Cloud County, Kansas

**Cloud County** (county code **CD**) is a county in the U.S. state of Kansas. In 2020, 9,032 people lived there. Its county seat is Concordia. Concordia is also the biggest city in Cloud County.

### 19th century

In 1867, **Cloud County** was created.

Cloud county was originally named "Shirley" county. However, civic leaders feared that sounded too much like the name of a prostitute. They changed the name to "Cloud" county. They named it after Colonel William F. Cloud.

Cloud County was created from the existing Washington County, Kansas. This was in a joint convention with Republic and Cloud counties.  The county was legally organized on September 6, 1866. Elk Creek was chosen as the temporary county seat.

In 1887, Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway built a railroad from Neva (3 miles west of Strong City) to Superior, Nebraska.  This railroad connected Strong City, Neva, Rockland, Diamond Springs, Burdick, Lost Springs, Jacobs, Hope, Navarre, Enterprise, Abilene, Talmage, Manchester, Longford, Oak Hill, Miltonvale, Aurora, Huscher, Concordia, Kackley, Courtland, Webber, Superior.

## Geography

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

### Geographic features

The Republican River goes through the county. It enters from Republic County to the north. It exits to Clay County to the east. The Solomon River goes through the southwestern part of the county. It goes from Mitchell County to Ottawa County. Jamestown Lake is partially in the northwestern part of the county and partially in southwestern Republic county.

### Major highways

U.S. Route 81 goes through Cloud County. It goes through Concordia and connects north to Belleville, Kansas or south to Salina, Kansas.  The southern part of the county also has U.S. Route 24,. It connectd Clay Center, Kansas from the east and Beloit, Kansas to the west.

There are four other state highways in the county: K-9, K-28, K-189, and K-194.

### Presidential elections

|Year|Republican|Democratic|Third Parties|||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|style="text-align:center;"|**2020**|style="text-align:center;"|**76.0%** _3,242_|style="text-align:center;"|21.6% _920_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.4% _101_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2016**|style="text-align:center;"|**73.8%** _2,919_|style="text-align:center;"|19.2% _761_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|7.0% _275_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2012**|style="text-align:center;"|**72.8%** _2,954_|style="text-align:center;"|24.0% _974_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|3.2% _130_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2008**|style="text-align:center;"|**70.1%** _3,121_|style="text-align:center;"|27.7% _1,233_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.2% _97_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2004**|style="text-align:center;"|**71.5%** _3,221_|style="text-align:center;"|26.9% _1,210_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.6% _72_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**2000**|style="text-align:center;"|**64.8%** _2,918_|style="text-align:center;"|29.2% _1,314_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|6.0% _271_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1996**|style="text-align:center;"|**54.7%** _2,743_|style="text-align:center;"|32.2% _1,615_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|13.2% _660_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1992**|style="text-align:center;"|**39.1%** _2,131_|style="text-align:center;"|31.6% _1,720_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|29.3% _1,597_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1988**|style="text-align:center;"|**59.3%** _3,043_|style="text-align:center;"|39.4% _2,022_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.2% _63_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1984**|style="text-align:center;"|**66.4%** _3,860_|style="text-align:center;"|32.4% _1,880_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.2% _71_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1980**|style="text-align:center;"|**61.6%** _3,581_|style="text-align:center;"|30.8% _1,793_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|7.6% _443_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1976**|style="text-align:center;"|48.7% _2,954_|style="text-align:center;"|**49.1%** _2,976_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.2% _131_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1972**|style="text-align:center;"|**66.4%** _3,832_|style="text-align:center;"|31.3% _1,806_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.3% _135_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1968**|style="text-align:center;"|**56.2%** _3,282_|style="text-align:center;"|36.5% _2,132_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|7.3% _429_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1964**|style="text-align:center;"|44.4% _2,680_|style="text-align:center;"|**54.8%** _3,314_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.8% _49_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1960**|style="text-align:center;"|**60.6%** _4,045_|style="text-align:center;"|39.0% _2,607_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.4% _25_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1956**|style="text-align:center;"|**68.6%** _4,466_|style="text-align:center;"|30.9% _2,008_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.5% _35_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1952**|style="text-align:center;"|**75.2%** _5,580_|style="text-align:center;"|24.2% _1,793_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.6% _44_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1948**|style="text-align:center;"|**56.2%** _4,018_|style="text-align:center;"|40.4% _2,891_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|3.4% _246_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1944**|style="text-align:center;"|**63.7%** _4,377_|style="text-align:center;"|34.8% _2,391_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.6% _107_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1940**|style="text-align:center;"|**60.4%** _5,275_|style="text-align:center;"|38.1% _3,327_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.4% _126_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1936**|style="text-align:center;"|47.9% _4,208_|style="text-align:center;"|**51.8%** _4,546_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.4% _31_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1932**|style="text-align:center;"|39.9% _3,120_|style="text-align:center;"|**57.1%** _4,457_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|3.0% _235_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1928**|style="text-align:center;"|**68.3%** _5,286_|style="text-align:center;"|30.7% _2,376_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.1% _83_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1924**|style="text-align:center;"|**62.6%** _4,342_|style="text-align:center;"|17.8% _1,238_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|19.6% _1,359_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1920**|style="text-align:center;"|**69.8%** _4,090_|style="text-align:center;"|26.2% _1,534_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|4.0% _234_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1916**|style="text-align:center;"|39.9% _2,870_|style="text-align:center;"|**53.4%** _3,837_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|6.7% _483_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1912**|style="text-align:center;"|21.8% _899_|style="text-align:center;"|**40.2%** _1,658_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|38.0% _1,569_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1908**|style="text-align:center;"|**52.2%** _2,170_|style="text-align:center;"|40.0% _1,663_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|7.7% _321_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1904**|style="text-align:center;"|**67.6%** _2,470_|style="text-align:center;"|17.1% _626_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|15.3% _560_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1900**|style="text-align:center;"|**51.9%** _2,315_|style="text-align:center;"|45.8% _2,045_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.3% _103_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1896**|style="text-align:center;"|44.1% _1,718_|style="text-align:center;"|**54.7%** _2,129_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.2% _46_|
|style="text-align:center;"|**1892**|style="text-align:center;"|45.0% _1,915_||style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|**55.0%** _2,342_||
|style="text-align:center;"|**1888**|style="text-align:center;"|**59.6%** _2,542_|style="text-align:center;"|24.6% _1,052_|style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|15.8% _675_|

### Unified school districts

- Concordia USD 333
    - Concordia Junior-Senior High School
    - Concordia Middle School
- Southern Cloud County USD 334
- Clifton-Clyde USD 224

### Colleges and Universities

- Cloud County Community College
- Historic
- Miltonvale Wesleyan College _(closed 1972)_
- Concordia Normal School _(closed 1876)_
- _Concordia Business College (closed sometime after 1930)_

### Cities

- Aurora
- Clyde
- Concordia
- Glasco
- Jamestown
- Miltonvale
- Simpson (partly in Mitchell County)

## Popular culture

Cloud County has also been listed as one of the places for Smallville in the Superman story line.

## More reading

- _Standard Atlas of Cloud County, Kansas_; Geo. A. Ogle & Co; 89 pages; 1917.
- _Standard Atlas of Cloud County, Kansas_; Geo. A. Ogle & Co; 56 pages; 1901.
- _Edward's Atlas of Cloud County, Kansas_; John P. Edwards; 43 pages; 1985.

## Other websites

- County
- Cloud County - Directory of Public Officials
- Maps
- Cloud 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**: Cloud County
- **state**: Kansas
- **type**: County (United States), County
- **ex image**: Cloud_County_Court_House.JPG
- **ex image cap**: Cloud County Courthouse in Concordia, Kansas, Concordia (2013)
- **founded**: March 27, 1867
- **named for**: William F. Cloud
- **seat wl**: Concordia
- **largest city wl**: Concordia
- **area total sq mi**: 718
- **area land sq mi**: 715
- **area water sq mi**: 2.6
- **area percentage**: 0.4%
- **population as of**: 2020
- **population total**: 9032
- **population density sq mi**: 12.6
- **area codes**: Area code 785, 785
- **district**: 1st
- **time zone**: Central