Kansas State...
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Kansas Counties
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Dickinson County, Kansas
Dickinson County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education
County Seat: Abilene
Year Organized: 1857
Square Miles: 852 |
Court House: 1st & Buckeye Streets
County Courthouse
Abilene, KS 67410-0000
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Named: In honor of Daniel S. Dickinson. who was a Senator from the
State of New York. In 1847 he introduced, in the United States Senate,
resolutions respecting territorial government, embodying the doctrine of popular
sovereignty, afterwards incorporated in the Bill for the organization of Kansas
Territory. He died in 1866.
State & County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts
History
Dickinson County, located near the central part of the state, is in the third tier of counties south from Nebraska and the sixth west from the Missouri river. It was created by an act of the legislature in 1857, with the following boundaries: "Beginning at the southwest corner of Clay county,
thence west along the southern boundary of said Clay county to the southwest corner thereof; thence south along the 6th principal meridian to the corner of townships 16 and 17 south; thence east along the township line to the range line between ranges 4 and 5 east; thence north along said range line
to the middle of the main channel of the Smoky Hill fork of the Kansas river; thence up the middle of the main channel of the Smoky Hill fork to the southwest corner of Riley county; thence north with the west boundary of Riley county to the point of beginning." It was named after Daniel S.
Dickinson, United States senator from the state of New York. The boundaries at present are practically those established by the act of creation and it is bounded on the north by Clay county, on the east by Geary and Morris, on the south by Marion and on the west by Saline and Ottawa counties. Its
area is 851 square miles.
Geography
The surface of the country is gently rolling prairie which breaks into bluffs along some of the streams. River valleys average 2 miles in width while the valleys of the creeks are only about a mile in width. This "bottom land" comprises about a quarter of the total area and the soil is rich and
deep growing somewhat thinner on the upland. Timber—mostly walnut, ash, elm, hackberry, burr oak, cottonwood, hickory, honey-locust, box-elder and sycamore—is found along the streams. The largest water course is the Smoky Hill river, which flows across the county from west to east, a little north of
the center. This stream, with its tributaries, the most important of which are Chapman's, Turkey and Vine creeks, waters all of the county. A few springs exist and good well water is found at a depth of 30 feet. The county is well adapted to agriculture, the principal crops being winter wheat, corn,
and other grains. Tame grasses and prairie hay are also important products and Dickinson ranks high as one of the great stock raising counties. There are more than 225,000 bearing fruit trees, about half of which are apple. An excellent quality of limestone is abundant; mineral paint and clay for
brick and pottery is found near Abilene; gypsum is plentiful in the southwest and is extensively utilized. Salt water is found at Solomon, in the western part of the county and in Hope township in the southwest. There are two mineral springs at Abilene supposed to have medical properties and the
water is bottled and shipped to some extent.
Neighboring Counties:
- North: Clay County
- Northeast: Geary County
- Southeast: Morris County
- South: Marion County
- Southwest: McPherson County
- West: Saline County
- Northwest: Ottawa County
Cities:
| - Abilene (County Seat) |
city |
Incorporated Area |
| - Banner |
township |
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| - Buckeye |
township |
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| - Center |
township |
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| - Chapman |
city |
Incorporated Area |
| - Cheever |
township |
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| - Enterprise |
city |
Incorporated Area |
| - Flora |
township |
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| - Fragrant Hill |
township |
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| - Grant |
township |
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| - Hayes |
township |
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| - Herington |
city |
Incorporated Area |
| - Holland |
township |
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| - Hope |
city |
Incorporated Area |
| - Jefferson |
township |
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| - Lyon |
township |
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| - Manchester |
city |
Incorporated Area |
| - Newbern |
township |
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| - Noble |
township |
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| - Ridge |
township |
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| - Rinehart |
township |
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| - Sherman |
township |
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| - Solomon |
city |
Incorporated Area |
| - Union |
township |
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| - Wheatland |
township |
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| - Willowdale |
township |
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| - Woodbine |
city |
Incorporated Area |
County Resources:
Dickinson County - KS-Cyclopedia - 1912
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County Resource Guide
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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."
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Penn Foster High School
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