Thomas County, Kansas

Thomas County (standard abbreviation: TH) is a county in the U.S. state of Kansas. In 2020 census, 7,930 people lived there.^[2] Its county seat is Colby.^[3]

Thomas County
County
Thomas County Courthouse in Colby (2014)
Location within the U.S. state of Kansas
Kansas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 39°21′N 101°03′W
Country	United States
State	Kansas
Founded	October 8, 1885
Named for	George Henry Thomas[1]
Seat	Colby
Largest city	Colby
Area
• Total	1,075 sq mi (2,780 km2)
• Land	1,075 sq mi (2,780 km2)
• Water	0.1 sq mi (0.3 km2)  0.01%
Population  (2020)[2]
• Total	7,930
• Density	7.4/sq mi (2.9/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	1st
Website	thomascountyks.com

History

19th century

Thomas County was created on October 8, 1885. It was named after George Henry Thomas, a Union General during the American Civil War, hero of the Battle of Chickamauga. The townships of the county were named after the soldiers that died at the Battle of Chickamauga.^[4]

Geography

The U.S. Census Bureau says that the county has a total area of 1,075 square miles (2,780 km²). Of that, 1,075 square miles (2,780 km²) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km²) (0.01%) is water.^[5]

Major highways

• Interstate 70
• U.S. Highway 24
• U.S. Highway 83
• Kansas Highway 25

People

Census	Pop.		%±
1880	161		—
1890	5,538		3,339.8%
1900	4,112		−25.7%
1910	5,455		32.7%
1920	5,517		1.1%
1930	7,334		32.9%
1940	6,425		−12.4%
1950	7,572		17.9%
1960	7,358		−2.8%
1970	7,501		1.9%
1980	8,451		12.7%
1990	8,258		−2.3%
2000	8,180		−0.9%
2010	7,900		−3.4%
2020	7,930		0.4%
U.S. Decennial Census[6] 1790-1960[7] 1900-1990[8] 1990-2000[9] 2010-2020[2]

Age pyramid

Government

Presidential elections

Thomas County is very Republican. The last time a democratic candidate has won Thomas County was in 1964 by Lyndon B. Johnson.

Presidential Elections Results

Presidential Elections Results^[10]

Year	Republican	Democratic	Third Parties
2020	82.2% 3,130	16.4% 625	1.4% 55
2016	81.3% 2,908	13.2% 473	5.5% 195
2012	80.3% 2,788	17.2% 598	2.5% 88
2008	77.2% 2,837	21.4% 787	1.3% 49
2004	77.7% 3,007	21.1% 816	1.2% 47
2000	74.7% 2,822	21.4% 807	4.0% 151
1996	69.8% 2,725	22.2% 866	8.1% 316
1992	47.1% 1,849	23.8% 932	29.1% 1,141
1988	60.5% 2,342	36.4% 1,408	3.1% 120
1984	76.7% 3,107	21.9% 887	1.4% 57
1980	66.4% 2,789	24.9% 1,045	8.8% 368
1976	53.9% 2,246	43.3% 1,802	2.8% 116
1972	67.7% 2,300	27.8% 943	4.5% 153
1968	59.8% 1,971	32.6% 1,074	7.6% 250
1964	45.6% 1,528	53.6% 1,793	0.8% 27
1960	61.5% 2,081	38.0% 1,285	0.5% 18
1956	62.1% 1,888	37.4% 1,138	0.5% 16
1952	69.5% 2,490	29.8% 1,069	0.7% 26
1948	49.4% 1,497	48.7% 1,476	1.9% 57
1944	59.1% 1,631	39.8% 1,097	1.1% 30
1940	54.2% 1,721	44.8% 1,423	1.0% 31
1936	35.4% 1,200	64.0% 2,168	0.6% 20
1932	33.7% 1,158	61.2% 2,103	5.2% 177
1928	66.0% 1,828	32.4% 899	1.6% 44
1924	52.5% 1,436	30.1% 822	17.4% 477
1920	54.6% 1,046	39.0% 747	6.5% 124
1916	31.2% 642	63.0% 1,299	5.8% 120
1912	14.2% 127	48.2% 432	37.7% 338
1908	45.0% 569	49.8% 630	5.2% 66
1904	57.0% 548	21.3% 205	21.7% 209
1900	42.0% 404	57.2% 551	0.8% 8
1896	38.0% 304	61.3% 490	0.8% 6
1892	41.3% 490		58.7% 697
1888	55.0% 751	35.6% 486	9.4% 128

Education

Unified school districts

• Brewster USD 314
• Colby USD 315
• Golden Plains USD 316

Communities

2005 KDOT Map of Thomas County from KDOT (map legend)

Cities

• Brewster
• Colby
• Gem
• Menlo
• Oakley (Part)
• Rexford