Smith County is a county in Kansas, United States, in the north-central part of the state, about 100 miles south of Grand Island, Nebraska. It had a population of 3,570 at the 2020 census, an estimated 3,552 by 2024, and covers 895 square miles (2,320 km2) centred near 39°50′N 98°45′W.
Smith Center is the county seat and the county’s only city with more than 1,000 residents; its postal code is 66967. The county holds 6 incorporated cities and 8 unincorporated communities across 25 townships, and it runs on Central Time. Its FIPS code is 20181.
Towns & Villages in Smith County
Smith County has 14 named places on record: 6 incorporated cities and 8 unincorporated communities with no local government of their own. Unincorp. covers former post-office settlements and rural crossroads with no formal boundary.
| Place | Type | Township | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smith Center | City · seat | — | 1,571 | 66967 |
| Kensington | City | — | 399 | 66951 |
| Lebanon | City | — | 178 | 66952 |
| Gaylord | City | — | 87 | 67638 |
| Athol | City | — | 41 | 66932 |
| Cedar | City | Cedar | 11 | 67628 |
| Bellaire | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Claudell | Unincorp. | Valley | — | — |
| Cora | Unincorp. | Cora | — | — |
| Dispatch | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Harlan | Unincorp. | Harlan | — | — |
| Reamsville | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Thornburg | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Womer | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
Cora is a genuine ghost town today — its post office closed in 1904 and by 1981 only one
inhabited house remained on the site, now partly occupied by a car scrapyard. Bellaire, once a
town with a bank, two churches and a reported 200 residents, lost its post office in 1980;
Claudell, Dispatch, Harlan, Reamsville, Thornburg and Womer were all former railroad or
mail-route stops whose post offices closed between 1904 and 1995. None of the eight has current
Census population data because none is a recognised place for census purposes.
Townships
Smith County is divided into 25 civil townships: Banner, Beaver, Blaine, Cedar, Center, Cora,
Crystal Plains, Dor, Garfield, German, Harlan, Harvey, Houston, Lane, Lincoln, Logan, Martin, Oak,
Pawnee, Pleasant, Swan, Valley, Washington, Webster and White Rock. The Census Bureau does not
publish separate population figures for Kansas civil townships — their residents are counted
in the county and place totals above, not broken out by township.
ZIP Codes
- 66967 — Smith Center (also serves the surrounding rural county seat area)
- 66951 — Kensington
- 66952 — Lebanon
- 67638 — Gaylord
- 66932 — Athol
- 67628 — Cedar
Bellaire, Claudell, Cora, Dispatch, Harlan, Reamsville, Thornburg and Womer have no ZIP code of
their own; mail addressed to any of them is delivered under the nearest incorporated town’s code.
Geography
Smith County sits in Kansas, United States, on the north-central Great Plains, on the Nebraska
border. Of its 897 square miles, 895 are land and 1.5 are water, about 0.2 percent — low
for the region. The Solomon River runs through the southern part of the county, forming a flat
basin used to irrigate crops; the county has no large natural lake. The geographic centre of the
48 contiguous United States lies within the county, marked by a monument 2.6 miles northwest of
Lebanon.
Webster County and Franklin County, Nebraska, lie to the north, Jewell County to the east,
Osborne County to the south, Rooks County to the southwest, and Phillips County to the west. Webster County, Franklin County, Jewell County, Osborne County, Rooks County and Phillips County all border Smith
directly.
Demographics
Smith County had a population of 3,570 at the 2020 census, and the latest estimate puts the
county near 3,552 residents, continuing a decline that dates back to 1900, when improved farming
technology began requiring fewer workers per acre. Smith Center and Kensington are the two largest
communities, together holding more than half the county’s population. Median household income
runs $59,135, well below Kansas’s statewide 2023 ACS figure of $70,333. Population density works
out to roughly 4 people per square mile of land, among the lowest in the state.
Economy & Local Life
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting employs the most workers in the county, about 356
people, followed by health care and social assistance at 279 and retail trade at 246, out of
1,762 total employed residents. Winter wheat is the county’s dominant crop, a shift from the
corn farming of the county’s early decades, after drought and grasshopper plagues repeatedly
destroyed corn harvests and hardy Russian-bred winter wheat proved better suited to the climate.
Smith Center hosts the Smith County Fair each summer, the county’s largest annual gathering.
History
Kansas organized Smith County in 1872 and named it for J. Nelson Smith, a major in the 2nd
Colorado Cavalry who died at the Battle of Westport on October 21, 1864. The county’s
population grew quickly at first, reaching roughly 15,000 by 1889, before the decline that has
continued for well over a century.
In 1873, songwriter Brewster Higley composed “Home on the Range” in a cabin nine miles
northwest of Smith Center; the song later became the Kansas state song. On February 13, 1905, the
temperature at Lebanon fell to −40°F, the lowest minimum temperature ever recorded in Kansas.
Getting There
U.S. Routes 281 and 36 cross at Smith Center, the county’s main highway junction; no
interstate crosses the county.
- Osborne — about 24 miles south
- Phillipsburg — about 29 miles west
- Mankato — about 31 miles east
- Grand Island, Nebraska — about 100 miles north
Hays Regional Airport, in Ellis County, is the nearest airport with scheduled commercial
service, currently flown by United Express. Smith County has no Amtrak service; the nearest
station is on the Southwest Chief line at Lawrence, well to the east.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Smith County located?
It sits in north-central Kansas on the Nebraska border, about 100 miles south of Grand Island,
bordered by Webster, Franklin, Jewell, Osborne, Rooks and Phillips counties.
What is the population of Smith County?
3,570 at the 2020 census, with a 2024 estimate near 3,552.
How big is Smith County?
897 square miles (2,320 km2), of which 895 square miles are land.
What is the county seat of Smith County?
Smith Center, organized with the county in 1872, is the county seat and largest city.
How many towns are in Smith County?
Six incorporated cities — Smith Center, Kensington, Lebanon, Gaylord, Athol and Cedar —
plus eight unincorporated communities: Bellaire, Claudell, Cora, Dispatch, Harlan, Reamsville,
Thornburg and Womer.
What ZIP codes does Smith County use?
66967 for Smith Center, 66951 for Kensington, 66952 for Lebanon, 67638 for Gaylord, 66932 for
Athol and 67628 for Cedar.
What is Smith County known for?
The geographic centre of the 48 contiguous United States, marked near Lebanon, and the cabin
northwest of Smith Center where Brewster Higley wrote “Home on the Range” in 1873.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Kansas.