De Soto, Kansas

De Soto  is a city in Johnson and Leavenworth counties in the U.S. state of Kansas. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Most of the city, , is in Johnson County. In 2020, 6,118 people lived there.

History
De Soto was platted in spring 1857. It was named after sixteenth-century Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto.

Geography
De Soto is in northwestern Johnson County and southern Leavenworth County at  (38.9791709, -94.9685783). It is along Kansas River. The United States Census Bureau says that the city has a total area of . Of that,  are land and , or 1.7%, are water.

People

2020 census
The 2020 census says that there were 6,118 people, 2,295 households, and 1,635 families living in De Soto. Of the households, 67.0% owned their home and 33.0% rented their home.

The median age was 39.4 years. Of the people, 79.9% were White, 1.0% were Native American, 0.9% were Black, 0.7% were Asian, 7.2% were from some other race, and 10.4% were two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 16.9% of the people.

2010 census
The 2010 census says that there were 5,720 people, 2,007 households, and 1,523 families living in De Soto.

Economy
Two local companies, Great American Bank and Custom Foods, Inc., and one national company, Goodcents Deli Fresh Subs, are headquartered in De Soto. Huhtamaki Americas, Inc. and Engineered Air, two international companies, chose De Soto for their North American headquarters. Merck Animal Health, one of the world's biggest manufacturers of animal health supplies, chose De Soto for one of its U.S. manufacturing facilities.
Biggest employers
as of January 2017, the largest employers in the city are:
 # Employer # of Employees 1De Soto USD #2321,6552Huhtamaki6403Engineered Air2704Merck Animal Health1805Rehrig Pacific1106Custom Foods Inc1087Goodcent's Deli Fresh Subs Headquarters958Hillside Village 869Harps Food Stores31

Government
The De Soto government is made of a mayor and five council members. It has a president that is chosen by the council.

Mayor
 Rick Walker (term expires 2025)
City Council President
 Rob Daniels (term expires 2025)
City Council

 Kevin Honomichl (term expires 2025)
 Danny Lane (term expires 2027)
 Victoria McMahan (term expires 2027)
 Rhonda Patterson (term expires 2027)

Education
The city of De Soto is served by the De Soto school district. 
 De Soto School District

Other local education institutions near De Soto include:
 University of Kansas
 Ottawa University adult campus
 University of Kansas-Edwards Campus
 Johnson County Community College
 Baker University Overland Park Campus
 Emporia State University - Overland Park Campus (Metro Learning Center)

Library
The Johnson County Library System maintains the De Soto Downtown Library.

Media

Newspapers
The De Soto Explorer was started in 1998, and it was De Soto's main news source for 14 years. It closed in 2012. In the fall of 2015, Discovering De Soto magazine released its first preview edition.Discovering Desoto online magazine. In 2017, the De Soto City Council funded issues of Discovering De Soto. This was done in order to distribute the magazine by mail and around local businesses. In 2018, the De Soto City Council funded issues of Discovering De Soto for the year.

The Kansas City Star and the Lawrence Journal-World both cover and deliver to De Soto.

Television
All Kansas City stations broadcast in De Soto.

Radio
All Topeka and Kansas City stations broadcast in De Soto.

Transportation
Road
Several highways go to De Soto:

  runs through most portions of southern De Soto. Two exits have a direct connection to De Soto.
 Exit – Edgerton Road
Exit – Lexington Avenue, formerly  (Decommissioned in 1999)
 Exit – Kill Creek Road
  runs about  north of De Soto. Two junctions have a direct connection to De Soto.
 Junction – 189th Street (Leavenworth County)
 Junction – 158th Street (Leavenworth County)
 S. Wyandotte Road / 158th Street (Leavenworth County)
(Leavenworth County)
(Leavenworth County)
(Leavenworth County)

Rail
In 1857, the Atchison, Topeka, Santa Fe Railway built a railroad through northern parts of town. It was built parallel to the river. De Soto's train depot was built along a siding around 1860.

Famous people
Notable people who were born in and/or have lived in De Soto include:
 Stanley Adams (1922-1999), U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel, Medal of Honor Recipient
 John Anderson, Jr. (1917-2014), 36th Governor of Kansas
 Howard Gloyd (1902-1978), herpetologist
 Greyson Jenista (1996), Atlanta Braves minor league, right fielder
 Frank Lee (1873-1952), U.S. Representative from Missouri
 John Outland (1871-1941), American Football Player and Coach
 Kenneth Spencer (1902-1960)

References

Other websites

 City of De Soto official website
 De Soto - Directory of Public Officials
 De Soto Chamber of Commerce
 De Soto City Map , KDOT

 , from Hatteberg's People on KAKE TV news

Category:Cities in Johnson County, Kansas
Category:1857 establishments in Kansas Territory
Category:Cities in Leavenworth County, Kansas