Cloud County, Kansas

Cloud County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Concordia
Year Organized: 1866
Square Miles: 718

Court House:

811 Washington
County Courthouse
Concordia, KS 66901-3415

Named: The county was originally named for Governor William Shirley, colonial Governor of Massachusetts from 1741 to 1756. The name was changed to Cloud in 1867 in honor of Colonel William F. Cloud, of the Second Regiment, Kansas Volunteers.

State & County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Cloud County, located just west of the 6th principal meridian, in the second tier of counties south of Nebraska, was created out of unorganized territory by the act of Feb. 27. 1860, and named Shirley (q. v.). On Feb. 26, 1867, the name was changed to Cloud in honor of William F. Cloud, colonel of the Second Kansas cavalry.

It is bounded on the north by Republic county; on the east by Washington and Clay; on the south by Ottawa; on the west by Jewell and Mitchell, and has an area of 720 square miles.

On Feb. 4, 1865, the boundary lines of Washington county were extended to include the counties of Shirley and Republic, provided, "however, that at any time in the future, when the territory now comprised either in the county of Shirley and (or) Republic shall contain the number of inhabitants that shall entitle them to a county organization, they shall he authorized to organize and become a distinct county."

Geography

The northern part of the county is watered by the Republican river and its tributaries, and the southern portion is watered by the Solomon river, which flows in a southeasterly direction across the southwest corner. In the northeastern part of the county there are some salt springs and marshes. Coal is found near the center of the county, south of the Republican river, and is mined to some extent for local consumption. Magnesium limestone of a good quality is found in abundance. Good building stone is quarried in the vicinity of Concordia. Potter's clay is plentiful in all portions of the county, and these deposits have been extensively worked in the northeast portion.

Neighboring Counties:

North: Republic County
Northeast: Washington County
Southeast: Clay County
South: Ottawa County
West: Mitchell County
Northwest: Jewell County

Cities:

- Arion	township
- Aurora	city	Incorporated Area
- Center	township
- Clyde	city	Incorporated Area
- Colfax	township
- Concordia (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Elk	township
- Glasco	city	Incorporated Area
- Grant	township
- Jamestown	city	Incorporated Area
- Lyon	township
- Meredith	township
- Miltonvale	city	Incorporated Area
- Nelson	township
- Oakland	township
- Shirley	township
- Sibley	township
- Starr	township
- Summit	township

County Resources:

Cloud County - KS-Cyclopedia - 1912

County Resource Guide

The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of our country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."

Penn Foster High School

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