The story
History
Early history
For many millennia, the Great Plains of North America were inhabited by nomadic Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the Kingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts of North America. In 1762, after the French and Indian War, France secretly ceded New France to Spain, 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 for 2.83 cents per acre.
In 1854, the Kansas Territory was organized, then in 1861 Kansas became the 34th U.S. state.
In 1867, Reno County was established, named for General Jesse L. Reno.
In 1887, the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway extended its main line from Herington to Pratt. This main line connected Herington, Ramona, Tampa, Durham, Waldeck, Canton, Galva, McPherson, Groveland, Inman, Medora, Hutchinson, Whiteside, Partridge, Arlington, Langdon, Turon, Preston, Natrona and Pratt. In 1888, this main line was extended to Liberal. Later, this line was extended to Tucumcari, New Mexico and El Paso, Texas. This line is called the "Golden State Limited".
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 61,898. The median age was 41.0 years. 22.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 102.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 101.6 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 85.2% White, 3.0% Black or African American, 0.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.9% from some other race, and 7.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 9.8% of the population.
68.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 31.4% lived in rural areas.
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There were 25,189 households in the county, of which 27.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 26.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 31.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 28,289 housing units, of which 11.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 68.0% were owner-occupied and 32.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 11.3%.
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 64,790 people, 25,498 households, and 17,313 families residing in the county. The population density was 52 people per square mile (20 people/km2). There were 27,625 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile (8.5/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 91.56% White, 2.88% Black or African American, 0.58% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.69% from other races, and 1.81% from two or more races. 5.65% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 25,498 households, out of which 30.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.90% were married couples living together, 8.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.10% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.94.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.50% under the age of 18, 9.30% from 18 to 24, 26.90% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 16.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 100.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.00 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $35,510, and the median income for a family was $42,643. Males had a median income of $31,495 versus $21,329 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,520. About 8.10% of families and 10.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.90% of those under age 18 and 8.50% of those age 65 or over.
From Wikipedia’s article on Reno County, Kansas, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4