Jewell 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 the U.S. state of

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 ...

. 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 Mankato. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 2,932. The county was named for Lewis Jewell, a lieutenant colonel of the 6th Regiment Kansas Volunteer Cavalry.

History

Early history

For many millennia, the

Great Plains The Great Plains is a broad expanse of plain, flatland in North America. The region stretches east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. They are the western part of the Interior Plains, which include th ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

was inhabited by nomadic Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...

claimed ownership of large parts of

. In 1762, after the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

, France secretly ceded

New France New France (, ) was the territory colonized by Kingdom of France, France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Kingdom of Great Br ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, per the Treaty of Fontainebleau.

19th century

In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France, but keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, most of the land for modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile

Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase () was the acquisition of the Louisiana (New France), territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. This consisted of most of the land in the Mississippi River#Watershed, Mississipp ...

for 2.83 cents per

acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...

. In 1854, the

Kansas Territory The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Slave and ...

was organized, then in 1861

became the 34th U.S. state. In 1887, Jewell County was established and named for Lieutenant Colonel Lewis R. Jewell of the 6th Regiment Kansas Volunteer Cavalry who died from wounds received in the Battle of Cane Hill. The county lies on the historic Pawnee road, which was crossed by the Pike Exedition in 1806. The first attempt at settlement was made by William Harshberger and his wife on White Rock Creek in 1862, but they were soon driven out by hostile Indian tribes. Subsequent settlement efforts along White Rock Creek in 1866 and 1867 were again subjected to Cheyenne raids in which many settlers were killed, after which the survivors evacuated the county. The Excelsior colony from New York attempted to settle in 1869 but was driven out by June. Despite these dangers, more settlers arrived later that year and into 1870. The first marriage was recorded in the county in 1871. In response to the persistent threat of Indian raids, settlers formed the "Buffalo Militia" in May 1870 to protect against an anticipated Cheyenne attack. They constructed a fort at what is now Jewell City, which they held until relieved by the Third U.S. Mounted Artillery the following month. After this, there were no further attacks from hostile tribes. The county's formal organization began with the appointment of county commissioners in July 1870, followed by an election in September to establish county officials and choose Jewell City as the county seat. In 1887, Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway built a branch line from Neva (3 miles west of Strong City) to Superior, Nebraska. This branch line connected Strong City, Neva, Rockland, Diamond Springs, Burdick, Lost Springs, Jacobs, Hope, Navarre, Enterprise, Abilene, Talmage,

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, Longford, Oak Hill, Miltonvale,

Aurora An aurora ( aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...

, Huscher, Concordia, Kackley, Courtland, Webber, Superior. At some point, the line from Neva to Lost Springs was pulled but the right of way has not been abandoned. This branch line was originally called "Strong City and Superior line" but later the name was shortened to the "Strong City line". In 1996, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway merged with Burlington Northern Railroad and renamed to the current

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...

. Most locals still refer to this railroad as the "Santa Fe".

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.5%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Nuckolls County,

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

(northeast) * Republic County (east) * Cloud County (southeast) * Mitchell County (south) * Osborne County (southwest) * Smith County (west) * Webster County,

(northwest)

Demographics

As of the 2000 census, there were 3,791 people, 1,695 households, and 1,098 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 2,103 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 98.79%

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 ...

, 0.34% Native American, 0.05% Asian, 0.03%

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 Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.03%

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 ...

, 0.05% from other races, and 0.71% 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 0.71% of the population. There were 1,695

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 23.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.10% 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, 4.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.20% were non-families. 32.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.80. In the county, the population was spread out, with 21.90% under the age of 18, 4.40% from 18 to 24, 21.50% from 25 to 44, 26.20% from 45 to 64, and 25.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females there were 97.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.00 males. The median income for a household in the county was $30,538, and the median income for a family was $36,953. Males had a median income of $24,821 versus $18,170 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 $16,644. About 8.40% of families and 11.60% 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 12.80% of those under age 18 and 10.90% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Presidential elections

Like all of Kansas outside the eastern cities, Jewell County is overwhelmingly Republican. The only Democratic presidential candidates to win a majority in the county have been

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...

in 1916 and

William Jennings Bryan William Jennings Bryan (March 19, 1860 – July 26, 1925) was an American lawyer, orator, and politician. He was a dominant force in the History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, running three times as the party' ...

in 1896, and the last Democrat to win a plurality was

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

in 1932. Since 1940 only

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...

in 1964 and

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

in 1976 have exceeded 31 percent of the county's vote, a devotion to the GOP comparable to famous

Appalachia Appalachia ( ) is a geographic region located in the Appalachian Mountains#Regions, central and southern sections of the Appalachian Mountains in the east of North America. In the north, its boundaries stretch from the western Catskill Mountai ...

Unionist strongholds like Avery County, North Carolina, or Grant County, West Virginia.

Laws

Although the Kansas Constitution was amended in 1986 to allow the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with the approval of voters, Jewell County restaurants serve only 3.2 beer and no hard alcohol.

Education

Unified school districts

* Rock Hills USD 107

Communities

List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Jewell County.

Cities

* Burr Oak * Esbon * Formoso * Jewell * Mankato (county seat) * Randall * Webber

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 ...

. * Ionia† * Lovewell * Montrose * North Branch * Otego

Ghost towns

* Dentonia * Salem

Townships

Jewell County is divided into twenty-five townships. None of the cities within the county are considered ''governmentally independent'', and all figures for the townships include those of the cities. 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.

References

External links

;County *
Jewell County - Directory of Public Officials

Jewell County - Community Development Association
;Historical

Genealogy ;Maps * Jewell County Maps
CurrentHistoric
KDOT * Kansas Highway Maps
CurrentHistoric
KDOT * Kansas Railroad Maps
Current19961915
KDOT and Kansas Historical Society {{Authority control Kansas counties 1887 establishments in Kansas Populated places established in 1887