Bourbon County is a
county
A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...
located in
Southeast Kansas. Its
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 ...
and most populous city is
Fort Scott.
As of the
2020 census, the county population was 14,360.
The county was named after
Bourbon County, Kentucky, the former home of many early settlers.
History
Early history
In 1855, Bourbon County was established and named after Bourbon County, Kentucky, due to the significant number of settlers from that region. Its early history is tied to the establishment of
Fort Scott in 1842 to manage relations with Indian tribes in the region, and particularly with the
Osage. The county's first settlers, many of whom were pro-slavery, faced opposition from free-state advocates, leading to violent confrontations during the Bleeding Kansas era and later during the
Civil War
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
, such the
Battle of Mine Creek in 1864.
The aftermath of the Civil War brought economic and demographic changes; many ex-soldiers settled in the area, contributing to its agricultural growth. Post-war years saw the railroad's arrival, connecting Bourbon County to broader markets and facilitating the expansion of coal mining and agriculture, particularly wheat, corn, and later, sorghum.
21st century
Bourbon virus, a new strain of
thogotovirus, was first discovered in Bourbon County. In the spring of 2014 an otherwise healthy man was bitten by a tick, contracting the virus, dying 11 days later from organ failure.
Geography
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.6%) is water.
Adjacent counties
*
Linn County (north)
*
Vernon County,
Missouri
Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...
(east)
*
Crawford County (south)
*
Neosho County (southwest)
*
Allen County (west)
*
Anderson County (northwest)
National protected area
*
Fort Scott National Historic Site
Major highways
Sources: National Atlas, U.S. Census Bureau
*
U.S. Route 54
U.S. Route 54 (US 54) is an east–west United States Highway that runs northeast–southwest for from El Paso, Texas, to Griggsville, Illinois. The Union Pacific Railroad's Tucumcari Line (former Southern Pacific Railroad, Southern Pacific an ...
*
U.S. Route 69
*
Kansas Highway 3
*
Kansas Highway 7
*
Kansas Highway 31
*
Kansas Highway 39
*
Kansas Highway 65
Demographics
As of the
2000 census,
there were 15,379 people, 6,161 households, and 4,127 families residing in the county. 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 7,135 housing units at an average density of . The
racial makeup of the county was 94.06%
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 ...
, 3.08%
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 ...
or
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 ...
, 0.84%
Native American, 0.36%
Asian, 0.05%
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 ...
, 0.28% from other races, and 1.33% from
two or more races.
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 were 1.29% of the population.
There were 6,161
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 30.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.50% 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, 9.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.00% were non-families. 29.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.01.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.80% under the age of 18, 9.50% from 18 to 24, 24.20% from 25 to 44, 22.30% from 45 to 64, and 18.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 93.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.50 males.
The
median income for a household in the county was $31,199, and the median income for a family was $39,239. Males had a median income of $27,043 versus $20,983 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 county was $16,393. About 9.50% of families and 13.50% 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 18.00% of those under age 18 and 13.40% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Presidential elections
Bourbon County is a strongly Republican county. Only six presidential elections from 1888 to the present have resulted in Republicans failing to win the county, with the last of these being in 1964.
Laws
Following amendment to the
Kansas Constitution in 1986, the county remained a prohibition, or
"dry", county until 1992, when voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30% food sales requirement.
Education
Colleges
*
Fort Scott Community College
Unified school districts
*
Fort Scott USD 234
*
Uniontown USD 235
Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Bourbon County.
Cities
*
Bronson
*
Fort Scott (county seat)
*
Fulton
*
Mapleton
*
Redfield
*
Uniontown
Unincorporated communities
† means a community is designated a
Census-Designated Place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...
(CDP) by 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 ...
.
*
Barnesville
*
Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
*
Devon
Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...
†
*
Garland
A garland is a decorative braid, knot or wreath of flowers, leaves, or other material. Garlands can be worn on the head or around the neck, hung on an inanimate object, or laid in a place of cultural or religious importance. In contemporary times ...
†
*
Godfrey
*
Hammond
*
Harding
*
Hiattville
*
Marmaton
*
Pawnee Station
*
Porterville
*
Xenia
Xenia may refer to:
People
* Xenia (name), a feminine given name; includes a list of people with this name
Places United States
''listed alphabetically by state''
* Xenia, Illinois, a village in Clay County
** Xenia Township, Clay County, Il ...
Townships
Bourbon County is divided into eleven
townships. The city of
Fort Scott is considered ''governmentally independent'' and is excluded from the census figures for the townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.
Notable people
*
Richard Christy (b. 1974), drummer, radio personality; born and raised in Bourbon County
*
Jonathan Davis
Jonathan Howsmon Davis (born January 18, 1971), also known as JD, is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He is the lead vocalist and frontman of nu metal band Korn, which is considered a pioneering act of the nu metal genre. Davis's ...
(1871–1943),
22nd Governor of Kansas; born in Bourbon County.
*
Sarah Hall (1832–1926), president of Bourbon County Equal Suffrage Association; lived in Fort Scott, Bourbon County 1870–1911
[ ]
*
Gordon Parks (1912–2006), photographer, composer, author, poet, and film director, who became prominent in U.S. documentary
photojournalism
Photojournalism is journalism that uses images to tell a news story. It usually only refers to still images, but can also refer to video used in broadcast journalism. Photojournalism is distinguished from other close branches of photography (such ...
in the 1940s; born in Bourbon County
See also
*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Bourbon County, Kansas
References
Further reading
* ''Fort Scott Kansas - Then and Now - A Pictorial History''; Bourbon County Historical Preservation Association; 240 pages; 2016.
''A Very Dear Spot - The Development of Fort Scott, Kansas, 1890-1920'' Daron Blake; Kansas State University; 18 pages; 2011.
* ''Fort Scott - A Pictorial History''; William G. Calhoun; Historic Preservation Association of Bourbon County; 272 pages; 1978.
* ''A Social History of Fort Scott Kansas at the Turn of the Century''; James D. Conkright; Pittsburg State University; 1973.
''Soil Survey of Bourbon County, Kansas'' U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service; 37 pages; 1931.
* ''Place names of Bourbon County, Kansas - The County, Townships, streams, towns, lost towns, streets in Fort Scott and other place names, with origin of all names''; Charles E. Cory; Monitor Printing Co; 1928.
''Standard Atlas of Bourbon County, Kansas'' Geo. A. Ogle & Co; 67 pages; 1920.
''History of Bourbon County, Kansas: To the Close of 1865'' Thomas F. Robley; 269 pages; 1894.
''An Illustrated Historical Atlas of Bourbon County, Kansas'' Edwards Brothers of Missouri; 55 pages; 1878.
External links
;County
*
Bourbon County – Directory of Public Officials;Maps
* Bourbon County Maps
CurrentHistoric KDOT
* Kansas Highway Maps
CurrentHistoric KDOT
* Kansas Railroad Maps
Current19961915 KDOT and Kansas Historical Society
{{Authority control
1855 establishments in Kansas Territory
Kansas counties
States and territories established in 1855