Ness City, Kansas

Ness City, Kansas
—  City  —
Location of Ness City, Kansas
Coordinates: 38°27′8″N 99°54′22″W / 38.45222°N 99.90611°W / 38.45222; -99.90611Coordinates: 38°27′8″N 99°54′22″W / 38.45222°N 99.90611°W / 38.45222; -99.90611
Country	United States
State	Kansas
County	Ness
Area
– Total	1.0 sq mi (2.7 km2)
– Land	1.0 sq mi (2.7 km2)
– Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	2,254 ft (687 m)
Population (2010)[1]
– Total	1,449
– Density	1,449/sq mi (559.5/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
– Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	67560
Area code(s)	785
FIPS code	20-49925[2]
GNIS feature ID	0475581[3]
Website	City Website

Ness is a city in and the county seat of Ness County, Kansas, United States.^[4] As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,449.^[1] Ness City is famous for its four-story Old Ness County Bank Building located downtown, and nicknamed Skyscraper of the Plains.^{[citation needed]}

Geography

Ness City is located at 38°27′8″N 99°54′22″W / 38.45222°N 99.90611°W / 38.45222; -99.90611 (38.452250, -99.905989)^[5]. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.0 square mile (2.6 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1990	1,724		—
2000	1,534		−11.0%
2010	1,449		−5.5%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 1,534 people, 684 households, and 424 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,495.7 people per square mile (575.0/km²). There were 800 housing units at an average density of 780.0 per square mile (299.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.72% White, 0.07% African American, 0.39% Native American, 0.07% Asian, 0.59% from other races, and 1.17% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.28% of the population.

There were 684 households out of which 25.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.0% were married couples living together, 4.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.0% were non-families. 36.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 20.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.83.

In the city the population was spread out with 22.4% under the age of 18, 5.0% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 25.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 93.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $33,068, and the median income for a family was $42,500. Males had a median income of $28,992 versus $18,553 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,481. About 5.1% of families and 7.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.1% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.

Ness City and the surrounding county have suffered from the chronic decline in population common to rural areas of the Plains States since the 1930s known as the Rural Exodus. As evidence, fewer than 15 new homes have been built in Ness City in the past decade. The value of these homes and the per-capita build rate are both well below the national average for this period.^[6]

Trivia

• Ness City is featured in "The Killing Box", an episode of the television show Prison Break. Fugitive Theodore Bagwell tracks down his ex-girlfriend Susan Hollander after she moved to Ness City from Tribune.
• Ness City gained international attention in March 2008 as the home of the woman whose buttocks grew attached to a toilet seat after refusing to move from it for two years.^[7]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "2010 City Population and Housing Occupancy Status". U.S. Census Bureau. http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_PL_GCTPL2.ST13&prodType=table. Retrieved March 27, 2011. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
3. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
4. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
5. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
6. ^ Ness City, Kansas (KS) Detailed Profile - relocation, real estate, travel, jobs, hospitals, schools, crime, news, sex offenders
7. ^ "Sheriff: Woman Sat on Toilet for 2 Years". March 12, 2008. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jpMo5pdCnadyrY2ypTwfBfsPFxQwD8VC3P781. ^{[dead link]}

Further reading

• History of the State of Kansas; William G. Cutler; A.T. Andreas Publisher; 1883. (Online HTML eBook)
• Kansas : A Cyclopedia of State History, Embracing Events, Institutions, Industries, Counties, Cities, Towns, Prominent Persons, Etc; 3 Volumes; Frank W. Blackmar; Standard Publishing Co; 944 / 955 / 824 pages; 1912. (Volume1 - Download 54MB PDF eBook),(Volume2 - Download 53MB PDF eBook), (Volume3 - Download 33MB PDF eBook)

External links

Kansas portal

City

• City of Ness City
• Ness City - Directory of Public Officials

Schools

• USD 303, local school district

Maps

• Ness City Map, KDOT
• Ness County Map, KDOT