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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.

Rawlins County, Kansas

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

County Seat: Atwood
Year Organized: 1881
Square Miles: 1069

Court House:

607 Main Street
County Courthouse
Atwood, KS 67730-1839

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Named in memory of Gen. John A. Rawlins, who was a staff officer of General Grant, and went into his cabinet, when elected President, as Secretary of War.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Rawlins County, one of the northern tier, is the 2d county east from the Colorado line. It is bounded on the north by the State of Nebraska; on the east by Decatur county; on the south by Thomas, and on the west by Cheyenne. This was one of the counties created by the legislature of 1873, and it was named in honor of Gen. John A. Rawlins, the United States secretary of war. The boundaries were defined as follows: "Commencing where the east line of range 31 west crosses the 40th degree of north latitude; thence south with range line to the 1st standard parallel; thence west with said parallel to the east line of range 37 west; thence north with said range line to the 40th degree of north latitude; thence east to the place of beginning."

County organization took place in May, 1881. Gov. St. John, in his proclamation, made Atwood the temporary county seat

General John A. Rawlins also served as Secretary of War in the Grant administration

Geography

The general surface is an undulating prairie, with a few bluffs. Bottom lands average a mile in width. The streams are lined with thin belts of native timber. Two branches of Beaver creek enter the county in the southwest, flow northeast to the center where they join, forming one stream which continues northeast into Decatur county. The north and south forks of Sappa creek flow across the southeastern part; Timber and Burntwood creeks are in the northwest, and Driftwood in the northeast. Limestone, coal and sandstone are found in limited quantities. Springs are frequent in the valleys

Neighboring Counties:

Hitchcock County, Nebraska (north)
Red Willow County, Nebraska (northeast)
Decatur County (east)
Thomas County (south)
Sherman County (southwest)
Cheyenne County (west)
Dundy County, Nebraska (northwest)

Cities and Towns:

- Achilles	township
- Atwood (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Center	township
- Driftwood	township
- Herl	township
- Herndon	city	Incorporated Area
- Jefferson	township
- Ludell	township
- McDonald	city	Incorporated Area
- Mirage	township
- Rocewood	township
- Union	township

County Resources:

Rawlins County - KS-Cyclopedia - 1912

Online High Schools

County Resource Guide

Counties: US Map

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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