include making the annual State of the Island (formerly the State of the Terri ...

; former Kiowa city attorney. * Charles E. Brown, Jr., Chief of Chaplains of the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

. *

Bill Tidwell Billy Dale Tidwell (born April 8, 1932) was an American university sports administrator and former college track and field and cross country coach. Tidwell served as Emporia State University's athletic director from 1971 to 1979, and coached trac ...

, four-time NAIA middle distance champion at

Kansas State Teachers College Emporia State University (Emporia State or ESU) is a public university in Emporia, Kansas, United States. Established in March 1863 as the Kansas State Normal School, Emporia State is the third-oldest public university in the state of Kansas. Em ...

(ESU), then coach and athletic director * James Wilson, former Colorado State Representative

References

External links

City of Kiowa

Kiowa - Directory of Public Officials

USD 255
local school district

Barber County, Kansas: History and Genealogy
Kiowa city map
KDOT {{Authority control Cities in Kansas Cities in Barber County, Kansas 1872 establishments in Kansas Populated places established in 1872