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Kansas Counties

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Kansas Counties

Kansas has 105 counties, the sixth-highest total of any state. No Kansas county has two words in its name. Wyandotte County and the city of Kansas City operate as a unified government, and Greeley County and the city of Tribune are in the process of converting to a similar system.

Lane County, Kansas

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

County Seat: Dighton
Year Organized: 1886
Square Miles: 717

Court House:

144 S. Lane, PO Box 788
County Courthouse
Dighton, KS 67839-0788

Etymology - Origin of County Name

In honor of Senator James H. Lane, of Kansas.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

Lane County, in the western part of the state, is the fourth east from Colorado, and the fourth north from Oklahoma. It is bounded on the north by Gove county; on the east by Ness; on the south by Finney, and on the west by Scott. It was created by the legislature in 1873 and named for Senator James H. Lane. The boundaries fixed at that time were as follows: "Commencing where the 3d standard parallel intersects the east line of range 27 west; thence south along range line to its intersection with the north line of township 20 south; thence west along township line to where it intersects the east line of range 31 west; thence north along range line to its intersection with the 3d standard parallel; thence east to the place of beginning."

The first change in the boundaries was made in 1879, when the county was enlarged by township 15 in ranges 26 to 30. In 1881 it was diminished on the north by one tier of townships and increased on the south by a strip taken from Buffalo county. In 1883 townships 21 of ranges 27 to 30 were detached, the first two being given to Hodgeman and the last two attached to Finney.

In Feb., 1886, in response to a petition from the residents of Lane county for organization Gov. Martin appointed G. T. Sutton census taker. His report, made on June 3, showed that there were 2,726 inhabitants, of whom 924 were householders, and $739,843 worth of taxable property, exclusive of railroad property, of which $462,955 was real estate. Dighton was the choice of the majority of the voters for temporary county seat. The governor's proclamation, made the same day that this report was returned, declared Dighton the temporary county seat

Geography

The general surface of Lane county is rolling prairie. Bottom lands average one-half mile in width and comprise about 8 per cent. of the area. A few small streams, flowing north and east, have their sources within the county. There is a little native timber, and some artificial plantings. White limestone is found in the bluffs, and gypsum is plentiful.

Neighboring Counties:

Gove County (north)
Ness County (east)
Finney County (south)
Scott County (west)

Cities and Towns:

- Alamota	township
- Cheyenne	township
- Dighton (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- White Rock	township

County Resources:

Lane County - KS-Cyclopedia - 1912

County Resources

The history of our nation was a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names given the counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of this 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."