Colby, Kansas

**Colby** is a city in Thomas County, Kansas, United States. It is also the county seat of Thomas County. In 2020, 5,570 people lived there.

## History

Interstate 70 reached Colby in 1965. This created growth for a local hospitality industry.

## Geography

Colby is at  (39.392093, -101.047532). It has an elevation of 3,159 feet (963 m). It is on the south side of Prairie Dog Creek. Prairie Dog Creek is a tributary of the Republican River. It is in the High Plains region of the Great Plains. A small tributary of the creek flows northeast through the town. It is at the interchange of Interstate 70 and K-25 in northwestern Kansas. Colby is  east-southeast of Denver,  northwest of Wichita, and  west of Kansas City.

The United States Census Bureau says that the city has a total area of . It is all land.

### Climate

The hottest temperature recorded in Colby was 113 °F (45 °C) in 2012. The coldest temperature recorded was -32 °F (-36 °C) in 1989.

### 2020 census

In 2020, there were 5,570 people, 2,199 households, and 1,331 families living in Colby. Of the households, 64.2% owned their home and 35.8% rented their home.

The median age was 34.6 years. Of the people, 88.7% were White, 1.8% were Black, 0.8% were Native American, 0.6% were Asian, 2.4% were from some other race, and 5.7% were two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.1% of the people.

### 2010 census

In 2010, there were 5,387 people, 2,211 households, and 1,320 families living in Colby.

## Government

Colby has a mayor-council form of government. The mayor rules over the city council. The mayor has final approval over rules the council passes. The mayor shares responsibility for creating policy and approving the city budget with the council. With the council's consent, the mayor chooses all members of the city boards and. The city council has eight members elected by ward every four years. The city manager is hired by the council. The city manager is responsible for preparing the budget, administering day-to-day operations, and managing city government people.

### Colleges and universities

- Colby Community College

### Primary and secondary education

Colby Public Schools (Unified School District 315) has four public schools in the city:
- Colby Grade School (Grades Pre-K -5).
- Colby Middle School (6-8).
- Colby High School (9-12).
- Thomas County Academy (5-9), charter school.

There are also two private schools in Colby:
- Sacred Heart Catholic School (Pre-K-5).
- Heartland Christian School (K-12).

## Transportation

Interstate 70 runs east–west south of Colby. U.S. Route 24 runs east–west through the city. It intersects K-25, which runs north–south.

Colby Municipal Airport is n K-25. It is about 2 miles (3 km) north of the city.

## Media

The _Colby Free Press_ is Colby's local newspaper. It publishes four days per week. In addition, Colby Community College publishes a bi-weekly student newspaper, the _Trojan Express_.

Colby is a center of broadcast media for northwestern Kansas. One AM and four FM stations are licensed to the city. Colby is in the Wichita-Hutchinson television market.

## Other websites

- City
- City of Colby
- Colby Chamber of Commerce
- Pioneer Memorial Library
- Schools
- USD 315, local school district
- Maps
- Colby City Map , KDOT

## Infobox (settlement)

- **name**: Colby, Kansas
- **settlement type**: City and County seat
- **image skyline**: Thomas County Courthouse Colby Kansas 5-7-2014.jpg
- **image caption**: Thomas County Courthouse (2014)
- **image map**: Thomas_County_Kansas_Incorporated_and_Unincorporated_areas_Colby_Highlighted.svg
- **map caption**: Location within Thomas County, Kansas, Thomas County and Kansas
- **image map1**: Map of Thomas Co, Ks, USA.png
- **map caption1**: Kansas Department of Transportation, KDOT map of Thomas County, Kansas, Thomas County (:File:Kansas official transportation map legend.png, legend)
- **subdivision type**: Country
- **subdivision name**: United States
- **subdivision type1**: U.S. state, State
- **subdivision name1**: Kansas
- **subdivision type2**: List of counties in Kansas, County
- **subdivision name2**: Thomas County, Kansas, Thomas
- **subdivision type3**: List of townships in Kansas, Township
- **established title**: Founded
- **established date**: 1885
- **established title1**: Platted
- **established title2**: Municipal corporation, Incorporated
- **established date2**: 1886
- **named for**: J.R. Colby
- **leader title**: Mayor
- **area total sq mi**: 3.58
- **area land sq mi**: 3.58
- **area water sq mi**: 0.00
- **area total km2**: 9.27
- **area land km2**: 9.27
- **area water km2**: 0.00
- **unit pref**: Imperial
- **elevation ft**: 3166
- **population as of**: 2020 United States census, 2020
- **population total**: 5570
- **population density sq mi**: auto
- **population density km2**: auto
- **timezone**: Central Time Zone, CST
- **utc offset**: -6
- **timezone dst**: CDT
- **utc offset dst**: -5
- **postal code type**: ZIP code
- **postal code**: 67701
- **area code type**: North American Numbering Plan, Area code
- **area code**: Area code 785, 785
- **blank name**: Federal Information Processing Standard, FIPS code
- **blank info**: 20-14650
- **blank1 name**: Geographic Names Information System, GNIS ID
- **blank1 info**: 485557