Lincoln Center, more commonly known as Lincoln, is a city in and 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 Lincoln 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 1,171.

History

Settler George Green founded the town of Lincoln in 1870, naming it after the county. "Center" was added to its name to indicate its location in the central part of the county. County residents initially voted to place the

in Lincoln Center. Elections in November 1870 resulted in the seat relocating to nearby Abram, sparking a

county seat war A county seat war is an American phenomenon that occurred mainly in the Old West as it was being settled and county lines determined. Incidents elsewhere, such as in Michigan, Appalachian Ohio, and West Virginia, have also been recorded. As ...

. Another vote in February 1872 reversed the switch, and Lincoln Center again became the county seat. Residents relocated all the buildings in Abram to Lincoln, merging the two communities. The town was incorporated as the city of Lincoln Center in 1879, and is officially referred to as such in the

United States Census The United States census (plural censuses or census) is a census that is legally mandated by the Constitution of the United States. It takes place every ten years. The first census after the American Revolution was taken in 1790 United States ce ...

. Both the city government and local chamber of commerce refer to the city as Lincoln, and it appears as such on state maps and signs. Lincoln grew rapidly over the following decade, more than doubling in size, and the city gradually modernized. Kansas Christian College opened in Lincoln in 1885. The

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, 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 Stat ...

opened a branch line through the city in 1886, bringing mail service. In 1900, after the previous

courthouse A courthouse or court house is a structure which houses judicial functions for a governmental entity such as a state, region, province, county, prefecture, regency, or similar governmental unit. A courthouse is home to one or more courtrooms, ...

burned down, a new one was built out of native

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

known locally as

post rock Post-rock is a subgenre of experimental rock that emphasizes texture, atmosphere, and non-traditional song structures over conventional rock techniques. Post-rock artists often combine rock instrumentation and rock stylings with electronics a ...

. Rural mail delivery began in 1904, and

telephony Telephony ( ) is the field of technology involving the development, application, and deployment of telecommunications services for the purpose of electronic transmission of voice, fax, or data, between distant parties. The history of telephony is ...

service began in 1905. In 1906, the city's first

power plant A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the electricity generation, generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electr ...

opened, providing

electric power Electric power is the rate of transfer of electrical energy within a electric circuit, circuit. Its SI unit is the watt, the general unit of power (physics), power, defined as one joule per second. Standard prefixes apply to watts as with oth ...

. Beginning in the 1920s, the mechanization of agriculture reduced the need for farm work and commercial farming operations gradually consolidated family farms, resulting in a reduction in the population. By 1950, the state highway commission had completed K-14 and K-18 through Lincoln. In 1989, given the widespread, long-standing use of post rock limestone in local building construction, the

Kansas Legislature The Kansas Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas. It is a bicameral assembly, composed of the lower Kansas House of Representatives, with 125 state representatives, and the upper Kansas Senate, with 40 state sen ...

named Lincoln County as "The Post Rock Capital of Kansas". In the past, Lincoln has offered free residential lots to entice people to move to Lincoln. This program was suspended in 2024.

Geography

The city lies on the north side of the Saline River in the

Smoky Hills The Smoky Hills are an upland region of hills in the central Great Plains of North America. They are located in the Midwestern United States, encompassing north-central Kansas and a small portion of south-central Nebraska. The hills are a diss ...

region of 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 ...

. Yauger Creek, a tributary of the Saline River, flows south along the eastern edge of the city to its confluence with the Saline immediately south of the city. The confluence of the Saline and Lost Creek, another of the river's tributaries, is located immediately southwest of the city. Located at the intersection of Kansas Highway 14 (K-14) and Kansas Highway 18 (K-18) in north-central Kansas, Lincoln is northwest of Wichita, west of

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 east-southeast of

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

. 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 , all land.

Climate

Lying in the southern periphery of North America's humid continental climate (Köppen ''Dfa''), Lincoln experiences hot, humid summers and cold, dry winters. The hottest temperature recorded in Lincoln was on July 13, 1934, while the coldest temperature recorded was on December 23, 1989.

Demographics

2020 census

The 2020 United States census counted 1,171 people, 522 households, and 296 families in Lincoln Center. The population density was 935.3 per square mile (361.1/km). There were 671 housing units at an average density of 535.9 per square mile (206.9/km). The racial makeup was 89.75% (1,051)

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 ...

(86.68%

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 ...

), 0.51% (6)

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. ...

, 0.26% (3) 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 ...

, 0.68% (8) Asian, 0.0% (0)

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 ...

, 3.67% (43) from other races, and 5.12% (60) 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 was 8.45% (99) of the population. Of the 522 households, 24.3% had children under the age of 18; 41.0% were married couples living together; 31.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 37.4% of households consisted of individuals and 19.7% 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 3.1. The percent of those with a bachelor’s degree or higher was estimated to be 13.3% of the population. 23.5% of the population was under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 20.1% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 27.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 108.4 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 116.9 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 $42,857 (with a margin of error of +/- $6,193) and the median family income was $65,114 (+/- $10,517). Males had a median income of $36,250 (+/- $6,718) versus $21,827 (+/- $10,882) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $30,859 (+/- $3,636). Approximately, 1.4% of families and 9.0% 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 2.0% of those under the age of 18 and 6.9% of those ages 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 1,297 people, 576 households, and 324 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 734 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.6%

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 ...

, 1.1% American Indian, 0.3%

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 ...

, 0.1% Asian, 0.8% from some other race, and 1.2% from two or more races. Hispanics and Latinos of any race were 2.8% of the population. There were 576 households, of which 24.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.2% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 43.8% were non-families. 40.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16, and the average family size was 2.95. The median age in the city was 44.9 years. 25.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.4% were from 25 to 44; 25.1% were from 45 to 64; and 24.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.6% male and 53.4% female. The median income for a household in the city was $37,308, and the median income for a family was $47,679. Males had a median income of $33,650 versus $28,438 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 $19,949. About 13.0% of families and 15.1% of the population were below the

, including 19.6% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Lincoln is a city of the second class with a mayor-council form of government. The

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

consists of five members, and it meets on the second Monday of each month. As the

, Lincoln is the administrative center of Lincoln County. The

county courthouse A courthouse or court house is a structure which houses judicial functions for a governmental entity such as a state, region, province, county, prefecture, regency, or similar governmental unit. A courthouse is home to one or more courtrooms, ...

is located downtown, and all departments of the county government base their operations in the city. Lincoln lies within Kansas's 1st U.S. Congressional District. For the purposes of representation in the

, the city is located in the 35th district of the

Kansas Senate The Kansas Senate is the upper house of the Kansas Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Kansas. It is composed of 40 senators elected from single-member districts, each with a population of about 73,000 inhabitants. Members o ...

and the 107th district of the

Kansas House of Representatives The Kansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas. Composed of 125 state representatives from districts with roughly equal populations of at least 19,000, its members are responsible for craftin ...

Education

Primary and secondary education

The community is served by Lincoln USD 298 public school district, which operates two

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

schools in Lincoln: Lincoln Elementary School (

Grades Grade most commonly refers to: * Grading in education, a measurement of a student's performance by educational assessment (e.g. A, pass, etc.) * A designation for students, classes and curricula indicating the number of the year a student has reach ...

Pre-K-5) and Lincoln Junior/Senior High School (6-12).

Infrastructure

Transportation

Lincoln sits immediately south of the intersection of Kansas state highways K-14, which runs north-south through the city, and K-18, which wraps around the northern and eastern edges of the city. Lincoln Municipal Airport, a

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...

facility, is located roughly a mile northwest of the city on K-18. A line of the Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad runs through the west side of the city.

Media

Lincoln has one weekly

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

, ''The Lincoln Sentinel-Republican''.

In popular culture

In Season 5, Episode 1 of "In With the Old", the episode titled "Big Green Monster" featured a couple who were granted a free home. During the episode, the couple relocated their 1910 Dutch Colonial to their farm and began renovations.

Notable people

Notable individuals who were born in and/or have lived in Lincoln include: * William Baker (1831-1910),

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from Kansas * Jessa Crispin (1978- ), book critic * Don Wendell Holter (1905-1999),

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

bishop * Daniel Ray Hull (1890-1964), landscape architect * Martin Johnson (1884-1937), adventurer, explorer, and documentary filmmaker * Jack Knight (1893-1945), Aviation pioneer * Bessie Anderson Stanley (1879-1952), poet * Uncas A. Whitaker (1900-1975), engineer, entrepreneur

References

External links

City of Lincoln

Lincoln - Directory of Public Officials
* , from ''Hatteberg's People'' on

KAKE KAKE (channel 10) is a television station in Wichita, Kansas, United States, affiliated with ABC and owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group. The station's studios are located on West Street in northwestern Wichita, and its transmitter is located i ...

TV news
Historic Images
- Wichita State University Libraries
Lincoln city map
KDOT {{Authority control Cities in Kansas County seats in Kansas Cities in Lincoln County, Kansas 1870 establishments in Kansas Populated places established in 1870