Baldwin City, Kansas
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| Baldwin City, Kansas | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | Kansas |
| County | Douglas |
| Area | |
| - Total | 2.2 sq mi (5.6 km²) |
| - Land | 2.2 sq mi (5.6 km²) |
| - Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km²) |
| Elevation | 1,037 ft (316 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 3,400 |
| - Density | 1,565.1/sq mi (604.3/km²) |
| Time zone | Central (CST) (UTC-6) |
| - Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP code | 66006 |
| Area code(s) | 785 |
| FIPS code | 20-03900[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0479524[2] |
Baldwin City is a city in Douglas County, Kansas, United States about 12 miles south of Lawrence and 15 miles west of Gardner. It is part of the Lawrence, Kansas Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 3,400 at the 2000 census. The city is home to Baker University, the oldest four-year university in the state. It is the only town with its name in the United States.
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[edit] History
[edit] Early History
Baldwin City originally began as a trail stop on the Santa Fe Trail named Palmyra. The small town consisted of a harness shop, blacksmith, hotel, lawyer, drug store, post office, two doctors and a tavern. In 1858, a group of Methodist ministers gathered at Kibbee Cabin and founded Baker University. The town of Palmyra bought land to the south for the university and surrounding city. A main benefactor was John Baldwin and the town was named in his honor. Baldwin built a saw mill which was located at present-day Fifth and Indiana Streets.
Baldwin City unwittingly found themselves surrounded by the events that led up to the Civil War. Three miles east of Baldwin was the town site of Black Jack where the Battle of Black Jack took place on June 2, 1856. The night before John Brown stayed in Prairie City and Quantrill's raiders passed within three miles of Baldwin after the burning of Lawrence in 1863.
[edit] Midland Railway
In 1867, the Leavenworth, Lawrence and Fort Gibson railroad laid tracks and became the first Kansas railroad south of the Kansas River. In 1906, the Santa Fe Depot was built and today the Midland Railway offers excursion rides to Ottawa via "Nowhere" and Norwood. Midland's Scout program is one of the few in the country to offer a railroading merit badge and Midland has hosted a Thomas the Tank Engine attraction the last few years.
[edit] Maple Leaf Festival
Every year since 1957, Baldwin City has hosted the Maple Leaf Festival during the third full weekend in October. It began as a way to celebrate a successful harvest and to view the fall foliage. Today, it is the largest fall family event in the area and features a parade, arts and crafts, quilt show, theatrical performances, history tours, train rides and live music.
[edit] Education
Baldwin City is home to Baker University, a liberal arts university founded by United Methodist ministers and is the oldest four-year university in Kansas.
The USD 348 public school district is also in Baldwin City and services most of southern Douglas County and has four elementary schools; two in Baldwin (K-3, Baldwin Elementary and 4-5 Baldwin Intermediate ) one located in Vinland and one near Worden called Marion Springs, a junior high and high school in Baldwin.
Baldwin High School is home to the Bulldogs.
[edit] Geography
Baldwin City is located at (38.777597, -95.187418)[3].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.2 square miles (5.6 km²), all of it land.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 3,400 people, 1,077 households, and 774 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,565.1 people per square mile (605.0/km²). There were 1,165 housing units at an average density of 536.3/sq mi (207.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.62% White, 1.12% African American, 0.74% Native American, 0.62% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.38% from other races, and 3.47% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.62% of the population.
There were 1,077 households out of which 39.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.8% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.1% were non-families. 24.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.10.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 21.8% from 18 to 24, 24.2% from 25 to 44, 17.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 97.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $43,269, and the median income for a family was $51,667. Males had a median income of $37,111 versus $25,850 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,698. About 5.6% of families and 7.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.0% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] References
- ^ a b American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
[edit] Further reading
- A Self-Guided Tour of Baldwin City's Historic Sites on the Santa Fe Trail by Loren K. Litteer
- The Leavenworth, Lawrence & Ft. Gibson Railroad by Loren K. Litteer
[edit] External links
- City of Baldwin City
- Baldwin City USD 348
- Baldwin City Signal
- Some Baldwin City history on the Douglas County website.
- Baldwin City, Kansas is at coordinates Coordinates:
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