Norton County, Kansas

**Norton County** (standard abbreviation: **NT**) is a county in the U.S. state of Kansas. In 2020, 5,459 people lived there. The county seat is Norton. Norton is also the biggest city in Norton County. The county was created in 1867. It was named after Orloff Norton, captain of Company L, 15th Kansas Militia Infantry Regiment.

### 19th century

** Norton County** was created by Noah H. Billings, Thomas Beaumont, Henry Gordon, P. Hansen, and George Cole on August 22, 1872. In 1878 Norton became the county seat. The county got its name for Civil War soldier Orloff Norton, who was killed at Cane Hill, Arkansas in 1864.

The first county fair, although not official, was held in Leota in October, 1878. After 1900 the fair was held every year in Elmwood Park in Norton. The first school district was created in Norton in 1872. School was held in a dugout beginning December 1, 1873.https://nortoncounty.org/about/

## Geography

The U.S. Census Bureau says that the county has a total area of . Of that,  is land and  (0.4%) is water.

### County

Noah H. Billings was an early county settler, county superintendent of schools, county attorney, and state representative. Keith Sebelius was a U.S. congressman from 1969 to 1981.

### Presidential elections

|Year|Republican|Democratic|Third Parties|||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|style="text-align:center;"|**2020**|style="text-align:center;"|**83.1%** _2,007_|style="text-align:center;"|15.1% _364_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.8% _44_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2016**|style="text-align:center;"|**82.4%** _1,840_|style="text-align:center;"|12.6% _281_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|5.1% _113_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2012**|style="text-align:center;"|**80.8%** _1,878_|style="text-align:center;"|17.1% _398_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.1% _49_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2008**|style="text-align:center;"|**77.8%** _1,878_|style="text-align:center;"|20.6% _497_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.7% _40_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2004**|style="text-align:center;"|**80.5%** _2,092_|style="text-align:center;"|18.2% _473_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.3% _34_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2000**|style="text-align:center;"|**71.2%** _1,744_|style="text-align:center;"|24.4% _598_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|4.5% _109_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1996**|style="text-align:center;"|**66.4%** _1,814_|style="text-align:center;"|23.4% _640_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|10.1% _277_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1992**|style="text-align:center;"|**47.9%** _1,469_|style="text-align:center;"|25.4% _779_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|26.7% _820_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1988**|style="text-align:center;"|**67.5%** _1,923_|style="text-align:center;"|30.0% _855_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.4% _69_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1984**|style="text-align:center;"|**79.2%** _2,515_|style="text-align:center;"|19.2% _611_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.6% _50_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1980**|style="text-align:center;"|**75.5%** _2,625_|style="text-align:center;"|19.2% _666_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|5.4% _186_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1976**|style="text-align:center;"|**60.6%** _2,201_|style="text-align:center;"|36.8% _1,337_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.7% _97_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1972**|style="text-align:center;"|**75.8%** _2,688_|style="text-align:center;"|21.9% _776_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.3% _82_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1968**|style="text-align:center;"|**70.9%** _2,543_|style="text-align:center;"|23.5% _841_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|5.6% _202_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1964**|style="text-align:center;"|**60.1%** _2,245_|style="text-align:center;"|38.8% _1,449_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.1% _42_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1960**|style="text-align:center;"|**68.0%** _2,781_|style="text-align:center;"|31.8% _1,300_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.2% _8_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1956**|style="text-align:center;"|**71.6%** _3,052_|style="text-align:center;"|28.0% _1,194_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.4% _18_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1952**|style="text-align:center;"|**76.2%** _3,530_|style="text-align:center;"|22.6% _1,047_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.2% _54_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1948**|style="text-align:center;"|**61.0%** _2,461_|style="text-align:center;"|35.0% _1,414_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|4.0% _161_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1944**|style="text-align:center;"|**70.9%** _2,890_|style="text-align:center;"|28.4% _1,159_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.7% _29_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1940**|style="text-align:center;"|**70.3%** _3,415_|style="text-align:center;"|28.4% _1,378_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.4% _66_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1936**|style="text-align:center;"|**54.8%** _2,829_|style="text-align:center;"|44.7% _2,307_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.5% _24_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1932**|style="text-align:center;"|44.2% _2,272_|style="text-align:center;"|**52.6%** _2,705_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|3.3% _168_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1928**|style="text-align:center;"|**74.0%** _3,365_|style="text-align:center;"|23.9% _1,087_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.1% _96_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1924**|style="text-align:center;"|**59.3%** _2,778_|style="text-align:center;"|26.9% _1,261_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|13.7% _643_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1920**|style="text-align:center;"|**65.2%** _2,288_|style="text-align:center;"|30.9% _1,082_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|3.9% _137_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1916**|style="text-align:center;"|34.3% _1,616_|style="text-align:center;"|**61.0%** _2,876_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|4.7% _222_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1912**|style="text-align:center;"|24.0% _598_|style="text-align:center;"|**43.3%** _1,081_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|32.7% _815_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1908**|style="text-align:center;"|**49.8%** _1,448_|style="text-align:center;"|46.0% _1,337_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|4.3% _125_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1904**|style="text-align:center;"|**67.2%** _1,570_|style="text-align:center;"|17.8% _417_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|15.0% _350_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1900**|style="text-align:center;"|**51.7%** _1,329_|style="text-align:center;"|47.1% _1,212_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.2% _31_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1896**|style="text-align:center;"|42.1% _941_|style="text-align:center;"|**56.3%** _1,260_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.6% _36_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1892**|style="text-align:center;"|48.3% _1,054_||style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|**51.7%** _1,130_||
|style="text-align:center;"|**1888**|style="text-align:center;"|**56.6%** _1,471_|style="text-align:center;"|24.3% _631_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|19.1% _497_|

Norton County is very Republican. The last Democrat to reach forty percent of the county’s vote was Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936. Roosevelt in 1932 was the last Democrat to win Norton County. The only other Democrats to win are Woodrow Wilson (twice) and William Jennings Bryan in his first 1896 campaign.

### Unified school districts

- Norton Community USD 211
    - western two-thirds of county to borders with Decatur and Graham counties and Nebraska
- Northern Valley USD 212
    - northeastern portion of county, all east of US 283 and north of US 36; extends into northwestern Phillips County
- West Solomon USD 213 (elementary school only; students in grades 6-12 attend schools in Norton)

### Cities

- Almena
- Clayton
- Edmond
- Lenora
- Norton

## References

- Notes

## More reading

- _Handbook of Norton County, Kansas_; C.S. Burch Publishing Co; 16 pages; 1880s.
- _Standard Atlas of Norton County, Kansas_; Geo. A. Ogle & Co; 71 pages; 1917.

## Other websites

- County
- Norton County - Directory of Public Officials
- Maps
- Norton County Maps: Current, Historic , KDOT
- Kansas Highway Maps: Current , Historic , KDOT
- Kansas Railroad Maps: Current , 1996, 1915, KDOT and Kansas Historical Society

## Infobox (u.s. county)

- **county**: Norton County
- **state**: Kansas
- **type**: County (United States), County
- **ex image**: Norton Co KS Courthouse.JPG
- **ex image cap**: Norton County Courthouse in Norton, Kansas, Norton (built 1929)
- **founded**: February 26, 1867
- **named for**: Orloff Norton
- **seat wl**: Norton
- **largest city wl**: Norton
- **area total sq mi**: 881
- **area land sq mi**: 878
- **area water sq mi**: 3.2
- **area percentage**: 0.4%
- **population as of**: 2020
- **population total**: 5459
- **population density sq mi**: 6.2
- **area codes**: Area code 785, 785
- **district**: 1st
- **time zone**: Central