Decatur County, Kansas

**Decatur County** (county code **DC**) is a county in Northwest Kansas. In 2020, 2,764 people lived there. Its county seat is Oberlin. Oberlin is also the biggest city in Decatur County. The county is named after Commodore Stephen Decatur, Jr.

## History

**Decatur County** was created on March 20, 1873 and organized on December 15, 1879. It is named after the Navy war hero Commodore Stephen Decatur, Jr.. He served during the First Barbary War and the Second Barbary War and the War of 1812.

Oberlin was where the last Native American (specifically the Northern Cheyenne) Raid in Kansas happened.

## Geography

The U.S. Census Bureau says that the county has a total area of . Of that,  is land and  (0.07%) is water.

## Government

Decatur county is very Republican. The last time a democratic candidate won the county was in 1936 by Franklin D. Roosevelt.

### Presidential elections

|Year|Republican|Democratic|Third Parties|||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|style="text-align:center;"|**2020**|style="text-align:center;"|**84.1%** _1,260_|style="text-align:center;"|14.6% _218_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.3% _20_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2016**|style="text-align:center;"|**83.0%** _1,210_|style="text-align:center;"|12.2% _178_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|4.7% _69_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2012**|style="text-align:center;"|**79.5%** _1,218_|style="text-align:center;"|17.4% _266_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|3.1% _48_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2008**|style="text-align:center;"|**76.8%** _1,189_|style="text-align:center;"|22.2% _343_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.0% _16_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2004**|style="text-align:center;"|**77.9%** _1,355_|style="text-align:center;"|20.4% _355_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.7% _30_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2000**|style="text-align:center;"|**71.4%** _1,255_|style="text-align:center;"|24.1% _424_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|4.6% _80_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1996**|style="text-align:center;"|**68.1%** _1,255_|style="text-align:center;"|22.6% _417_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|9.3% _172_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1992**|style="text-align:center;"|**45.0%** _940_|style="text-align:center;"|27.6% _576_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|27.4% _573_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1988**|style="text-align:center;"|**60.1%** _1,291_|style="text-align:center;"|36.9% _793_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|3.0% _64_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1984**|style="text-align:center;"|**78.2%** _1,770_|style="text-align:center;"|20.6% _467_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.2% _28_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1980**|style="text-align:center;"|**73.0%** _1,642_|style="text-align:center;"|19.7% _443_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|7.3% _165_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1976**|style="text-align:center;"|**52.7%** _1,232_|style="text-align:center;"|43.3% _1,011_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|4.0% _93_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1972**|style="text-align:center;"|**70.2%** _1,707_|style="text-align:center;"|25.3% _616_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|4.4% _108_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1968**|style="text-align:center;"|**65.7%** _1,654_|style="text-align:center;"|25.9% _652_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|8.4% _210_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1964**|style="text-align:center;"|**51.0%** _1,382_|style="text-align:center;"|48.5% _1,314_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.6% _16_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1960**|style="text-align:center;"|**63.8%** _1,846_|style="text-align:center;"|35.9% _1,038_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.3% _8_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1956**|style="text-align:center;"|**68.6%** _2,028_|style="text-align:center;"|31.1% _920_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.3% _9_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1952**|style="text-align:center;"|**74.5%** _2,451_|style="text-align:center;"|25.0% _821_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.5% _16_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1948**|style="text-align:center;"|**51.4%** _1,545_|style="text-align:center;"|46.7% _1,402_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.9% _58_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1944**|style="text-align:center;"|**59.9%** _1,758_|style="text-align:center;"|39.5% _1,159_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.6% _17_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1940**|style="text-align:center;"|**56.2%** _2,018_|style="text-align:center;"|43.0% _1,546_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.8% _29_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1936**|style="text-align:center;"|42.1% _1,727_|style="text-align:center;"|**57.6%** _2,362_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.4% _15_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1932**|style="text-align:center;"|36.3% _1,439_|style="text-align:center;"|**61.0%** _2,422_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.7% _108_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1928**|style="text-align:center;"|**66.5%** _2,314_|style="text-align:center;"|32.5% _1,129_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.0% _35_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1924**|style="text-align:center;"|**46.9%** _1,621_|style="text-align:center;"|35.2% _1,218_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|17.9% _618_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1920**|style="text-align:center;"|**51.6%** _1,448_|style="text-align:center;"|43.5% _1,221_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|5.0% _140_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1916**|style="text-align:center;"|27.7% _1,007_|style="text-align:center;"|**67.0%** _2,431_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|5.3% _193_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1912**|style="text-align:center;"|14.9% _256_|style="text-align:center;"|**55.5%** _955_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|29.6% _509_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1908**|style="text-align:center;"|39.3% _898_|style="text-align:center;"|**54.8%** _1,250_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|5.9% _135_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1904**|style="text-align:center;"|**59.7%** _1,215_|style="text-align:center;"|20.2% _411_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|20.1% _409_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1900**|style="text-align:center;"|41.8% _848_|style="text-align:center;"|**57.0%** _1,158_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.2% _24_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1896**|style="text-align:center;"|36.4% _594_|style="text-align:center;"|**63.2%** _1,032_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.4% _7_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1892**|style="text-align:center;"|38.6% _619_||style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|**61.4%** _985_||
|style="text-align:center;"|**1888**|style="text-align:center;"|**57.4%** _1,224_|style="text-align:center;"|34.3% _731_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|8.3% _177_|

### Unified school districts

- Oberlin USD 294
- Prairie Heights USD 295, dissolved as of July 1, 2006; absorbed by USD 294.

### Cities

- Clayton
- Dresden
- Jennings
- Norcatur
- Oberlin

## More reading

- _Handbook of Decatur County, Kansas_; C.S. Burch Publishing Co; 25 pages; 1885.
- _Standard Atlas of Decatur County, Kansas_; Geo. A. Ogle & Co; 80 pages; 1921.
- _Standard Atlas of Decatur County, Kansas_; Geo. A. Ogle & Co; 69 pages; 1905.

## Other websites

- County
- Decatur County - Directory of Public Officials
- Maps
- Decatur 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**: Decatur County
- **state**: Kansas
- **type**: County (United States), County
- **ex image**: Bank of Oberlin from SE 1.JPG
- **ex image cap**: Bank of Oberlin (2014)
- **founded**: March 20, 1873
- **named for**: Stephen Decatur, Jr.
- **seat wl**: Oberlin
- **largest city wl**: Oberlin
- **area total sq mi**: 894
- **area land sq mi**: 894
- **area water sq mi**: 0.6
- **area percentage**: 0.07%
- **population as of**: 2020
- **population total**: 2764
- **population density sq mi**: 3.1
- **area codes**: Area code 785, 785
- **district**: 1st
- **time zone**: Central