Kansas Counties
Find information on current and defunct counties:
Norton County, Kansas
| Date Established: | February 26, 1867 |
| Date Organized: | August 22, 1872 |
| Location: |
 |
| County Seat: | Norton |
| Origin of Name: | In memory of Capt. Orloff Norton of Co. L, 15th Kansas Cavalry, who was killed by guerillas near Cane Hill, Ark., on 11 Nov 1864. |
| History: | The county was organized largely at the behest of N.H. Billings, who presented a forged petition to the governor, followed by a largely fictitious census. Once the governor issued the proclamation of organization, naming Billingsville the temporary county seat, Billings returned to the county and in the first election in Sept. 1872 was elected state representative, county attorney, and county superintendent of schools.
During the 1873 session, the legislature making sport of Billings's vanity renamed the county in his honor; the next year, the name of Norton was restored. |
| Cities & Townships: |
| Place | Population (2000 census) |
|---|
| Norton (city) | 3,012 |
| Aldine Township | [defunct] |
| Almelo Township | [defunct] |
| Almena Township | [defunct] |
| Almena-District 4 Township | 614 |
| Belle Plaine Township | [defunct] |
| Center Township | [defunct] |
| Center-District 1 Township | 1,382 |
| Clayton Township | [defunct] |
| Crystal Township | [defunct] |
| Emmett Township | [defunct] |
| Garfield Township | [defunct] |
| Grant Township | [defunct] |
| Harrison-District 6 Township | 12 |
| Highland Township | [defunct] |
| Highland-District 2 Township | 737 |
| Lenora Township | [defunct] |
| Leota Township | [defunct] |
| Lincoln Township | [defunct] |
| Modell Township | [defunct] |
| Noble Township | [defunct] |
| Orange Township | [defunct] |
| Rock Branch Township | [defunct] |
| Rockwell Township | [defunct] |
| Sand Creek Township | [defunct] |
| Solomon Township | [defunct] |
| Solomon-District 3 Township | 196 |
| West Union Township | [defunct] |
| Total population: | 5,953 | |
|  |
| Population: |
|
1880
|
 (6,998) |
|
1890
|
(10,617) |
|
1900
|
(11,325) |
|
1910
|
(11,614) |
|
1920
|
(11,423) |
|
1930
|
(11,701) |
|
1940
|
(9,831) |
|
1950
|
(8,808) |
|
1960
|
(8,035) |
|
1970
|
(7,279) |
|
1980
|
(6,689) |
|
1990
|
(5,947) |
|
2000
|
(5,953) |
|
| Other Maps: |  |
| Other Resources: | Bibliography
Cemeteries in Norton County, as of 1906
Newspapers available on microfilm
Townships & Independent Cities in Norton County
Post offices in Norton County
|
| Links to Other Sites: | Norton County page [Blue Skyways]
Norton County GenWeb
Early Kansas Maps [KanColl]
|
|
