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Riley County, Kansas

Riley County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and largest city is Manhattan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 71,959. The county was named after Bennet Riley, the 7th governor of California, and a Mexican–American War hero. Riley County is home to Fort Riley and Kansas State University.

History
Riley County, named for Mexican–American War general Bennet Riley, was on the western edge of the 33 original counties established by the Kansas Territorial Legislature in August 1855. For organizational purposes, Riley County initially had attached to it Geary County and all land west of Riley County, across Kansas Territory into present-day Colorado.

The first Territorial Capital of Kansas Territory was located in the boundaries of Riley County, in the former town of Pawnee. The site now falls within the boundaries of Fort Riley, a U.S. Army post.

Manhattan was selected as county seat in contentious fashion. In late 1857, an election was held to select the county seat, with Ogden prevailing. However, Manhattanites suspected election fraud, and were eventually able to prove that a number of votes were illegally cast. Sheriff David A. Butterfield was forced to secure the county's books and records for Manhattan, and Manhattan was finally officially declared the county seat in 1858.

On May 30, 1879, the "Irving, Kansas Tornado" began in Riley County. This tornado is estimated to have been an F4 on the Fujita scale, with a damage path 800 yd wide and 100 mi long. Eighteen people were killed and sixty were injured.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 622 sqmi, of which 610 sqmi is land and 12 sqmi (2.0%) is water.

The eastern border of the county follows the former course of the Big Blue River. The river was dammed in the 1960s and Tuttle Creek Lake was created as a result. The county falls within the Flint Hills region of the state.

Adjacent counties

 * Marshall County (northeast)
 * Pottawatomie County (east)
 * Wabaunsee County (southeast)
 * Geary County (south)
 * Clay County (west)
 * Washington County (northwest)

Demographics

Riley County is part of the Manhattan, Kansas Metropolitan Statistical Area. People aged 15 to 34 years old make up 53.6% of the population of Riley County, one of the highest rates in the United States.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 62,843 people, 22,137 households, and 12,263 families residing in the county. The population density was 103 PD/sqmi. There were 23,397 housing units at an average density of 38 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the county was 84.78% White, 6.88% Black or African American, 0.63% Native American, 3.22% Asian, 0.17% Pacific Islander, 1.89% from other races, and 2.43% from two or more races. 4.57% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 22,137 households, out of which 27.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.20% were married couples living together, 6.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.60% were non-families. 27.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 18.80% under the age of 18, 34.50% from 18 to 24, 25.90% from 25 to 44, 13.30% from 45 to 64, and 7.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females, there were 114.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 115.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $32,042, and the median income for a family was $46,489. Males had a median income of $26,856 versus $23,835 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,349. About 8.50% of families and 20.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.20% of those under age 18 and 6.70% of those age 65 or over.

Government
Riley County is governed by three county commissioners, John Ford, Marvin Rodriguez, and Ron Wells.

Presidential elections
Owing to its history of Yankee anti-slavery settlement in “Bleeding Kansas” days, Riley County became strongly Republican following Kansas statehood, except when over half of its voters supported Progressive Theodore Roosevelt in 1912 who himself was a Republican who had broken away from the party in that election cycle. Being relatively resistant to the Democratic populism of William Jennings Bryan, Woodrow Wilson and Franklin D. Roosevelt, Riley County stood as the westernmost of thirty-eight US counties to have never voted Democratic for President since the Civil War. However, it was the only one whose status as “never Democratic” stood significantly threatened in 2016 and 2020: Hillary Clinton's losing margin of only 3.5 percent was the second-closest any Democrat has come to claiming the county behind her husband in the divided 1992 election.

In the 2018 Kansas gubernatorial election, Democratic candidate Laura Kelly won Riley County by a 24-point margin, and in the 2018 US House Election in KS-01, Republican candidate Roger Marshall lost Riley County by a 2-point margin.

2020 became a historic election for Riley County, as, even though he lost the state, Joe Biden won the county 50.7% to 46.1%, the first Democratic presidential win in Riley County's history.

Laws
Riley County is the only county in Kansas without an elected sheriff; the county police department handles all the sheriff's functions.

Riley County was a prohibition, or "dry", county until the Kansas Constitution was amended in 1986 and voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30 percent food sales requirement. The food sales requirement was removed with voter approval in 2004.

The county voted "No" on the 2022 Kansas Value Them Both Amendment, an anti-abortion ballot measure, by 68% to 32%, outpacing its support of Joe Biden during the 2020 presidential election. Preliminary results showed "No" leading by a margin of 36.8%.

Colleges and universities

 * Kansas State University
 * Manhattan Christian College
 * Manhattan Area Technical College

Unified school districts

 * Riley County USD 378
 * Manhattan-Ogden USD 383
 * Blue Valley USD 384

Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Riley County.

Cities
‡ means a community has portions in an adjacent county.

 * Leonardville
 * Manhattan‡ (county seat)
 * Ogden
 * Randolph
 * Riley

Unincorporated communities
† means a community is designated a Census-Designated Place (CDP) by the United States Census Bureau.

 * Bala†
 * Fort Riley†‡ (formerly "Fort Riley North")
 * Keats†
 * Lasita
 * May Day
 * Walsburg
 * Winkler
 * Zeandale†

Former communities
These former places were flooded when Tuttle Creek Lake was created in the 1950s to 1960s. Randolph (above) was also flooded, but moved a mile west of its original location.

 * Cleburne
 * Garrison Cross
 * Stockdale
 * Winkler

Fort Riley
Located north of the junction of the Smoky Hill and Republican rivers in Geary County, Fort Riley Military Reservation covers 100656 acre in Geary and Riley counties. The fort has a daytime population of nearly 25,000 and includes a census-designated place.

Townships
Riley County is divided into fourteen townships. The city of Manhattan which is surrounded by Manhattan Township is considered governmentally independent and is excluded from the census figures for Manhattan Township or any other townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.

Notable people
Among notable current and former residents of Riley County are former Governor John W. Carlin, General Glen Edgerton, millionaire miner Horace A. W. Tabor, NFL receiver Jordy Nelson.

title: Riley County, Kansas


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Nascom

The Nascom 1 and 2 were single-board computer kits issued in the United Kingdom in 1977 and 1979, respectively, based on the Zilog Z80 and including a keyboard and video interface, a serial port that could be used to store data on a tape cassette using the Kansas City standard, and two 8-bit parallel ports. At that time, including a full keyboard and video display interface was uncommon, as most microcomputer kits were then delivered with only a hexadecimal keypad and seven-segment display. To minimize cost, the buyer had to assemble a Nascom by hand-soldering about 3,000 joints on the single circuit board. Later on, a pre-built, cased machine named Nascom 3 was available; this used the Nascom 2 board.

History
The history of Nascom starts with the history of John A. Marshall. Marshall was the "& Son" of "A Marshall & Son (London) Ltd", an electronic component retailer whose adverts were a regular feature in hobby electronics magazines from as early as 1967.

Marshall was a director of a company called Nasco Sales Ltd; a UK distributor of US semiconductors. He was also connected with a company called Lynx Electronics (London) Ltd. which had been a regular advertiser in the hobby electronics press since 1976.

During a business trip to California in the Autumn of 1976, Marshall attended an amateur computer club meeting at Stanford University. On the flight home, he started to wonder whether there was a market in the UK for a kit computer. Marshall used the price of an SLR camera (about £200) as a reference point for the amount someone might be prepared to spend on a "hobby" purchase.

At the end of 1976, Marshall attended a microprocessor seminar at Imperial College and met Phil Pitman. Pitman was the marketing manager for Mostek, which had recently become a second source for Zilog's Z80 processor. Pitman put Marshall in touch with a design consultant named Chris Shelton and, in the spring of 1977, Marshall commissioned Shelton Instruments to design the Nascom 1.

Most of the details of the Nascom design were described in a series of articles by Pitman that appeared in Wireless World between November 1977 and January 1979.

By July 1977, monthly magazine adverts by Lynx Electronics were starting to hint about a microprocessor seminar in the autumn and a forthcoming computer product.

On Saturday, 26 November 1977, Lynx Electronics launched the Nascom 1 at their "Home Microcomputer Symposium" at Wembley Conference Centre, London. Tickets cost £3.50 and hosting the event on a Saturday pitched it at an amateur/hobbyist rather than a professional audience. The event included a raffle for a Nascom 1 computer kit. About 550 people attended the symposium and over 300 kits were sold in the two weeks following the launch.

The symposium was covered in detail in Issue 1 of PCW magazine and the Nascom 1 was the cover photograph for that issue (though not with the final keyboard). An article in that issue by K. S. Borland (another director of Nasco Sales Ltd) described the origins and history of the Nascom 1 design.

In January 1978, the Lynx Electronics advert in Practical Electronics listed the Nascom 1 in addition to their traditional list of electronic components. By February 1978 and thereafter the whole of their advert was devoted to the Nascom 1.

After the success of their seminar in Wembley, Lynx electronics held a similar event in Manchester (Saturday, 1 April 1978. Tickets cost £5.50).

The launch price for the Nascom 1 was £197.50 plus 8% VAT, in kit form. The kit included keyboard and sockets for some (but not all) of the ICs. The purchaser needed to supply a TV, a cassette recorder and a power supply. Over its lifetime, the price was reduced to £165 + VAT (March 1979) then £125 + VAT or £140 + VAT assembled (January 1980).

By July 1978, The Micronics Company was advertising a cased, built and tested Nascom 1 (with power supply) for £399 + VAT. The advert does not name the machine as a Nascom 1 but the specification is identical.

By January 1979, Lynx Electronics had appointed multiple dealers in the UK and were advertising as Nascom Microcomputers, with the "nm" logo.

In September 1979, PCW reported that Grovewood Securities had invested £500,000 in Nascom. The same article reported that PAL full-colour support would arrive for the Nascom by "the new year".

In September 1979, the Nascom 2 (kit) was announced with a list price of £295 + VAT.

Then, Nascom were hit by a shortage of Mostek MK4118 1Kx8 RAM devices. 10 devices were required per Nascom 2 (1 each for video RAM and workspace RAM respectively, 8 for user RAM) but Nascom were only able to source 5,000 parts. By November 1979 Nascom had decided to relaunch the product with a 16Kbyte DRAM board and NASBUS interconnect but to keep the price at £295 + VAT. This arrangement only required 2 MK4118 devices, allowing Nascom to ship 2,500 systems. By December 1979, PCW reported that the first deliveries of the Nascom 2 were going out.

On 23 May 1980, Nascom reported that it had asked Grovewood Securities Ltd to appoint a receiver after it had been unable to secure further investment. Grovewood appointed Messrs Cork Gully, and Marshall resigned from the company to start a new business, Gemini Computers.

Nascom continued to trade in receivership. In July 1981, PCW reported that Nascom had been bought by Lucas Industries; the same issue contained a full-page advert under the name "Nascom Microcomputers. Division of Lucas Logic Ltd".

In December 1981, the Nascom 3 was launched. This was basically a cased Nascom 2 with some expansion boards.

In June 1984, the final issue of the Nascom Newsletter was published.

In January 1985, PCW published a letter from Lucas Nascom stating that, while the Nascom 1 had been discontinued, the Nascom 2 and Nascom 3 were still in production.

Unit Sales
A Nascom advert in January 1980 claimed "over 15,000 systems in operation world-wide".

In a retrospective published in May 1989, Marshall claimed that, by May 1980, Nascom had shipped over 35,000 Nascom 1 and Nascom 2 systems, all in kit form.

Nascom reported sales of £250,000 in April 1980

Documentation
The Nascom 1 and Nascom 2 were supplied with full documentation including circuit schematics, construction guide, datasheets for some components and assembly listing for the ROM monitor. An annotated disassembly listing of the Nascom 2 Microsoft ROM BASIC was published and the code was subsequently re-purposed in retrocomputing projects such as Grant Searle's Multicomp and Spencer Owen's RC2014. The source code can now be found on GitHub.

Hardware

The Nascom 1 and Nascom 2 hardware designs had these features in common:

 * A 16 MHz crystal biased into oscillation and then divided down to create the clocks for the CPU, the serial communications and the video interface
 * A Z80/Z80A CPU
 * A Z80/Z80A PIO
 * A Harris 6402 UART (or equivalent) that could be used either to communicate with a serial device (e.g. RS232 terminal or printer) or to save and load data using a domestic compact cassette recorder.
 * A memory-mapped video display and a UHF video modulator capable of driving a domestic TV
 * Circuitry decoded on IO port 0 to control a software-scanned keyboard, to drive a LED ("DRIVE") and to generate a timed non-maskable interrupt (NMI) that was used to provide a hardware single-step capability
 * An LED ("HALT") on the Z80-CPU "/HALT" output, to provide a visual indication that the CPU was halted.

The I/O address map was common between the Nascom 1 and Nascom 2 designs, and the memory address map of the Nascom 2 was a superset of the Nascom 1 memory address map; this allowed a high degree of software compatibility between the two machines.

The Nascom 1 was implemented entirely using off-the-shelf integrated-circuits and other electronic components. The Nascom 2 used 4, 16-pin bipolar PROMs which acted as glue logic for decode functions ("N2MD" for memory decode, "N2IO" for I/O decode, "N2V" for video decode and N2DB" for data bus buffer control).

The Nascom 2 had these additional features that were not present on the Nascom 1:

 * Power-on reset with timing control to reset the CPU without interrupting the periodic refresh cycles produced by the Z80
 * Gating to reset the Z80-PIO (the Z80-PIO has no dedicated reset input)
 * A reset-jump circuit that allowed the Z80-CPU to start execution from any 4-Kbyte boundary after reset (the Z80-CPU usually fetches from address 0 after reset). This allowed, for example, control to be passed straight to the BASIC interpreter after reset.
 * Microsoft BASIC in an 8Kbyte ROM.
 * Two groups of 4 uncommitted 24-pin DIL sockets. Each group could be configured to accommodate 1Kx8 ROM or RAM devices and decoded at a start address of 0x1000, 0x2000, 0xB000, 0xC000 or 0xD000.
 * A 24-pin DIL socket that could accommodate a second character-generator ROM
 * Full buffering of the CPU address, data and control to generate the "NAS-BUS" expansion bus.

The Nascom 1 used DIL sockets for making external connections. The photo shows 4 sockets, used for keyboard, serial (cassette and/or teletype/printer), PIO port A, PIO port B. The small "daughterboard" is a home-made implementation of the "snow plough" circuit referred to below.

The I/O address map was decoded as follows: On an unexpanded system, these 8 ports were repeated through the whole of the I/O address space. On an expanded system, the bus signal /NASIO allowed control of the I/O address space.

The memory address map was decoded as follows:

Keyboard

The Nascom keyboards used Licon solid-state (induction transformer) key switches in a matrix arrangement which was scanned under software control. The keys were mounted in a metal frame that was riveted to a single-sided fibreglass PCB. The frame improves reliability by preventing the force of repeated keystrokes from being transmitted to the solder joints that connect the key switches to the PCB. A separate, conventional, key switch was provided on the keyboard for hardware reset.

The Nascom 1 had 47 keys. The Nascom 2 had 10 additional keys (GRAPH, which toggled bit 7, CTRL, a second SHIFT key, 4 cursor direction keys, LF/CH and keys for [ and ]).

The Nascom 2 keyboard was designed to be mounted at an angle; it had angled key-caps which were horizontal when the keyboard itself was mounted at an angle. The key-caps on the Nascom 1 were not angled (see photo).

The keyboard was always supplied assembled, even when the rest of the Nascom was supplied as a kit.

The Nascom 1 used a 16-pin IC-style DIL socket at each end of the connection from the keyboard to the computer main board. The Nascom 2 used a 0.1" 2x8 male header (16 pins total) at each end. In each case, the connectors use the same physical ordering of signals but the pin numbers do not correspond (because DIL sockets and IDC headers use different numbering conventions). The Nascom 2 keyboard has an additional "sense" output.

Both Nascom 1 and Nascom 2 main boards had connections to the keyboard connectors that were unused on the keyboard. On the Nascom 2, this included a connection to the /NMI (non-maskable interrupt) signal.

Video Display

The display of the Nascom 1 and 2 was memory-mapped and consisted of 16 rows of 48 characters. Each row of characters used 64 consecutive memory locations; the extra 16 characters in each line were "hidden" by the video blanking circuitry.

Scrolling was implemented under software control. Due to an idiosyncrasy of the video memory decoding on the Nascom 1 (which was then retained on the Nascom 2), the lines were decoded discontiguously, with the top line of the display being the 16th region of memory. The top line was not scrolled, except by the Nascom CP/M implementation.

The Nascom 1 used a MCM6576P character generator to display 128 characters (bit 7 of the memory was ignored). The Nascom 2 used an identical character set but implemented it in a ROM that was footprint compatible with a 2716 2Kbyte device. The Nascom 2 allowed a second 2Kbyte character generator ROM (or EPROM) to be fitted (approximate price £20 in 1980). The so-called NAS-GRA ROM was used to display characters with the byte codes 0x80–0xFF. The built-in Microsoft BASIC (8K ROM) interpreter could use these graphics to create a crude, blocky 96×48 graphics display.

Each character was 8 pixels wide and 16 pixels high, allowing display of true descenders. Therefore, a character occupied 16 bytes in the ROM (so that 256 characters required a total of 256*16=4Kbytes of character generator storage). Characters were abutted vertically and horizontally on the display and so the design of the characters within the character generator included vertical and horizontal inter-character spacing. On the Nascom 1, all 16 rows of the character were displayed, so that the whole image occupied 16*16=256 rows. On the Nascom 2, the top 12 or 14 rows of the character were displayed (controlled by the setting of a switch/jumper on the main board). The 12-row setting was intended for 525 line displays in 60 Hz geographies and the 14-row setting was intended for 625-line displays in 50 Hz geographies.

The design of the video display required that the CPU and the video circuitry shared access to the video RAM (the CPU had read/write access and the video circuitry had read-only access). If the CPU and the video circuitry accesses the video RAM simultaneously, the CPU was given priority and the video circuitry would read incorrect data. On the Nascom 1 this gave rise to white flicker on the screen that was termed "snow". The International Nascom Microcomputer Club (INMC) published a "snow plough" design that reduced the effect by blanking the video when simultaneous access occurred. The Nascom 2 used a slightly different design but still allowed contention to occur, this time giving rise to black flicker (blanking) on the screen.

Software

Initially, users were expected to write their own software. On the earliest machines with limited memory this meant writing Z80 assembly language on paper, assembling it by hand and then using the monitor program to enter it in hexadecimal format.

The Nascom 1 provided two 24-pin 0.6"-pitch DIL sockets for ROM memory, each wired to accept a 2708 1 KB device. The first monitor program on the Nascom 1 was named NAS-BUG and was supplied as a single 1 KB 2708 EPROM. This was superseded by NAS-BUG T2. All later versions of the monitor were 2 KB in size and so occupied both ROM sockets. The 2 KB monitors were BBUG (a 1 KB extension that co-existed with T2), T4, NAS-SYS 1 and NAS-SYS 3.

The Nascom 2 provided one 24-pin 0.6"-pitch DIL socket for ROM memory (other sockets on the Nascom 2 board could also be configured to accommodate ROMs), wired to accept a 5V 2716 2 KB device. Nascom 2 kits were initially provided with NAS-SYS 1 in masked ROM (the photo shows that at least two date-codes exist for these ROMs). NAS-SYS 1 was the only Nascom monitor ROM to be supplied as masked ROM; all other versions were supplied as EPROMs.

All of the debug monitors provided similar capabilities, with different levels of sophistication:

 * Examine and modify memory
 * Start program execution from a specified address
 * Insert a breakpoint (in RAM only)
 * Single-step (through ROM or RAM) and display registers. Hardware support was provided for this, using the Z80 non-maskable interrupt
 * Save a memory region to/load a memory region from cassette tape

As the user-base grew, user-group magazines published type-in programs either in assembly language or as hexadecimal dumps or (later) in BASIC. Computing magazines such as Personal Computer World, Practical Computing and Computing Today published articles and software specifically for the Nascom computers.

Later, commercial software was made available either on cassette tape or programmed into one or more EPROMs (usually 1 KB 2708 devices).

When disk drives became available, various disk operating systems became available, including PolyDos (developed by Anders Hejlsberg and inspired by the software of the PolyMorphic Systems Poly-88), NAS-DOS and CP/M.

The predecessor of Borland's very successful Turbo Pascal compiler and integrated development environment (IDE) for CP/M and DOS was developed by Anders Hejlsberg of Blue Label Software for the Nascom 2, under the name Blue Label Software Pascal, or BLS Pascal.

In 1979 the Nascom 2 came with an onboard ROM with early Microsoft Basic 8 KB interpreter.

Expansion
Nascom defined an expansion bus, named NAS-BUS, allowing many other cards to be added to the Nascom. The Nascom 1 required a buffer board to generate the NAS-BUS; the buffer board was connected to a 43-way (42-way plus polarising slot) 0.1" pitch tinned edge connector on its PCB. The Nascom 2 generated the NAS-BUS directly on an 80-way (79-way plus polarising slot) 0.1" pitch gold-plated edge connector on its PCB.

NAS-BUS was initially proprietary but quickly superseded by the 80-bus. The standard size for these cards was 8"x8" in order to fit in a "standard" 8" rack. However, some boards were produced in other sizes. Other manufacturers (including Gemini and MAP80 Systems) produced their own 80-bus CPU boards, which allowed an entire non-Nascom system to be built. Gemini 80-bus systems were, for a while, used as an industrial process controller. British Cellophane used several to continuously monitor thickness gauges attached to plastic sheet production lines. An 80-bus compatible network card enabled both Nascom and Gemini computers to be used in office environments.

Miscellaneous
In the early 1980s, one of the first generation of computer retailers, Kenilworth Computers, released a version of the Nascom microcomputer with the selling point that it was robust enough to be used by agriculture.

Movement Computer Systems used the Nascom 2 as the controller for their MCDU1 and MCDU2 drum machines.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Nascom


text:
Rice County, Kansas

Rice County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and largest city is Lyons. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 9,427. The county was named in memory of Samuel Allen Rice, Brigadier-General, United States volunteers, killed April 30, 1864, at Jenkins Ferry, Arkansas.

Early history
For many millennia, the Great Plains of North America was inhabited by nomadic Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the Kingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts of North America. In 1762, after the French and Indian War, France secretly ceded New France to Spain, per the Treaty of Fontainebleau.

19th century
In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France, but keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, most of the land for modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile Louisiana Purchase for 2.83 cents per acre.

In 1854, the Kansas Territory was organized, then in 1861 Kansas became the 34th U.S. state. In 1867, Rice County was established.

The Santa Fe Trail followed the route of present-day U.S. Route 56. Ruts in the earth from the trail are still visible in several locations. (Ralph's Ruts are visible in aerial photos at 38.35959°N, -98.42226°W.)

In 1878, Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway and parties from Marion County and McPherson County chartered the Marion and McPherson Railway Company. In 1879, a branch line was built from Florence to McPherson, in 1880 it was extended to Lyons, in 1881 it was extended to Ellinwood. The line was leased and operated by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. The line from Florence to Marion, was abandoned in 1968. In 1992, the line from Marion to McPherson was sold to Central Kansas Railway. In 1993, after heavy flood damage, the line from Marion to McPherson was abandoned. The original branch line connected Florence, Marion, Canada, Hillsboro, Lehigh, Canton, Galva, McPherson, Conway, Windom, Little River, Mitchell, Lyons, Chase, Ellinwood.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 728 sqmi, of which 726 sqmi is land and 1.7 sqmi (0.2%) is water.

Adjacent counties

 * Ellsworth County (north)
 * McPherson County (east)
 * Reno County (south)
 * Stafford County (southwest)
 * Barton County (northwest)

National protected area

 * Quivira National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 10,761 people, 4,050 households, and 2,830 families residing in the county. The population density was 15 /mi2. There were 4,609 housing units at an average density of 6 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 94.68% White, 1.15% Black or African American, 0.57% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.84% from other races, and 1.39% from two or more races. 5.61% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,050 households, out of which 31.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.10% were married couples living together, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.10% were non-families. 27.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.70% under the age of 18, 13.30% from 18 to 24, 22.80% from 25 to 44, 21.30% from 45 to 64, and 18.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 92.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,671, and the median income for a family was $40,960. Males had a median income of $31,175 versus $18,968 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,064. About 8.50% of families and 10.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.60% of those under age 18 and 8.20% of those age 65 or over.

Laws
The Kansas Constitution was amended in 1986 to allow the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with the approval of voters, either with or without a minimum of 30% of sales coming from food. Rice County is one of 35 counties in the state that allows for the sale of liquor by the drink without the minimum food sales stipulation.

Colleges

 * Sterling College in Sterling

Unified school districts

 * Sterling USD 376
 * Chase–Raymond USD 401
 * Lyons USD 405
 * Little River–Windom USD 444

 * School district office in neighboring county
 * Central Plains USD 112

Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Rice County.

Cities

 * Alden
 * Bushton
 * Chase
 * Frederick
 * Geneseo
 * Little River
 * Lyons (county seat)
 * Raymond
 * Sterling

Unincorporated communities

 * Mitchell
 * Pollard
 * Saxman
 * Silica

Ghost towns

 * Crawford
 * Galt

Townships
Rice County is divided into twenty townships. The cities of Lyons and Sterling are considered governmentally independent and are excluded from the census figures for the townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.

Trivia
The CW television series Superman & Lois places Superman's home town of Smallville in Rice County ("Pilot").

title: Rice County, Kansas


text:
Republic County, Kansas

Republic County is a county located in the state of Kansas, south from the Nebraska state line. Its county seat and largest city is Belleville. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 4,674. The county was named after the Republican River.

Early history
For millennia, the Great Plains of North America were inhabited by nomadic Native Americans. From the 16th to 18th centuries, the Kingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts of North America. In 1762, after the French and Indian War, France ceded New France to Spain, by the Treaty of Fontainebleau.

19th century
In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France, keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, the land that included modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile Louisiana Purchase.

Prior to the arrival of settlers of European ancestry, the area was inhabited by Indian tribes including the Pawnee, Iowa, and Otoe. One should also consider that other nomadic Indian tribes pursuing the buffalo, including the Arapaho, Cheyenne, Comanche, Kansa, Kiowa, Osage, and Wichita, may have made the area their home at one time or another.

In 1854, under the provisions of the Kansas–Nebraska Act, the Kansas Territory was organized. In 1860, Republic County was established by the Kansas legislature. And, in 1861, Kansas became the 34th U.S. state. The county is named for the Republican River, which enters at the northwestern corner of the county, flowing slightly east of south, and leaving the county about eight miles east of the southwest corner.

Daniel and Conrad Myers were the first settlers of European ancestry, arriving in February 1861. By 1868, Republic County was holding elections. Daniel Myers was elected judge of the Probate court and Conrad Myers to a seat on the County commission. At the election in 1869, the permanent location of the county seat was voted on with the following result: Belleville 59 and New Scandinavia 42, with a couple of votes going to other locations.

Following the Civil War and during the latter half of the 19th century, Belleville and the surrounding area became a destination for European immigrants, notably from Sweden and Bohemia (now Czech Republic).

In 1887, Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway built a branch line from Neva (3 miles west of Strong City) to Superior, Nebraska. This branch line 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. At some point, the line from Neva to Lost Springs was pulled but the right of way has not been abandoned. This branch line was originally called "Strong City and Superior line" but later the name was shortened to the "Strong City line".

In 1996, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway merged with Burlington Northern Railroad and was renamed the BNSF Railway, although most locals still refer to this railroad as the "Santa Fe".

Geography
According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 720.31 sqmi, of which 716.38 sqmi (or 99.45%) is land and 3.93 sqmi (or 0.55%) is water.

Adjacent counties

 * Thayer County, Nebraska (north)
 * Jefferson County, Nebraska (northeast)
 * Washington County (east)
 * Cloud County (south)
 * Jewell County (west)
 * Nuckolls County, Nebraska (northwest)

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 5,835 people, 2,557 households, and 1,685 families residing in the county. The population density was 8 /mi2. There were 3,113 housing units at an average density of 4 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 98.56% White, 0.26% Black or African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.33% from other races, and 0.46% from two or more races. 0.94% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 24.1% were of German, 13.6% Swedish, 12.4% Czech, 9.2% English, 9.0% Irish and 8.6% American ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 2,557 households, out of which 25.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.80% were married couples living together, 4.80% had a woman householder with no husband present, and 34.10% were non-families. 31.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.80.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.30% under the age of 18, 4.50% from 18 to 24, 22.10% from 25 to 44, 25.00% from 45 to 64, and 26.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 women there were 93.20 men. For every 100 women age 18 and over, there were 90.80 men.

The median income for a household in the county was $30,494, and the median income for a family was $39,215. Men had a median income of $25,260 versus $17,274 for women. The per capita income for the county was $17,433. About 6.00% of families and 9.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.40% of those under age 18 and 8.90% of those age 65 or over.

Presidential elections
Republic County is overwhelmingly Republican. No Democratic presidential candidate has won the county, with the exception of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 and Woodrow Wilson in 1912 and 1916. Since 1996, the Republican candidate has garnered seventy percent of the county's vote. The only Democrat since 1980 to exceed one quarter of the vote was Michael Dukakis in 1988.

Laws
Republic County was a prohibition ("dry") county until 1986, when the Kansas Constitution was amended, allowing the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30 percent food sales requirement.

Unified school districts

 * Republic County USD 109
 * Pike Valley USD 426

Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Republic County.

Cities

 * Agenda
 * Belleville (county seat)
 * Courtland
 * Cuba
 * Munden
 * Narka
 * Republic
 * Scandia

Unincorporated communities
† means a Census-Designated Place (CDP) by the United States Census Bureau.

 * Harbine
 * Kackley
 * Norway†
 * Rydal
 * Talmo
 * Wayne

Ghost towns

 * Sherdahl
 * White Rock

Townships
Republic County is divided into twenty townships. The city of Belleville is considered governmentally independent and is excluded from the census figures for the townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.

Notable people

 * Arts and entertainment
 * Robert Gordon, actor (1895–1971)
 * Greta Granstedt, actress
 * Harry A. Pollard, silent film actor

 * Athletes
 * Herb Bradley, Major League Baseball player
 * Thomas Bushby, player for the Cincinnati "Football" Reds in 1934 and the Philadelphia Eagles in 1935
 * Lloyd Cardwell, football player
 * Larry Cheney, Major League Baseball player
 * Dean Nesmith, professional football player, Olympic athletic trainer
 * Ronald Severa, Olympic water polo player, 1956 and 1960
 * Anthony Zuzzio, offensive lineman for the Detroit Lions

 * Clergy
 * Allen Wikgren, pastor and Bible scholar
 * Richard B. Wilke, former pastor in Scandia, writer of the Disciple ministry series

 * Journalists
 * J. C. Humphrey, founder of the Belleville Telescope newspaper
 * A.Q. Miller, namesake of the A.Q. Miller School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Kansas State University.

 * Medicine
 * C. M. Arbuthnot, early physician and pharmacist in the county

 * Philanthropy
 * Elizabeth A. Johnson, Kansas history advocate

 * Politicians
 * Clay Aurand, member of Kansas Legislature
 * Charles H. Blosser (1895–1989), namesake of Blosser Municipal Airport in Concordia, Kansas
 * Edwin C. Johnson, Governor of Colorado
 * William C. Perry, 34th Chief Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court
 * Isaac O. Savage, state senator in the Kansas legislature

 * Settlers
 * Ransom Henry Gile, early settler in Scandia
 * Thomas Lovewell, founded settlement of White Rock, namesake of Lovewell Reservoir

title: Republic County, Kansas


text:
Reno County, Kansas

Reno County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and largest city is Hutchinson. As of the 2020 census, the population was 61,898. The county is named for Jesse Reno, a general during the American Civil War.

Early history
For many millennia, the Great Plains of North America was inhabited by nomadic Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the Kingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts of North America. In 1762, after the French and Indian War, France secretly ceded New France to Spain, per the Treaty of Fontainebleau.

19th century
In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France, but keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, most of the land for modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile Louisiana Purchase for 2.83 cents per acre.

In 1854, the Kansas Territory was organized, then in 1861 Kansas became the 34th U.S. state.

In 1867, Reno County was established, named for General Jesse L. Reno.

In 1887, the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway extended its main line from Herington to Pratt. This main line connected Herington, Ramona, Tampa, Durham, Waldeck, Canton, Galva, McPherson, Groveland, Inman, Medora, Hutchinson, Whiteside, Partridge, Arlington, Langdon, Turon, Preston, Natrona, Pratt. In 1888, this main line was extended to Liberal. Later, this line was extended to Tucumcari, New Mexico and El Paso, Texas. This line is called the "Golden State Limited".

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1272 sqmi, of which 1255 sqmi is land and 17 sqmi (1.3%) is water. It is the third-largest county by area in Kansas.

Adjacent counties

 * Rice County (north)
 * McPherson County (northeast)
 * Harvey County (east)
 * Sedgwick County (southeast)
 * Kingman County (south)
 * Pratt County (southwest)
 * Stafford County (west)

National protected area

 * Quivira National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Demographics

The Hutchinson Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Reno County.

As of the census of 2000, there were 64,790 people, 25,498 households, and 17,313 families residing in the county. The population density was 52 /mi2. There were 27,625 housing units at an average density of 22 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 91.56% White, 2.88% Black or African American, 0.58% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.69% from other races, and 1.81% from two or more races. 5.65% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 25,498 households, out of which 30.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.90% were married couples living together, 8.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.10% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.50% under the age of 18, 9.30% from 18 to 24, 26.90% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 16.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 100.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,510, and the median income for a family was $42,643. Males had a median income of $31,495 versus $21,329 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,520. About 8.10% of families and 10.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.90% of those under age 18 and 8.50% of those age 65 or over.

Government
Reno County is strongly Republican. The last time a Democratic candidate won the county was in 1976 when Jimmy Carter did so. However, 1988 was somewhat close as Michael Dukakis lost the county by only 5 percentage points due to a persistent drought and farm crisis.

Laws
Reno County was a prohibition, or "dry", county until the Kansas Constitution was amended in 1986 and voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30 percent food sales requirement. The food sales requirement was removed with voter approval in 2004.

Colleges

 * Hutchinson Community College

Unified school districts

 * Hutchinson USD 308
 * Nickerson-South Hutchinson USD 309
 * Fairfield USD 310
 * Pretty Prairie USD 311
 * Haven USD 312
 * Buhler USD 313

Private schools
There are three private schools in Hutchinson:
 * Central Christian School (K-12)
 * Trinity Catholic High School (7-12)
 * Holy Cross Catholic school (PreK-6)

Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Reno County.

Cities

 * Abbyville
 * Arlington
 * Buhler
 * Haven
 * Hutchinson (county seat)
 * Langdon
 * Nickerson
 * Partridge
 * Plevna
 * Pretty Prairie
 * South Hutchinson
 * Sylvia
 * The Highlands
 * Turon
 * Willowbrook

Unincorporated communities
† means a community is designated a Census-Designated Place (CDP) by the United States Census Bureau.

 * Castleton
 * Darlow
 * Huntsville
 * Lerado
 * Medora
 * St. Joe
 * Yaggy
 * Yoder†

Ghost towns

 * Kent

Townships
Reno County is divided into thirty-one townships. The cities of Hutchinson and Nickerson are considered governmentally independent and are excluded from the census figures for the townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.

title: Reno County, Kansas


text:
Rawlins County, Kansas

Rawlins County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and largest city is Atwood. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 2,561. It was named after John Rawlins, a general in the American Civil War.

Early history
For many millennia, the Great Plains of North America was inhabited by nomadic Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the Kingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts of North America. In 1762, after the French and Indian War, France secretly ceded New France to Spain, per the Treaty of Fontainebleau.

19th century
In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France, but keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, most of the land for modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile Louisiana Purchase for 2.83 cents per acre.

In 1854, the Kansas Territory was organized, then in 1861 Kansas became the 34th U.S. state. In 1873, Rawlins County was established.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1070 sqmi, of which 1069 sqmi is land and 0.2 sqmi (0.1%) is water.

Major highways

 * US 36.svg U.S. Highway 36
 * K-25.svg Kansas Highway 25
 * K-117.svg Kansas Highway 117

Adjacent counties

 * Hitchcock County, Nebraska (north)
 * Red Willow County, Nebraska (northeast)
 * Decatur County (east)
 * Thomas County (south)
 * Sherman County (southwest/Mountain Time border)
 * Cheyenne County (west)
 * Dundy County, Nebraska (northwest/Mountain Time border)

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,966 people, 1,269 households, and 846 families residing in the county. The population density was 3 /mi2. There were 1,565 housing units at an average density of 2 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 98.52% White, 0.30% Black or African American, 0.30% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.07% from other races, and 0.71% from two or more races. 0.81% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 1,269 households, out of which 27.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.50% were married couples living together, 4.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.30% were non-families. 31.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.88.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.00% under the age of 18, 3.80% from 18 to 24, 21.50% from 25 to 44, 25.10% from 45 to 64, and 25.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 99.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $32,105, and the median income for a family was $40,074. Males had a median income of $26,719 versus $19,750 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,161. About 7.90% of families and 12.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.00% of those under age 18 and 8.90% of those age 65 or over.

Presidential elections
The county is part of the highly Republican Kansas's 1st congressional district. It has favored the Republican candidate for president in each of the last eighteen elections. The last Democrat to carry the county was Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936, when the GOP standard bearer was Kansas Governor Alf Landon. In the last five Presidential elections the Democratic candidate has never received more than 21% of the county's vote.

Law
Following amendment to the Kansas Constitution in 1986, the county remained a prohibition, or "dry", county until 2002, when voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30% food sales requirement.

Unified school districts

 * Rawlins County USD 105

Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Rawlins County. † means a community is designated a Census-Designated Place (CDP) by the United States Census Bureau.

Cities

 * Atwood (county seat)
 * Herndon
 * McDonald

Unincorporated communities

 * Blakeman
 * Ludell†

Ghost towns

 * Achilles
 * Beardsley
 * Beaverton
 * Burntwood
 * Celia
 * Chardon
 * Gladstone
 * Greshamton
 * Mirage
 * Rawlins
 * Rotate

Townships
Rawlins County is divided into ten townships. None of the cities within the county are considered governmentally independent, and all figures for the townships include those of the cities. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.

title: Rawlins County, Kansas


text:
Voice acting

Voice acting is the art of performing a character or providing information to an audience with one's voice. Performers are often called voice actors/actresses in addition to other names. Examples of voice work include animated, off-stage, off-screen, or non-visible characters in various works such as films, dubbed foreign films, anime, television shows, video games, cartoons, documentaries, commercials, audiobooks, radio dramas and comedies, amusement rides, theater productions, puppet shows, and audio games.

The role of a voice actor may involve singing, most often when playing a fictional character, although a separate performer is sometimes enlisted as the character's singing voice. A voice actor may also simultaneously undertake motion capture acting. Non-fictional voice acting is heard through pre-recorded and automated announcements that are a part of everyday modern life in areas such as stores, elevators, waiting rooms, and public transport. Voice acting is recognized as a specialized dramatic profession in the United Kingdom, primarily due to BBC Radio's long and storied history of producing radio dramas.

Character voices
The voices for animated characters are provided by voice actors. For live-action productions, voice acting often involves reading the parts of computer programs, radio dispatchers or other characters who never actually appear on screen. With an audio drama, there is more freedom because there is no need to match a dub to the original actor or animated character. Producers and agencies are often on the lookout for many styles of voices, such as booming voices for more dramatic productions or cute, young-sounding voices for trendier markets. Some voices sound like regular, natural, everyday people; all of these voices have their place in the voiceover world, provided they are used correctly and in the right context.

Narration
In the context of voice acting, narration is the use of spoken commentary to convey a story to an audience. A narrator is a personal character or a non-personal voice that the creator of the story develops to deliver information about the plot to the audience. The voice actor who plays the narrator is responsible for performing the scripted lines assigned to them. In traditional literary narratives (such as novels, short stories, and memoirs) narration is a required story element; in other types of (chiefly non-literary) narratives (such as plays, television shows, video games, and films) narration is optional.

Commercial
One of the most common uses for voice acting is within commercial advertising. The voice actor is hired to voice a message associated with the advertisement. This has different sub-genres such as television, radio, film, and online advertising. The sub-genres are all different styles in their own right. For example, television commercials tend to be voiced with a narrow, flat inflection pattern (or prosody pattern) whereas radio commercials, especially local ones, tend to be voiced with a very wide inflection pattern in an almost over-the-top style. Marketers and advertisers use voice-overs in radio, TV, online adverts, and more; total advertising spend in the UK was forecast to be £21.8 billion in 2017. Voice-over used in commercial adverts had traditionally been the only area of voice acting where "de-breathing" was used. This means artificially removing breaths from the recorded voice, and is done to stop the audience being distracted in any way from the commercial message that is being put across. However, removal of breaths has now become increasingly common in many other types of voice acting.

Translation
Dub localization is the practice of voice-over translation, in which voice actors alter a foreign-language film or television series. Voice-over translation is an audiovisual translation technique, in which, unlike in Dub localization, actor voices are recorded over the original audio track, which can be heard in the background. This method of translation is most often used in documentaries and news reports to translate words of foreign-language interviewees.

Automated dialogue replacement
Automated dialogue replacement (ADR) is the process of re-recording dialogue by the original actor after the filming process to improve audio quality or reflect dialogue changes, also known as "looping" or a "looping session". ADR is also used to change original lines recorded on set to clarify context, improve diction or timing, or to replace an accented vocal performance. In the UK, it is also called "post-synchronization" or "post-sync".

Automated announcements
Voice artists are also used to record the individual sample fragments played back by a computer in an automated announcement. At its simplest, each recording consists of a short phrase which is played back when necessary, such as the "mind the gap" announcement introduced on the London Underground in 1969, which is currently voiced by Emma Clarke. In a more complicated system, such as a speaking clock, the announcement is re-assembled from fragments such as "minutes past", "eighteen", and "p.m." For example, the word "twelve" can be used for both "Twelve O'Clock" and "Six Twelve". Automated announcements can also include on-hold messages on phone systems and location-specific announcements in tourist attractions.

AI-generated and AI-modified voices
Since the late 2010s, software to modify and generate human voices has become more popular. In 2019, AI startup Dessa created the computer-generated voice of Joe Rogan using thousands of hours of audio from his podcast, while video game developer Ubisoft used speech synthesis to give thousands of characters distinguished voices in its 2020 game Watch Dogs: Legion, and Google announced that same year their solution to generate human-like speech from text.

Most voice actors and others in the entertainment industry have reacted negatively to this development due to the threat it poses to their livelihood. The 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike included negotiations between the union and Hollywood studios about the regulation of AI, as well as discussions with video game studios about new terms that would protect voice actors who specialize in that field. Although SAG-AFTRA heralded the deal it struck with AI company Replica Studios as a breakthrough due to its supposed ability to give actors more control over licensing their voice and how it may be used, the deal received backlash for its actual lack of protections from prominent voice actors such as Steve Blum, Joshua Seth, Veronica Taylor, and Shelby Young. The use of AI voices in video games and animation has also been criticized in general by voice actors such as Jennifer Hale, David Hayter, Maile Flanagan, and Ned Luke.

AI voices have caused concern due to the creation of believable audio deepfakes featuring celebrities or other public figures saying things they did not actually say, which could lead to a synthetic version of their voice being used against them. In October 2023, during the start of the British Labour Party's conference in Liverpool, an audio deepfake of Labour leader Keir Starmer was released that falsely portrayed him verbally abusing his staffers and criticizing Liverpool. That same month, an audio deepfake of Slovak politician Michal Šimečka falsely claimed to capture him discussing ways to rig the upcoming election. In January 2024, voters in the New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary received phone calls featuring an AI-generated voice of U.S. President Joe Biden that tried to discourage them from voting.

United States
In films, television, and commercials, voice actors are often recruited through voice acting agencies.

United Kingdom
The UK banned broadcasting of the voices of people linked to violence in Northern Ireland from 1988 to 1994, but television producers circumvented this by simply having voice actors dub over synchronized footage of the people who had been banned.

Japan
Voice actor (声優) occupations include performing roles in anime, audio dramas, and video games; performing voice-overs for dubs of non-Japanese movies; and providing narration to documentaries and similar programs. Japan has approximately 130 voice acting schools and troupes of voice actors who usually work for a specific broadcast company or talent agency. They often attract their own appreciators and fans, who watch shows specifically to hear their favorite performer. Many Japanese voice actors frequently branch into music, often singing the opening or closing themes of shows in which they star, or become involved in non-animated side projects such as audio dramas (involving the same characters in new storylines) or image songs (songs sung in character that are not included in the anime but which further develop the character).

Brazil
Most of the films in the theaters are dubbed in Portuguese, and most Brazilians tend to prefer watching movies in their native language. Many voice actors are also dubbing directors and translators. To become a voice actor in Brazil, one needs to be a professional actor and attend dubbing courses. Some celebrities in Brazil have also done voice acting.

Iran
Voice acting in Iran is divided into three categories. Voice over Persian films, voice over Iranian animations, and dubbing of films and animations related to other countries (in non-Persian language) In the first category, due to the lack of facilities for simultaneous recording of sound while filming a film, the voice actors spoke instead of the film actors. Although this type of voice is related to years ago and now with the increase of facilities, it is possible to record the voice of the actors at the same time, but even today, sometimes the voice of the voice actors is used instead of the main actor. The tail of the voice is on Iranian animations, and like in other parts of the world, voice actors speak instead of animated characters. But most of the activities of Iranian voice actors are in the field of dubbing foreign films. In this case, the main language of the film is translated into Persian, and the dubbing director compiles the sentences according to the atmosphere of the film and the movement of the actors 'mouths and other such cases, and finally the voice actors play roles instead of the actors' voices.

Voice acting in video games
Actors often lend their voices to characters in games and some have made a career of it across many of the main game-manufacturing countries, mostly the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Japan. Their names have sometimes been linked to a particular character they have voiced.

Notable video game voice actors include Maaya Sakamoto (the Japanese version of Lightning in Final Fantasy XIII), Tatsuhisa Suzuki (Noctis Lucis Caelum in Final Fantasy XV), Miyu Irino (the Japanese version of Sora in the Kingdom Hearts series), David Hayter (Solid Snake and Big Boss in the Metal Gear series), Steve Downes and Jen Taylor (Master Chief and Cortana in the Halo series), Nolan North (Nathan Drake in the Uncharted series and Desmond Miles in the Assassin's Creed series), Troy Baker (Joel in The Last of Us series) and Charles Martinet (Mario, Luigi, Wario, and Waluigi in Nintendo's Mario franchise).

Other actors more linked with film or television acting have also voiced video game characters, such as Ray Liotta (Tommy Vercetti in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Billy Handsome in Call of Duty: Black Ops II), Michael Dorn (various characters in World of Warcraft and Gatatog Uvenk in Mass Effect 2), Kaili Vernoff (Miranda Cowan in Grand Theft Auto V and Susan Grimshaw in Red Dead Redemption 2), Ashley Johnson (Ellie in The Last of Us series), Kristen Bell (Lucy Stillman in the first three mainline entries in the Assassin's Creed franchise) and Kevin Spacey (Jonathan Irons in Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare).

Some actors from both live-action and animated works have also reprised their respective roles in video games, such as Kevin Conroy (Batman) and Mark Hamill (The Joker) in the Batman: Arkham series, Sylvester Stallone (John Rambo) in Mortal Kombat 11, various actors from the works of Walt Disney Animation Studios in Kingdom Hearts, and Mike Pollock (Doctor Eggman) in Sonic the Hedgehog.

title: Voice acting


text:
Pratt County, Kansas

Pratt County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and largest city is Pratt. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 9,157. The county was named for Caleb Pratt, a U.S. soldier who died in the Battle of Wilson's Creek during the American Civil War and had previously been involved in Bleeding Kansas.

The county consists overwhelmingly of prairie and contains few watercourses; the most important of these is the Ninnescah River.

Farming continues to be important to the county, which is among the state’s leading winter wheat producers.

History
Pratt County was established in 1867. The county's first attempt at organization, termed the "fraudulent organization," occurred in 1873. A group from Hutchinson traveled through various counties, organizing them as they went. However, since there were no genuine settlers in Pratt County at the time, this organization required the submission of false statements to the governor. This fraudulent attempt was not recognized, and the Pratt County was legitimately organized in 1879.

The county's first bona fide settler, A. J. Johnson, arrived in the fall of 1873 near Springvale in the southwest corner, where he cultivated the county's first crops. The county saw significant settlement in 1877, primarily from Iowa, and further in 1878 from all sections of the United States, keeping land office officials busy with pre-emption claims. Despite a prosperous period for crops in 1879 and 1880, many settlers departed in subsequent years, while others arrived in large numbers, especially in 1882. During the county's early years, owing to the scarcity of lumber, many constructed sod houses or dugouts.

The special election of September 2, 1879, focused on the choice of a county seat, was disputed due to irregularities. After a lawsuit second election was scheduled for August 19, 1880. In the lead-up to that election, a proponent of Saratoga named W. F. Gibbons made a deal with W. H. Weidner from Medicine Lodge, agreeing to pay him $40 to bring about fifteen cowboys into Pratt County thirty days before the election to vote for Saratoga. Each cowboy was promised $5, free whisky, and a free dance at Saratoga on the night of the election. Weidner located the cowboys and provided Gibbons with a list of names as agreed, receiving $25 as part payment. However, due to a contract dispute, all the cowboys left Pratt County before the election, causing Saratoga to lose their intended votes. Iuka was ultimately declared the county seat with a significant majority.

Efforts to relocate the county seat to Pratt commenced in 1885 and succeeded in 1888 over the objections of Saratoga. An 1888 blizzard killed over 80% of the county's cattle, causing widespread hardship.

In 1887, the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway extended its main line from Herington to Pratt. This main line connected Herington, Ramona, Tampa, Durham, Waldeck, Canton, Galva, McPherson, Groveland, Inman, Medora, Hutchinson, Whiteside, Partridge, Arlington, Langdon, Turon, Preston, Natrona, Pratt. In 1888, this main line was extended to Liberal. Later, this line was extended to Tucumcari, New Mexico and El Paso, Texas. This line is called the "Golden State Limited".

During World War II, Pratt Army Airfield trained, processed, and housed B-29s and their crews before they were sent to war.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 736 sqmi, of which 735 sqmi is land and 0.7 sqmi (0.09%) is water.

Adjacent counties

 * Stafford County (north)
 * Reno County (northeast)
 * Kingman County (east)
 * Barber County (south)
 * Kiowa County (west)
 * Edwards County (northwest)

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 9,647 people, 3,963 households, and 2,639 families residing in the county. The population density was 13 /mi2. There were 4,633 housing units at an average density of 6 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 95.28% White, 0.98% Black or African American, 0.35% Native American, 0.55% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.73% from other races, and 1.07% from two or more races. 3.09% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 3,963 households, out of which 30.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.70% were married couples living together, 7.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.40% were non-families. 30.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.50% under the age of 18, 9.40% from 18 to 24, 24.00% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64, and 19.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 94.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,529, and the median income for a family was $43,156. Males had a median income of $31,138 versus $20,679 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,906. About 6.70% of families and 9.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.50% of those under age 18 and 8.90% of those age 65 or over.

Laws
Following amendment to the Kansas Constitution in 1986, Pratt County remained a prohibition, or "dry", county until 2000, when voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30 percent food sales requirement.

Colleges

 * Pratt Community College

Unified school districts

 * Pratt USD 382
 * Skyline USD 438

Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Pratt County.

Cities

 * Byers
 * Coats
 * Cullison
 * Iuka
 * Pratt (county seat)
 * Preston
 * Sawyer

Unincorporated communities

 * Cairo
 * Croft
 * Hopewell
 * Natrona

Townships
Pratt County is divided into seven townships. The city of Pratt is considered governmentally independent and is excluded from the census figures for the townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.

title: Pratt County, Kansas


text:
Pottawatomie County, Kansas

Pottawatomie County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat is Westmoreland. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 25,348. The county was named for the Potawatomi tribe.

Early history
For millennia, the Great Plains of North America were inhabited by nomadic Native Americans. From the 16th to 18th centuries, the Kingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts of North America. In 1762, after the French and Indian War, France secretly ceded New France to Spain, by the Treaty of Fontainebleau.

19th century
In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France, keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, most of the land for modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile Louisiana Purchase.

In 1854, the Kansas Territory was organized under the provisions of the Kansas–Nebraska Act, then in 1861 Kansas became the 34th U.S. state.

In 1857, Pottawatomie County was established by the Kansas Territorial legislature, out of land formerly included in Riley County. The present county seat of Westmoreland was selected by a vote held in 1882.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 862 sqmi, of which 841 sqmi is land and 21 sqmi (2.4%) is water.

Adjacent counties

 * Marshall County (north)
 * Nemaha County (northeast)
 * Jackson County (east)
 * Shawnee County (southeast)
 * Wabaunsee County (south)
 * Riley County (west)

Demographics

Pottawatomie County is part of the Manhattan Metropolitan Statistical Area.

As of the census of 2000, there were 18,209 people, 6,771 households, and 4,929 families residing in the county. The population density was 22 /mi2. There were 7,311 housing units at an average density of 9 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 96.32% White, 0.66% Black or African American, 0.59% Native American, 0.32% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.60% from other races, and 1.50% from two or more races. 2.26% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 6,771 households, out of which 36.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.40% were married couples living together, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.20% were non-families. 23.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.15.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 29.50% under the age of 18, 7.70% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 21.60% from 45 to 64, and 13.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $40,176, and the median income for a family was $47,261. Males had a median income of $31,368 versus $23,238 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,785. About 6.40% of families and 9.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.10% of those under age 18 and 10.30% of those age 65 or over.

Presidential elections
Typical of rural Kansas, Pottawatomie County is mostly Republican. The only Democratic presidential candidate to gain a majority in Pottawatomie County has been Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932, while since 1940 only Lyndon Johnson in 1964 has received so much as forty percent of the county's vote.

Laws
Pottawatomie County was a prohibition, or "dry", county until the Kansas Constitution was amended in 1986 and voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30% food sales requirement.

Unified school districts
The Unified School Districts that serve Pottawatomie County include:
 * Wamego USD 320
 * Kaw Valley USD 321
 * Onaga USD 322
 * Rock Creek USD 323

 * School district office in neighboring county
 * Riley County USD 378
 * Manhattan–Ogden USD 383
 * Blue Valley USD 384

Private schools

 * St. Marys Academy & College (St. Marys)
 * Flint Hills Christian School (Manhattan)

Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Pottawatomie County.

Cities
‡ means a community has portions in an adjacent county.

 * Belvue
 * Emmett
 * Havensville
 * Louisville
 * Manhattan‡ (most in Riley County)
 * Olsburg
 * Onaga
 * St. George
 * St. Marys‡
 * Wamego
 * Westmoreland (county seat)
 * Wheaton

Unincorporated communities

 * Blaine
 * Duluth
 * Flush
 * Fostoria
 * Saint Clere
 * Swamp Angel

Former communities
Prior to the creation of Tuttle Creek Lake, the community of Garrison existed in west central Pottawatomie County.

Townships
Pottawatomie County is divided into twenty-three townships. The city of Manhattan is considered governmentally independent and is excluded from the census figures for the townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.

title: Pottawatomie County, Kansas


text:
Phillips County, Kansas

Phillips County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and largest city is Phillipsburg. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 4,981. The county was named after William Phillips, a free-state abolition journalist and colonel in the American Civil War.

Early history
For many millennia, the Great Plains of North America was inhabited by nomadic Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the Kingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts of North America. In 1762, after the French and Indian War, France secretly ceded New France to Spain, per the Treaty of Fontainebleau.

19th century
In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France, but keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, most of the land for modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile Louisiana Purchase for 2.83 cents per acre.

In 1854, the Kansas Territory was organized, then in 1861 Kansas became the 34th U.S. state. In 1867, Phillips County was established.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 895 sqmi, of which 886 sqmi is land and 8.7 sqmi (1.0%) is water.

Adjacent counties

 * Harlan County, Nebraska (north)
 * Franklin County, Nebraska (northeast)
 * Smith County (east)
 * Rooks County (south)
 * Graham County (southwest)
 * Norton County (west)

National protected area

 * Kirwin National Wildlife Refuge

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 6,001 people, 2,496 households, and 1,722 families residing in the county. The population density was 7 /mi2. There were 3,088 housing units at an average density of 4 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 98.25% White, 0.25% Black or African American, 0.30% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 0.03% from other races, and 0.72% from two or more races. 0.67% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,496 households, out of which 28.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.50% were married couples living together, 5.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.00% were non-families. 28.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.50% under the age of 18, 5.70% from 18 to 24, 23.20% from 25 to 44, 24.80% from 45 to 64, and 21.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 94.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,013, and the median income for a family was $41,638. Males had a median income of $29,609 versus $17,827 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,121. About 7.20% of families and 10.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.60% of those under age 18 and 8.80% of those age 65 or over.

Presidential elections
Phillips County is overwhelmingly Republican. No Democratic presidential candidate has won Phillips County since Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932, and since 1940 only two Democrats have obtained thirty percent of the county's vote: Lyndon Johnson in 1964 and Jimmy Carter in 1976.

Laws
Following amendment to the Kansas Constitution in 1986, the county remained a prohibition, or "dry", county until 1996, when voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30 percent food sales requirement.

Unified school districts

 * Thunder Ridge USD 110
 * Agra and small eastern portion of county; extends into western third of Smith County
 * Northern Valley USD 212
 * Long Island and northwestern corner of county; extends into northeastern Norton County
 * Phillipsburg USD 325
 * city of Phillipsburg and areas near and along US 183
 * Logan USD 326
 * southwestern corner of county along and south of K-9; extends into southeastern Norton County

Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Phillips County.

Cities

 * Agra
 * Glade
 * Kirwin
 * Logan
 * Long Island
 * Phillipsburg (county seat)
 * Prairie View
 * Speed

Unincorporated communities
† means a community is designated a Census-Designated Place (CDP) by the United States Census Bureau.

 * Gretna
 * Stuttgart†
 * Woodruff†

Ghost towns

 * Crow
 * Dickeyville
 * Goode
 * Jimtown
 * Luctor
 * Matteson
 * Myrtle
 * Pleasant Green
 * Powell
 * Wagnerville
 * West Cedar

Townships
Phillips County is divided into twenty-five townships. The city of Phillipsburg is considered governmentally independent and is excluded from the census figures for the townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.

title: Phillips County, Kansas


text:
Pawnee County, Kansas

Pawnee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and largest city is Larned. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 6,253. The county is named after the Pawnee tribe.

Agriculture remains a cornerstone of Pawnee County's economy, with the county being one of the state's leading producers of winter wheat. Other agricultural products include oilseed, grain, vegetables, melons, and cotton. The county also supports beef cattle ranching and feedlots.

History
Pawnee County was established in 1867 and organized in 1872. The county derives its name from the Pawnee Indian tribe, who historically inhabited the region. Prior to its establishment as Pawnee County, the area was contained in the old Washington County, Peketon County, and later Marion County.

Ford Larned was established near the site of present-day Larned, Kansas between 1859 and 1860 to provide protection for wagon trains traversing the Santa Fe Trail. Notably, in January 1863, a wagon train was stopped by a starving band Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians. After refusing the Indians' request for supplies, the wagon train was attacked and all but one of the teamsters killed. The survivor sought refuge at Ford Larned.

Against this background of increasing tension in the region, Fort Larned became a base of operations for Major General Winfield Hancock's campaign against the Plains tribes. After Hancock requested reinforcements from U.S. Seventh Cavalry, led by Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer, Custer began a campaign against the Cheyenne culminating in their defeat in the Battle of the Washita River in Oklahoma.

Additionally, Fort Larned played a vital role in safeguarding railroad construction workers, distributing treaty-established annuities to the Indians, and serving as a Bureau of Indian Affairs office during the 1860s. While the fort officially closed in 1878, a detachment from Fort Dodge remained stationed there until 1883.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 755 sqmi, of which 754 sqmi is land and 0.4 sqmi (0.05%) is water.

Adjacent counties

 * Rush County (north)
 * Barton County (northeast)
 * Stafford County (east)
 * Edwards County (south)
 * Hodgeman County (west)
 * Ness County (northwest)

National protected area

 * Fort Larned National Historic Site

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 7,233 people, 2,739 households, and 1,785 families residing in the county. The population density was 10 /mi2. There were 3,114 housing units at an average density of 4 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 90.96% White, 5.00% Black or African American, 0.95% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 1.22% from other races, and 1.30% from two or more races. 4.16% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,739 households, out of which 29.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.80% were married couples living together, 7.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.80% were non-families. 32.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.20% under the age of 18, 7.30% from 18 to 24, 25.40% from 25 to 44, 24.60% from 45 to 64, and 18.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 112.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,175, and the median income for a family was $45,634. Males had a median income of $26,751 versus $20,931 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,584. About 5.40% of families and 11.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.00% of those under age 18 and 9.90% of those age 65 or over.

Presidential elections
Pawnee County has been primarily Republican for the majority of its history. However, there have been multiple stretches where it was considered a swing county, backing the national winner in all presidential elections from 1904 to 1936 as well as 1964 to 1988. It has trended away from bellwether status since 1988 however.

Laws
Following amendment to the Kansas Constitution in 1986, Pawnee County remained a prohibition, or "dry", county until 1992, when voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30 percent food sales requirement.

Unified school districts

 * Ft. Larned USD 495
 * Pawnee Heights USD 496

Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Pawnee County.

Cities

 * Burdett
 * Garfield
 * Larned (county seat)
 * Rozel

Unincorporated communities

 * Ash Valley
 * Frizell
 * Sanford
 * Zook

Townships
Pawnee County is divided into twenty-one townships. The city of Larned is considered governmentally independent and is excluded from the census figures for the townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.

title: Pawnee County, Kansas


text:
Ottawa County, Kansas

Ottawa County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and largest city is Minneapolis. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 5,735. The county was named after the Odawa tribe.

Early history
For many millennia, the Great Plains of North America was inhabited by nomadic Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the Kingdom of France claimed ownership of large parts of North America. In 1762, after the French and Indian War, France secretly ceded New France to Spain, per the Treaty of Fontainebleau.

19th century
In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France, but keeping title to about 7,500 square miles. In 1803, most of the land for modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile Louisiana Purchase for 2.83 cents per acre.

In 1854, the Kansas Territory was organized, then in 1861 Kansas became the 34th U.S. state. In 1860, Ottawa County was established.

20th century
Following amendment to the Kansas Constitution in 1986, Ottawa County remained a prohibition, or dry county until 2006, when voters approved the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with a 30% food sales requirement.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 721 sqmi, of which 721 sqmi is land and 0.6 sqmi (0.08%) is water.

Features
The Solomon River is the longest river in the county, entering from Cloud County to the northwest and exiting to Saline County to the southeast. The Saline River traverses the southwestern portion of the county, going from Lincoln County to Saline County.

The largest lake is Ottawa State Fishing Lake, a 111 acre reservoir to the east of Minneapolis. It is managed by the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks.

Adjacent counties

 * Cloud County (north)
 * Clay County (northeast)
 * Dickinson County (southeast)
 * Saline County (south)
 * Lincoln County (west)
 * Mitchell County (northwest)

Demographics

Ottawa County is part of the Salina, KS Micropolitan Statistical Area.

As of the census of 2000, there were 6,163 people, 2,430 households, and 1,718 families residing in the county. The population density was 8 /mi2. There were 2,755 housing units at an average density of 4 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 97.53% White, 0.54% Black or African American, 0.37% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.32% from other races, and 1.09% from two or more races. 1.30% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,430 households, out of which 31.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.40% were married couples living together, 6.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.30% were non-families. 25.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.70% under the age of 18, 5.80% from 18 to 24, 26.70% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 17.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $38,009, and the median income for a family was $46,033. Males had a median income of $30,761 versus $21,380 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,663. About 5.10% of families and 8.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.80% of those under age 18 and 11.70% of those age 65 or over.

Presidential elections
Like all of Kansas outside the eastern cities, Ottawa County is overwhelmingly Republican. No Democratic presidential candidate has won Ottawa County since Lyndon Johnson in 1964, and the last to reach thirty percent of the county's vote was Michael Dukakis in 1988 during a major Great Plains drought.

Unified school districts

 * North Ottawa County USD 239
 * Twin Valley USD 240

Communities
List of townships / incorporated cities / unincorporated communities / extinct former communities within Ottawa County.

Cities

 * Bennington
 * Culver
 * Delphos
 * Minneapolis (county seat)
 * Tescott

Unincorporated communities
† means a community is designated a Census-Designated Place (CDP) by the United States Census Bureau.

 * Ada†
 * Lindsey
 * Niles†
 * Sumnerville
 * Verdi
 * Wells†

Ghost town

 * Vine Creek

Townships
Ottawa County is divided into twenty townships. The city of Minneapolis is considered governmentally independent and is excluded from the census figures for the townships. In the following table, the population center is the largest city (or cities) included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.

title: Ottawa County, Kansas